"This Is Me" Doc Series Debuts - Stories Inspired by "Transparent"

Wifey.tv announced the premiere of the groundbreaking online series This is Me on EW.com, the website of Entertainment Weekly. Created and directed by members of the transgender community and produced by Wifey.tv, This is Me is an anthology of heartfelt, short-form documentaries that are inspired by the multi-Golden Globe winning series Transparent. The series explores the difficult, real-life issues faced by people who are trans and gender non-conforming such as Maya Jafer (Mohammed to Maya), D’Lo (Looking), Valerie Spencer (Beautiful Daughters), Lily Rubenstein (Looking), Rocco Kayiatos (The L Word), Mariana Mar, Mel Shimkowitz (Ma/ddy), Petey Gibson (Play in the Gray), Zackary Drucker (Transparent), Van Barnes (Transparent), and Miss Barbie-Q (The Eastsiders).

Directed by Rhys Ernst, who served as Associate Producer and as a trans consultant on Transparent, This is Me will bring viewers into the real-world issues that are faced daily by people who are transgender. The documentaries include interviews with people whose stories have served as an inspiration to many. They include:

Episode 1: This is Me: Closets 
There’s no better backdrop than a closet to focus on the challenges of coming out. Here, actor/writer/comedian D’Lo, of Sri Lankan descent, and Indian-born actor/dancer/healer Maya Jafer share their very different true stories.

Episode 2: This is Me: Generations
Advocate and therapist Valerie Spencer and trans teenager Lily Rubenstein don’t let a few decades get in the way of understanding. As they travel throughout LA, visiting points of references from Spencer’s personal herstory, the two are brought closer than they could ever imagine.

Episode 3: This is Me: From the Bathroom
Sometimes a person just needs a place to pee! No one knows that better than entertainer-activists Rocco Kayiatos and Mariana Mar. The duo reclaim public restrooms as gender neutral while cracking wise (and wisely) about the issues surrounding today’s controversial bathroom politics.

Episode 4: This is Me: Right This Way
You wouldn’t judge a book by its cover, yet the faux pas of public misgendering is far too common. Transparent alumni Mel Shimkovitz and Petey Gibson banter unabashedly on the importance of more inclusive, gender neutral language at popular destinations on LA's east side.

Episode 5: This is Me: And My Sisters
For years, transgender women lived in fear of hanging out together, lest they become targets of violence. Here, artist/actor/decorator Van Barnes, comedic iconoclast Miss Barbie-Q and artist/filmmaker Zackary Drucker proudly and bravely bond in public, offering a glimpse of rarely seen transfeminine sisterhood.

“In response to content featuring trans characters, we’re evolving to the next level,” said Jill Soloway, creator of Transparent. “This Is Me instigates a new era: stories produced by the trans community about the trans community. This is the mission of Wifey: to give the power of protagonism to creators outside the white/cis/male mainstream. When we put people with an authentic POV in the drivers’ seat, the paradigm can truly start to shift.”