SVA Theater played host to a very memorable evening this past Friday in New York City, where NYC Pride and GLAAD partnered up to launch an event called Game Changers that featured some of the top transgender talent on television today.
Award-winning journalist Diana Tourjée moderated a discussion between three of the most prominent actors and actresses on TV. This included Brian Michael Smith (OWN’s Queen Sugar), Amiyah Scott (FOX’s Star), and Jamie Clayton (Netflix’s Sense8).
The four of them bounced off one another beautifully during the hour long discussion of transgender images in the media and its progression over the past several years. One of the major takeaways from that night included Jamie wanting transgender talent to simply be referred to as the character they are playing and not as someone who is playing the role of a trans individual.
Another noticeable moment discussed how long it took for each of them (including Diana) to find any sort of inspiration on television when it came to seeing an actual trans individual. The sentiment was that there are doors that have been knocked down, but there are still plenty more that need to be broken into for the trans community in the entertainment industry.
For more information on NYC Pride, please click here. For more information on GLAAD, please click here.