Orlando, My Political Biography is the cerebral and evocative debut feature from theorist, critic, and curator Paul B. Preciado. When Preciado’s peers suggested that he write a memoir about his experience of transitioning, Preciado wryly noted that Virginia Woolf had already done so with her landmark 1928 novel, Orlando: A Biography, about the life of an androgynous aristocrat who changes their gender over centuries. In Orlando, My Political Biography, Woolf’s novel is a launchpad for discussing contemporary meanings of transness. Director Preciado collaborates with more than two dozen modern-day Orlandos who (re)interpret scenes from Woolf's novel and reflect on their identities amidst a current landscape of trans disenfranchisement. Preciado and his inter-generational cast offer a striking vision of trans power free from social and political constraints. Orlando, My Political Biography was the only nonfiction film selected to play this fall at Telluride, Toronto, and New York Film Festivals.
"Preciado’s superpower in this warm, generous movie is that while he speaks brilliantly to the cages of identity, he sees — and shares — a way out of them [..] Here, joy reigns supreme, and it is exhilarating."
–Manohla Dargis, The New York Times
"When perception of trans identity by the mainstream can be so remarkably reductive, the idea of creating an expansive universe to hold many selves is one of Preciado’s many acts of political lyricism."
–Farihah Zaman, Reverse Shot
