Laverne Cox, star of Orange Is The New Black and activist for trans* rights, awareness and visibility is at work with Logo and MTV to produce a new documentary that will follow the lives of four transgendered teens and young adults between the ages of 14-24. This new film will proceed Cox’s previous production debut: a documentary on the life and case of CeCe McDonald, a TWOC that was arrested and charged with accidental murder after defending herself from a racist, transphobic attack in Minneapolis. McDonald was sentenced to 41 months in prison, during which she met with Cox and filmed a series of interviews for the film that aimed to bring light to the disproportionate amount of violent crimes mounted against trans women of color. Check out the trailer below:
Cox’s newest project, titled “Trans Teen: The Documentary” shifts the focus from the “nature of how race, class and gender affect violence toward trans women” and aims to focus on the progression of the subjects’ lives as they face bullying and self discovery.
This one-hour documentary will take viewers inside the lives of four trans youth –- young people who, until recently, may not have even felt safe sharing their lives with others. Ranging in age from 14 to 24 and hailing from diverse neighborhoods across America, each of the four cast members has their own unique story to tell. But this isn’t a story about being an “other” –- it’s about being human. They all share the courage and determination to live their lives authentically, as the person they were meant to be. With varying levels of parental and social support, they will share their brave journeys as they learn to overcome challenges like intolerance, bullying and general confusion about who and what they are.
We are so excited to hear about this project, and even more excited to see it when it airs this fall. Here’s to Laverne and everything she’s done to bring awareness to trans issues across the media platforms! And here’s a video of Laverne talking to W. Kamau Bell on his show Totally Biased, because really, who couldn’t listen to her talk all day?
