Boy I Am is an important exploration of issues rarely touched upon by most films portraying female-to-male (FTM) transgender experiences, this feature-length documentary sets itself apart from other recent films on this topic. Tackling the resistance of some women in feminists and lesbian communities who view FTM transitioning as at best a "trend" or at worst an anti-feminist act that taps into male privilege, this groundbreaking film opens up a dialog between the lesbian, feminist, and transgender communities while also promoting understanding of transgender issues for general audiences.
In the course of the film, three young transitioning FTMs in New York City- Nicco, Norie and Keegan- go through major junctures in their transitions, discussing everything from their relationships with their bodies, feminism, and the intersection of race and class with their transgender identity. Their stories are interspersed with interviews with lesbians, activists and theorists who engage with the often-contentious questions and issues that are raised within the queer and feminist communities but are rarely discussed openly. Situating these struggles and stories as inextricably linked to queer and feminist struggles, BOY I AM presents an empowering chronicle of queer resistance that challenges all viewers to rethink their concepts of activism and identity.
Samantha Feder, Co-Director/Co-Producer, Executive Producer is a media producer, activist and educator. She has been working on documentaries for political and social justice since 1999. Her first project brought her to Cuba for four months, where she worked alongside renowned Cuban filmmakers producing VERSUS, a film about US Cuba policy. Feder was the Associate Producer for the film BEYOND GOOD & EVIL; MEDIA, CHILDREN AND VIOLENT TIMES, which explored the ways that the media's representation of the war in Iraq has affected children both in the US and abroad. She produced and edited the short narrative, F. SCOTT FITZGERALD SLEPT HERE, which won the Frameline completion fund.
BOY I AM is her first feature documentary. Feder received her B.A. in Anthropology from Skidmore College in 1997, and in 2004 she received an M.A. in Media Studies from the New School University, with concentrations in media criticism and documentary production. With the help of a research fellowship from the Institute for the Study of Women and Gender in the Arts and Media, Feder has begun pre-production for her second feature documentary. (06/07)
Julie Hollar worked as a volunteer member of the Paper Tiger Television collective for three years, co-producing documentaries such as "Class Dismissed"- a 30-minute documentary featuring Howard Zinn that explores what is left out of the typical high school history curriculum - and "Mandate for Democracy", a response to the 2004 presidential election. Previously, as the
field and communications coordinator at the Lesbian Gay Rights Lobby in Texas, Hollar helped pass the first trans-inclusive non-discrimination legislation through the Texas House of Representatives. She currently works as the communications director at the national media watch group FAIR. BOY I AM is her first feature film.
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Independent Intervention by Tonje Hessen Schei
“Independent Intervention” is an award-winning documentary about the US media coverage of the war in Iraq. Focusing on the human costs of war, it contrasts the mass media’s coverage of the invasion of Iraq with independent reports of the brutal realities on the ground. Independent Intervention features people like Amy Goodman, Noam Chomsky, Dahr Jamail, and Howard Zinn.
Tonje is a Norwegian filmmaker with experience as a producer, director, and reporter from NRK, the Norwegian National Broadcasting Network. She recently completed her masters in film from NTNU, the University of Trondheim in Norway, and has a BA in film production from the University of Texas in Austin.
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Binary Dolls by Melanie Brown
Binary Dolls, 4:20 “Master of the Ten Key”
A firm believer in this band and the lyrical talents of Nick Jaina, Melanie took a road trip from Los Angeles to Arizona and while listening to this, album she envisioned rubber ducks, angst and bedlam, it all comes together for a happy result.
Bartlett Pear by Melanie Brown
Bartlett Pear, 7 min. 35 mm
A girl out with some friends has an existential moment inspired by a respite to the bathroom and an earlier encounter with some fruit flies.
Like most Portlanders, this great city allows Melanie to wear several different hats of talent. She got her first feature film exposure in 2002 when she worked for a very small stipend as a translator on the Beijing portion of Kill Bill.
Lately Melanie has been active in the Portland film industry: this year she co-produced with Grace Carter and Holly Andres on the beautifully shot film “Nora”. She taught a class of aspiring filmmakers at the Art Institute. She was the cinematographer for a film shot in Haiti for World Hope International and also for local artist Jeremy Bird on his short film, "Drums+Lines", featured at the PDX Invitational Night. She has been asked to write music video treatments for the bands Menomena and The Be Good Tanya’s. Currently, she fills her time photographing, trying to play the banjo, and working at Laika on a feature film called Coraline. Please check out her latest film “Ben, a true story” on her website www.melanibrown.com
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Finding Common Ground in New Orleans by Walidah
“Finding Common Ground in New Orleans” is a short documentary that addresses the social injustice that took place during and after the hurricane Katrina disaster through the lens of poet and activist Walidah Imarisha.
Walidah is an independent journalist, a poet and an organizer. A member of the poetry duo Good Sista/Bad Sista, she was also one of the editors of the 9/11 anthology Another World is Possible and was the founding editor of AWOL Magazine. She organizes with the Human Rights Coalition, a Pennsylvania group of prisoners' families working to abolish the prison system.
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Defending A Choice for women by Beverly Yuen Thompson
“Defending A Choice for Women” chronicles the struggle of a women's health clinic, under siege by anti-choice protesters. The local Catholic churches have banned together to shut down the clinic-named A Choice for Women. Miami Clinic Access Project (MCAP) was created to combat the antis and allow women access to the clinic.
Beverly Yuen Thompson http://www.snakegirl.net is currently a Visiting Professor of Women's Studies at Florida International University in Miami. She wrote her dissertation on the Global Justice movement and direct action.
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“Dresses” is part of a yearlong project that revolved around the concept and experience of being fat. It was one of many pieces in a multimedia installation that was intensely personal and powerful.
*Annie Maribona is a fashionable, fat, femme artist who has been making movies since the tender age of 15. Her heart beats faster for personal, diaristic, experimental movies made by women and queers. A native of the Oregon coast, she has lived bi-coastally, studying in New York to complete her degree in Film Studies at Bard College. Pieces of her heart reside in San Francisco, though she is happily ensconced in the Rose City. She aspires to open a fat-positive clothing store and is accepting donations of funds and plus-sized clothing.
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Using the rhythms and dream-logic of a fairytale, Plum is a meditation on secrets between women, sexual fantasy, and fruit.
Sarah Lipkin is a filmmaker, writer, and musician living in Portland, Oregon. She seeks to combine her passion for artistic expression with her dedication to social justice and human rights in an every day, sustainable way. "Plum" was her senior thesis project at Wesleyan University in Connecticut.
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My American Grandmother by Aysha Ghazoul
“My American Grandmother” is a personal documentary about the relationship between an Iraqi filmmaker and her Texan Grandmother. It examines the conflicts created by cultural and political differences, and focuses on the challenges involved in making a film about a close relative.
Aysha Ghazoul and her family left Iraq in 1980 and settled in England where she pursued a business and finance degree in Manchester. In 1994 Aysha moved to Oregon to attend the Northwest Film Center. In 2005 she chose a new path and opened Zaytoon, a bar in northeast Portland.
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Winter Return by Chelsea Walton
Winter Return (2006)
1:00 min., Time-lapse, Mini-DV, color, stereo.
A moody peek of the city as the night arrives and departs.
Chelsea Walton is an animator, filmmaker, and artist born in 1975, in Story County, Iowa. Raised in the farming community of New Providence (pop. 201), she had to pick a 4H project and gravitated toward photography rather than baking. As a filmmaker she is inspired by immediate surroundings, everyday situations, technological breakthroughs and breakdowns. She animates, films and remixes past, present, and future experiences for big screens, computer screens, living room screens, and driveway screens.
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Power in Numbers by Elizabeth Starkey
Power in Numbers is a music video shot in Atlanta by Elizabeth Starkey for the band Second Shift. Pixilation and stop-motion of camera angles comprise the unique treatment of this catchy, award-winning video.
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'Stache Dance bu Elizabeth Starkey
'Stache Dance presents a brief look into the life of Hall & Oates admirer Paul Tamore and his unusual obsession with John Oates. This short comedy features an intense collage-making scene, a vast amount of spaghetti, and a colorful motion graphics music video tribute to John Oates and his moustache.
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Elizabeth Starkey is a graduate of Atlanta College of Art with a BFA in Digital Video Production. Her award-winning independent films and mixed media art have appeared in a number of film festivals, venues, and publications, including Paper Magazine, Southeast Performer, and Spin.