Skateboarding isn’t just a sport. It’s a world. A culture. A lifestyle.
For 20+ years, Skate Like a Girl has been a significant force in skateboarding, teaching kids in Seattle, Portland, and the Bay Area how to skate. Like its sport, Skate Like a Girl also transcends labels. It’s not just a non-profit. It’s a community. And crucially, a haven for radical inclusion in a space that’s historically been less than—particularly for female- and queer-identifying skaters.
Yet, despite their place in skateboarding history, they’ve never officially told their story. So, CURATOR wanted to help them tell it. And in a way that felt as authentic and true to the organization as possible. Humble. Thoughtful. Inclusive. And with high production value to give this community the significance it deserves.
In early 2021, CURATOR approached Skate Like a Girl with an offer to 1) help tell their story and 2) find a brand partner to sponsor it. As huge fans of the organization, we felt we would make great partners given our shared commitment to inclusivity in historically male-dominated spaces. They agreed, and we immediately settled on making a short documentary. As we hashed out storylines, leaders of the organization made one thing clear: they didn’t want to be the ones in front of the camera. The story needed to come from the lens of a member—and who better than Alexa?
Alexa Berriochoa grew up passionate about skateboarding, but struggled to find acceptance in the community after coming out as a trans woman. Through Skate Like a Girl, she rekindled her confidence and passion for the sport. We all loved this idea because Alexa’s story is Skate Like a Girl’s story. It’s about perseverance, inclusion, and finding your place in the world.
With our core character locked, we got to work on our production approach. Our biggest priority was making sure we told Alexa’s story as authentically and empathetically as possible, while aligning to our own values as a diversity and inclusion-minded company. With our story’s focus on female and queer characters, we wanted our crew to mirror that diversity.
We approached Diane Russo Cheng to direct the project. As a queer woman, Diane grew up in proximity to her local skateboarding community where she developed a respect for and familiarity with the culture. As a director, Diane’s style was a perfect blend of beauty, vulnerability and defiance, themes that we felt would help elevate Alexa’s story while honoring Skate Like A Girl’s vibrant community.
We connected Diane directly with Alexa to establish a trusted line of communication between them. After multiple conversations with Alexa, Diane adapted her story into the film you see today.
In addition to Diane, Transenders was produced, edited, with cinematography, final color and original music by an all-female and/or queer leadership team. Nike Skateboarding, Skate Like a Girls’ brand partner, agreed to fund the film, which coincided with their 2022 release of the Skate Like a Girl-inspired “Dunk” shoe.
Transenders has toured the festival circuit, screening at places like Mountainfilm Fest in Telluride (now on tour), Northwest Fest, Toronto Inside Out Fest, and Seattle International Film Festival. The film is an official selection of the Berlin Commercial Awards for Commercials and Branded Content- Long Form, Craft: Director, and Cultural Impact categories. It won a Gold and Judge’s Award at the Seattle Addy’s, Silver at the National Addy’s, Gold Muse Award for Online Film, Platinum Muse Award for Branded Content, and was a Vimeo Staff Pick on October 15, 2022.
We’re super proud of this film and the critical acclaim it’s garnered, but our mission was never about accolades. We wanted to share Alexa’s and Skate Like a Girl’s story with the world in a way that was as authentic and empathetic as possible by engaging a filmmaking crew that was as inclusive and unique as the subject matter they set out to capture.
