Tales of the City (TV Series)

Original title: Tales of the City (USA, 2019)

Designed: Lauren Morelli, Armistead Maupin and Laura Linney

Director: Alan Poul

Cast: Laura Linney, Ellen Page, Olympia Dukakis, Paul Gross, Murray Bartlett, Barbara Garrick, Charlie Barnett, Garcia, May Hong

Genre: Drama, sentimental, comedy

Plot: Tales of the City is a Netflix miniseries inspired by Armistead Maupin's books, written between 1978 and 2014. The series begins with Mary Ann Singleton who, after spending 20 years in a small East Coast town trying to build a perfect life, has a midlife crisis and returns to San Francisco and her beloved community. She reunites with former friends, Anna Madrigal and Michael Tolliver, and tries to reconnect with her daughter, Shawna, and ex-husband, Brian. But 28, Barbary Lane is no longer what it was. Now, a new generation of gay and transgender tenants live there, all dealing with the same insecurities that she had experienced at her age, albeit in different ways and with different means.

Notes: In Italy, the TV miniseries aired on Netflix in June 2019.

Tangerine

Original title: Tangerine (USA, 2015)

Director: Sean Baker

Cast: Kitana Kiki Rodriguez, Mya Taylor, James Ransone, Mickey O'Hagan, Karren Karagulian

Genre: Comedy, drama

Plot: It's Christmas Eve in Tinseltown, and transgender prostitute Sin-Dee has returned to her neighborhood after being in prison. After hearing that her boyfriend-protector cheated on her during the 28 days she was away, Sin-Dee and her best friend, Alexandra, make it their mission to search for Sin-Dee's boyfriend to verify the rumor. Their overwhelming odyssey will take them through various subcultures of Los Angeles.

Notes: Filmed entirely with three iPhone 5s mobiles, it was Presented on November 21, 2015, at the Torino Film Festival.

La Tarantina

Original title: La Tarantina (Italy, 2016)

Director: Fortunato Calvino

Cast: Carmelo Cosma, Antonella Morea, Stefano Ariota, Antonio Clemente, Massimo Finelli, Rita Montes, Carlo Liccardi 

Genre: Documentary

Plot: The memories, often hard and painful but tinged with melancholy, of Tarantina, a femminiello who spent most of their life in the alleys and the bassi of Naples. He arrived in Naples an underage boy, after World War II, got into prostitution, was persecuted by the police, fled to Rome. There he lived his personal and transgressive dolce vita, getting to know Pier Paolo Pasolini, Federico Fellini and Laura Betti. But there was also violence, exploitation and the loss of many friends. A documentary film, punctuated by fictional moments about the character, a lively octogenarian. A historical memory of a world that is now disappearing. The narration is enriched by texts taken from the plays Vico Sirene, Pelle di seta and La camera dei ricordi by Fortunato Calvino.

To Wong Foo, thank you for everything! Julie Newmar

Original title: To Wong Foo, thank you for everything! Julie Newmar (USA, 1995)

Director: Beeban Kidron

Cast: Patrick Swayze, Wesley Snipes

Genre: Comedy

Plot: Vida Boheme and Noxeema Jackson are two distinguished drag queens with strong charisma who perform in famous New York gay clubs. Thanks to their elegance, they win a trip to Hollywood, where they will compete in the election of “Miss Drag Queen of the Year”; ready to leave, they meet Chi-Chi Rodriguez, a Hispanic drag queen who is just starting out. They decide to give up their plane tickets to rent a fabulous Cadillac and take Chi-Chi with them to teach her how to be a real drag queen.

Notes: Two Golden Globe nominations in 1996: Best Actor (Patrick Swayze), Best Supporting Actor (John Leguizamo).

Transamerica

Original title: TTransamerica (USA, 2005)

Director: Duncan Tucker

Cast: Felicity Huffman

Genre: Drama

Plot: The story focuses on the budding relationship between Bree and her son Toby. Bree is a refined, educated transgender woman that works in a fast food to save as much as she can while waiting for gender affirmative surgery. Bree did not know she had a son until she gets his phone call asking for help. Toby, in fact, was looking for his father.
Shocked by the news and wanting to break with the past, Bree is initially unwilling to meet her son. Her psychotherapist, however, disagrees and decides not to sign the authorization for surgery until Bree gets to know her son thoroughly. This is how the two meet and, together, embark on a journey across the United States and through their own lives.

Notes: Felicity Huffman was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress and won a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Motion Picture Drama.

Transparent (TV series)

Original title: Transparent (USA, 2014-2019 (five seasons))

Designed: Jill Soloway

Director: Jill Soloway

Cast: Jeffrey Tambor, Amy Landecker, Jay Duplass, Gaby Hoffmann, Judith Light, Kathryn Hahn

Genre: Comedy

Plot: Transparent is an American TV series that follows the events of a typical American family faced with the confession of the head of the family, who suddenly reveals he is a transgender person.