Transgender Web Series “Brothers” Returns

In this exclusive audio interview Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of OUTTAKE VOICES™ talks with filmmaker and writer Emmett Jack Lundberg about the second season of his web series “Brothers” the first narrative series about a group of transgender male friends that not only features the stories about trans men but also casts trans actors in the main roles. The show follows four transgender men navigating life and love in Brooklyn, NY and touches on a few of the many issues that face transgender individuals including healthcare, dating, transphobia, identity and more. Season One is currently on Vimeo On Demand and Amazon Prime. In a quick summary, Jack the series’ main character starts sleeping with a cisgender man after exclusively dating women. His friend Davyn proposed to his long time girlfriend Amy with disastrous results. Aiden the youngest member of the group who is pre-testosterone and pre-surgery tries to raise money for his upcoming top surgery but becomes disenchanted at the last minute. Then Max who has been on hormones longer than both Jack and Davyn can’t get the financial resources to obtain his top surgery. In season two Jack is still struggling with his sexual identity while Max is living through the hell of online dating. Davyn has fled his disastrous relationship and New York as Aiden has plummeted down a rabbit hole of addiction and depression. The core group has shifted and fractured as the “Brothers” are no longer one big happy family. Along with a host of new characters the guys discover whether testosterone is actually thicker than blood. We talked to Emmett about his inspiration for his web series “Brothers” and his spin on our LGBT issues prior to the Orlando Massacre.

When asked what his personal commitment is to LGBT civil right and what he would like to see happen for LGBT equality in the next few years Lundberg stated, “I think for me as the filmmaker you know the stories I want to tell are very much stories that are overlooked and for me that’s the way I feel comfortable and good about giving back and adding something to the community…I think a huge thing for me in LGBT equality is specifically trans healthcare. You know the healthcare system in our country in general is pretty messed up but for trans people it can be really terrifying and difficult to navigate. You know you have to pay for your own surgery and having to do all these things out of pocket when really all these things should be covered.”

Emmett Jack Lundberg series “Brothers” was named one of indieWIRE’s 10 Best Indie TV Series and ET Online’s “Six Web Series to Watch While Waiting for Transparent to Return”. SiriusXM called it “More revolutionary than “Orange Is The New Black.” Season 2, Episode 1 has already screened at several festivals and has won “Best in LGBT+” at the Buffer Festival in Toronto, Canada. As a writer Lundberg co-edited and contributed to “Finding Masculinity”, an anthology of trans masculine essays that was published by Riverdale Avenue Books in May 2015.
For More Info: brothersseries.com
 
WATCH SEASON 2 Episode 1

OUTTAKE VOICES™ NOW ON HUFFINGTON POST...:)

VISIT OUR OUTTAKE™ EQUALITY STORE

OUTTAKE VOICES on iTunes

Arline Isaacson Sheds Light On LGBT Massacre

In this exclusive audio interview Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of OUTTAKE VOICES™ talks with Arline Isaacson, Co-Chair of the Massachusetts Gay & Lesbian Political Caucus and one of the architects of marriage equality in this country. Isaacson is a brilliant and dedicated lobbyist who has fought successfully for decades for our LGBT community. In the aftermath of the worst mass killing in American history at Pulse Nightclub in Orlando, Florida that left 49 dead and many more wounded we asked Arline for her spin on this national and global tragedy and to shed some light on where we are now and the future for LGBTQ civil rights in this country, especially during a presidential race with a shameful republican candidate who is still spewing hate and with over 200 state discriminatory bills still pending against our LGBTQ community. This is a time when we need to come together to console our sorrow and begin the healing progress from the devastation of this horrific attack on our LGBTQ community and move forward in solidarity as a nation.

When asked what she would like to see happen for LGBT equality in the next few years Isaacson stated, “The good news that we have to remind ourselves is that we are on a trajectory that’s very positive and very good for our community. That there will always be bumps in the road and this is hardly a bump, this is a chasm that’s a total earthquake road-breaking chasm that just happened in Orlando but we need to remember that we can build a bridge across that chasm. We will build a bridge across that chasm and because we are LGBT it will be the most fabulous bridge anyone has ever built anywhere in the world. It will be the most beautiful bridge anyone ever built and it will be strong and it will be enduring and it will be gorgeous and we have to remind ourselves it’s just going to take some time and it’s going to take some work and you can’t stop building the bridge in the middle, you got to keep going until you get to the other side.

The other thing we need to remind ourselves is very important in my mind is that we have to remember to use this horrible tragedy as a lesson for what we must not do to others, culturally and politically. Let this remind us that as we gain our equality and as we move up the ladder so to speak culturally of acceptance or politically of acceptance, or politically in equality, we have to make sure we pull others up behind us, that we don’t dis other communities and groups whether they’re based on their religion or their race or their immigrant status or economic status. We have to fight religious extremists and even if you’re anti abortion you have to condemn people who shoot up abortion clinics and shoot up abortion doctors. We have to apply the lessons we wish to have applied to ourselves. We have to remember the importance of applying them to someone else and then when one group in our nation is disenfranchised, when one group in our nation is discriminated against, when one group is treated unequally, we are ultimately all unequal.”

Arline Isaacson co-chair’s Massachusetts Gay & Lesbian Political Caucus with Gary Daffin. MGLPC is the most experienced and respected lobbying operation on Beacon Hill in Massachusetts working for LGBTQ equal rights. Founded in 1973 MGLPC has had enormous success advocating with professional lobbyists for the interests and needs of our LGBT community. MGLPC continues to fight for LGBT civil rights especially transgender equality, AIDS-related issues and more. It is a totally volunteer effort and your support is needed especially in these difficult times. 
For More Info: mglpc.org 
To Help Orlando Victims: weareorlando.org

OUTTAKE VOICES™ NOW ON HUFFINGTON POST...:)

VISIT OUR OUTTAKE™ EQUALITY STORE

DOWNLOAD INTERVIEW
OUTTAKE VOICES on iTunes

Elizabeth Keener New Web Series “Skirtchasers”

In this exclusive audio interview Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of OUTTAKE VOICES™ talks with actor Elizabeth Keener about her new tello Films web series “Skirtchasers” that she stars in with Barry Bostwick (“Rocky Horror Picture Show”, “Spin City”) as her estranged father and Meredith Baxter (“Family Ties”, “Young and the Restless”) as her divorced mom. Keener plays Robyn Samuels who is freshly single after a break-up with her long time girlfriend the day before their wedding. As Robyn deals with mending her broken heart she realizes her issues with commitment go way back to her father after the split of her parents. Bostwick plays Damien Samuels her best-selling novelist father who has remarried a much younger woman, starts a new family and abandons Robyn. The five part web series was written by James Berg and Stan Zimmerman (“The Golden Girls”, “Gilmore Girls”, “The Brady Bunch” movies), bringing over 30 years of writing and producing experience to the project. Amanda Bearse directed four of the episodes with Zimmerman directing one. Bearse has over 25 years of directing and producing experience (“MADtv”, “Dharma & Gregg”, “Jamie Foxx Show”). She is also known for her role as Marcy D’Arcy in the Fox classic comedy, “Married With Children”. “Skirtchasers” is distributed by Christin Baker, co-founder and CEO of tello Films and produced jointly by Baker, Bearse, Bostwick, Zimmerman and Keener. We talked to Elizabeth about what she hoped to accomplish with “Skirtchasers” and her spin on our LGBT issues.

When asked what her personal commitment is to LGBT civil rights Keener stated, “My personal commitment as a human being is for everyone to have the same rights. I mean we all started as an egg and a sperm, we all started right there. It just becomes convoluted. My personal opinion is that many people, most people, I wouldn’t say all but they find ways to elevate themselves by downing other people and if people would just stop in some way, I mean it starts in the home. I think we need to let people know that everyone is equal. I don’t care, we can label everything we want; we can have new labels for this and new labels for that; we can do all that stuff but we’re all the same and it’s just shocking to me that people haven’t gotten that yet and you know we’re heading for 2020 and people just don’t get it or they do get it but they don’t care because the only way they can elevate themselves is finding a way to down somebody else. I’m just going to find a way and I hope in my way, I mean politically I’m an actress and I don’t know how much in politics people care what I say, but it doesn’t matter because we don’t live in politics. We live in real life and I’m going to do all I can from my end to get people to see that everyone is the same.”

Elizabeth Keener is an actor, writer, producer and voiceover artist. She is best known for her role as the kick ass bar owner Dawn Denbo in Showtime's “The L Word”. She has also been in numerous television shows and feature films including Terror Films “The Chosen”, ABC's “My Generation” and Nicole Holofcener's “Friends with Money”. Keener is the younger sister of actress Catherine Keener. “Skirtchasers” is currently available on tello Films that creates web series specifically for the lesbian/queer community.
For Info & Watch: tellofilms.com

OUTTAKE VOICES™ NOW ON HUFFINGTON POST...:)

VISIT OUR OUTTAKE™ EQUALITY STORE

DOWNLOAD INTERVIEW
OUTTAKE VOICES on iTunes

LPAC Comedy Event “Levity & Justice for All”

In this exclusive audio interview Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of OUTTAKE VOICES™ talks with Kate Kight, Political Operations Associate for LPAC the Lesbian Political Action Committee Super Pac and comedian Jes Tom about the LPAC event “Levity & Justice for All” that takes place at The Town Hall in New York City on June 16th. This fabulous must-attend event features an all-star line-up of lesbian comics and activists including Rosie O’Donnell, Kate Clinton, Billie Jean King, Judy Gold, Lea DeLaria, Rhea Butcher, Fortune Feimster, Marsha Warfield, Karen Williams, Marga Gomez, Beth Shipp, Executive Director of LPAC and special musical guest BETTY. This is the first comedy benefit for LPAC, the nation’s only lesbian super PAC. Tennis Icon Billie Jean King is a longtime LPAC supporter and is honorary co-chair alongside benefit chairs Karen Dixon from Washington, DC, Laura Ricketts the co-owner of the Chicago Cubs, producer Joy Tomchin and activist Urvashi Vaid from NYC. “Levity & Justice for All” will be a night of political humor and comic relief from the deluge of anti-LGBTQ politicians, including the Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. We talked to Kate and Jes about how important an event like “Levity & Justice for All” is just to be able to laugh at the 2016 election climate and give us their spin on our LGBT issues.

When asked what she would you like to see happen for LGBT equality in the next few years Kight stated, “I think we are on the forefront of recognizing LGBT equality as one integral part of equality in America and across the world. I think one of the most wonderful parts of working for LPAC is that everyday our work is not just about how do we make sure to elect more queer women or lesbians into office. Our work everyday is are we advancing equality, are we advancing social justice, increasing access to reproductive rights, trying to call attention to the incredible amount of racism we have seen come out in the past few years and that is being brought up in terrifying ways by the Republican ticket this year; not just by the presidential candidate but all the way down in different states across the country. I love that fact that my work is a part of a narrative that is recognizing the intersectionality of these fights and I think that as we continue to move forward and create a strong progressive coalition of activism, fights for equality are not just about one group of people but advancing different kinds of equality we can change the narrative and make this about everyone.”

LPAC mission is to build the political power of lesbians and queer women by electing candidates who champion LGBTQ rights, women’s equality, and social justice. Founded in 2012 by experienced leaders in feminist, LGBTQ and social justice movements, LPAC has raised over $2.1 million dollars from more than 1,500 donors across 48 states and the District of Columbia. LPAC researches and presents a slate of candidates, ballot initiatives and campaigns in which it invests. LPAC has been instrumental in electing key national and local candidates, supporting legislation and ballot referenda that guarantee women are paid the same as men for the same jobs, have access to reproductive health, aren't discriminated against when it comes to their own healthcare decisions and safeguard LGBTQ employees from being fired. Funds raised by “Levity & Justice for All” will be used for political education, organizing, and mobilization efforts to support LPAC endorsed candidates.
For Info & Tix: teamlpac.com

OUTTAKE VOICES™ NOW ON HUFFINGTON POST...:)

VISIT OUR OUTTAKE™ EQUALITY STORE

OUTTAKE VOICES on iTunes