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MALTATODAY 1 September 2019

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10 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 1 SEPTEMBER 2019 FILM FILM BARRING instances of com- plete bigots, even the harsh- est critic of the current po- litical administration would be forced to admit that the current Labour govern- ment's laws regarding LGB- TIQ rights were a necessary, inspiring and even nation- ally uplifting move. From the Gender Identity, Gender Expression And Sex Charac- teristics Act (GIGESC) be- ing adopted by the Maltese parliament in April of 2015 to same sex marriage legali- sation in September 2017 and other measures, Malta suddenly found itself being able to boast about LGBTIQ rights on a global stage. This, despite the fact that the gap between on-paper laws and the reality on the ground will always be ever- shifting. However, an institu- tional push does often help in creating safer spaces of both expression and discussion, and TRANSformazzjoni, di- rected by Olwyn Jo and pro- duced by MGRM, stands as a clear example of this. Featuring interviews with five transgender individuals of varying ages and walks of life, Olywn Jo's film offers a sensitive and eminently watchable exploration of the transgender experience in Malta and Gozo, moving across class, and even genera- tional lines. Perhaps the added pressure on it shoulders by dint of be- ing first out of the gate doesn't do the film any favours – like most civil rights wins, it in- evitably feels 'long overdue' – particularly if viewers are expecting a wide-ranging and historically exhaustive his- tory of the transgender expe- rience on the island. Thank- fully for both its director/ editor and ourselves, the rel- atively modest focus is made clear and explicit pretty early on: TRANSformazzjoni is simply an open conversation with five individuals from the trans spectrum who happen to live in Malta and Gozo, and who will be detailing their own subjective experi- ence of the journey, in their own words. The generational shift between the younger par- ticipants and Brenda, the 48-year-old telephone op- erator who keeps horses as a hobby, is perhaps the most interesting and reveal- ing strand of what ends up emerging as the film's nar- rative. While the students among the bunch (specifi- cally Rosario and Lee) speak about how they found solace, inspiration and courage to articulate their own feelings thanks to global pop culture phenomena like the Ellen DeGeneres show and You- Tube confessionals, Brenda takes us on a trip down (her) memory lane of drag shows at venues like the Buskett Forest, Dolmen and Dar tal- Mediterran, even going so far as to say that things were livelier and more fun back then. We naturally have to adjust for any tints of nostal- gia, but Brenda's memories could also very well be ex- pressing a clash between the more raw and raucous popu- Showing at Spazju Kreattiv as part of Pride Week, the pioneering documentary offers a sensitive glimpse into the lives of five transgender individuals from different walks of life Teodor Reljic TRANSformazzjoni offers an insight into the lives of five trans individuals from both Malta and Gozo Charting an intimate transformation

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