''Geraldine'' is a 2000 French

animated Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby image, still images are manipulated to create Motion picture, moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on cel, transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and e ...

short film A short film is a film with a low running time. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of not more than 40 minutes including all credits". Other film o ...

, directed by , while he was attending Arts Decos'. Critical reception has been positive, and the film has been honored in multiple festivals. The story follows a former man who must adjust to her new life after inexplicably waking up one morning as a woman. In 2004, the film was released on a DVD compilation of French animated short films.

Plot

Geraldine wakes up with a loud shriek. She had gone to bed as a man named Gerald. Somehow, overnight, she has undergone a mysterious transformation. Now an attractive woman, Geraldine abashedly looks over her new body. She seeks help from a

medical professional A health professional, healthcare professional (HCP), or healthcare worker (sometimes abbreviated as HCW) is a provider of health care treatment and advice based on formal training and experience. The field includes those who work as a Nursing, nur ...

, but her story is not taken seriously. The next morning Geraldine calls up an old girlfriend, Penelope, who agrees to meet. While waiting in a

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, Geraldine draws unwanted attention from a group of men playing

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. Resenting this, she attempts to display her own athleticism, but embarrasses herself. Struggling to assume her new role in life, Geraldine learns the many facets of womanhood from her former girlfriend, while continuing to fend off male advances. The two friends go to a

nightclub A nightclub or dance club is a club that is open at night, usually for drinking, dancing and other entertainment. Nightclubs often have a Bar (establishment), bar and discotheque (usually simply known as disco) with a dance floor, laser lighti ...

together, and Geraldine attends

therapy A therapy or medical treatment is the attempted remediation of a health problem, usually following a medical diagnosis. Both words, ''treatment'' and ''therapy'', are often abbreviated tx, Tx, or Tx. As a rule, each therapy has indications a ...

sessions. Although beginning to become more comfortable in her femininity, she has to endure horny, leering men in her

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. Upon being

sexually harassed Sexual harassment is a type of harassment based on the sex or gender of a victim. It can involve offensive sexist or sexual behavior, verbal or physical actions, up to bribery, coercion, and assault. Harassment may be explicit or implicit, wit ...

by her boss, she

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s him. The old girlfriend is startled and upset to discover that Geraldine has taken a new

modeling A model is an informative representation of an object, person, or system. The term originally denoted the Plan_(drawing), plans of a building in late 16th-century English, and derived via French language, French and Italian language, Italian ult ...

job. Geraldine does extraordinarily well in this profession however, attaining worldwide fame. She appears on the cover of renowned publications and channels her celebrity-status into political influence. After many years, Geraldine has decided to marry a man. Her old girlfriend rushes her to the ceremony, driving a

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike; uni (if one-wheeled); trike (if three-wheeled); quad (if four-wheeled)) is a lightweight private 1-to-2 passenger personal motor vehicle Steering, steered by a Motorcycle handlebar, handlebar from a saddle-style ...

. As Geraldine reaches the end of the

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aisle, a storm gathers overhead. Lightning strikes, and Geraldine transforms back into a man. Upon seeing the bearded Gerald, everyone gasps. Still wearing his

wedding dress A wedding dress or bridal gown is the dress worn by the bride during a wedding ceremony. The color, style and ceremonial importance of the gown can depend on the religion and culture of the wedding participants. Wedding dresses hold a significan ...

, Gerald feels his body and lets out a loud scream. Leaving the ceremony together, Gerald and his old girlfriend reconnect as a couple and eventually start a large family.

Production

Montreuil - Salon du livre jeunesse 2011 - Arthur de Pin - 001

Arthur de Pins made ''Geraldine'' while attending Arts Decos' in Paris. According to '' Campaign'', many viewers have had strong and differing reactions to the film, some accusing it of sexism, others hailing it as feminist. de Pins however, who has no sisters and attended an

all boys school Single-sex education, also known as single-gender education, same-sex education, same-gender education, and gender-isolated education, is the practice of conducting education with male and female students attending separate classes, perhaps in se ...

in his youth, was "merely having fun" with the film and exploring his curiosity in the opposite sex. In a review for ''Short of the Week'', Ian Lumsden posited that the film was rendered in

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and that

After Effects Adobe After Effects is a digital visual effects, motion graphics, and compositing application developed by Adobe Inc.; it is used for animation and in the post-production process of film making, video games and television production. Among oth ...

was likely used for

compositing Compositing is the process or technique of combining visual elements from separate sources into single images, often to create the illusion that all those elements are parts of the same scene. Live action, Live-action shooting for compositing ...

Reception

Amid Amidi Amid Amidi is a journalist. He is the publisher and editor-in-chief of the ''Cartoon Brew Cartoon Brew is an animation news website created by Amid Amidi and animation historian Jerry Beck that was launched on 15 March 2004. Cartoon Dump It ...

of ''

Cartoon Brew Cartoon Brew is an animation news website created by Amid Amidi and animation historian Jerry Beck that was launched on 15 March 2004. Cartoon Dump It also created '' Cartoon Dump'', a weekly podcast showing poorly made TV cartoons featuring ' ...

'' and independent animator Celia Bullwinkel have both expressed affinity for the film. Ron Diamond of ''

Shoot Shoot most commonly refers to: * Shoot (botany), an immature plant or portion of a plant * Shooting, the firing of projectile weapons * Photo shoot, a photography session; an event wherein a photographer takes photographs Shoot may also refer t ...

'' singled it out as one of the best films screened at the 2001

Annecy International Animated Film Festival The Annecy International Animation Film Festival (, officially abbreviated in English as the Annecy Festival, or simply Annecy) was created in 1960 and takes place at the beginning of June in the town of Annecy, France. Initially occurring ever ...

. Writing for ''Short of the Week'', Ian Lumsden called ''Geraldine'' a "hilarious romp" and praised de Pins' "febrile wit". Noting the film's simplistic, colorful design, he likened the animation style to "a well-crafted comic postcard". A review in ''Campaign'' highlighted the film's visual humor and "spot-on sound effects."

Accolades

The film won in the Undergraduate category at the 2001 Ottawa International Student Animation Festival, the Best School or Graduation Film award at the 2001 Annecy International Animated Film Festival, and the Video Prize at the 2001 Avanca Film Festival. It was also featured retrospectively in a 2012 travelling European film exhibition by Les Videophages and in the 2013 .

Home media

The film was released on DVD in 2004 by Lowave, as part of a compilation titled ''Metronomic & Co: French animated shorts, volume 1''.

References

External links

*{{IMDb title, 0378011
Metronomic - Arthur de Pins
2000 animated short films 2000 LGBTQ-related films 2000s fantasy comedy films 2000s French animated films 2000 romantic comedy films 2000s romantic fantasy films 2000s sex comedy films Bisexuality-related films Films about activists Films about fashion Films about sexual harassment Films about shapeshifting Films about weddings French animated fantasy films French animated short films French independent films French LGBTQ-related short films French romantic comedy films French sex comedy films LGBTQ-related romantic comedy films LGBTQ-related sex comedy films 2000s political comedy films French student films Transgender-related films