The hidden gender
Our film "The hidden gender" is a 35mm documentary on Intersex.
There also exists a possibility to get it on video. Right now there doesn't exist a english version. But we would like to produce one with subtitles. If you are interested in the film (it lasts 60 minutes) do not hesitate to contact us: Oliver Tolmein
Intersexuality - for doctors it is a syndrome they want to treat. For intersexuals themselves it is their identity they are not allowed to develop. One out of 2000 children is born without being clearly male or female - but still being an intersexual or hermaphrodite means living in a twilight zone: Western societies only acknowledge two sexes and genders.
In "Das verordnete Geschlecht" (The Hidden Gender) Michel Reiter, who was treated to be a girl, and Elisabeth Mueller, who genetically is a man, tell their story. They experienced, as other hermaphrodites do, troublesome operations, and had to live for years with the traumatizing feeling that something with themselves is terribly wrong, but it was a taboo to speak about it. Today Michel Reiter and Elisabeth Mueller have come out as hermaphrodites. Michel Reiter has filed a lawsuit because he wants to be acknowledged by the authorities as an intersexual. Elisabeth Mueller now is a choirmaster in a church and sings as a soprano in the opera.
In contrast to the story of these protagonists are interviews with lawyers, doctors and parents of intersexual children, who believe that it is in the best interest of the children to treat the syndrome because without treatment the children will grow up as outsiders. "Das verordnete Geschlecht" is a documentary film about sex and body politics. It shows the force of normality and the importance of accepting difference.
Menschen und Rechte