Though they may not often get shine on the big screen, trans men, butch lesbians and studs have fascinating stories that span time periods and cultures. An upcoming month of screenings at Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAMPFA) offers a rare opportunity to take in a diverse selection of films with masculine-of-center, gender-nonconforming protagonists.
Curated by queer film historian Jenni Olson and trans critic Caden Mark Gardner, Masc: Trans Men, Butch Dykes, and Gender Nonconforming Heroes in Cinema kicks off on Jan. 19 with a screening of No Ordinary Man (directed by Aisling Chin-Yee and Chase Joynt, 2020), a documentary about jazz pianist Billy Tipton, who was outed as assigned female at birth and slandered in the press after his death in 1989. The film not only uplifts his musical contributions, but also explores the sacrifices he made in order to pass. At the screening, Olson will host a discussion with premier trans historian Susan Stryker and GLBT Historical Society archivist Isaac Fellman.