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Intersexuality and Gender Mutability

100% Woman.

A post-operative transsexual, Michelle Dumaresq, has provoked outrage by entering the sport of women's mountain bike racing. The program explores complex issues of gender identity surrounding the controversy and manifested in Dumaresq's personal and professional relationships. Includes commentary from her parents and interviews with Michelle, friends, and rival cyclists. Director, Karen Duthie. Dist.: Films Media Group. 2004. 60 min.

Almost Myself: Reflections on Mending and Transcending Gender

What happens when a young gay man, struggling not only with his sexuality but also gender, decides to have surgery to become a female, and later in life decides to return to being a gay man again? Can someone live their life full time as a female, but still have a penis? What's life like for a former male college football player, finally living her life as the woman she was always meant to be? These are just some of the stories told in the fascinating, poignant, and informative documentary. The film focuses primarily on women who are white and older, yet were identified as male at birth.

Assume Nothing

Artistic expression of alternatively gendered people's lives reveals a captivating world where gender cannot be defined as simply male or female. This program features New Zealand photographer Rebecca Swan and her images for "Assume Nothing," a book that explores the beauty and complexity of gender identity. Four of Swan's subjects speak candidly about their own gender identities and experiences, focusing on their creative expression as artists. Dist.: Films Media Group. c2009. 80 min.

Black and White

In a small New Zealand hospital in 1953, the birth of Mani Bruce Mitchell caused a mild pandemonium. Fifty years later, this film interweaves the stories of this intersex activist and the acclaimed photographer Rebecca Swan, exploring their potent creative collaboration. This fascinating documentary introduces viewers to notions of fluid gender identity, challenging the rigid categories of 'male' and 'female'. Produced and directed by Kirsty MacDonald. 2006. 17 min.

Boy I Am

Follows the transitions of Nicco, Norie and Keegan, three young New Yorkers from different race and class backgrounds, as they prepare and undergo female to male transition surgery. Reveals the conflict over the place of trans-males within the lesbian community. A film by Sam Feder and Julie Hollar. 2006. 68 min.

Colonel Jing Xing: A Unique Destiny

Depicts the world of Jin Xing as a dancer, choreographer, colonel in the People's Liberation Army and the first to have a sex change operation in China. Directed by Sylvie Levey ; produced by Arnaud Hamelin. c2001. 52 min.

Cruel and Unusual

Examines the realities faced by transgender women in mens' prisons. Ashley, Linda, Anna, Yolanda and Ophelia describe their experiences including rape, violence, solitary confinement and denial of medical care. Their difficult stories challenge the most basic notions of gender and justice while raising an important question: Is their treatment indeed cruel and unusual -- a violation of the Eighth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution? A documentary film by Janet Baud, Dan Hunt, and Reid Williams. c2006. 60 min.

Diagnosing Difference

A documentary film featuring thirteen transgender and genderqueer scholars, artists, and activists discussing the impact and implications of the Gender Identity Disorder diagnosis on their lives and communities. Directed by Annalise Ophelian c2009. 64 min.

Dream Girls

Each year thousands of Japanese girls apply to enter the highly disciplined school for the Takarazuka Revue, the incredibly successful musical theater company where women play both male and female roles. This documentary presents a compelling look at this company and phenomenon, and a study on the interplay of gender and sexual identity in Japan today. Directed by Kim Longinotto and Jano Williams. 1994. 50 min.

Related web sites: Women Make Movies catalog description

Folklore of the Transgender Community in Tamil Nadu

Documentary on life cycle ceremonies of transgendered people in Tamil Nadu, India. 2007. 39 min.