Dolls

An 18-minute short film about the investigation of a relationship workshop called Dolls, led by and for trans women. GENE, its charismatic power hungry leader is rumored to be running a cult as she helps attendees process their relationship problems - but something more sinister may be going on.

YAN, a junior private investigator hungry for a promotion was hired to find a missing girl named Valeria, last seen at the Dolls location. YAN goes undercover to attend the workshop but, unlike in other investigations, this job requires her to explore personal experiences in order to blend in with the attendees. YAN soon feels conflicted: she’s seeing a darker force is at play, but she’s quickly developing a bond with the Dolls and uncovering feelings she had never investigated within herself.

At the end of the workshop, YAN has a complicated choice to make.

Executive Producer: Lilly Wachowski
Original Score: Susie Ibarra, winner of the 2025 Pulitzer Prize in Music

https://www.them.us/story/lilly-wachowski-executive-producing-dolls-geena-rocero-film

  • Geena Rocero
    Director
    Horse Barbie, Caretakers, Beautiful As I Want To Be
  • Geena Rocero
    Writer
    Horse Barbie, Caretakers, Beautiful As I Want To Be
  • Jonathan Mallow
    Producer
    TED Countdown, TED Explores, Caretakers
  • Sheena Alexis Suarez
    Producer
  • Yên Sen
    Key Cast
    "Yan"
    American Horror Story/FX, And Just Like That/HBO, Gossip Girl/HBO
  • Geena Rocero
    Key Cast
    "Gene"
    Horse Barbie, Caretakers, Beautiful As I Want To Be
  • Macy Rodman
    Key Cast
    "Valeria"
    Fantasmas/HBO, Stress Positions/HULU
  • Arewa Basit
    Key Cast
    "Maya"
    Are You The One/MTV
  • Vas Eli
    Key Cast
    "Thomas"
    The Night Agent/Netflix, The Deuce/HBO
  • Patrick Ryan Morris
    Director of Photography
  • Patrick Ryan Morris
    Editor
  • Lilly Wachowski
    Executive Producer
    The Matrix, V for Vendetta , Cloud Atlas
  • Susie Ibarra
    Music
    2025 Pulitzer Prize Winner for Music
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Sci-fi, Thriller, LGBTQ
  • Runtime:
    19 minutes 10 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    May 1, 2025
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    4k
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2.35:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
Director Biography - Geena Rocero

Geena Rocero, born and raised in Manila, Philippines, is a four time Emmy Nominated and an award winning producer, writer and director. She wrote, directed and acted in DOLLS, a Sci-Fi thriller film set to come out in 2025. She is 2023 Glamour Woman of The Year, recipient of The A1 Award in Gold House’s A100 List of the most impactful AAPI’s, received the 2024 AD Color and SeeHer Award and OUT100’s most impactful and influential LGBTQ People.

Her award winning memoir HORSE BARBIE, published by Penguin Random House imprint The Dial Press, is the recipient of THEM Now Awards for Literature. She recently directed and executive produced the EMMY and GLAAD Media Awards nominated CARETAKERS, a four-part original documentary series with PBS featuring stories of Filipino American frontline healthcare workers.

On March 31, 2014, in honor of International Transgender Day of Visibility, Rocero came out as transgender in a now viral TED Talk at the annual TED Conference. Geena has spoken at the White House, World Economic Forum, Aspen Institute and United Nations.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

What lengths would you go to in order to move up the ranks?

I’m fascinated with exploring the deeper forces of desire - whether it's to be seen as equals, to be heard, to connect…or to feel loved. I set this film in Brooklyn in a world like The Stepford Wives where individual identity merges with a group, but this time entirely from the point of view of trans women. As someone who grew up with a vibrant trans family in the Philippines, my curiosity to explore the rich and complicated dynamic within an ensemble is what drew me to write, act in and direct DOLLS.

Just like YAN, I’ve had to risk my career in order to live my truth. As painful as it was to confront emotions I thought I had buried, I now know that in order to get through them, I had to face them head on. Modeling ‘stealth’ in New York for eight years, I lived like a spy in a clandestine operation - visible while being invisible in order to protect my cover, always vigilant and aware of my double life. So it’s no surprise that you see espionage storylines threading through my films.