Interview with Nikki

Monika: Today I am going to interview Nikki, a transgender woman from Canada that documents her transition on social media. Hello Nikki!

Nikki: Hello Monika! Thanks for having me.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Nikki: I'm a person who after college works currently in the support working field. My next step is to go to university for my Bachelor of Performing Arts (BPA). I'm a gamer and a trans community leader on Animo. Full of smiles and sass.

Monika: Animo? What is Animo?

Niki: Amino is an online community app with a large number of different communities.

Monika: Why did you decide to share your transition details on social media?

Nikki: I wanted to share my transition on social media for some interesting reasons. To start, it is to show how proud of myself I am! To show how far I have come in my transition.

Interview with Alison Ashdown

Monika: Today I am going to talk to Alison Ashdown, an inspirational transgender woman from Toronto, Canada. Alison is a fashion model, actress, film writer/director, and transactivist. Her artistic short film “Forever Changed” was produced and released online in 2020. Hello Alison!

Alison: Hello Monika! Thank you for having me!

Monika: You are a woman of many talents. Could you say a few words about yourself?

Alison: Yeah certainly! Let’s see. Well, I love to try new things when I get that passionate interest peaking. It’s how I ended up in modeling, film, fashion studies, and ballet. One day, I asked my friend to do a photoshoot with me and that blossomed into a dream come true with modeling. I’ve been published four times and participated in several runway events.

In fact, at the end of my first year in 2019, I was chosen to walk the runway in Los Angeles for the Equality Fashion Week. Had the time of my life! And with the confidence I gained in front of the camera and on stage, I moved to try my hand at writing a film and subsequently acting and directing it as well. And since then, I moved to Toronto to study fashion management at George Brown College and recreationally train in the Royal Academy of Dance classical ballet program.

Interview with Monica Rose

Monika: Today I am meeting Monica Rose, a Canadian make-up and hair artist, and transgender YouTube vlogger. It has been almost 4 years since she launched her Elle Rose vlog where she chronicles the most important moments of her transition. Hello Monica!

Monica: Thank you Monika for the opportunity to interview me and give me a chance to share my story.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Monica: I currently live in Toronto, Canada, and I grew up on Vancouver Island in a small town called Port Alberni. I moved to the "big city" so I could pursue an education. I have, as you know, a background in hair and makeup, and as a hobby, I like playing video games.

Monika: Why did you decide to share your transition details on social media?

Monica: I decided to share my transition online because I thought it would be a good opportunity to help other people. I started my transition more than ten years ago when very little information was available for people who wanted to transition and to change a legal name or to update the gender marker on a passport would be very difficult if not impossible. I wanted to be able to share how I was able to do it to help other people as well.

Interview with Sabrina Symington

Monika: My today’s guest is Sabrina Symington, a Canadian illustrator, graphic novelist, and blogger who runs the popular LGBTQ+ webcomic Life of Bria. Sabrina is the author of two comic books: ‘First Year Out: A Transition Story’(2017) and ‘Coming Out, Again: Transition Stories’ to be published next year, and a columnist at TG Forum. Hello Sabrina! 

Sabrina: Hi Monika!

Monika: There are comic books about Batman, Spiderman, Wonder Woman, and other heroes of our childhood that have defined the way we look at comic books. Your ‘First Year Out: A Transition Story’ (2017) proves that a comic book can be a perfect form of expression for transition as well.

Sabrina: I have always cared most about “narrative” in my art. This is a common thread I see with trans people; we often seem very interested in coming up with a “story” to our lives so we can make sense of the feelings we’ve had throughout them. These stories come to define us, they anchor us to our sense of self, and having this story be understood by others is one of the most affirming things I can imagine.