Trans Rights-Themed ‘Heightened Scrutiny’ To Get Theatrical Release

EXCLUSIVE: The U.S. Supreme Court saves its most important rulings for the end of its annual term in June. This year, one of those crucial decisions came in the United States v Skrmetti case, testing whether Tennessee had the constitutional authority to prevent trans youth from receiving gender-affirming care like puberty blockers and hormone therapy.

Not surprisingly, the court’s conservative supermajority upheld the Tennessee law by a 6-3 vote, with the trio of more liberal justices dissenting. The New York Times, in an analysis, said the decision “could set the [transgender rights] movement back a generation.”

In terms of silver linings, the case certainly advanced the visibility of trans people in American society, and it made history in one important respect: the ACLU attorney who represented the interests of trans youth – Chase Strangio – became the first openly trans person to argue a case before the Supreme Court.

The documentary Heightened Scrutiny, directed by Sam Feder, follows Strangio’s groundbreaking work on United States v Skremetti (sometimes referred to as LW v Skrmetti) and the media’s depiction of trans issues. Today, Fourth Act Film announced it will release the film theatrically in New York and Los Angeles on July 18, with additional cities to follow.

You can watch an exclusive clip from the film below, which shows Strangio in the moments after he appeared before the court – when victory in the case still seemed possible.

“Featuring activists including Laverne Cox and Elliot Page and journalists, including Tre’vell Anderson and Jelani Cobb, the film traces the dangerous role of mainstream media in fueling anti-trans legislation and how we arrived at this current moment,” notes a release. The documentary, which premiered at Sundance, is produced by Feder (Disclosure), Amy Scholder (Disclosure, My Name Is Andrea) and Paola Mendoza (Romina).

“Releasing the film on the heels of the devastating Supreme Court decision (LW v Skrmetti) last week, we turn our focus to the work ahead with renewed conviction – bringing the film to audiences,” Feder and Scholder said in a statement. “In a mainstream media climate that is increasingly hostile to the trans community, the film explores why and how we have arrived at this moment. While the right for all to access healthcare is a fundamental democratic value, why has it become a debate when it comes to trans lives? We made this film capturing a historic moment of the enduring fight for trans rights; in releasing the film, we hope to inspire coalitions with all struggles for civil rights and bodily autonomy, because an attack on some of us is an attack on all of us. While our film ends at the steps of the Supreme Court, the story is far from over.”

Heightened Scrutiny, a Disclosure 2 Film production, is executive produced by Laverne Cox, S. Mona Sinha, Bill & Ruth Ann Harnisch, Lisa Freeman, and Sara Hinkle. Co-executive producers are Charlotte Cook and Andrew Kim.

“With the dangerous SCOTUS decision upholding the ban on life-saving healthcare,” the release observes, “Heightened Scrutiny is an urgent call to action against bigotry and injustice.”

We spoke with Feder and Strangio at Sundance, just a month after the attorney argued in United States v Skrmetti.

“In this case, I was preparing against the backdrop of the election in which the Republican Party spent $215 million in advertising targeting transgender people specifically,” Strangio told us. “Where you had a campaign in which the incoming president, now the president, basically rode into power attacking trans people. And really the case took on such an increased significance because this is going to be, hopefully, if we can win, a stop to some of those attacks. We’re arguing that the government should not be able to just target a group of people like trans people without some check from the judiciary. And that’s what is really at stake as we’re awaiting a decision in June.”

In the clip below, Strangio enters an SUV in the heady moments after arguing before the Supreme Court. (For context, he makes reference to Pauli Murray, the extraordinary civil rights scholar and attorney who was the subject of the documentary My Name Is Pauli Murray, directed by Julie Cohen and Betsy West).