Hollywood executives are to mount a pioneering campaign for two transgender stars to be considered for acting prizes at next year’s Oscars, reports Variety. It comes after last year actor Laverne Cox became the first transgender person nominated for an Emmy award, for her role as prisoner Sophia Burset in the TV show Orange is the New Black.

Distribution company Magnolia Pictures is to back Kitana Kiki Rodriguez and Mya Taylor of the Sundance film festival hit Tangerine for Academy Award consideration. The move is believed to mark the first occasion that a major Hollywood player has highlighted transgender actors for an Oscars run.

Tangerine is a big deal, not just because it was shot on an iPhone Read more

Rodriguez and Taylor star as prostitutes Sin-Dee and Alexandra in Tangerine, which was filmed on location in Los Angeles using only iPhones by director Sean Baker. The film has a 94% “fresh” rating on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes and was well reviewed at Sundance. “Using mostly first-time actors, Baker achieves both highly stylised shooting and authenticity simultaneously,” wrote the Guardian’s Brian Moylan.

Tangerine producers Mark and Jay Duplass are behind the move to pitch Rodriguez and Taylor for Oscar recognition, the former in the best actress category and the latter for best supporting actress. The pair will mount a guerilla-style campaign rather than paying for expensive “for your consideration” adverts, inviting their peers within the independent film-making community to “tastemaker” screenings in LA and New York from next month. Screeners will also be sent to Oscars voters in the acting, screenwriting and cinematography categories.

Why TV could teach cinema a lesson about how to treat trans characters Read more

“We’re in this community of film-makers who share movies,” Mark Duplass told Variety. “When we find a movie that we love, we share it with them. We haven’t done that inside the Academy yet. But Jay and I will do a lot of the legwork ourselves.

“Maybe we’re not the first one to get a trans actor nominated,” he added. “It’s not a loss if we don’t. This is a long play in our minds.”

• Tangerine is on release in the US and out in the UK on 13 November