In the opening scene, Sin-Dee meets her friend, Alexandra, after spending time in prison. There are multiple instances of sisterhood in this first scene. The two friends are sharing a donut, and Alexandra points out that she paid Sin-Dee’s rent while she was incarcerated. After Alexandra tells Sin-Dee the rumor that her boyfriend and pimp has been cheating on her, Alexandra follows Sin-Dee in tracking down this man. This theme of sisterhood between Sin-Dee and Alexandra is a central theme of the film that allows the two trans women to find support in the community they create with each other. This is reminiscent of the support network surrounding Adela Vásquez because it is a means of survival for these two women.
Sex Work
There are multiple scenes of drugs and sex work in Tangerine. The raw reality of these scenes demonstrates how these women are surviving rather than living. As many of the testimonios we have read in our class have shown, drugs and sex work can often be necessary acts of survival for QTPOC. Still, Sin-Dee and Alexandra show strength in how they navigate their lives in the film, which I believe supports the notion that there is also a potential agency in sex work. I feel that the questions of living versus surviving and agency in sex work are considered in an authentic way in Tangerine.
Chaotic Authenticity
During the ¡Cuéntamelo! presentations, a common thread among the testimonios was unplanned or unchronological storytelling. I believe maintaining this disorder is essential in achieving an authentic understanding of the lives of QTPOC. Tangerine successfully portrays the chaos of the lives of queer people of color who are surviving. Particularly, when Sin-Dee and Alexandra return to the donut shop, the storylines culminate into an uproar. It is significant that the portrayal of this scene is messy, because instead of turning their lives into an “overcoming narrative,” the film presents the complicated yet tangible reality of these QTPOC.
Also released in 2015, Tangerine is a film directed by Sean Baker that was shot with the iPhone 5S. It centers around Sin-Dee and Alexandra as they navigate their lives as trans women and sex workers living in Los Angeles. Themes of sisterhood, sex work, and authenticity are highlighted in this film.
