This is the story of Bindle and Keep a small ta
iloring company in New York who are part of whole new growing breed of clothiers who cater specifically for the transgender community. Whilst transitioning is mainly about having one’s body brought into line with a person’s true identity, one of the side effects is that trans men and women find that traditional gender specific clothes do not suit them and their new lives. That was the case for Rae Tutera when she transitioned from Rachel and approached Daniel Friedman about making him a custom suit. Rae was so very impressed that he asked Daniel to take him on as an apprentice tailor to learn the trade, and he never left.
Five years later this unlikely pair (he’s a straight Jewish man) have carved out quite a reputation resulting in a steady flow of potential customers from all over the country making tracks to their Brooklyn studio. This rather wonderful new documentary from Lena Dunham’s boom-operator turned first-time director Jason Benjamin focuses very much on the visits of various customers to see the Tailors in action.
There is Derek from the Appalachians who is just about to get married and who gets his new brother-in-law to accompany him; Everett an African/American who has just started transitioning and wants a suit for interviews as although he is passed his Law Degree with honors he is struggling to land a job as he is told by prospective employers ‘we cannot deal with the whole transgender issue!’ Then there is cab driver Mel who has had ‘top surgery’ but doesn’t want to be identified as a male either and wants a suit for her 40th Birthday; plus Jillian a very successful older lawyer who is about to appear in the Appeals Court and wants a suit to match the importance of the occasion. However the most heart touching story was of Aiden a 14 year old trans boy from Austin who had travelled up with his very supportive grandmother to get a suit made for his Bar Mitzvah.
Each of the clients talked on their ‘journeys’ to this point in their life, and even Derek with his very understanding parents stresses that it had not been easy, but at least by the time they enter through the Bindle & Keep door those traumas are behind them. What strikes them, and us, is that Rae and Daniel have developed a deep understanding that they need to know exactly what their clients hope to achieve with their new clothes, and watching the faces of sheer joy when they finally try on their outfits we all realize that they have got it right.
Produced by Lena Dunham (it helps to have a supportive boss) this delightful wee film is an HBO Documentary so should be on US TV screens soon.
