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Don's second student film, "Genre" (1996), won seventeen awards and greatly helped pave the way for the movies that followed, but is Don's least favorite short. The movie's soundtrack has always bothered him a bit and in hindsight, "the whole thing came out too cartoony."
Barely finishing in time for the student deadline, "Genre" was completed in March of 1996 following a rushed and unfinished sound mix that poked some quirky holes throughout the piece.
assorted cutouts from the opening sequence
The opening stop-motion sequence of the two-dimensional paper rabbit walking on the desk top was created entirely through the special effects magic of Scotch tape. The rabbit performed this same trick in one of Don's 1993 high school cartoons, which is now available for reference in the Archives of the Bitter Films: Volume 1 DVD. All the pixelated shots around the art desk were filmed in Don's student apartment, where the background walls were covered with several pictures of hands.
A strange-looking mobile was accidentally left hanging in the apartment, and can be seen above and behind the rabbit when he's on the desk, oddly twitching around in the dark.
Don plays the faceless artist and his hands were carefully positioned and stop-motion animated in step with the drawings, one frame at a time beneath the camera.
Like many of his films, "Genre" was undertaken without a complete script, giving Don the freedom to make things up as he goes. The cartoon was largely animated in chronological order and many of the genres and jokes were whipped up and improvised in a hurry as he got to them. This may be why some of the gags are terrible.
Despite the bloody violence and adult references, people still refer to "Genre" as "cute" and, "my kids loved that one," just because there is a bunny in it.
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Learn more about the film in the
BITTER FILMS: VOLUME 1 DVD archive:
- "THE MEANING OF LIFE" TIME LAPSE DOCUMENTARY
- "THE ANIMATION SHOW" TRILOGY CARTOONS
- RARE FOOTAGE FROM DON'S EARLIEST CARTOONS
- ORIGINAL VIDEO PENCIL TESTS
- DELETED SEQUENCES
- "REJECTED" TEXT COMMENTARY BY DON
- "LILY AND JIM" DELETED DIALOGUES AND OUTTAKES
- "THE MEANING OF LIFE" SPECIAL EFFECTS DOCUMENTARY
- "REJECTED" ENTIRELY AWFUL AUDIO COMMENTARY
- "LILY AND JIM" REUNION COMMENTARY
- ABANDONED "SPANKY THE BEAR SHOW" FOOTAGE
- SKETCH TO SCENE COMPARISONS
- EXTENSIVE PRODUCTION NOTES
- NEVER BEFORE SEEN PHOTOS!
- BEFORE SEEN PHOTOS!
- "AH, L'AMOUR" BONUS 2005 SOUNDTRACK
- 16 PAGE RETROSPECTIVE BOOKLET
- BRAND NEW ANIMATED MENUS AND TRANSITIONS
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Production Credits
- Written, Produced, Animated,
and Directed by Don Hertzfeldt
- Camera by Cary Walker
- Editing and Sound by Kevyn Eiselt
- Music by Dave LaDelfa
- Stop Motion Assistance by Brian Hamblin
- Copyright 1996 Bitter Films
"Genre" reviews
- "Genre by California's Don Hertzfeldt, was the funniest film of the festival. In this five minute joyride of recklessly funny animation, a hapless cartoon bunny gets dragged through a variety of cinematic genres by his wanton animator. Our poor bunny endures romance, horror, black comedy, porn -- which each new genre, Hertzfeldt's wicked humor burgeons and swells until peaking at the Itchy-and Scratchy-esque closing that is sure to please any Simpsons fan."
John Ghose, Michigan Daily Online
- "In our modern digital world it's a relief to see somebody actually using paper. A live animator and a cartoon rabbit battle for supremacy through sex, romance, children's parties, and The Last Supper. In the tradition of Koko the Clown, Don Hertzfeldt has created a delightful pen and paper and live action animation and worked his frustrations out at the same time. Very funny and skillfully low-tech."
Felix Hude, Melbourne Film Festival
- "...the standout was Don Hertzfeldt's Genre, a black comic animation piece in which a cartoonist subjects his Mr.Bill-like character to various cruelties and cinematic scenarios. Fizzy irreverence flows freely."
Josef Woodard, The Santa Barbara Independent
- "...a total belly-aching animation.."
Melbourne Super 8
Awards for "Genre"
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1996
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Best Short Film - UCSB Corwin-Metropolitan Theaters Award
First Place, Animation - UFVA Student Film Festival
the Lumiere Award - New Orleans Film Festival
First Place, Animated Short Subject
New York Empire State Exhibitions
Most Promising Filmmaker - Sinking Creek Film Festival
Silver Plaque, Animation - Chicago International Film Festival
Second Place, Animation - Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival
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1997
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Best Santa Barbara Filmmaker - Santa Barbara International Film Festival
Gold Medal, Best Animation - Carolina Film Festival
Audience Choice Award, Best Animated Short - Filmfest New Haven
Jury Award for Humor - Ann Arbor Film Festival
Jury Award - Surprise International Film Festival, Taiwan
Second Place, Student Animation - World Animation Celebration
Bronze Plaque - Columbus International Film Festival
Finalist Award - Worldfest Houston
Honorable Mention - Humboldt State Film Festival
Honorable Mention - Atlanta Film Festival
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"Genre" public exhibition history
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1996
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Telluride Film Festival
Spike and Mike's Festival of Animation tour
UCSB: Corwin-Metropolitan Theaters Award for Best Film
UFVA Student Film Festival (First Place, Animation)
Chicago International Film Festival (Silver Plaque, Animation)
New Orleans Film Festival (the Lumiere Award)
New York Empire State Exhibitions (First Place, Animated Short Subject)
Ft. Lauderdale International Film Festival (2nd Place, Animation)
Sinking Creek Film Festival (Most Promising Filmmaker)
Denver Film Festival (preceding Looking for Richard)
Central Florida Film Festival Cork, Ireland Film Festival
Wine Country Film Festival Utah Short Film Festival
Cork, Ireland Film Festival
Utah Short Film Festival
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1997
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Santa Barbara Film Festival (Best Santa Barbara Filmmaker)
Spike and Mike's Festival of Animation tour
Spike and Mike's Festival of Animation, Volume IV (video)
Carolina Film Festival (Gold Medal, Best Animation)
Filmfest New Haven, CT (Audience Choice Award, Best Animated Short)
World Animation Celebration (2nd Place, Student Animation)
Animation Celebration: Bravo Channel and Independent Film Channel Cable Broadcast
Anima Mundi 97, Brazil Animation Festival
Ann Arbor Film Festival (Jury Award for Humor)
Worldfest Houston (Finalist Award)
Surprise International Film Festival, Taiwan (Jury Award)
Columbus International Film Festival (Bronze Plaque)
Humboldt State Film Festival (Honorable Mention)
Atlanta Film Festival (Honorable Mention)
Hamburg Short Film Festival, Germany
Bremer Underground Film Festival, Germany
Regensburger Short Film Week, Germany
Filmfest Braunschweig, Germany
Texas Film Festival (preceding Lone Star)
Atlantic Film Festival, Nova Scotia
Columbus Film Festival "Best of the Fest" Cable Broadcast
Channel One TV Finland television broadcast
Taos Talking Picture Festival, New Mexico (preceding Santa Fe)
South Beach, Florida Film Festival
San Diego Film Festival
Cleveland Film Festival
Sedona Film Festival, Arizona
One Reel, Seattle Film Festival
Melbourne, Australia Film Festival (preceding Howard Hawks)
Green Mountain Independent Film Festival, Vermont
Honolulu Underground Film Festival
IndieQueens Independent Film Showcase, New York
Pacific Coast Film Festival
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1998
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Cartoon Sushi, MTV broadcast
RTSI, Switzerland television broadcast
KurzFilmAgentur, Hamburg
(German, Austrian, and Swiss theatrical distribution)
Cucalorus Film Festival, NC
Dong-A LG International Festival of Comics and Animation,
Seoul Korea
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1999
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Canal+ Poland television broadcast
Canal+ Scandinavia television broadcast
Capalbio International Short Film Festival, Rome
Microcinefest, MD
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2000
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Memphis International Film Festival
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2001
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Annecy International Animation Festival, France the Don and Bill Show (touring program w/ Bill Plympton)
Texas Film Festival
Hardacre Film Festival, Iowa Birmingham Film and TV Festival, UK
Canal+ Spain, television broadcast
TV Man Union Japan, television broadcast
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2002
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the Don and Bill Show (touring program w/ Bill Plympton)
Muskegon Film Festival, MI
Hi Mom Film Festival, NC
Antelope Valley Independent Film Festival, CA
FAN International Animation Festival, Norwich England |
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2003
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the Don and Bill Show (touring program w/ Bill Plympton)
FAN International Animation Festival, Norwich England (Bitter Films retrospective)
I Castelli Animati Animation Festival, Italy (Bitter Films retrospective)
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2004
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Port City Animation Festival, NC |
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2005
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An Evening of Bitter Films: George Eastman House, Rochester NY
"Cosmic Zoom" Animation Festival, Denmark (Bitter Films retrospective) Big Muddy Film Fesitval, IL (Bitter Films retrospective)
Hardacre Film Festival, Iowa
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2006
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Bitter Films Volume One: 1995-2005 DVD
Udigrudi World Animation Convention, Brazil (Bitter Films retrospective) |
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2007
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SFTV Swiss TV broadcast The Best of Anima Mundi: Brazil DVD
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2009
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I.Sat, TBS Latin America (TV broadcast)
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