After a youth in the shadows, filmmaker River Gallo is ready to be seen, heard, and thrive
disclosed that they were different from other children. Born intersex in New Jersey, their parents opted for Gallo to undergo surgery at 16 and administered hormones so that they could live life as a “normal” male.Gallo spent most of their youth hiding, but one could also argue developing a hunger to explore every fiber of their being.
Subscribe to our newsletter for a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.This was a time when gayness was still coming into fruition in the media, so the world wasn’t attuned to the intersex identity.
Still, Gallo understood visibility could only begin to happen if one brave person took charge of their marginalization. While studying theater at NYU, Gallo decided to explore their identity through a 40-minute performance art piece.
This endeavor laid the foundation for the release of Ponyboi in 2019, the first short film produced and starring an intersex person.
