The Switch is the world’s first transgender sitcom in the history of television. No – really! Not only that, but it features transgender actors in transgender roles. And not only that, but it’s damn funny. What do you get when you mix contract killing, teenage blues, LGBT rainbows, weirdness, and a murder mystery? Welcome to East Vancouver! It’s the home of marginal living, social inequity, and Craneview Place, a former industrial site that is almost safe for human habitation. Meet some intriguing folks you might glimpse at the bus stop and not usually think think twice about. Each is coming out of their cocoon, but what’s emerging and how will the world deal with them?

The Switch follows Sü, who moves to Vancouver from the U.S. to come out as trans and start her life over, where she ends up sleeping on her ex’s couch, caught up in a plot to assassinate an oil lobbyist and more. Over six episodes, the story follows our characters as they try to solve whatever crises they encounter – or created. Our lead Sü botches the metric system while shopping for hormones online and winds up more than broke, then tries to pay off debts by moonlighting as a text-message dominatrix, until her boyfriend suspects she’s texting her ex, so she sets up a double-date, which leads to a fistfight over the bill, and before you know it, someone is trying to mess with her medical records, which is a problem because she’s already fudged her paperwork to be considered for gender reassignment surgery, and now she has to fix this without getting deported, while her roommate is still a wanted eco-terrorist – and that’s just one character.

The Switch is produced by Trembling Void Studios. Political humourist Amy Fox is the series’ showrunner, co-writer, and co-star as Chris, the wanted eco-terrorist. Trembling Void funded the series’ first season through a Kickstarter campaign in 2014. They then developed an 8-month intensive actor training program to develop trans talent locally. In the end, only two of The Switch’s ensemble cast were brought in from outside Canada (Nyla Rose and Lindsay Coryne). Trembling Void shot all six full episodes over five and a half weeks in the spring of 2015, after turning a South Vancouver warehouse into a studio.

Launching August 15 on  iTunes, Amazon Prime, Google Play, Revry, Vimeo On Demand.

The Switch

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About the Author

Bryen Dunn is a freelance journalist with a focus on travel, lifestyle, entertainment, and hospitality. He has an extensive portfolio of celebrity interviews with musicians, actors, and other public personalities. He enjoys discovering delicious eats, tasting spirited treats, and being mesmerized by musical beats. Reach out - bryen@thebuzzmag.ca