Amazon has launched a new documentary series about transgender and gender non-conforming people, called This is Me.
This Is Me is an online series exploring contemporary issues faced by the trans and gender non-conforming community, and each short episode focuses on a specific issue – from gender-neutral language to public restrooms. The series explores the real-life struggles and triumphs of individuals like D’Lo (Looking), Maya Jafer (Mohammed to Maya), Valerie Spencer (Beautiful Daughters), Lily Rubenstein (Looking) and more, bringing humor and honesty to these timely issues.
The series is directed by transman Rhys Ernst and produced by Transparent creator Jill Soloway's Wifey TV.
In response to content featuring trans characters, we’re evolving to the next level. This Is Me instigates a new era: stories produced by the trans community about the trans community.
--Soloway
Entertainment Weekly has the episodes.
Closets
There’s no better backdrop than a closet to focus on the challenges of coming out as trans. Here, actor/writer/comedian D’Lo, of Sri Lankan descent, and Indian-born actor/dancer/healer Maya Jafer share their very different true stories.
Generations
Trans advocate and therapist Valerie Spencer and trans teenager Lily Rubenstein don’t let a few decades get in the way of understanding. As they travel throughout LA, visiting points of references from Spencer’s personal herstory, the two are brought closer than they could ever imagine.
From the Bathroom
Sometimes a person just needs a place to pee! No one knows that better than trans entertainer-activists Rocco Kayiatos and Mariana Mar. The duo reclaim public restrooms as gender neutral while cracking wise (and wisely) about the issues surrounding today’s controversial bathroom politics.
Right this Way
You wouldn’t judge a book by its cover, yet the faux pas of public misgendering is far too common. Genderqueer Transparent alumni Mel Shimkovitz and Petey Gibson banter unabashedly on the importance of more inclusive, gender neutral language at popular destinations on LA's east side.
And my Sisters
For years, transgender women lived in fear of hanging out together, lest they become targets of violence. Here, artist/actor/decorator Van Barnes, comedic iconoclast Miss Barbie-Q and artist/filmmaker Zackary Drucker proudly and bravely bond in public, offering a glimpse of rarely seen transfeminine sisterhood.