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“I
don’t give a shit about labels,” Jenji Kohan firmly repeated after being asked
yet again how identity politics may or may not factor into her creative
decision-making process.
A
New Yorker Festival panel earlier
this month gathered the creators of five exemplary series for an “LGBTQ TV”
panel; Kohan was joined by Jill Soloway of Amazon’s Transparent, Michael Lannan of HBO’s Looking, Brad Falchuck of FX’s American
Horror Story, and Peter Paige of ABC Family’s The Fosters. The event was moderated by New Yorker critic Emily Nussbaum.
Kohan’s
comment – which came near the end of a 90-minute conversation that spanned a
diversity of topics including filming sex scenes, casting LGBTQ* characters and
balancing politics with storytelling – ascertained what the panel discussion
had, often tensely, hinted at. Essentially, these five minds, behind some of
the most significant works in contemporary American storytelling vis-à-vis
LGBTQ representations, are very different, and hold ideas about intent,
responsibility and even sexuality that harshly clash.
In
one respect, such a reality speaks to the tremendous variety of ways in which
the LGBTQ experience is being conveyed right now – from the admirable realism
presented in Transparent to the
operatic sensibilities of American Horror
Story, these writers are getting at very different ideas in very different
ways. But beyond that, the tension between these five equally-celebrated
storytellers indicates a lack of agreement on how to tell these stories, and
more importantly, that a simple “LGBTQ TV” label cannot suffice.
Soloway’s
Transparent is loosely based on her
own familial experiences; her paternal parent only recently came out as transgendered,
and in this fictionalized version, the part is played by Emmy nominee Jeffrey
Tambor (Arrested Development). The
series explores how the character’s coming out to their adult children provokes
serious thought about sexuality and gender for the entire family. [Our review is here]
Transparent
blends artistry with activism. Soloway has employed a “transfirmative"
initiative for the series, essentially giving preference to potential transgendered
cast and crew members. As such, Soloway is well-versed in trans politics, and
she understands the importance and complications of pronoun usage and identity
labels.
Throughout
the course of the discussion, Soloway clashed with nearly every other panel
member. Falchuck described his failed attempt to create a show about a
“transsexual gynecologist,” noting that he just wanted to write about “a guy
who wanted his dick cut off.” A frustrated Soloway retorted, “Not all
transgendered people get surgery – just saying.”
Paige,
sitting to the right of Soloway, described the “headache-inducing” process of
learning about pronoun usage, a recounting that did not amuse Soloway as it did
others on stage.
“I
saw myself as the most left-wing, progressive guy around,” Paige explained.
“But this was – this was so complicated!”
And
despite lengthy compliments of each other’s work, Kohan and Soloway did not see
eye-to-eye on the topic of “LGBTQ TV.” When Soloway said that Transparent would be hiring a trans writer, even after acknowledging that she could not
find a single one with experience in television, Kohan pushed back quickly.
“See,
I don’t agree with that at all,” Kohan said. “I think great writers should
write great shows … what you are in life
shouldn't automatically make you what you do in your art.”
In
general, much of the panel’s conversation focused on the responsibility of
these creators. Lannan and Kohan, for instance, approached their depictions of
sex very differently. Lannan, whose Looking
follows three gay friends living in San Francisco, was conscious about handling
sex with restraint.
“For
us, we look at the history of how gay men in particular have been depicted in
the media and in general, and it’s always been hyper-sexualized,” Lannan
explained. “I wanted to present these gay
characters that were admirable, but really it got interesting when they started
transgressing.”
Kohan,
contrarily, has embraced the sensationalist material about women’s prison that
has come before Orange – “We have to
pay homage,” she joked – while also going for raw and rather graphic depictions
of sex.
“I
want my characters to be turned on,” Kohan said. “And I like fucking. I want to
see my characters fucking. I want it to be sexy.”
The
conversation was simultaneously enlightening, honest, awkward and funny, with
the writers respectfully, sometimes agitatedly, disagreeing and arguing about
their work, their intent and their responsibility. Uncomfortable as some
stumbles may have been – a silence followed Soloway’s correcting of Nussbaum,
who accidentally referred to Tambor’s character as “he” – the event remained
lively throughout.
As
audience questions complicated the conversation further, with comments about
the representation of intersex individuals and of LGBTQ people of color both
meeting some stammers, the “gay agenda” that Nussbaum and others had jokingly
referred to revealed itself to be a startlingly complex and varied idea.
Ultimately,
these wildly different stories – currently being consumed by millions of
people, winning Emmys and Golden Globes and penetrating the social
consciousness – contribute something even greater as a whole. Kohan’s brash,
gritty and unfiltered voice is matched by Soloway’s carefully-constructed,
protective approach. Their characters come together as honest yet flawed and
relatable yet unique.
The
blending of political activism and ambitious storytelling, irrefutably present
in today’s television landscape, cannot come from any one approach or any one
series. Each writer has a different idea of sex, of identity and of labels –
yet each of their stories comes across as genuine and humane in their own
right.
Kohan
snapping at an inquisitive audience member that she “[doesn’t] give a shit
about labels” is not intended as disagreement or argument with what a writer
like Soloway is doing. Rather, it is her own appeal to common humanity, one
that makes Orange so emotionally
involving and so beautifully singular.
And
this is what one comes away with as Soloway, Kohan, Lannan, Falchuck and Paige
stand from their seats and begin posing in pictures for their fans. They are
individuals, thorny and passionate and idealistic in their own right. They may
not agree on what constitutes good “LGBTQ TV,” but through their particular focuses,
together they are challenging expectations and are providing popular art’s most
nuanced, groundbreaking expression of American identity.
*LGBTQ
is an umbrella term, used here as it was the acronym used at the event.