TRANS DAY OF VISIBILITY

Happy Trans Day of Visibility!

While today is a day of celebration, it’s also imperative to recognize how much work is needed to be done for the Trans community to achieve justice. We shall continue to uplift the voices of the Trans community and other marginalized genders until we no longer need to fight!

Join us in celebrating the accomplishments of our community by checking out Fatales Forward: a trailblazing fellowship from Film Fatales designed to support trans and gender diverse directors working on their debut scripted or unscripted feature films through a career advancement intensive, one-on-one mentorship, peer workshops, and ongoing artist development support.

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M.G. “GRACE” EVANGELISTA

Mary Evangelista is a filmmaker born in the Philippines and raised in California’s Bay Area. Mary received an MFA from NYU Tisch for Writing and Directing. Their short film, Fran This Summer, is an LGBTQ summer love story that has screened in over 30 festivals, including the Sundance Film Festival. Mary co-created Water Melts, a Tribeca Film Institute and Google-supported VR rom-com which premiered at Tribeca Film Festival and screened at Rotterdam International Film Festival. Mary was a Project Involve Fellow with Film Independent where they directed the short La Gloria. Mary’s debut feature film, Burning Well, received a 2020 Tribeca All Access grant.

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LEY COMAS

Ley Comas is an Afro-Latinx Trans non-binary filmmaker. They were born in Costa Rica and raised in the Dominican Republic. After coming to US in 2013, they received their Associate’s degree in Video Arts and Technology from Burrough of Manhattan Community College in 2015. Ley obtained their Bachelor’s degree in Cinema and Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies from Binghamton University in 2017. They received their Master’s degree in Documentary Filmmaking from The City College of New York, Spring 2020. Ley is a production sound mixer by trade. Their work as a production sound mixer has been included in several film festivals and major streaming platforms. As a non-binary filmmaker of trans experiece, Ley’s work is grounded in collaborating on and creating films that highlight and empower the narratives of underrepresented and erased identities. Ley currently lives in the Bronx; they enjoy bike riding, cooking, and spending time with their cat.

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NYALA MOON

Nyala Moon is a filmmaker, writer, and actress of trans experience. After working in the nonprofit community helping other transgender and queer people of color access affirming health care, Nyala took a leap of faith and pursued her passion for filmmaking. Before going to film school, Nyala worked with the indie LGBT film scene as a director, writer, and producer. Nyala was also a contributor for the anthology, Written on the Body: Letters from Trans and Non-Binary Survivors of Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence by Lexi Bean. Nyala Moon has been touring colleges with her other anthology contributors, speaking to college students about sexuality, gender identity, and sexual assault. In May 2020, Nyala graduated from City College with her MFA in film production. Last year her student thesis film, One Last Deal, was screened at NewFest, Inside Out Toronto, Outfest, and many other film festivals. Nyala was also a 2020-2021 QueerArt Film fellow with Tu Me Manques director Rodrigo Bellot as her mentor. She also is a TV writing fellow for Hillman Grad 2021 inaugural class.

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SEPAND “SEPI” MASHIAHOF

Sepand Mashiahof is a second generation Iranian-American immigrant and trans-femme filmmaker, screenwriter, and musician. She holds a BA in Literature from the University of California, Santa Cruz, where she wrote her senior thesis on Horror Film, using a feminist lens to explore the queer signifiers of canonized monsters throughout film history. After graduating, she moved to Oakland, CA where she cultivated relationships with the queer underground arts community through her work as Executive Director at Bay Area Girls Rock Camp, host of the cult Scream Queens Radio program, and member of industrial no wave band SBSM. These connections allowed her to pursue her passions as a filmmaker, where she directed a plethora of music videos before making her short film debut with Love You Forever, a psychological arthouse horror film which she wrote, directed, acted in, and composed the soundtrack for. Currently, Sepand is keeping a nest of nine feature screenplays warm while pursuing relationships with producers who love horror films and want to see queer/trans stories through them. As part of her own empowerment journey, she utilizes genre storytelling to create worlds of nuance in which trans protagonists can experience their arcs without the pressure of cissexist expectations. As seen with the praise Love You Forever has received from film festival audiences in 2021, she is pushing the discourse around trans representation beyond assimilationist conjectures and bringing power back into the hands of queers, where we can celebrate the beauty within the ugliness we’ve experienced from our struggles.

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SEYI ADEBANJO

Seyi Adebanjo is a Queer Gender-Non-Conforming Nigerian MFA artist, who raises awareness around social issues through video, ritual, photography & writing workshops. Seyi is serving on The Think Tank (2021-2022) as one of the co-designers of Creatives Rebuild New York (CRNY) artist grant programs. Seyi was recently awarded a residency with The Laundromat Project, NYSCA Individual Artist Grant, received the BRIO Award and 1 of the 8 Exciting Filmmakers Shaking Up Hollywood by IndieWire. Seyi was nominated for the 2020 Art Matters Fellowship.. Seyi’s project’s include: Honor Black Trans Womxn! a call to center, protect and celebrate Black Trans Womxn. I AM! We Are Here! illuminates the vitality, spirit & joy of LGBTQ People of Color in the Bronx. Seyi’s powerful short Justice for Islan Nettles has screened on PBS Channel 13, Brooklyn Museum and continues to screen globally. Seyi’s award winning documentary Ọya: Something Happened On The Way To West Africa! is screening globally with a speaking tour. Seyi’s latest project is Afromystic which follows LGBTQ Òrìṣà practitioners and priests/esses at the crossroads of Yorùbá, Caribbean and Afro Brazilian Culture, while reclaiming lost mythologies. The work celebrates lost Queer & Trans folklore, where deities change gender and are born from the love of two womyn. With explorations of gender fluidity, Queerness and spirituality, Seyi’s work exists at the intersection of art, imagination, ritual and politics

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For more information, please visit the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) website for resources (crisis line, advocacy, legal help, and more).