Director Alix Lambert and producer Jill Peters have launched a fascinating new documentary project, He/She/He and are fundraising on Kickstarter.

From their project description:

Over the past decade, transsexuality and gender dysphoria have become hot topics, but what few Westerners realize is that in many parts of the world, a woman living as a man or a man living as a woman isn’t boundary busting – it’s tradition. A cinematic journey through the rituals of two very different cultures, He/She/He will change the way the viewer thinks about gender. Our journey begins with the sworn virgins of Albania, a group of women who have taken a vow to live as men. Often the head of their family, these women have all the responsibilities of the male sex in a patriarchal culture. Due to increased urbanization, only a handful of these women are left. Next we will travel to Samoa to meet the Fa’afafine. As children, these boys decide to take on female roles and were honored for doing so. Today, the Fa’afafine have fallen on hard times with the encroachment of Western cultures and its attendant prejudices. Many have turned to prostitution to survive. Your donations will go directly into the second leg of our journey and help us continue to give voices to the voiceless and capture their stories before they disappear forever.

And here is the trailer:

Filmmaker readers may remember Lambert from my interview with her about her Crime book, which was released by Fuel Publishing in 2008. (The interview is reprinted on Lambert’s site, here.) I’m also a huge fan of her The Mark of Cain, a documentary on Russian prison tattoos that speaks to her ability to get inside and understand secretive communities.

I’m sure He/She/Her will be amazing, so please consider supporting it on Kickstarter.