New series from Wayne State University Press seeks to make space for trans stories

This year, Wayne State University Press will publish a new series of books that seeks to change traditional studies of LGTBQI film.

The editors, Cáel M. Keegan and David A. Gerstner, have meticulously gathered an array of authors to renew a push of the boundaries of what’s included in queer film studies. What makes the Queer Screens series different is the way trans studies are prioritized, according to Keegan.

Keegan says he’s “very concerned with trans subjectivities… and with perception and the way trans people use media and engage with media.”

Keegan is an assistant professor at Grand Valley State University while Gerstner is a professor of Cinema Studies at City University of New York’s College of Staten Island.

The Queer Screens series looks at the films of artist Barbara Hammer, The sisters Wachowski, and queer cinema from Brazil and Mexico, by reimagining the relationship between queerness and the screen. Keegan and Gerstner joined CultureShift to discuss their work creating and curating the series.

“When David talked to me about his interest in breaking open queerness as a formulation, I got very excited because there needs to be more space in book series like this for transgender analysis. And it seemed like we had a really productive conversation about how to bring transness back into queerness.” — Cáel M. Keegan, editor and assistant professor