Smith, the director and visionary behind “Kokomo City,” utilized her editing and directing skills to craft an interpersonal narrative in which multiple transgender women recount their experiences in the sex work industry.

Smith, a Black transgender woman herself, combined her personal experiences and the experiences of other Black transgender individuals to paint a picture of the dangers that exist when interacting with clients.

The directorial choice to make the documentary in Black and white created a simplistic, vulnerable environment in which the audience felt thrusted into the subject’s slice of life. This unfiltered atmosphere promoted an unbiased listening of the stories told by the women interviewed.

The camera wandered during the interviews of the women — drifting off, avoiding traditional framing, and focusing heavily on their anatomy.

The documentary acknowledges this life-or-death mentality to expose the unnecessary violence against transgender Black women and the sense of impending doom that individual sex workers face.

One of the primary subjects of the film, Daniella, emphasized this when talking about her friends who died as a result of the unsafe conditions in the sex work industry. Two of her friends were killed by clients and one of them died after contracting AIDS.

During the documentary, it is clear that those in the industry are presented with an illusion of choice between two options of either leaving the sex work industry or becoming a victim of it.

This shines a light on an important subject many people ignore, and Smith’s choice to include firsthand accounts of these tragedies serves as an eye-opening insight for viewers like me who are unaware of these social hurdles.

Ultimately, the film uses impressive stylization and narrative liberties to represent the Black, transgender community in a way that has never been done. This documentary is extremely important in a society that does not offer many opportunities for transgender women to advocate for themselves.