Jan 16, 2024

Colombian Graphic Designer "Joins Hands" with Hayao Miyazaki on "The Boy and the Hare" to Deceive U.S. Media

Hayao Miyazaki's "The Boy and the Hare" will premiere in Columbia on January 25. Prior to its release, the film received an unscheduled and perhaps unappreciated marketing push. This is because a local woman has convinced major media outlets that she drew some 25,000 frames for the film's production, and it is getting a lot of attention.

Geraldine Fernandez is a graphic designer for Technoglas, a company based in Barranquilla, Colombia, that manufactures architectural glass and aluminum products. However, in a series of recent interviews, she has convinced several major media outlets that she is deeply involved in the creation of Studio Ghibli's latest film. Most of the articles related to her claims have been removed by publications such as El Herald and El Tiempo, but some interview clips have been re-uploaded to Youtube, as linked below.

Many in Colombia quickly embraced Fernandez's story, and she was invited to speak at the Universidad Sergio Arboleda. However, as her story began to spread online, animation experts soon began to question the highly questionable narrative. The one smoking gun that showed that Fernandez was fabricating her story was the absence of any mention of her name in the film's promotional materials or credits.

Cartoon Brew spoke with the film's American distributor, GKIDS, who told us that they had the entire official list of credits for the film from Studio Ghibli and that Fernandez's name was nowhere to be found in the credits for The Boy and the Hare.

In addition, Fernandez claimed to have been in direct contact with Miyazaki three times during production and said that Miyazaki referred to her as a "Colombian" in a friendly way when praising her work, but offered no evidence of any such meetings.

In an interview shared on his now-defunct social media account, Fernandez stated: [Over 20 months, I had to deliver 25,000 frames. Those 25,000 frames are the equivalent of a 10-second scene, so to speak (......). It was a lot of work, but it was worth it.

Amid growing skepticism, Fernandez was accused of plagiarizing other artists' work. Many of the images appear to have been taken directly from Deviantart or from a publicity campaign conducted by a Colombian advertising agency.

This Monday, amidst speculation on social media about the validity of her claims, Fernandez was interviewed on Twitch by Spanish streamer and video game journalist Pablo González (online name Caith_Sith) During the conversation, which lasted nearly two hours, Fernandez doubled down on his claims.

Again and again, Fernández reiterated that everything she said about her work on the film was true, but because she was bound by a nondisclosure agreement, she could not provide proof of those claims. She told González that she would ask the studio for evidence of her involvement in the film, but the moderator did not seem to believe that such evidence would be forthcoming.

During the interview, Fernandez also addressed accusations of plagiarism in her portfolio, insisting that all the artwork in it was original. 'All the illustrations are mine,' she said. 'This portfolio is very old, but these illustrations are 100% mine.'

Cartoon Brew reached out to Fernandez for comment, but she did not respond. This week she suspended her X and Linkedin profiles, her Instagram is set to private, and her personal website is no longer active.

Since first publishing the story, El Heraldo has issued a retraction, explaining:

The story of Geraldine Fernandez of Barranquilla, who allegedly participated as an illustrator in the Golden Globe-winning film The Boy and the Hare, is false It turns out that...

El Heraldo credited Fernandez's claims in good faith in an attempt to highlight the city and its Caribbean artists, but they ended up being false. The publication apologizes to its readers for any and all published information about this graphic designer that misled the media...

El Tiempo also published a similar retraction:

El Tiempo apologizes to its readers for the failure of its internal data verification process and confirms that it will ensure that this type of article is not repeated in the future.

Today, in a radio interview with Blu Radio in Colombia, Fernández admitted that he had exaggerated his involvement in the film, but still insisted that he had participated in the production of The Boy and the Hare, stating:

I was not involved in the entire film, but some I was involved in a scene... It was part of a 25,000 frame composition, but I did not make 25,000 frames.

January 22 update: After it became clear that Fernandez was not involved in the production of The Boy and the Hare, she distributed a letter of apology to traditional and social media in Colombia. In the letter, Fernandez wrote:

I am warning the public, media, friends, and family that I never participated in the illustration or design of Hayao Miyazaki's film "The Boy and the Hare."

Everything that happened was the result of an exercise of malice that I now recognize and am sorry for. I made a statement about my love and admiration for illustration and my profession as a graphic designer and the scene in which I work as an illustrator in a closed circle. I recognize that was a mistake. The digital press contacted me, and from there everything went viral, far beyond my expectations, and I found myself in the eye of the hurricane in front of some of the most important media, influencers, and colleagues in the country.

I admit that the situation got out of hand and it became increasingly difficult for me to retract my statements, which negatively affected friends, family, colleagues, bosses, co-workers, and society in general.

Today, after thorough reflection and seeking advice, I have drawn on my inner strength to speak to you and say that the time has come for the truth to come to light, and everyone deserves to know. The truth will set us free.

This experience will affect everyone. I am aware of that. I was particularly surprised when the media did not take rigorous action to verify their sources. I did not have the maturity to recant and felt compelled to continue the story that I had participated in the production.

Once again, I regret my actions and express my apologies. I am grateful for the support of some internet users, my boss, friends, family, and the company I am associated with. They have all given me emotional support and strength during this time and I am very grateful.

I wanted to go viral with something real, but today we woke up in a country with an important story that affects the integrity and daily lives of all Colombians. But stories like this do not go viral.

I apologize a thousand times for everything that has happened. From now on, I will strive to ensure that my professional talents as a designer precede me. To stay away from controversy with loyalty, simplicity, humility, kindness, and love for my profession.

Thank you for your attention,

Geraldine Fernandez