SO YOU’RE THINKING ABOUT HIRING A TRANS CONSULTANT

MARCH 18th, 2021

“I appreciate the intent of wanting to depict trans characters on screen or in writing, but even people with good intentions can depict being trans in a negative light if they’re not careful.” 

(Dennis, 2018) 

Over the last decade, as queer and trans issues have become more visible and talked about within the ‘acceptable’ social discourse, so has LGBTQ+ representation within mediums like Film, TV, Video Games and Theatre. And while there are more out and proud LGBTQ+ writers than ever there is also a want from writers who may not be from the queer community to explore these topics within their own writing. And while the want to create this kind of inclusion is a wonderful start, and something I would encourage, there needs to be more than that. Writers and producers need to take steps to ensure that they are uplifting the minorities they wish to write about.  

As stated in Netflix’s Disclosure, a documentary exploring the history of trans representation in film and TV, 

“If you’re going to choose to insert yourself in the telling of a particular community’s story, or you want to help a particular community tell their story, you need to realise the privileges that you have, and you need to realise that life for them is different”. 

                                                                                                                (Feder, 2020)

The history of trans narratives within art is messy and has often negatively impacted the trans community. Within artistic forms like film and television, the idea of trans people being feared or reviled has often been the sole trans narratives perpetuated on screen; which has then leaked from the land of fantasy into real life assumptions of how we should fear trans people. When represented in stories Trans Characters are at least 40% of the time depicted as Victims and “were cast as killers or villains in at least 21% of the catalogued episodes and storylines” in the last ten years (GLAAD, 2021). 

This negative representation can also have effects on the mental health of those minorities writers are looking to represent. As Quiling Lui discovered in her recent study, “fair and accurate media coverage improves the lives of trans people, revealing that 69% felt unhappy when seeing negative media items about trans people, 78% felt angry, 49% felt excluded and 41% felt frightened” (All About Trans, 2018).

It is important to hear these facts before beginning the writing process as there is weight when it comes to writing trans characters or any character who comes from a marginalised background. For, when a character does come from a background which has traditionally been badly or under-represented, writers must take steps to see that new stories or characters from these minorities are grounded in reality, research and good representation. 

With all that being said here are three things you should be thinking of when you start considering creating a trans character or narrative when you are not a part of the trans community.

Understand Trans People

As a writer or producer dealing with trans plotlines and characters, it is important to understand the fundamentals of language around trans people. Language is ever changing and evolving, but it is essential to understand the basics to aid in polite and effective communication correctly around trans people. It is and will never be the job of trans people to educate you on how to not be transphobic. 

While consultants can help writers and producers with the nuances around trans experiences they are not being paid to teach you to be a better person. There are a few companies that offer trans awareness training sessions if you so need them as a place to begin. 

There are further benefits to understanding how to “talk trans”, as Riley J. Dennis explains, for it can impact your writing and concepts as well. 

“...not everyone in your fictional world will have the right language, but at least some of them will...but the important thing is that if you’re trying to depict a person as knowledgeable about trans stuff and supportive of it all, you need to be careful to make sure they’re actually talking like someone who is knowledgeable about trans stuff.”

(Dennis, 2018) 

So before the creation process starts do some research. Find a book or a podcast from a trans person talking about their experiences. For, as Owl Fisher put it, “where there is fear and misinformation, there is hate” (Fisher, 2018).

Consultancy

“You can absolutely have the best of intentions in terms of showing people's lives on screen, but they won't necessarily be reflective if you haven't done the work behind the scenes.”

(Ellis, 2018) 

If you’re a cis writer who is interested in writing a story that focuses around trans identity or trans characters, it is essential that you get a trans consultant for the duration or at several points throughout your project. Trans people have throughout the history of TV, Film and Theatre been unable to have the financial access or acceptance needed to create stories about their own minority background. It is therefore essential for cis people to not create work in isolation from the trans community that seeks to advocate or educate other people on the behalf of the trans community. As the saying goes, nothing about us without us. 

You should also need to pay your consultants. Always. Paying people for their time shouldn’t need to be justified but when you are benefiting off another community's hardships you should seek to reimburse them financially for their time. According to Stonewall, 25% of Trans people have faced homelessness (Stonewall, 2017) and are more likely to be unemployed and receiving lower wages (Faragher, 2020). So to not financially compensate your consultants goes against your messages of lifting up the trans community you are seeking to create within your work. 

Consultancy also often benefits the trans community in other ways by helping to pay writers to pursue their creative passions as many trans consultants are also writers. As Lola Olufemi puts it in, ‘Feminism, Interrupted’,“Art requires will. But it also requires, as writer Virgina Woolf recognises, a room of one's own. A set of social and financial circumstances that enable creativity to take place” (Olufemi, 88, 2020).

So find consultants, pay them fairly for their time, and you will find your work and the community you're seeking to represent all the richer for it. 

Open Ears

It can be hard to know where to start as a cis ally who might not have had any previous interactions with trans performers, creatives, charities, etc. As explored in a Guardian article about the subject “most media professionals admit they have never knowingly had a conversation with someone who is gender variant” (Avery, 2014). 

The best way to start after educating yourself on the basics and deciding that you need a trans consultant is to reach out to organisations and individuals who offer consultancies or resources. There are plenty out there but here are a few places to get writers and producers started: 

• All About Trans 

• Gendered Intelligence 

• Mermaids 

• Queerly Productions

• Trans Voices Cabaret / Trans Voices Company

• Equity 

• Tabby Lamb 

• Aitch Wylie 

You should always approach companies and consultants with open ears and minds. Trans people have lived complex and varied lives and like many minorities we have different experiences and approaches to creating work about our lives because our experiences are unique. If you’re creating a story around a trans woman find a trans woman to consult on the project for you. But if someone tries to explain that something within your piece is offensive you should always listen. 

“Trans people don't actually need their representation explained to them by cis people. Much like I have literally no place deciding whether or not a black character is represented well...cis people have no right telling me whether or not to be critical of something. You're not the arbiter of my experience. You're not an authority on good or bad representation, which is something trans people can't even decide on most of the time.”

(Blondeau, 2020)

It is hard to hear that something makes someone uncomfortable or might be harmful but that is what consultants are there for. To stop those mistakes early on in the process so that you can create something that will elevate trans people and not damage or threaten any trans person’s existence. Because at the end of the day that’s what writers and producers should want at a bare minimum when it comes to writing trans characters. Anything less isn’t good enough. 

References:

All About Trans. (2018) Our Breaking the Binary research in The Independent. 14 March. Available from: https://www.allabouttrans.org.uk/our-breaking-the-binary-research-in-the-independent/ [accessed 15 March 2021]. 

All About Trans. (2021) Main Website. Available from: https://www.allabouttrans.org.uk/ [accessed 15 March 2021]. 

Avery, Alana. (2014) Changing the way the media represents transgender people. The Guardian, 23 September. Available from: https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2014/sep/23/media-transgender-people-bbc-radio-one [accessed 15 March 2021]. 

Blondeau, Bella. (2020) When It Comes To Representation, Trans People Don't Need Your Excuses. The Gamer, 8 December. Available from: https://www.thegamer.com/cyberpunk-2077-trans-transgender-lgbtq-representation/ [accessed 15 March 2021]. 

Dennis, Riley J. (2017) How to talk about trans people | Riley J. Dennis [vlog]. 14 December. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ErLPd-7zVc&ab_channel=RileyJ.Dennis [accessed 15 March 2021]. 

Dennis, Riley J. (2018) How to write a trans character | Riley J. Dennis [vlog]. 9 August. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDPFZkzN1pA&ab_channel=RileyJ.Dennis [accessed 15 March 2021]. 

Ellis, Rowan. (2019) Mainstream: The Future of Queer Cinema? [vlog]. 1 June. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0RR4Q09tDoI&t=434s&ab_channel=RowanEllis [accessed 21 January 2021].

Faragher, Jo. (2020) Transgender people more likely to be out of work and on lower pay. Personnel Today, 2 December. Available from: https://www.personneltoday.com/hr/transgender-more-likely-to-be-out-of-work-and-on-lower-pay [accessed 15 March 2021].

Feder, Sam. (dir.) (2020) Disclosure [download]. Netflix. 

Fisher, Owl. (2018) Fair and accurate media coverage really could improve the lives of transgender people like me. The Independent, 19 February. Available from: https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/transgender-people-negative-articles-feelings-children-harm-conversion-therapy-doctor-gender-recognition-act-transition-improve-lives-a8217601.html [accessed 15 March 2021].  

Gendered Intelligence. (2021) Trans Awareness Training. Available from: http://genderedintelligence.co.uk/professionals/training [accessed 15 March 2021].  

GLAAD. (2021) Victims or Villains: Examining Ten Years of Transgender Images on Television. Available from: https://www.glaad.org/publications/victims-or-villains-examining-ten-years-transgender-images-television [accessed 15 March 2021]. 

Stonewall. (2017) Trans Report. Available from: https://www.stonewall.org.uk/system/files/lgbt_in_britain_-_trans_report_final.pdf [accessed 15 March 2021].