This isn’t a tragedy or a spectacle. It’s a tender, transformative portrait of queer family, resilience, and love that refuses to be erased.
We’re raising funds to finish this deeply personal film yet profoundly universal story, and bring it into the world at a time when trans and non-binary lives are under attack. Your support will help us share a story that affirms: joy is possible. Family is expansive. And LOVE—raw, joyous, and real—is revolutionary.
Join us in rewriting the narrative. Make a tax-deductible donation today.
WHY THIS IS IMPORTANT NOW
We are living in a distressing time when the LGBTQIA+ community is increasingly used as a political pawn, and efforts to erase non-binary identities from the cultural landscape are becoming more aggressive.
A recent study from the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law reveals alarming statistics: 81% of transgender adults in the U.S. have thought about suicide, 42% have attempted it, and 56% have engaged in non-suicidal self-injury.
A Raw Love Story seeks to foster compassion from broader communities while offering a powerful example of self-actualization for trans and non-binary individuals, affirming that their lives, experiences, and identities can be triumphant and whole.
Through radical visibility and tenderness, our goal is simple yet urgent: to help save lives by celebrating them.
SYNOPSIS
A Raw Love Story follows Raw, a joyful warrior of the gender non-binary experience who balances parenthood, a full-time job, grad school, and creative pursuits. After undergoing top surgery and preparing for a hysterectomy, Raw navigates life with their partner, Issa, and Diago, Raw’s teenage son.
The narrative blends Raw's present with their origin story. Adopted into a devoutly Christian Black family, Raw was outed by a gay lover in high school. Bullied and rejected at school and at home, Raw drops out, runs away, and joins the military – kickstarting a colorful path of self-actualization.
Issa supports Raw through surgery as they teach Diago valuable lessons in resilience and survival.
A Raw Love Story provides a rare and intimate glimpse into the underrepresented genderqueer family structure, demonstrating that they can be healthy, stable, and thriving in the face of societal challenges.
PROGRESS & STATUS
LATE STAGE PRODUCTION. We have captured 90% of verité footage. The money raised will be used to film the stylized, staged sequences of Raw's inner world and evolution, as well as to cover the costs of animation and post-production activities.
ABOUT THE FILMMAKER
Maximina Juson is an award-winning filmmaker and founder of HUMovies, a film and video production company based in Los Angeles.
Her documentary feature, One Person, One Vote? is a National Endowment for the Humanities grant recipient that world premiered at The Pan African Film Festival (2024), taking home the Programmer's Award for Best Documentary Feature, and was featured on The Daily Show on Comedy Central. One Person, One Vote? premiered as the season opener for Independent Lens on PBS.
Juson was the Consulting Producer and Additional Camera for Mama Bears, a documentary that explores the transformative experience of conservative, Christian mothers who decide to accept their LGBTQ children. The film premiered at SXSW in 2022 and was a nominee for the Grand Jury Prize for Best Documentary.
ABOUT HUMovies
HUMovies is a film and video production company founded by Maximina Juson, headquartered in Los Angeles, CA. HUMovies' mission is to shine a light on areas of society that have been overlooked, misunderstood or forgotten. HUM is an acronym for "Humans Understanding Machinery" meaning the metaphorical machinery of our times.
Our fundraising fiscal sponsor is the wonderful From The Heart Productions.
All donations made through the platform are tax-deductible.
© 2025 by HUMovies. All Rights Reserved.
