Iris Prize Winner - Vessels
A young transgender woman considers a dangerous medical operation that may be her only option in gaining a more feminine body.
Interview with Director Arkasha Stevenson
Watch Vessels here:
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
Vessels is a story I wanted to tell while I was working at the Los Angeles Times as a contract photojournalist. One day I received an assignment to photograph the crime scene of a transwoman’s murder. While there I met a number of the deceased woman’s friends and became interested in the community. The women I met were so beautiful and confident. They owned their femininity in a way I have never been able to figure out for myself. I’m very shy and most days’ dress like a homeless teenage boy. They had qualities I always aspired to.
As I became more involved in the community, I began to hear about “pumpings” and silicon injections. I learned that they were often administered in someone’s living room or kitchen and that sometimes, if not most, women were injected with a liquid that isn’t silicon but something far more dangerous. I learned that many women take this risk because it is their only option to transition into a more feminine body.
The lack of alternatives for these women is staggering. A lot of healthcare workers refuse to treat members of the community and implants or feminization surgery are too expensive for many women. Some women feel it is less dangerous going to a pumper than facing a possible hate crime on the street.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
Why would you watch any film? Even if you are viewing something for pure entertainment I think the ultimate goal of film is to promote further awareness of the human condition. This is the story of a human condition that happens to be fairly prevalent in our community. The situation the main character is in stems from and is promoted by a lack of understanding. Whether you are interested in transgender issues or not, by watching the film you hopefully have at least gained more insight into another human being.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
I think one of the messages of the film is that we are not isolated creatures. Our individual actions have great effect on everyone around us in one way or another. I think this idea becomes even more complex when you are living in a city as vast as LA. We function and move throughout the city as individual units but the fact of the matter is that we are living amongst over 4 million people in a relatively small space. There is no way that we don’t affect each other’s lives even if we are unaware.
Diamond’s situation, I believe, is one that has come about because of a societal ethos. It is an event that is occurring because of the small actions of many. Yet some have no idea that these black market “pumpings” exist or that someone around them is in pain. So Vessels is one of the 4 million stories that we are all involved in whether we know it or not. This is the reason for the many city shots in the film. I wanted to constantly connect Diamond’s story to the city’s story and to all of our stories because I believe we are all responsible for one another.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development and production?
While Vessels has a surreal tone to its imagery, it was important to us to make the situation and the emotions involved as authentic as possible. Instead of working with trained actors we decided to work with women who have dealt these issues. It was important to the film that Diamond, Hope and Maria make their characters as much of their own as possible and speak as they would naturally. Because of this, there was a lot of character and dialogue development on set. Maria, Hope and Diamond are such vibrant women and we wanted to capture that on screen.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
We have received strong but polarizing reactions! People seem to either really love the film or really hate the film. Our team jokes that it is not a real Vessels screening if someone doesn’t walk out during the movie.
On the other hand, we have received a lot of love and praise. We had the enormous honor of being awarded the Iris Prize, the world’s largest LGBTQ short film prize, last October.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
Even the angry and negative feedback we have received has been strangely encouraging. I think it’s good if you are angry after watching the film. I was really angry while making it. While working on a film about transgender women you get a little taste of the transphobia and the hateful treatment a transwoman endures. Even that small dose was enough to fill me with rage. I think that is one of the reasons we tried to make the injection scene so visceral. We wanted people to feel the needle, to experience for a split second what many transwomen endure in order to be themselves.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
We hope more people will be encouraged to come see our film or support other trans stories, causes or organizations. We would also like to remind readers we are all connected and responsible for each other.
Who do you need to come on board to amplify this film’s message?
We are open to any form of collaboration or conversation regarding our film’s message. We feel fortunate to have had a successful run on the festival circuit and hope that it continues for the remaining months. We are hoping to find a distributor and home for Vessels by the end of the year.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
It is amazing when someone who is not in or familiar with the LGBT community says that they watched the film and related to Diamond. That is always an incredible feeling to think that someone with a completely different life experience can relate to the characters in this story. It has been rare but extremely rewarding when that does happen.
What are the key creatives developing or working on now?
Since completing VESSELS, our editor Steph Perez has been an assistant editor on multiple documentaries, has edited several short films and music videos and is editing her first feature. Production designer Andrea Arce Duval just finished designing short film ATOMIC COUPLE and is currently prop master on TV movie ONCE UPON A DATE.
Marianne Williams, our DP, recently wrapped production for D-ICE AND PANSY and a London-based documentary about Instagram and native advertising for the BBC. She has also shot a series of recent editorials for Vogue, Nowness and New York Times Magazine, and will be joining the AFI Cinematography faculty this fall.
Producer Halee Bernard and I just delivered PINEAPPLE, a TV concept I wrote and directed and Halee produced for Project Greenlight Digital Studios. I also just wrapped D-ICE AND PANSY with Marianne, a short film we created with the Iris Prize Festival Company and shot in Cardiff, Wales.
Interview: September 2016
_______________________________________________________________________________
We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series and music video. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela
_______________________________________________________________________________
A young transgender woman considers a dangerous medical operation that may be her only option in gaining a more feminine body.
Length: 15 minutes
Director: Arkasha Stevenson
Producer: Halee Bernard
Writer: Arkasha Stevenson
About the writer and director:
Arkasha Stevenson is a writer and director based in Los Angeles. Stevenson is a graduate of the prestigious directing program at the American Film Institute, where her thesis film VESSELS about black market breast enhancement procedures within the transgender community was awarded the 2015 Iris Prize.
Key cast: Diamond Cruz, Maria Roman and Hope Smith
Looking for: Distributors & Buyers
Funders:
Our film was entirely financed by fundraising. Thank you so our generous friends and family for their support.
Release date: TBD
Where can I watch it at the film festival or in the next month?
We are screening at DC Shorts and Outflix on September 11th. In October, you can watch Vessels at the PROUD! Film Festival in Denmark, Queer Film Festival Hannover, Screen Queen FilmFest Tokyo and Atlanta's LGBT Film Festival.