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"It's not that you're trying to be a man or you want to be a man, it's just who you are inside."
A favorite of the film festival circuit, THE AGGRESSIVES is an insightful look at the little explored, yet highly dramatic subculture of lesbian women who identify as men. This Fascinating documentary features intimate and revealing interviews with six aggressive women. Homeboy Marquise fosters a masculine image by strapping her chest until suddenly forced to live as a woman after enlisting in the army. Passing as a femme boy, Tiffany doesn't identify as a lesbian because she has "straight" sex with pre-op transgender women. Raw and uninhibited ex-con Octavia goes from drug dealer to construction worker. Androgynous Kisha balances her aggressive life with a career as a fashion model. The film follows them through their daily lives and highlights their participation in the underground lesbian "ball" scene - the female counter-part to Paris is Burning. The Aggressives range in masculinity but do not aspire to be men. Nor are they "drag kings." They have found an unexplored loophole in society's gender tapestry and this film seeks to expose their world.
Daniel Peddle's debut feature documentary film, The Aggressives, is considered an important and penetrating work on gender identity in the modern world. It was awarded the Alfred C. Kinsey Honor from the Kinsey Institute in 2006 and has won numerous "Best of" awards at documentary film festivals worldwide. Powerhouse Books published Peddle’s written exposé on the Aggressive subculture in the book Transculturalism © 2005. The film was embraced by its subjects and continues to engage audiences screening on LOGO, Viacom's channel geared towards the LGBT community.
Peddle spent his childhood in the woods of rural North Carolina. He graduated with honors in Anthropology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and attended graduate film school at New York University. He has lived in New York City since 1992.
He is the founder of Daniel Peddle Casting a company that specializes in casting models for fashion with an international clientele including such companies as Conde Nast and the LVMH group. Peddle is represented as an artist by Envoy Gallery in NY. His wordless book, Snowday, was published in 2000 by Doubleday.
MARQUISE embodies the look of an urban "homeboy". She straps her chest flat with duct-tape, bites her teeth to develop a stronger jaw-line and speaks in a deep low voice. To better her life, Marquise enlists in the US Army. On the eve of her departure, she candidly speaks of how she will deal with suddenly and ironically being forced to live as a woman. We visit her at boot camp to learn of her unusual experience.
KISHA is a beautiful Latina who was discovered by a fashion photographer while working as a messenger. She tries to succeed as a model, in spite of her "aggressiveness" and androgyny. The film documents her radical transformation from the street to the runway and its dizzying effect on her sense of self.
FLO stands out as the lone Asian in a scene dominated by African-American and Latina women. She is heavily influenced by the inner city. "I'm just like a nigga...a special kind of man," she explains. Flo has a passion for Black girls because "they got the body" and often is a judge at balls for such categories as "Model Body". Urged by rowdy crowds of women, we see normally shy girls strip proudly for Flo.
RJAI appeared on a talk-show as a "lesbian stud" and sparked a veritable flood of interest from girls curious about sex with a woman often mistaken for a man. Rjai shies from "thug" posturing and instead adopts the look of a "white-collar" male. As a competitor in balls, she has walked and won every imaginable category. We see her preparing, competing, and with a steady stream of girlfriends.
OCTAVIA just got out of prison. As an Aggressive, Octavia is the most raw and uninhibited. We see her before arrest, and speak with her mother, who still considers Octavia's sexual nature as "a phase". We interview Octavia in prison where she describes how to make a contraband dildo and that lesbian sex with an inmate is considered "tampering with State property." Nevertheless she is courted by all manner of females. Upon release we see her turn her life around.
TIFFANY has grown up in NYC's West Village and is a pioneer in a new realm of gender and sexual identity. "I'm not a lesbian if I date transgender women and have straight sex with them." Tiffany dates transvestities. She delights in the irony of her unique blurring of labels. We see her as she "vogues", gossips, sells drugs, and cruises drag queens.
