Kiki

The Kiki scene is home to a group of young LGBTQ New Yorkers, many of whom are people of color. The scene provides a sanctuary from the rules and regulations usually imposed at home, which among other things state that boys should like girls and shouldn’t take dancing lessons. Within the safe Kiki world there is space for lively dance contests, as well as for discussions on serious political issues such as the role of the president in the HIV debate. It also allows for candid group conversations about prostitution: a path some transgender people choose to earn the money for expensive operations and hormones. These painstakingly filmed portraits of members of the Kiki scene, often shot up close, stress filmmaker Sara Jordenö’s desire to reveal the distinctiveness of this group, as well as to show them as human beings, free from rigid labels imposing sexuality or gender. “I’m a person” is one of the most powerful one-linersin this energetic feast for the eyes.