Gender has always been a challenge for me. As a child, my mother wanted to dress me in pink, lacy dresses that horrified me. No one was thrilled with my need to wear ties and boys sports jackets, to glue or paint on mustaches, or to invent a way to pee standing up. Until recently, I knew no one who felt the way I did about my gender. It would have been so helpful, if I could have seen a film like A Womb of Their Own when I was a child, or even a young adult, so I hope to provide that for as many people as possible.
Even as transgender became more and more part of our cultural consciousness, and more options became available, they were still binary, and transitioning medically or trying to pass as a man never felt entirely right for me. I wanted to make A Womb of Their Own to build understanding, tolerance and self-acceptance for genders that transcend the binary, through the experiences of a variety of people and genders; and that’s what I did.
I chose six people who vary in age, location, point in the process of birthing children, socioeconomic class, race, gender identity, sexual orientation, education, religion, and other characteristics. These thoughtful, funny people speak to their gender experience, its evolution, and the effect pregnancy and chestfeeding has on their gender. Though they speak to challenges, they testify to the joy of being fully themselves, even in the face of pressure to conform.
A Womb of Their Own took three years to make and is being requested all over the world. The trailer alone has been seen in over 125 countries, and the film has screened at numerous film festivals, several universities as well as medical and community forums. You can view the trailer here.
I feel very lucky to be able to help so many people with this film. Many genderqueer viewers have come up to me with tears of validation in their eyes, telling me that watching the subjects celebrate their genders helped them feel better about being who they are. Those who want children feel hopeful about creating families. Delightfully, many cisgender viewers have been surprised how immediately captivated they were by the subjects and how much they learned. I’m committed to inviting people worldwide to expand our cultural understanding of gender, and you can follow my progress on my SeriousPlayFilms Facebook page or website.
Cyn Lubow’s film A Womb of Their Own will screen at the Scottish Queer International Film Festival at the CCA on 28th September 2017. Tickets are priced on a sliding scale, from Free – £8 in £2 increments. A guide to the sliding scale can be found here.
See here for more information on access measures in place for SQIFF 2017. If you have any questions about the content of films or events or about accessibility at the Festival, please contact info@sqiff.org. We are continually working to improve our access measures and welcome any feedback.