In a time where legislators are continuously targeting queer people, long-time entertainment trailblazers Candis Cayne and Danna Davis have found their way to fight back.
The renowned transgender artists and activists recently announced the launch of their newly formed production company, Mary, It’s Mary Productions. The company is currently working on several projects, all of which aim to tell trans-centric stories through positivity and humor.
The name comes from the decades-old antigay slur turned term of endearment, “Mary,” which Davis and Cayne say they have been reclaiming throughout their lives by using it as a nickname for each other. Naming the company after a piece of queer history – which is also a piece of their friendship’s history – was “perfect,” the two recently told The Advocate.
One of the pair’s upcoming projects is Diaper Dolls, a sketch infomercial that Davis describes as “a satire about the anti-trans bathroom bill that has been passed in a few states.” The skit mocks legislation in several states that bans transgender people from using public facilities that align with their identity, specifically taking aim at Florida, where a myriad of anti-LGBTQ+ laws have been passed.
“Since I live in Florida, it's really hit me in the face,” Davis says. “So, we decided to handle it with some humor.”
Courtesy of Mary, It's Mary Productions
Cayne also believes humor is key in the projects the two write and produce. After over 30 years in film and television, the actor says she’s found comedy to be a particularly useful tool against bigotry, while also providing an outlet for both her and the community’s negative feelings.
“This whole bathroom situation is mind-bogglingly ridiculous,” Cayne says. “Instead of getting angry – which we are, we're all angry about it – instead of getting angry, we need to figure out how to adapt and sway people's minds in our direction, make everyone realize how ridiculous it is.”
Diaper Dolls is around five minutes in length, and will debut on March 31, Trans Day of Visibility. Cayne and Davis are also working on several longer projects, including a film titled Chaser.
Davis describes the movie as a “transamorous romcom” with a “full Kate Hudson ending.” She emphasizes its traditional happy ending, where the trans love interest “wins the ring instead of being murdered or beat up.” Davis also says that the film, set in the 90s, is based on their own personal experiences at the time as trans women.
Chasers, straight men who pursue transgender women, “are a very secretive group of society, and most straight people refuse to believe they even exist,” according to Davis. The film aims to humorously “expose that [group] in a positive way,” while also “respecting the lead male character.”
These are subjects “a lot of society finds, for some reason, so threatening,” Davis says, though she believes “it shouldn't be.”
“They need to know us,” she says. “They need to get to know us as trans humans.”
Other Mary, It’s Mary projects include Doctor's Orders: It's Sickening, an eight-episode reality series set in Wilton Manors, an LGBTQ+ community enclaved in Florida. The show follows the lives of local health care professionals (medical, dental, fitness, dermatology, sexology, and more), illustrating how they use their expertise to support the queer community.
Another documentary set in Wilton Manors, Wilton Wins, will explore “how this hateful, segregated white supremacist town became this beautiful place to live,” says Davis, who is a resident.
While informative, the documentaries will still aim to remain upbeat. Cayne says that the company “will do something dramatic eventually, I'm sure,” and that they are also looking to do more projects that feature transgender men, who Davis adds “really need a lot of support.”
Courtesy of Mary, It's Mary Productions
"We're living in such a delicate time politically and there's a lot of our community that feels helpless,” Cayne says. “The important thing that I want to achieve with Mary, It's Mary, is to be able to fuse this trans company with the rest of the world at large. To allow them to see our life and laugh with us, cry with us, but see us as human. See us, have empathy about the things that we have to go through.”
She adds: “Everybody is going through something, and there has to be a through line that that everyone experiences. … a thread that everybody can come together with, understand each other's stories and empathize.”
Transgender Americans are uniquely threatened in the political climate Mary, It’s Mary was founded under. More than 550 anti-LGBTQ+ bills were introduced across the U.S. in 2023, and 80 were passed into law. Less than three months into 2024, 478 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been introduced, the majority targeting transgender youth, according to the American Civil Liberties Union.
Davis says that the onslaught doesn’t discourage her, but rather “makes me want to work harder, it makes me want to produce more.”
“It makes me want to do as much as I can every minute of the day to give back to my community,” she says.
As for Cayne, she says “the idea that our community has been the scapegoat to turn an entire society against us in order to get political clout has been really, really frustrating.” She also believes the November presidential election “is probably the most important in our lifetime.”
“I'm sounding dramatic right now, but it's kind of gotten to that point, especially for trans people,” she explains.
Still, Cayne says she has “hope for our future,” and believes that the world will improve for trans and queer people broadly. LGBTQ+ rights have come a long way, and art is one of the tools that can push them forward.
“It always gets worse before it gets better,” Cayne says. “When we were growing up in the 90s and just starting our transitions, we were almost able to hide. It wasn't until we became sick of hiding and became loud and said that we deserve the same rights, the same opportunities as everybody else did. We have backlash, but once the backlash gets turned around, I think that it's just inevitably gonna get better for trans people.”
