A neurotic but loveable TV presenter; Amy Pennington, explores trans masc experiences across the UK with a satirical odyssey through the lives and homes of four unique individuals, asking the question: “What top did you want to wear after top surgery?"”
Fun, satirical and a pastiche of the chaotic, brash, self-deprecating and clueless 1990s/2000s British reality TV, TOPS sees TV’s Amy Pennington delve into the lives of four individuals who’ve had TOP surgery in a desperate attempt for the presenter to make their first-ever trans friend.
These four interviewees include a powerlifter and gay-games Olympian hopeful, a housing-officer-come-actor, an Essex filmmaker, and an equality diversity & inclusion specialist-slash-occasional model. They open up their lives, homes and, in one case, bag of dicks, to the invasive, neurotic and yet loveable Amy Pennington.
A genre-busting documentary which blends the real and the fiction, we’re drawn in by the question that defines trans masc experience, “What TOP did you wanna wear after TOP surgery?” Yet through their encounters with the interviewees, TOPS does so more than simply ask and answer this question. As well as the heart-filled yet hilarious interviews, it also explores the life of the desperate and lonely version of the artist who is willing to steal footwear and camp out in the gardens of interviewees for ultimate unencumbered access.
With abrupt unscripted comedy juxtaposed against tenderness, TOPS allows for conversations around the vulnerability of top surgery with those who’ve had it without adding to the pile of sad or gory Trans stories displayed in the mainstream media. Yes, your nipples might fall off - but you can still have a lol.
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MORE information
Director: Amy Pennington and Jos Bitelli
Running time: 70 minutes
Screenwriter: Amy Pennington
Country of origin: UK
Year: 2024
Content guidance: Trans Masc Joy
Language: English
Accessibility: Subtitles
The YES: PINK SCREENING ROOM is a space at SCENE dedicated to showcasing the best features and shorts of the year alongside Q&As and panels from the top LGBTQ+ creatives behind them - with a focus on championing new and upcoming film makers and subjects from the all part of the LGBTQIA community.
This screening at YES is supported by Film Hub North with National Lottery funding on behalf of the BFI Film Audience Network.
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