Tangerine Reflection

Tangerine, a film directed by Sean Baker, recorded entirely on three differing iPhone 5 cameras, spotlights a transgender woman who earns her living by being a sex worker. Tangerine follows her as she discovers her pimp boyfriend has not remained faithful to her during her month-long stint serving time in jail. Baker utilizes human hands in a very dynamic way throughout Tangerine. Not only are human hands one of the most vulnerable aspects to transgender individuals, but hands are also a powerless body part, as they are utilized in almost all aspects of life and therefore, commonly shot in cinema. To be specific, the opening scene of Tangerineshows two transgender women reconnect in a doughnut shop after not speaking for a month. In this particular scene, the two women’s hands are visually captivating; Sin-Dee Rella and Alexandra overly use their hands to appear extra animated as they discuss the past month they have spent apart from each other. During this conversation over a doughnut, Sin-Dee Rella learns the truth from Alexandra and states: “Bitch, that estrogen has been kicking in. The only thing that has not broken down is these fucking arms. Everything else on my body looks good!” In multiple scenes throughout the film – hands being portrayed on bus stops; hands being emphasized on the steering wheel of cabs; hands being personified while flirting with makeup and drugs, etc. – hands appear to become the equivalent of another character, as they are spotlighted to such a obvious extent. I feel hands became a staple in Tangerine, as they are universal to all humans. Hands also become important in the dissection of the creation of Tangerine, as stated above, this film was shot solely on three differing iPhone 5 cameras. The beauty of this shooting technique is not only does it allow the director and creative to physically become “hands-on” while filming, but it also invites other inspired individuals to partake in the “Do It Yourself” (DIY) mindset while shooting, etc.