Update June 25th 2012

Filming since school has ended for the summer has gone slow, with only one camera that doesn't have the best audio capture we are not left with many options, but I have worked out that I'll possibly be able to use a better camera in July so that will be a huge boost! Minka has sadly had to reschedule her surgery due to lack of funding. She did push the surgery in California back a year, but is hoping to raise enough money to get her surgery done in Thailand as soon as it is possible. I personally believe she has waited long enough. We have started up a new campaign to get her and the project some funding on indiegogo! Indiegogo: The M-Word Project Please any help, either donating or just sharing, is awesome! Thanks and Loves! Hillarie

M-Word Project Poster

This is a poster I made for my project! I am not a graphic designer but I am excited that I get to display my video at the BFA opening!

BFA Finals!

So the M-Word Project is starting to look a little more polished! I am basically making it into two very similar projects, since it was initially for my BFA class that part of the project is almost done! The project as a whole will continue on for about a year after Minka's surgery so we still have a long way to go before everything is all said and done. As for the school project I have a little under two weeks left before I present it to the school. I am also working on a video to put up online, keep an eye out for it around the end of April! We are also (slowly because of school) working on a facebook page and an Indiegogo (for the surgery) and a Kickstarter (for the project)!

DONATE: http://minkahole.chipin.com/minka-krasiva-hole
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/M-Word-Project/290225524380060

Update 1

Hello again! I am just giving a minor update on how things with the project are going. This is mainly things from my point of view, but I just wanted to give a quick update for those who are wondering about and following the M-Word Project.
So far, I have hours and hours of footage and not enough time in my time line. This project is initially for my BFA class (Bachelors of Fine Arts), which I will only have about 30 minutes at most to have a completed video. I am going to make it a full length documentary outside of class since a half an hour really doesn't seem like enough time to say everything and also since her SRS surgery date is after this semester ends. So right now the biggest challenge is deciding what gets put in the 30 minute special (as I have started thinking about it) but still filming everything that needs to be in the full length version. I personally feel like 20-30 minutes is too short of a time to get all the ups and downs of this project coherently so wish us luck!
My professors are so thrilled with this project I worry I wont live up to the expectations they have formulated in their brains, but I must say it is really nice to have them backing me on this one and they do seem genuinely excited about it . . . which is a first for me. I guess photography gummy bears trying to ruin two Jawa's day was not their cup of tea. [link] I am very excited to work on a project that is so outside what I am used to doing. Documentaries are so foreign to my way of working, there is no script just an outline of topics and things we think are important to do on camera. No acting, so I have no real control over out come of events, just last night while filming and talking on some silly questions Minka has been asked, she started talking about things that almost started her crying. Which is not what the plan was, it is so hard to decide what to film and what to put in the video because of that, organic is what I want, I want to show the real Minka but I don't want to upset or ruin her day by doing it. I am dealing with a real person after all, one who I love and care about. So as a friend I want to turn the camera off and call it a night, but as a film maker I know this is what I want to show because hopefully that is what will get the message across to people. Minka is a real girl with real problems (with a friend shoving a camera in her face for at least the next four to five months).
I am also struggling with just having me as Director, Tech crew, and the Post team. I want at least two camera's going at all times while filming, so I have one static main camera that I just pray that the white balance is correct and still filming when I am operating the other camera, and my T3i that half the time stops filming randomly (which we have come to discover is a safety mechanism for the sensor not to over heat.) and the white balance is never correct, so I have to correct it in post and it is really noticeable. Filming in our apartment is a small nightmare, there is never enough lighting (which means I will have to break down and by continuous lighting), our heater is constantly kicking back on even after we turn it off which makes editing audio zero fun. Oh and let me mention my noisy smoking neighbors who are in and out constantly slamming doors, yelling at their children, and hacking up spit balls that is a lovely result from smoking (don't pick up smoking kids, your neighbors might murder you from all the quirky habits you gain from it) that all get picked up by my cameras audio and RUIN the moment.
As for the social aspect, we have had a few moments with ignorant people but so far nothing to drastic at least from what I have been dealing with. A good chunk of the people in my class are supportive and excited, some have even admitted to finding Minka still incredibly attractive regardless of finding about about her secret, score one for Minka - The hotter roommate! The other people in my class are trying their best to see things from a production angle and still give me critiques with out mentioning Minka, which is good and bad. I am glad they are trying to help me with the project from a peer to peer perspective but they still refuse to actually talk about Minka. I have had some people come around, before they refused to talk about me or to me, completely avoid Minka's name, and when I would show the stuff I have edited they would stare at their feet, now I have talked to them a little about it, they still skirt around certain things and I don't agree with their opinions (whether on the topic or how I am filming it) but at least they are talking now.
So far one of Minka's biggest moments was about a week after I presented the project to my class, I was sitting in the hallway waiting for Minka to get out of class and two of the gals in my BFA class were chatting with me when Minka arrived. Minka told me later that the best part about her day was walking up and joining the conversation with us and the other girls treated her no differently than they woud have before they knew.
So far though, there are no real hiccups to report beside the fact that I am know dealing with two camera that I haven't dealt with before so I am learning as I go . . . which might be the charm . . . right? :/ Two girls setting out to change the world one slightly-not-white-balanced shot at a time! . . . yeah don't tell my professors I said that.
As a final note I would like to thank everyone for their support! Whether it was just a facebook "like", or an encouraging comment, or by donating to Minka's surgery fund. It has meant so much and been an amazing experience and realization to know there are so many who support the cause and Minka just as much as I do.

[For those of you reading this and don't really know what is going on, I am making a documentary about Minka, my lovely roommate and amazing friend, who is MtF transgender and her journey and struggles that come with preparing for the most life changing (and expensive) surgery, all while living her life as the woman she should have been born as from the start. For Minka's POV go to
http://missdivaminka.deviantart.com/journal/The-M-Word-Project-283562149 ]

Also again, anything anyone can donate would be amazing, every penny counts! We thank you from the very bottom of our hearts.
Also if you could share this project with everyone that would be so amazing! We want to spread the word!

Be Safe and Don't Die!

The M-Word Project

I have started working on a documentary about my dear friend and roommate, Minka. She is 23 years-old pre-op MtF (male to female) transgender, with her Correction surgery (SRS) scheduled for May. She has been living as Minka (which is now her legal name) for over a year now and has overcome so much to be where she is and know who she is better than most.

The purpose of this film and photo project is to let Minka tell her story and hopefully help people gain a better understanding of the situation. Minka is one of the most amazing and selfless women I know, and having known her before her Real Life Test and after there is no doubt in my mind that she is female and that genetics failed her. I cared deeply about her and her cause and want to share her story. My goal for this project is to help people understand that nothing is wrong with her (minus the fact that she is living in a body that she should have never been put in) or any transgender for that matter. Mistakes happen and thankfully we live in a time where we have the technology and the resources to correct them. My focus on this project will be purely from Minka's viewpoints: her thoughts, her opinions, and her life. I want to focus on her unique identity and her struggles and hopes with her transformation. I also hope to dissolve the illusion of labels; Minka is a person who happens to be transgender. Not "Minka the Transgender". As Minka puts it, "You would not say 'That's a Blind.' Or 'He's a Deaf.'" Bottom line is we are all people. We are all human.

I understand this project is a touchy subject for many, as we will be exploring and talking about identity, sex, religion, and the transformation Minka has gone through, is going through, and what is ahead for her. I make no apologies for anything offensive. I cannot ask someone to tell me all of their hopes and feeling and then censor them. This is Minka's story and I want it to be told it in its entirety.

As part of this project I am also hoping to help with the cost of the surgery and/or expenses the will arias in the process. I am doing this because I feel Minka deserves this and I want to help in anyway I can. Any little bit helps and is greatly appreciated! I thank you! Please Spread and Share The M-Word Project with everyone! Here is the link to the fund raiser! http://minkahole.chipin.com/minka-krasiva-hole