This year has seen some incredible performances in the LGBT realm. Rooney Mara and Cate Blanchett in the midcentury lesbian love story Carol dazzled; shot on an iPhone, Mya Taylor and Kitana Kiki Rodriguez explored L.A.’s transgender underworld in Tangerine, to great effect and The Danish Girl‘s Alicia Vikander and her costar, Eddie Redmayne, were both subtle and haunting as the Lili Elbe, a sex-change pioneer and her loyal wife. These portraits here were shot in Los Angeles, New York, and London by veteran fashion photographer Peter Lindbergh for W‘s annual Movie Issue. They are all revealing and evocative character ­studies —mini-movie stills unto themselves. There are 6 covers in all and a ton more amazing photos and interviews. Check them out here.

Cate Blanchett

“All my life I’ve been playing dress-up, and now I get to do it for a living. In film, particularly, the costumes are a big part of my characters. When I first appear in Carol, in a fur coat, hat, and gloves, the audience immediately ascribes meaning to the person I’m playing. A certain scarf or handbag or a pair of glasses can reveal multitudes about someone’s persona.” –Cate Blanchett

Rooney Mara

Eddie Redmayne

“One of my first films was Savage Grace. Julianne Moore played my mother, with whom my character was having an incestuous relationship. Last year, there was an amazing moment at the Academy Awards when Julianne and 
I both won. We were euphoric, and she turned to me and said, ‘Now maybe people will go 
and see Savage Grace!’ ” –Eddie Redmayne

Alicia Vikander

Mya Taylor

“Tangerine happened for me because I was in the right place at the right time. A very attractive person named Sean Baker walked up to me at the LGBT center in Hollywood, and we started talking. Our conversations about hustling and struggling with my gender transition became the basis for the movie.” –Mya Taylor

(Photo, Peter Lindbergh; via W)