How does the product work?

Running off a single AA battery and a replaceable motor, this long bullet vibrator turns on by screwing the bottom of the toy until it is nearly closed, and turns off by unscrewing the cap. While the initial setting of the vibrator is rather loud, as one continues to twist it shut, the volume of its vibrations lowers until it is at a near-silent purr, making it fantastic for those needing to stay quiet due to thin walls. However, this vibrator only has one speed, and some users may find it too weak.

As this vibrator is rather small, it can travel easily when unscrewed, and will not accidentally activate. It can be used externally or vaginally; however, as there is no base, it’s not safe for anal play. If using internally, one may want to loop something through the hole at the base as this vibrator gets rather slippery with lube. As it is metal, it’s compatible with any type of body-safe lubricant. This vibrator can also be used with other toys and people, in addition to harnesses that allow for a longer bullet.

Important things to note:

This vibrator is advertised as waterproof, though we would not recommend using it that way. Though it is waterproof in perfect condition and sealed, if it is not screwed all the way shut, this toy is not safe around water. Able to run off of one battery for sixteen hours, this toy will maintain this longevity if you store the battery separately.

The Little Chroma comes in red, purple, and black, and there are also limited-edition versions with etchings; Jimmyjane also offers this vibrator in steel, gold, platinum, and with a ring of diamonds. Though these vibrators have three year warranties, Jimmyjane claims they can last forever as the motor can be easily replaced.

Keeping it Clean:

This vibrator can be wiped down with a toy cleaning spray, or cleaned with hot water and soap. When cleaning, be sure to remove the battery and motor, and then seal the toy completely shut, so none of the electrical components are exposed to water.

All in all, this is a very expensive bullet vibrator. It is sleek and luxurious, but it only has one speed and runs off a battery. If you’re looking for a cheaper alternative, WeVibe’s strong and rechargeable Tango, or Jimmyjane’s own cheap and simple three-speed bullet are excellent options. If you have the money to spare, and want a quiet beautiful bullet, this is certainly the toy to invest in.

While The CSPH does its best to provide thorough and unbiased product reviews, it should be noted that the information here is not a substitute for medical instruction or advice.  The CSPH is not responsible for accidents that may occur from the use of this product.  Please contact your medical provider if you have any further questions or concerns.

Each week, The CSPH answers questions asked on our site and through social media outlets like Twitter, Tumblr, and Facebook.  This week’s question is:

Is sex compulsory*?

The quick and dirty answer to this question is, very simply, “no.”  No one is required to have sex for any reason.

Of course, it’s frankly no surprise that people may find themselves wondering this exact thing. If there’s one thing abstinence-only education and sex-positive advocates seem to agree on, it’s the idea that everyone has sex eventually. Abstinence-only education assumes sex naturally happens after marriage, while the enthusiasm of the sex positive movement (although something we believe in!) can sometimes fail to address the fact that not everyone wants or needs to have sex – ever. The assumption that sex is inevitable is deeply ingrained in society, and the alternative—that not all healthy people have, want, or like sex—challenges many people’s preconceived and culturally-informed notions as to who has sex, why they have sex, and if they have sex at all.

For this reason, many people have difficulty understanding asexuality, which is defined as a lack of sexual attraction towards other people.  You can learn more about asexuality in my Q&A: Asexuality. Not all asexuals choose to abstain from all sexual activities, but some do, and life without sex is a perfectly acceptable life/identity model which should not be seen as ‘unnatural’ or something that needs ‘fixing’.

However, like I initially stated, no one is obligated to have sex for any reason.  This is true for everyone, regardless of gender, relationship and marital status, sexual orientation, prior sexual history, and current sexual behaviors.  Even if someone wants sex, it doesn’t mean they must act on that desire;  if a penis-owner has an erection and a vagina-owner is wet, it doesn’t mean they necessarily want sex or that it is mandatory to act upon their body’s functions.  If someone agrees to sex once, or agrees to a certain type of sex, it doesn’t mean they must have sex again or that they consented to all sexual activity.

Even if someone wants to impregnate or be impregnated, it doesn’t mean they are required have sex; there are other ways for sperm and egg to meet, either at the doctor’s office or in the comfort of one’s own home (turkey baster, anyone)?

The takeaway message here is that while sex can be and is enjoyable for many people, it’s not necessary in an absolute sense. While most people will engage in sex at some point in their lives, the fact that sexual experiences are common practice does not – and will never – mean that sex is ever required, or that any person should feel ashamed for making the choice not to engage in it.

* Note: Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary Online defines “compulsory” as “mandatory, enforced” and “coercive, compelling.”  Therefore, I have interpreted this question under this definition rather than that of “sexual compulsion”, which is a specific (and much-debated) term used in medical and mental health communities to describe something akin to sex addiction.

[Photo of “Sex Life of Robots,” by Michael Sullivan - Picture taken by Cristian Esleva]

The world is not an easy place for transgender, gender nonconforming, or gender-variant children (and adults); too often are they misunderstood, rendered invisible, and subject to violence by the individuals and systems in their lives. To understand how these problems might have been avoided or improved, researchers from the Universities of Sydney and Hawaii surveyed a group of transgender adults to offer a retrospective through their gender-variant childhood experiences.

Demographics/Methodology

Investigators collected data from 110 self-identified transgender adults using a qualitative, retrospective internet survey conducted in English. Participants were asked about a number of demographic characteristics, followed by open-ended questions on their reported experiences of gender variance as children; the reactions of their families; the effects on various aspects of their lives; what services, resources, or input they may have found helpful to them as they were growing up; and what might aid gender-variant children and their parents today. These responses were then analyzed by systematically examining the content to identify common themes and needs.

Participants ranged in age from 18 to over 66, with 56% of participants older than 46 years of age. About half had undergone what the investigators refer to as “gender reassignment surgery.” They reported a diverse range of sexes, self-definitions, gender identities, and sexual orientations.

What did they find?

As this study is one of very few that addresses self-identified needs for gender-variant children and their parents, the researchers focused their analysis on these topics solely on the information gathered here. Some common—at times passionately and eloquently expressed—needs identified for gender-variant children include:

• For education programs and information about gender variance to be implemented in schools and society generally
• For parents to love and value the child and provide space for them to talk about their feelings
• To be allowed to express and display their felt gender
• To know that others also have similar feelings and that gender variance is a natural occurrence
• To have their gender issues recognized and be offered help by professionals
• To be supported and understood by the school community

Needs for parents overlapped somewhat, where the needs identified include:

• To have access to information, and not just online
• For schools, other parents, and people in general to be educated and have awareness and knowledge about gender variance
• To have access to other parents of gender-variant children
• For society to be open-minded and accepting of gender diversity
• To see portrayals of successful transgender people

Central to these themes are ideas of education, widely-available information, and awareness about gender variance: for gender-variant children to recognize what they are experiencing; for parents to better support their children; and for health, school, and supportive community members beyond just the family unit.

Strengths and Weaknesses

As a qualitative, retrospective study, there are some methodological challenges with this research that need to be taken into account. In terms of recall, there is the concern that, as half of the participants were attempting to remember experiences that occurred at least thirty years before the survey period, it is likely there were memory errors. There is as well the issue of representativeness; as a voluntary survey, there is always the concern that those who participate are different than those who do not on some systematic characteristics—for instance, as an English internet survey, it only reflects the experiences of trans* individuals with internet access who speak English.

In a survey that looks at the experiences of transgender adults, that problem is very real; transgender and other gender nonconforming individuals experience overwhelmingly high suicide and homicide mortality rates. Therefore, the individuals who participated in this study are survivors—perhaps they had better support structures, coping mechanisms, or received comparatively fewer traumas than their peers who were not around to participate in the study. Certainly, as the authors note, the participants were overall disproportionately well-educated and higher earning than the averages for their respective countries.

However, these limitations do not detract from the messages gained from the participants’ responses. A strength of qualitative studies like this is that they are ideally suited to discover greater dimensions of problems or to generate new ideas about solutions. As well, this study is also important not only for the information it presents but also for the way it was acquired; in the fields of health, education, and public policy, where trans* people are routinely underrepresented and decisions concerning them are often made by cisgender individuals who have not lived with the problems faced by gender-variant individuals, hearing the perspectives of trans* people is crucial. It is an exercise in practicing inclusive and socially aware research, which there is not enough of in academia.

Conclusion

A need for greater visibility, awareness, and acceptance for children, parents, professionals, and peers was identified by an overwhelming number of participants who had lived through gender-variant childhoods. Increased public awareness and education, in addition to availability of community members, professionals, parents, and other children could potentially address these concerns of gender nonconforming youth and make a vital impact on their safe and healthy journeys through childhood.

Citation:

E.A. Riley, L. Clemson, G. Sitharthan, & M. Diamond (2013). Surviving a gender-variant childhood: The view of transgender adults on the needs of gender-variant children and their parents. Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy, 39:3, p. 241-263.

Club Health 2013

Who: The Club Health conferences are presented for professionals involved health care, counselling or the nightlife industry who are interested in creating and maintaining safe nightlife environments.

What: Club Health 2013 San Francisco

Where: InterContinental Mark Hopkins San Francisco 999 California St San Francisco, CA 94108

When: May 28-30, 2013

Why: Club Health is dedicated to creating and maintaining safe nightlife environments by implementing effective evidence-based policies, improving knowledge surrounding nightlife management and promoting partnerships on a local, national and international level. The 2013 meeting will be focusing on sexual health, violence in nightlife settings, health and safety standards, policing, club trends and more! If you’re interested in attending, check out their website for more information and to register.

1. NoMasturNation
This community of “fapstinence” enthusiasts certainly won’t be participating in Masturbation Month. (Friendly reminder that choosing to not masturbate is absolutely fine, but self-pleasure is healthy and acceptable, too.)

2. Call Of Du-de You’re A Misogynist
Alanah Pearce, a videogame journalist, documented every sexist comment ever sent to her online for a month. These are the disappointing results.

3. Everything’s Made Up and Your Point Doesn’t Matter
A compelling explanation of why you shouldn’t be “complimenting” strangers on the street.

4. Buy This So I Won’t Think You’re Disgusting
Turns out marketing campaigns taught us to be ashamed of our body odor, body hair, and herpes. If only you could return insecurity.

5. “Excuse Me, Waiter, There’s Transphobia in My Soup.”
Patrons at a diner react to a transgender waitress and a surly customer (an actor) giving her a hard time. (Privilege) check, please!

How Does this Product Work:

The Better than Chocolate is an amazing sex toy that truly lives up to its name.  Coming in a nice box, the toy includes  a transmitter, splitter wire, and the vibrator itself.  It also comes with a white satin bag for easy storage and transport.  Both the transmitter and vibrator each require two AAA batteries, which are not included in the toy.

Though I had expected a lot of time spent trying to figure out how to get it to work with my iPod and being frustrated at technology, the Better than Chocolate was actually unbelievably simple to use.  Simply plug the transmitter into the iPod or iPhone, and then either plug headphones into the transmitter or use the extra wire to connect the transmitter to external speakers.  Once it is plugged in, just spin the dial until it turns on and choose a song.  The Better than Chocolate will pulsate to the music that you are playing through your iPod.  You should take a minute and flip through your songs as some will feel better than others.    For example, I found the White Stripes album Elephant to be very enjoyable because of the strong quick beats, while some more slow and calm music, such as some Mumford and Sons, became a bit dull.  If you are not in the mood for music, that’s fine; the vibrator also has vibration patterns that do not require music to use, and these are also very pleasing.

As the toy is made of non-porous thermoplastic rubber, it can be used with both water- and silicone-based lubricants if the user wishes, though lubricant is not essential for the use of this toy as it is very smooth and intended for clitoral stimulation.  However, I would not recommend this toy for penetration due to its shape, and while it can be used on any external area, it is most effective on the vulva and clitoris.  Visually, the toy is a bright shade of hot pink and has a smooth, chic shape.  It is a relatively small and light toy and fits comfortably in the hand.  The toy can be made more or less intense using an area that you can slide your finger up and down to change the intensity, and it is relatively quiet.

Important Things to Note:

While the Better than Chocolate is a very enjoyable and fun toy to use with music, it sometimes seemed more like a novelty than an effective sexual stimulator.   Overall, though, I found the standard vibration patterns far more sexually pleasing, even if the music setting is far more entertaining and fun to play with.

Fortunately, while it can seem more like a game to use the music setting, it can be quite fun to play with different music and songs with a partner.  An easy way to have sexual fun can be to allow the other person to choose the playlist and DJ your vibrator.  It can be novel, interesting, and stimulating for two people to use.

This toy and the transmitter are both battery operated.  In order to lengthen the life of the toy, it is a good idea to take the batteries out between uses.

Keeping it Clean:

The Better than Chocolate is very simple to clean:  basic soap and water, followed by air drying.  The toy itself is waterproof, though not the transmitter, so that should not be a concern when caring for the toy.

A very fun and novel toy, the Better than Chocolate is a bit on the more expensive side, costing around $100, but if that is not a deterrent, you will have an excellent time playing with the toy and seeing what music you like most for use with it.  If that is a bit over your budget, OhMiBod also sells the Club Vibe which is also a music powered vibrator that costs about 20 dollars less.

While The CSPH does its best to provide thorough and unbiased product reviews, it should be noted that the information here is not a substitute for medical instruction or advice.  The CSPH is not responsible for accidents that may occur from the use of this product.  Please contact your medical provider if you have any further questions or concerns.

My boyfriend has no precum, and when he ejaculates, he doesn’t squirt like some other guys I’ve dated. He sort of oozes out a small amount (probably 1 tsp or so). Is something wrong with him? We’re getting married and I’d like to know if it’s medical.

While the quality of your boyfriend’s baby gravy is something worth considering, especially if you hope to start a biological family, ejaculating less than a “lovin’ spoonful” is usually not cause for concern. Semen volume and sperm count are not one and the same, though they are often mistaken for one another, much like James Dean and James Franco (or James Dean and James Deen). Sperm originates in the testicles and accounts for only two to five percent of total ejaculate volume, whereas semen combines fluid from the seminal vesicles and prostate to create a viscous, milky discharge. Hypospermia, a semen volume lower than 2 mL on at least two semen analyses, is a condition that only affects fertility when co-occurring with low sperm count.

Rest assured, however, that the force and amount of ejaculate can vary widely, though a typical amount may range from 2 to 15 milliliters, or roughly half a teaspoon to a tablespoon. More than anything, adult semen volume is affected by age and the time elapsed between ejaculations. In other words, an ejaculation that occurs soon after knocking boots will be quite small, whereas larger semen volume often results following periods of abstinence. Furthermore, the force and volume of ejaculation, penis rigidity, and the ability to achieve an erection may diminish with physical maturity, so these are factors to consider, especially if your boyfriend is a silver fox like Anderson Cooper.

Likewise, the quantity of “precum” can also vary among individuals. Some men do not produce any pre-seminal fluid, while others may emit as much as 5 milliliters. Because the clear, colorless fluid can be discharged during arousal, foreplay, or an early stage of sexual intercourse, it is possible that your boyfriend releases “precum” after penetration and you do not see this happen. Either way, this should not be a major problem, though if you find that a lack of pre-seminal fluid results in frisky friction—to an uncomfortable degree—throw some lube into the mix (lube is a great tool for penetrative fun with anyone!).

The distance of ejaculation has little to do with sexual functioning, though it could greatly increase or decrease your earning potential as a porn star. Maybe your boyfriend is not the next Peter North, but that does not necessarily indicate a health problem. In rare cases, dribbling semen from the penis may signify blocked ejaculatory ducts, which is an underlying cause of infertility less than five percent of the time. Ejaculatory ducts can become blocked due to a congenital condition such as a Mullerian Duct Cyst, scarring from sexually transmitted diseases (gonorrhea or chlamydia), or prostatitis. If he has experienced a significant and sudden change in semen volume or velocity, a medical examination may be advisable, but some johnsons are just less juicy in general. Without knowing the specific details of your boyfriend’s age, health, and sexual history, it’s impossible to determine why his jizz fails to jump. Should you wish for peace of mind to rule out a contributing—albeit unlikely—medical problem, schedule an appointment with a qualified healthcare professional.

Regardless, if your boyfriend is dying to improve his cum shot, he could try doing some Kegel exercises. No longer reserved for just vagina-owners, persons of any gender can benefit from strengthening their pelvic floor. Ejaculations are propelled forward by contractions of the bulbospongiosus muscle and the urinary sphincter, which, like any muscle, can be developed through patience and practice. Kegel muscles are flexed by contracting the anus and holding for two seconds before releasing. The Mayo Clinic suggests three sets of ten repetitions a day for optimal results, and for extra excitement he can do his Kegels while driving, brushing his teeth, or watching paint dry.

Ultimately, unlike hypothermia—which can result in loss of muscle coordination, mental confusion and faltering heart rate—hypospermia does not have fatal consequences. Although it sounds like the quantity of your boyfriend’s ejaculate falls within the typical range, the quality of your relationship cannot be measured in teaspoons or milliliters. If you want to turn up the heat between the sheets, consider some crazy card games or some good old fashioned dirty talk. With good communication and pleasurable intimacy you can maximize your fun with minimal cum.

Many people know Jared Diamond from his Pulitzer Prize winning book Guns, Germs, and Steel—a virtuosic attempt at understanding the origin of human societies from an ecological and geographical perspective; far fewer know that Diamond wrote a book about the mysteries of human sexuality.

For instance, Diamond examines such varied questions as: Why do humans have recreational sex? Why, unlike Dayak fruit bats, do men not breastfeed their babies? What’s the deal with menopause, and why do only humans and pilot whales have it? Why do humans have the largest penises of the primates? Why are humans so concerned with sexual privacy? What causes female humans to be the only female mammals to conceal the times they are most fertile? Why are humans mostly monogamous—a mating system found in only about 3% of mammal species?

Following Dobzansky’s dictum that “Nothing in biology makes sense, except in the light of evolution,” Diamond explores the nooks and crannies of our sex habits with a Darwinian eye. And although I don’t believe the platitude that all evolutionary theorizing is mere idle speculation, this work is obviously more speculative than a book on, for instance, the biophysics of membranes in the gallbladder (which Diamond wrote his PhD thesis on).

To get a feel for Diamond’s thinking, it’s helpful to walk through his thought processes on one of these mysteries: menopause. One hypothesis is that our menopause is an artifact of our modern extended lifespans. Under this view, for most of human history we only lived to age 40, so it’s unsurprising that our capacity to have children does not extend far beyond that date; however, Diamond is skeptical of this because all of our other biological functions do just fine well after the age of forty. Why would human female reproduction—so obviously beneficial for creating descendants—be unique among our biological functions to fail so early? Especially given that the reason for menopause is trivial: the exhaustion of functional eggs. Also, it’s not obvious that humans in prehistory only lived to 40; once one factors out infant mortality, it’s probably not true that humans lived such incredibly short lives.

Next, Diamond looks at the idea that human menopause is not unique to humans from other species. If late-life infertility is common in other species, it does not require any special explanation. However, Diamond also is dubious of this: a 55 year old elephant is elderly, and 95 percent of elephants die before age fifty-five. Yet elephants at 55 can and do give birth.

Diamond thinks the explanation for human menopause rests on two unique features of humans: we are extremely helpless for a long period of time after birth, requiring huge investments from our parents, and human childbirth is an especially dangerous affair as we have bulbous heads that are difficult to push through a pelvis. And humans really are unique in how dangerous childbirth is. For instance, in one study of rhesus monkeys, only 1 in 401 died in childbirth. For humans in traditional societies, the risk is much higher and increases with age.

A mother who continually puts her life in danger by giving birth risks not being able to care for her children. Because of the extreme helplessness of children, a dead mother often can lead to the death of all of the children. If you want to predict whether a species will be menopausal, Diamond asks us to look at a few questions: How large is the risk of death in and after childbirth? How much does this risk increase with age? How great would the risk of death be at the same age even without children or the burden of parenting? How likely are offspring to survive independent of parents?

Because it is an evolutionary biology project, this book suffers from the many pitfalls of those works: overconfidence, sweeping claims, and hard to test hypotheses, but there is real beauty in this book as it allows you to view human sex as a Martian anthropologist would. Until you look at the animal kingdom, it is all too easy to take facts about human sex for granted. When you see the astonishing variety in the animal kingdom, our mating habits seem less obvious or given; our penis size seems reasonable until you see that gorillas get along just fine having a one-and-a-quarter-inch penis.

Because of changes in hormone levels during menopause, many women experience vulvar and vaginal atrophy (VVA).  This is when the vaginal walls become thinner and less lubricated.

Often, VVA is not treated even though painful sex is only one of its many side effects.  Women with VVA often report emotional distress, a reduced quality of life, and relationship strain.  Former treatments are no longer deemed safe because they increase one’s risk for breast and endometrial cancer.  Ospemifene, the new treatment, works by increasing estrogen levels only in the vaginal tissue.  It therefore may offer hope to many women with VVA.

Demographics/Methodology

The study looked at 605 women at 110 different clinics in the US.  Most of the women were white, between ages 40 and 79, and of a healthy weight.  Women had a physical exam of their vagina to see if there were atrophied cells and a high vaginal pH.  The result of this exam determined if they could be screened.  If so, they rated their worst symptoms.

Those reporting moderate to severe sexual pain could join the study if they met the rest of the criteria.  Women could not participate if they:

• were obese

• had high blood pressure

• had abnormal test results (gynecological, liver functioning, mammogram, cardio, etc.)

• were on certain drugs

• drank 14+ drinks per week

Participants took either ospemifene or a placebo daily.  Both pills looked the same.  Neither the study staff nor the participants knew which they received. Women also were given a non-hormonal vaginal lube and asked to write down if and when they used it.  Participants had check-ups at four and twelve weeks after they joined the study.  They answered questions about their VVA symptoms and had a physical exam.  At 12 weeks, women with a uterus also received an ultrasound and biopsy of it.

The researchers wanted to know if the women in the study saw a change in their clinical signs of VVA (e.g. vaginal pH, percentage of atrophied cells) and the severity of their sexual pain.  They also looked at the safety of ospemifene by asking about adverse events (AEs) and performing clinical exams and lab tests to test them.

What did they find?

Compared to those taking the placebo, the women taking ospemifene saw a decline in their clinical signs of VVA and the amount and severity of their sexual pain.  This difference also was seen at four weeks although it was not significant.  This tells us, however, that the drug began working in about a month.  Women taking the drug also used less lube by week 12 even though they had as much sex as women on the placebo.  This likely resulted from them having less pain and therefore feeling that lube was not necessary for sex.

Though the women in this study had many AEs, most of the events were mild to severe.  Also, many were not related to the drug itself.  The most common AE was hot flashes but they were not a big enough problem to cause women to stop taking the drug.  There also was the same amount of severe AEs in both groups, supporting the idea that few were related to the drug itself.  Women taking ospemifene saw a small increase in endometrial thickness, which can precede cancer.  However, this was not significant and was similar to results from other studies.

Strengths and Weaknesses

This study was a well-run randomized trial.  The researchers did a great job of hiding which group the women were in from the study staff, the lab techs, and the participants. The study also had a very low drop-out rate, implying that the women were happy with their experiences.  That being said, the study has a number of weaknesses.  First, it only used very healthy women, a common problem with studies testing new treatments because funders often want the best results.  Along these same lines, the study was funded by the potential maker of the drug, which may have influenced the outcome.  Finally, the study had a pretty small sample size given that it was run at so many centers.

Conclusion

Ospemifene shows promise to decrease sexual pain in postmenopausal women.  This study adds to a small but growing body of research in support of the safety and efficacy of this drug.  Together, this research indicates that a longer, more generalizable study should be run to assure that ospemifene does not increase cancer rates after years of use.  Nevertheless, this is an exciting area that can help improve the lives of millions of women by reducing rates and severity of dyspareunia.

Citation

Portman, D. J., Bachmann, G. A., Simon, J. A. & Ospemifene Study Group. (2013). Ospemifene, a novel selective estrogen receptor modulator for treating dyspareunia associated with postmenopausal vulvar and vaginal atrophy.  Menopause, 20(6): 1-8.

ARHP’s Reproductive Health 2013

Who: The Association of Reproductive Health Professionals (ARHP) is presenting this seminar for health professionals interested in reproductive health.

What: ARHP’s 50th Annual Reproductive Health Meeting

Where: Sheraton Denver Downtown, located at 1550 Court Place, Denver, CO 80202 (approximately 25 miles from Denver International Airport)

When: September 19-21, 2013

Why: The ARHP’s Reproductive Health meeting is one of the premier meetings in reproductive and sexual health, and delivers the latest in research science, interactive, hands-on training, and take home points for practice improvement. This meeting seeks to help participants translate and integrate evidence-based reproductive and sexual health research into their clinical setting, apply effective communication and counseling skills on reproductive and sexual health issues, and integrate an awareness of current social, political and legal issues. For more information and to register, please visit http://www.reproductivehealth2013.org/.

Gender Reel 2013

Who: The Gender Reel Festival welcomes advocates, activists, artists, filmmakers and photographers who are interested in gender non-conformity, trans* issues, and visibility.

What: Gender Reel Film Festival 2013

Where: The Gender Reel Film Festival takes place in multiple cities across the country simultaneously:

The Rotunda 4014 Walnut St, Philadelphia, PA

Minnehaha Free Space 3747 Minnehaha Ave Minneapolis, MN

Humanist Hall 390 27th St Oakland, CA

Portland, OR (exact location TBA)

When: Thursday, September 19 – Saturday, September 21, 2013. The festival will take place 6-10 p.m. local time each night.

Why: Gender Reed is a multi-media festival dedicated to enhancing the visibility of gender non-conforming and transgender artists in film, photography, art and performance. The 2013 submission process is currently underway, and will close June 20, 2013. If you’re interested in presenting or attending, or just want some more information, check out their website here!