An Argentinian documentary follows a teenager’s transition to answer this question.
The documentary Tristán y los días por venir (Tristán and the days to come) was filmed over seven years, documenting Tristán’s adolescence and gender transition from the age of 14. The film emphasizes that gender transition isn’t something with a neat beginning and definitive ending – it’s an ongoing process with the support of a community and gender-affirming state policies.
Now 22, Tristán tells Argentinian newspaper Clarín: “I feel a lot of nostalgia and tenderness for the person I used to be. I see myself, all small and it makes me want to hug myself and say: ‘Everything will be okay.’”
The piece interviews filmmakers Martina Matzkin and Gabriela Uassouf, who sought to answer the question: is it possible to be trans and not suffer that much? Through Tristán and his family’s story, it was. But it wouldn’t have been possible without a community of people and institutions that are accepting and willing to provide resources for a safe, judgement-free transition.
The point of the film was to make visible a “positive testimony of growth; that it’s possible to be happy, that it’s possible to be surrounded by companionship and love,” Matzkin told Clarín. “Not to erase that there are many cases where this doesn’t happen, but to show the possibility that transitioning can be beautiful, positive, and happy.”
Froio on the selection:
As expressed by the filmmakers, positive gender transition journeys are rare. Often, trans people are blamed for their own tragedies because the world doesn’t want to accept who they are and prefers them to suffer in the closet. It would be easier on both trans people and their families and friends if the world shifted into acceptance and support. This piece demonstrates that love is the path of least resistance, and that hatred of difference makes everything harder.
Original article published in Spanish as “’¿Es posible ser trans sin sufrir tanto?’: el documental que responde esa pregunta” on 9 June, 2026 in Clarín.
Clarín is the largest newspaper in Argentina
