Trans* time: Projecting transness in European (TV) series

Abstract

Trans* is used in this edited volume as an umbrella term including a whole spectrum of identity-generating and/or contingent expressions of gender variability, gender embodiment and non-standard gender identities. The term is also employed for self-designations and life plans in various geopolitical and historical contexts from a decolonial perspective. The asterisk evokes the language of informatics, by which the addition of an asterisk (*) after the entering of a word on a server gives the user access to all entries found that contain said word accompanied by others complementing them (Gómez Beltrán 2018, 425). From this standpoint, Trans* Time: Projecting Transness in European (TV) Series explores multiple and complementary understandings of being trans* and reveals the way trans* people are depicted in European televisual and digital streaming series in France, Great Britain, Italy, Portugal, Spain and the Netherlands. Trans* visibility has reached a peak in recent years, so much so that we can state that we are living in trans* times at present. This peak is especially noticeable in the media, and most specifically in television series, where we are also witnessing a prime time for trans* representations, and hence a trans* time in series. Sophia Burset in Orange is the New Black (Kohan et al./Netflix 2013-2019) or Maura, the protagonist of the series Transparent (Soloway et al./Amazon 2014-2019,) are maybe two of the most internationally well-known examples of this media surge.This visibility is not completely new and does not come from a vacuum. 1 Christine Jorgensen's 'transition' in 1953 favoured the mediatisation of transness in mass media, but did not reach television, since the "topic was considered too risquée for family-oriented entertainment"