A Note About the Making of DISCLOSURE from
Director SAM FEDER & Executive Producer LAVERNE COX

We all need to be seen, and often, being seen is what puts marginalized people in harm's way. It is that paradox of visibility which inspired us to make DISCLOSURE. We looked to one of the most compelling modes of storytelling — Hollywood film and TV — to consider how trans people have learned to think about ourselves, and what non trans people have been taught to think about us.

For three years, we worked together researching, producing, and editing DISCLOSURE. Along the way we collaborated with over 100 other trans filmmakers, assembling a history of trans representation in mainstream film and TV. While sharing footage, articles, and ideas, we wrestled with the dehumanizing stereotypes, tropes, and sometimes empowering aspects of this history. It’s often been painful to confront some of this material, but we think it’s meaningful to show it here and now. Together we were able to acknowledge and sometimes find humor in the absurdity, which has been cathartic.

We did not want to demonize any one person or any one story; we wanted to construct a nuanced film that includes many, often conflicting ways of seeing. We can love something and look at it critically.

There are so many more people, materials, and stories to tell and ways to tell them, which didn’t make it into this film. There is more within and outside of Hollywood that is crucial to trans audiences. There are so many trans filmmakers who have created pivotal stories.

DISCLOSURE won’t be the only history of trans representation. It’s just a start. We can’t wait to see how it is received, built upon, and grappled with. And we can’t wait to see what comes next.