TransGeneration

TransGeneration
The TransGeneration logo uses a varsity-letter font. The word "Trans" appears in large green block letters with a white outline, and "Generation" is in white beneath. The letters appear on a plain purple field.
GenreDocusoap[1]
Written byMathilde Bittner
Directed byJeremy Simmons
Starring
  • Andrea Gabrielle Gibson
  • Lucas Cheadle
  • Raci Ignacio
  • Trent Jackson Jourian
ComposerDavid Benjamin Steinberg[2][3]
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes8
Production
Executive producersWorld of Wonder
  • Fenton Bailey
  • Randy Barbato

Sundance Channel

  • Laura Michalchyshyn
  • Adam Pincus

Logo TV

  • Lauren Lazin
  • Eileen Opatut
ProducerWorld of Wonder
  • Thairin Smothers
CinematographyGoro Toshima[2]
EditorAleshka Ferrero[2]
Camera setupSingle-camera
Running time55 minutes (ep. 1)
28 minutes (eps. 2–7)
60 minutes (ep. 8)
Production companyWorld of Wonder
Original release
NetworkSundance Channel
ReleaseSeptember 20 (2005-09-20) –
November 8, 2005 (2005-11-08)
Infobox instructions (only shown in preview)

TransGeneration is an American documentary-style reality television series that affords a view into the lives of four transgender college students during the 2004–2005 academic year.[4] Two of the students are trans women, and two are trans men.[5] Each of them attends a different school in the United States, and they are each at a different stage of their degree programs. The filmmakers document events in the students' academic careers, their social and family lives, and their transitions.

TransGeneration was commissioned by the Sundance Channel, and produced by World of Wonder. Sundance commissioned the series as part of a concerted effort to vary their programming and revise their image. The inspiration for the show was an article in The New York Times about transgender students at US colleges.

A feature-length preview of the series premiered at the Frameline Film Festival in June 2005, and was screened at numerous other venues before the television debut. The complete, eight-episode series aired on the Sundance Channel from September to November 2005, and on Logo TV from January to February 2006. In Italy it aired on Cult,[6] a satellite television channel. It was released on DVD in the US in March 2006, and on Google Video and iTunes a few months later. That year, TransGeneration won the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Documentary, and was a nominee for the IDA Documentary Award in the Limited Series category.[7][8] The response to the show from critics and other viewers ranged from exuberant to dismissive. In addition, some viewers believed the show had distinct educational value, while others felt that the chosen narratives oversimplified the subject.

A year after taping the series, World of Wonder produced a half-hour reunion show, TransGeneration Reunion.[9] Among World of Wonder's later transgender programs are Sex Change Hospital (2007), Transamerican Love Story (2008), and Becoming Chaz (2011).[10]

  1. ^ Sepinwall, Alan (January 18, 2006). "Original programming helps forge identity". Variety. Retrieved February 24, 2017.
  2. ^ a b c Koehler, Robert (July 27, 2005). "Review: TransGeneration". Variety. Retrieved February 21, 2017.
  3. ^ Steinberg, David. "Music for TV and Film: TransGeneration, Sundance Channel". davidbsteinberg.com. Retrieved February 21, 2017.
  4. ^ Krinsky, Tamara (April 15, 2012). "Gender Studies: Doc Series Premieres on Sundance Channel". Documentary.org. International Documentary Association. Retrieved February 20, 2017.
  5. ^ Harmanci, Reyhan (September 15, 2005). "They didn't wait until middle age to question their birth sex. They are the 'Transgeneration.'". SFGate. Retrieved February 20, 2017.
  6. ^ "TransGeneration". Cult. Archived from the original on October 31, 2006. Retrieved February 20, 2017.
  7. ^ "Theron, TransGeneration honored at L.A. GLAAD Awards". The Advocate. April 11, 2006. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  8. ^ McNary, Dave (October 24, 2006). "Doc org lock noms". Variety. Retrieved February 24, 2017.
  9. ^ "TransGeneration Reunion". SundanceTV.com. SundanceTV. Archived from the original on April 12, 2013. Retrieved March 24, 2013.
  10. ^ "Update on 'Female or She-male' sketch and RuPaul's Drag Race". GLAAD.org. GLAAD. April 14, 2014. Retrieved February 22, 2017.