Treat Me Like Your Mother

Writing a history of the trans community of Lebanon is no small feat. How do you render visible that which has been historically marginalized and made taboo? How do you celebrate trans lives while protecting their identities and safety?

Photographer Mohamad Abdouni opts to spotlight four transwomen by interweaving their personal accounts and archives with home videos of his own. The result is a tender photodocumentary that traces femininity in its different manifestations. The overlay of narratives across different decades, each stemming from lived experience, serves to complicate the identity politics of today as well as a hegemonic Western discourse on gender and sexuality.

Equal parts brutal and humorous, and with original music by Mayssa Jallad, Charbel Haber, Fadi Tabbal, and more, Treat Me Like Your Mother is Abdouni’s directorial debut. It premiered at IDFA in November 2025. (JH)