The groundbreaking documentary Transgeek: The Intersection of Gender Identity and Geek Culture will have its Midwestern premiere, on April 28, as part of the QFest St. Louis. The screening will take place at 1:00 p.m. at the Landmark Tivoli Theater.
TransGeek brings together the stories of transgender people working in the tech industry and existing within geek culture:
These are the stories of people that risked their careers and their lives to be their authentic selves. These are the stories of people that persevere in an industry that undervalues women, LGBTQ folk, and people of color; to pursue their passions. These are the stories of people that found themselves in the pages of science fiction and fantasy – or didn't and wrote themselves in anyway. These are the stories of people that turned to the Internet to build communities that transcended geography and bigotry, and then found themselves again the target of hatred and harassment. TransGeek is about making a place for transgender people to tell their own stories in their own voices. The film uses in-depth interviews conducted over a period of several years to explore the lives, hobbies, politics, careers, and thoughts of transgender geeks, and features an original score composed by Zoë Blade, a British electronic musician and transgender woman.
TransGeek got its start in St. Louis, Mo. as a collaboration between director Kevin McCarthy and co-producer Sayer Johnson, Executive Director of Metro Trans Umbrella Group. Many of the interviews for the documentary took place in the area. TransGeek's other co-producer, Mallory Wood, grew up in Edwardsville, Ill. Indeed, the screening at QFest feels like a homecoming for the film.
The 12th Annual QFest St. Louis, presented by Cinema St. Louis,runs April 28-May 2, 2019, at the Tivoli Theatre.The St. Louis-based LGBTQ film festival, QFest will present an eclectic slate of 28 films (14 shorts, seven narrative features, and seven documentary features). The participating filmmakers represent a wide variety of voices in contemporary queer world cinema. The mission of the film festival is to use the art of contemporary gay cinema to spotlight the lives of LGBTQ people and to celebrate queer culture.