Isabel Sandoval on transitioning

One of the best interviews we’ve conducted last year was the one with multihyphenate Isabel Sandoval, the writer, director and lead actress of the award-winning film “Lingua Franca,” about an undocumented Filipino transwoman (played by Isabel) working as a caregiver in New York.

But don’t be fooled by her soft-spoken, almost shy, countenance. While Isabel appeared cerebral and personable as all get-out, we found her answers to be just as fun and illuminating as the characters she brings to palpable life onscreen. (For added context, we urge you to revisit our two-part interview on Inquirer.net with the versatile filmmaker on Nov. 23, 2020 and Nov. 24, 2020.)

Before we wrapped up our 30-minute chat on Zoom, we asked Isabel if transitioning was something she would encourage other people thinking of going through it to pursue.

“Of course it’s a matter of personal choice,” Isabel said. “I can never claim to speak about what other people should do. But for me, it was a long and arduous process, because transitioning is a serious, personal journey.

“And, you know, transitioning can take many forms. There are people who just want to claim their gender identity, while others, like myself, prefer to take hormones in order to change physically. Some people even go all the way and have gender reassignment surgery, which was what I did.

“Yeah, people have their own individual journeys. As long as you put in the effort to understand yourself and get to know who you really are, and if that leads to decide that you want to transition, then by all means you should do that.”