Filmmaker, author and activist Angelo C. Louw sat down with documentary filmmaker Carl Collison to explore the stories, passion and purpose behind Beyond the Margins and its powerful queer African storytelling.
I met Carl Collison during his time at the Mail & Guardian, where he documented queer stories as an Other Foundation Rainbow fellow. He interviewed me about the trauma I had experienced as a journalist working on queer media advocacy. Being on the other side of the questions felt strange, but looking back, I could not have asked for a gentler person to guide me through this new direction my career took.
Years later, with a slate of new documentaries focused on transhood now released through his platform Beyond the Margins, it felt fitting to return the favour and introduce the person responsible for spotlighting so many important queer stories to the world.
I was very curious to understand, as a fellow filmmaker and writer (and Mambaonline contributor), what drives the person behind the lens.
What began as an online publication has since evolved into a multimedia production company dedicated to creating queer-affirming African stories. For Collison, the work has always been rooted in accessibility and advocacy. “The idea behind Beyond the Margins is to create queer-affirming multimedia content from across Africa which is free to publish,” he explained. “Our films are gifted to organisations on the ground to help them in their awareness-raising and advocacy efforts.”
Telling the Stories Others Overlook
That commitment is visible in the three new documentaries released this year, including Still My Child and I Am She/Her. Together, the films explore trans identity, violence, family acceptance and survival in contemporary South Africa. Rather than centring headlines or political spectacle, Collison said he deliberately searches for stories hidden in the margins.
“I’m not interested in the obvious court rulings or hate crimes,” he said.
“I’m interested in what isn’t being said. What is the experience of the father of a transgender person in Namibia? Or the mother of an intersex child in rural Lesotho? Those stories offer a more nuanced and layered look into queerness across the continent.”
Why Trans Stories Matter More Than Ever
For Collison, the urgency of these stories is tied to the growing global backlash against trans rights, including the 2025 USAID cuts that affected healthcare access for vulnerable queer communities. “There has been a concerted effort to block the rights of trans persons,” he said.
Still, he believes trans storytelling is essential not only for visibility but for society itself. “We need to hear the stories of trans people and come to a place where we accept them in order for us to come closer to our kinder selves… Telling the stories of trans people is crucial at this point, not just for trans persons or for us as queer persons, but for us as the broader society.”
From Cape Town to Queer African Storytelling
Collison, who grew up in Lotus River, Cape Town, started his journey into queer storytelling in 2016 during his Rainbow Fellowship at the Mail & Guardian. At the time, he said, there was no blueprint for the kinds of stories he wanted to tell. He spent months building trust with communities while reporting on subjects mainstream media rarely touched, from transgender initiates forced into traditional schools to intersex infanticide.
“I realised very quickly this was a calling,” he reflected. “I don’t think I could do anything else.”
The Fathers Behind Still My Child
Among the latest releases, Still My Child stands out as a career highlight for Collison because of its focus on fathers of transgender children – a perspective rarely explored on screen. He admitted finding willing participants took years. “For the longest time, fathers were the holy grail,” he laughed. “I could always find mothers or women allies, but almost never fathers.”
The result is a deeply tender documentary where three South African fathers openly discuss fear, love and learning to support their children. “They joke with each other, they have banter, they’re just like any other family,” he said. “Why shouldn’t they be?”
Both Still My Child and I Am She/Her are currently part of the inaugural RECLAIM International Virtual Film Festival.
Visit Beyond the Margins for access to these and other documentaries, thought-leadership and photography by Collison and other queer creators.
Angelo Louw is an award-winning queer climate activist, author and documentary filmmaker.
