The Gendercator
TRT : 15 minutes
Super 8mm & Mini DV
The Gendercator is a short, satirical take on gender and social norms. The story uses the “Rip van Winkle” model to extrapolate from the past into a possible future.
In 1973 a group of hippie women are celebrating Billie Jean King’s victory over Bobby Riggs. They are partying in the rural woods outside of Bloomington, Indiana. Our heroine Sally is a simple minded, sporty type who overindulges at the party and passes out under a tree. Sally wakes up 75 years later in 2048 to discover (amongst other social changes) that feminism has failed utterly and completely. Sex roles and gender expression are rigidly binary and enforced by law and social custom. When Sally chooses to dress in flannel and jeans, the doctor at the emergency room calls in the “Gendercator”, a government official who informs Sally that butch women and sissy boys are no longer tolerated – gender variants are allowed to chose their gender, but they must choose one and follow its rigid constraints.
Sally is baffled by this brave new world. All she wants is to “do her own thing” – but her own thing is seen as problematic. Sally is a simple-minded stoner, indoctrinated into 70s feminism. She is no poster girl or freedom fighter, just a gentle tomboy dropped into the future with a tendency to respond in slogans such as “sisterhood is powerful”.
Nurse Nancy locates some of Sally’s former friends – they are 100 now, but because of advances in the medical profession they are still healthy and thriving. The friends tell Sally they heard she moved to California and that’s why they never looked for her. One of her friends appears to be a man and tells Sally, “They made me do it. They’ll make you too.” They explain to Sally that in the early 2000s the evangelical Christians took over the government and legislated their strict family values, legally sanctioning only “one man, one woman” couples. Advances in sex reassignment surgery have made it possible to honor an individual’s choice of gender AND government policy. Sally is comfortable in the middle of the genders, an unacceptable choice in 2048.
Director’s Note
The Gendercator is a work of satirical fiction. A satire is not a prediction of the future, it is a commentary on contemporary social trends. A satire takes these trends to their logical extreme to emphasize their underlying logic. The Gendercator is a comment on 1) the rise of religious fundamentalists as a political power all over the world, all of whom declare homosexuality to be a sin, 2) the medical advancements in plastic surgery, and 3) the culture of individuality which posits that individual “choice” is to be celebrated as the highest good, and therefore cannot be criticized.
Controversy about my Original Director’s Note
Many people have expressed discomfort with my original explanation of the motivations for making The Gendercator. I would like to take this opportunity to clarify some of my ideas and concerns. The original paragraph read:
| Director’s Note - Things are getting very strange for women these days. More and more often we see young heterosexual women carving their bodies into porno Barbie dolls and lesbian women altering themselves into transmen. Our distorted cultural norms are making women feel compelled to use medical advances to change themselves, instead of working to change the world. This is one story, showing one possible scary future. I am hopeful that this movie will foster discussion about female body modification and medical ethics. |
This remark is not about transpeople. It is about women. My understanding of transsexuality is that it is a rare condition, a medical condition of gender dysphoria. A person’s exterior body does not match their interior sense of self, causing serious social, sexual, and mental problems. This person is a transsexual, not a woman or a man. My statement was not meant to question the validity of this condition, but to call attention to the increasing number of young women who are taking testosterone or undergoing voluntary mastectomies to enhance their masculinity. These are women who formerly identified, or would be considered by the lesbian community, as butch lesbians.
If we situate this in terms of the larger culture’s misogyny, it seems to be a rejection of the female part of the masculine female. Why does a woman do this? Most often, the reasons given are: to avoid harassment, rape and ridicule as a gender variant. It seems to me that what is also going on, but has not been explicitly addressed, is the desire to avoid being perceived by the world at large as female. Or to avoid the label of lesbian. Some may do this because it enables their sexual fantasies.
I also see a marked increase in the number of women who enhance their bodies through medical procedures to become more exaggeratedly female, as definedby the standards of advertising and pornography. I wanted to talk about why this is happening so often right now. Why does a woman do this? Most often, the reason given is low self-esteem. My feeling is that if we had more people working against these terrible and one-dimensional portrayals of women as having value only as sex objects, the medical interventions would be for medical reasons, not for social or cultural reasons.
For me it is important to work against the rigid gender binaries of the larger culture that enable violence and harassment of the masculine female or effeminate male. It is harmful to everyone that an individual’s safety and identity is defined by conformity to the standards of Ken & Barbie. This is what The Gendercator is about.
I believe we in the alphabet community are so hypersensitive about being hurtful that we avoid the very difficult conversations that we desperately need right now. I hope The Gendercator can lead to further discussion between transgender people and lesbians. Even if this discussion causes us to feel uncomfortable, we must talk about the rift and the reasons for the rift in our community. I believe that we in the alphabet community are all a part of the same family, and we must find a way for constructive dialogue. I think that we can find a way to respect our differences and understand our commonalities.
Sunshine Sally (Emily Wood) celebrates Billie Jean King's historic 1973 victory over Bobby Riggs on the fateful night before her 75 year slumber.
photo by Josie Virgin copyright 2006
Cast
Emily Wood Sally
Joel Umbaugh Tork
Kelly Gerard Nurse Nancy
Bob Berry Dr. Steele
Constance Macy 2048 Rachel
Greg Steele 2048 Linda
Eddie Curry Mano
Nick Anno Lem
Amanda Coppes 1973 Linda
Amanda Hunyadi 1973 Rachel
Brandy Clem Sally’s Party Girl
1973 Party
Melissa Uhte Brooke Ferrin
Nora Spitznogle Beth Spitznogle
Shannon Kay Wilson Hannah David
Joslyn Virgin Crowe Abdullah Hashem
Stacy Suits Carla Kerulis
Sally’s Rescue Squad
Dianna McGuire Christian Tamte
Catherine Crouch Thomasina
Softball Practice
Eliza Sisson Craig Lucia Gupta
Claudia Sisson Craig Isabella Bohren
Jocelyn Sisson Jeannie Paulsen
Petra Fippen Nicole Gupta
Crew
Writer/Director Catherine Crouch
Producer/Gaffer Joel Umbaugh
Executive Producer Sharon Zurek
Director of Photography Jason Boyer
Editor Hannah David
Production Manager Shannon Kay Wilson
Sound Recordists Ryan Conly
Paul Cowan
Sound Mix Martie Marro
Costume Designer Ann Simper
Hair & Makeup Rachel Gibson
Casting Nicole Emery
Production Coordinator Nora Spitznogle
Script Supervisor Leticia Alvarez
Set Design Tim Cohn
Set Builder BrianMyers
Assistant Hair Brooke Ferrin
Music Coordinator Peter Marq
Website Penguin Hannah David
Still Photographer Joslyn Virgin Crowe
Graphics Kate Lamont
2nd Unit Camera Kelly Hayes
Assistant Camera Leticia Alvarez
Picture Car Ryan Uhte
Billie Jean King Joseph Lehner
2nd Assistant Director Alex Johnson
Assistant Gaffer Mike Tambasco
Crafts Services Beth Spitznogle
Pam & Derek Powell
Michael Witte
Kandy Kendall & Dan Axler
The Aristocrat Pub
Yat’s
Production Assistants Abdullah Hashem
Rachel Rose
Dawn Boarman
Shane Haney
Props Brandy Clem
Kandy Kendall & Dan Axler
Babe Zurek
Locations Leffel Farm, Zionsville, IN
Stutz Building, Indianapolis, IN
Ellen Berger Park, Indianapolis, IN
The Pyramids, Indianapolis, IN
Post Production Facilities Black Cat Productions, Chicago, IL
Sound Studios Materville Studios, Chicago, IL
Recording Studio Paragon Studios, Chicago, IL
Lighting Equipment Hammer Motion Pictures, Carmel, IN
Super 8 Lab Dwayne’s Photo, Parsons, KS
Thanks to our generous donors
Amy Ira Leigh Crouch
Tim Cohn Abdullah Hashem
Marcia & Bill Jackson Yvonne Welbon
Becky Vasco Linda Santoro
Flemming & Associates Melissa & Ryan Uhte
Regan Zwald & Ed Curtis Amelia Sosa
Kelly Hayes
Jocelyn Sisson & David Craig Nippy Page & Jonathon Thornton
Shannon Kay Wilson Joel Umbaugh
This activity is made possible in part by the Indiana Arts Commission, a state agency,
with funds from the Indiana General Assembly and the National Endowment of the Arts.
The Director wishes to thank
My Special Lady Greg Fincher
John Spitznogle James Kimberling
Gloria Steinem Rick Cook & Keith Washington
Linda Horwitz & Sally Kolin Ines Sommer
Mary & Jim Leffel Brian Halloran
Nancy Andrews Steve Wilkins
Washington Irving Beth Vantlin
Greg Malone Billie Jean King
Derrick Hammer Mary Guzman
Anne Coudret-Jester Kent Smith
Sarah Mynett Marie-Joelle Rizk
Tyler Too Kristin J Mohr
Jennifer Arnold Seema Shastri
Kent Vernon
The Producers wish to thank
Gail Black & Blakeley’s
Hammer Motion Pictures
Road Pictures
Stutz Building
Helen Wells Agency
Mass Avenue Video
Radio Radio
Deano’s Vino
Wine Wednesdays
“I Just Want to Celebrate” by Rare Earth, 1974
Performed by The Stewed Tomatoes
Katie Jacobson – Drums
Lisa Hernandez – Bass, Vocals
Martie Marro – Guitar, Vocals
“Over the Hills & Far Away” by Led Zeppelin, 1973
Performed by Ellen Rosner Band
Ellen Rosner – Vocals
Chuck Harling – Drums
Craig Hamilton – Keyboards, Guitar, Bass
“Crazy Train” by Ozzy Ozbourne
Performed by The Stewed Tomatoes
Katie Jacobson – Drums
Lisa Hernandez – Bass, Vocals
Martie Marro – Guitar, Vocals
Copyright 2007 Cotton Lover Films