Isolation, suffering and death. Trans characters onscreen were a rarity growing up and, when they were portrayed, these themes were at the core of their arcs. At a time in my life when I was old enough to start watching grittier films with my dad, we sat down to see Kimberly Peirce’s Boys Don’t Cry (1999). The biographical story follows Brandon Teena (Hilary Swank), a young transgender guy who’s lived a life full of trials and tribulations. I remember his character resonating with me. His experiences finally put a word to some of the feelings I’d been having, though I wouldn’t be brave enough to utter them until many years later. I was rooting for him.
Brandon manages to find love with a woman who accepts him, but like many stories with queer characters, it ends in tragedy. Brandon’s identity is discovered and he is brutally gang raped and murdered. How poignant it was that one of the first times I felt seen onscreen was also a
