This week, PBS Digital Studios gathered their hosts and producers from around the country in one place: YouTube Space New York. The six-month old studio is nothing less than what you would think Google would come up with, from the state-of-the-art camera equipment and green screens to its massive TVs and pre-built sets. PBSDS’ newest series First Person, which hit the web today, was filming promo videos with host and producer Kristin Russo. Here’s what she had to say about the show.
 
Cynopsis: What’s the goal of First Person?
Kristin Russo: It covers important queer and trans issues by looking at individual lives whose stories intersect with those issues. The first episode is about the growing presence of trans YouTubers, or people who are documenting their transition on YT. The subject, Skyler Kergil, is one of the first people to do this and it became something other young trans people used as a resource in their own transformations. Upcoming episodes will cover topics such as queer fashion and sports as they overlap with gender and sexuality. Many of the elements of the show come from queer or trans spaces. For instance, I identify as queer, one of the producers is in the LGBTQ sphere and the intro music is from an LGBTQ artist. So, there are a lot of pieces to it that feel authentic.
 
CD: How did your involvement come about?
KR: I’m a co-founder of an organization that started in 2010 called Everyone Is Gay. It’s really just an advice platform, but very quickly we learned there was a huge need. Over the last five years, we started making videos, and essentially PBSDS asked me to audition for the role.
 
Follow @CynopsisMedia on Instagram for photos from the interview and the day at YouTube Space New York.