Brace

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Available Summary:

After coming out and leaving his girlfriend, Adam dreams of finding acceptance within London's gay scene. His burgeoning freedom is soon challenged when he meets Rocky, a handsome stranger who is harbouring a secret that he desperately wants to share with Adam. As their bond strengthens and Rocky prepares to reveal his secret to Adam, their fledgling romance is ruptured by a cataclysmic event that forces the truth to come out in the most explosive manner.

-Vimeo.

Jack's Summary:

At the beginning of this film, Adam is shown hooking up with a man in a nightclub, and then staring at himself in the mirror, obviously regretting cheating on his girlfriend. The next morning, he breaks up with her, and she responds by insisting that him being gay is just a phase. We see in a flashback that his father reacted far worse, calling his son a homophobic slur, furious that his child was coming out a second time.

Adam first meets Rocky in a nightclub, where they briefly speak, and then meet up for dates. When Adam tries to kiss Rocky, he pulls back. Rocky, unaware that Adam is trans as well, insists that he has something he needs to tell him. Adam, also unaware that Rocky is trans, suggests that they just get to know each other. They continue partying and going on dates together.

One night, on a date, the pair are accosted by homophobic men who call them slurs. Rocky, who walks home alone, is then gay bashed by the same group. Adam gets a call from a women's hospital the next day, confused when a nurse tells him that his phone number was found in the wallet of a woman whose name he does not recognise. When he arrives at the hospital, he realises that the name he'd heard is Rocky's deadname, and that Rocky is a trans man, just like him. The nurse who is "caring" for Rocky in hospital demeans Rocky and makes a comment about his genitals, in a manner similar to what I have personally encountered when seeking medical care.

Adam, who had no idea that Rocky had been gay bashed after their date, flees the hospital and vomits outside, traumatised by seeing him so injured. He then takes the bus home, for some bizarre reason, not staying by Rocky's side. When he changes his mind and returns to the hospital, Rocky is already gone. The same nurse, not knowing that Adam is trans as well, continues her vile rhetoric against trans men.

When Adam finds Rocky again, he apologises for leaving the hospital and insists that he doesn't want to leave Rocky based on him being trans. Rocky says, "I would." When Adam asks what he means, Rocky says that he wouldn't want to date a trans man. It is clear that he is dealing with self-hatred and internalised transphobia. He refers to himself as a freak, and reveals that his last boyfriend physically abused him.

Adam and Rocky reconnect after this, and things seem good between them for a short while. When they are making out in the nightclub, however, Rocky feels Adam's crotch through his jeans. Based on the shape of Adam's crotch (and apparently assuming Adam is not a cis man with a small penis or an intersex variation), Rocky realises that Adam is trans. He is furious, yelling that he doesn't want to be with a trans man, also saying, "I don't want to be like you."

They meet the following night, with Adam apologising for not coming out as a trans man earlier. Rocky insists that he just wants to be normal, which is apparently the reason he cannot be with another trans man. He walks away, leaving Adam distressed.

The Casting of Rocky:

In this interview, Graf discusses making and starring in the film: "When I wrote my short film, Brace, I wanted another trans man playing opposite me. But not only were there no trans actors applying for the role, the cisgender actor who played the part, Harry Rundle, was absolutely stunning and the best of everyone we saw. It would have been madness not to give him the part simply because he wasn’t trans, too."