As Je’Jae (they/them pronouns), a 23-year-old gender-nonconforming Mizrahi Jew, explores an affirming expression of their gender and sexuality, they struggle against their mom’s rigid expectations for their life, many of which are shaped by the predominantly White, middle-class Orthodox Jewish community that she belongs to. After Je’Jae gets kicked out of their mom’s house, they move in with their 75-year-old adoptive Bubby (grandmother), Razi. Similar to Je’Jae, Razi is shunned in the Orthodox community. She owns a dog, which is forbidden by the Orthodox community, lives without a husband, and speaks her mind on issues. As Je’Jae and Razi navigate their new life together, the Orthodox community issues a formal ban on queer and trans members. Now Je’Jae and Razi must improvise survival methods in an environment that is openly hostile to their existence.

Longstanding Orthodox traditions that separate men and women and police the boundaries of gender put young people with non-normative genders and sexualities in impossible situations. Often, they are forced to either repress their expression of gender and sexuality or leave their entire support systems.

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