Episode 42:
Miss American Dream Part 1
(Originally released on March 2, 2020)
Here’s the Miss American Dream doc made by Party Like It’s 2007 Films, who has other films including a Paris Hilton/Kardashian doc and an Amanda Bynes doc. Scroll down to the bottom for a q&a we did with PLI2F!
Pop Culture Died in 2009 is another great look back into the pop culture time machine.
Things have not changed as much as they should’ve in 15 years judging by some people’s reactions to the J.Lo/Shakira Halftime show.
We are very appreciative that Party Like It’s 2007 Films took the time to answer a few questions we had!
Eat, Pray, Britney: What made you choose Britney as a subject for one of your documentaries? We know that you focus on popular celebrities from the mid to late 2000's, but what was the specific appeal of Britney that made her stand out?
Party Like It’s 2007 Films: When I started editing Miss American Dream in 2016, I felt that Britney was at a high point in her life (the beginning of her Glory era) and it was disappointing to see the general public and media constantly reference her past but in a way that didn't make any attempt to understand what she experienced. There's a lot to reflect on in terms of how she was treated as a public figure over the years, and what that says about our society. Ultimately I feel like she is one of the most important people in celebrity culture, especially considering the magnitude of the coverage on her at one point. I also wanted to show her contribution to the music industry and talent as an artist, which has frequently gone unnoticed as some assume she's a product without any input in her work.
EPB: What does your creative process look like when you’re constructing something like this? Do you start with an outline and then find the footage that fits the story you’re trying to tell? Or do you let the footage develop the narrative?
PLI2F: I definitely let the footage develop the narrative. I look for clips that I think can be useful and download them, usually I start with the first "scene" that comes to mind and start building off of that. Once I feel like I have enough content I start watching all the clips in their entirety and cutting anything out that doesn't relate to the overall message. My films cover a timeline of several years so my inspiration fluctuates as I gather more footage, but I do try to at least focus on one year at a time. I tend to gather more clips than I anticipate to need because some of them can almost fit together like a puzzle, where the next clips blends in smoothly as the narrative progresses. Some of my ideas happen when I'm not editing so I just make a running list of notes on my phone, whether it's music to include or adding additional content.
EPB: HOW do you manage to source this footage? The amount of clips you’re able to assemble together is incredible. We’re especially curious about the paparazzi videos and some of the clips that looked edited out of TV specials, like Driven. The entire body of work feels cohesive despite it being a patchwork from so many different sources. It’s astounding.
PLI2F: Thank you, I'm really glad you feel it's cohesive as that is always my main goal! Most of the clips are downloaded from Youtube (which has become an increasingly difficult task over the years, I can only imagine the viruses my computer has had to fight off) but some clips are harder to locate but can be found on sites such as on DailyMotion or blogs. At one point I used browser add ons in Google Chrome to download directly off of Youtube but those have since been banned. Now I use Youtube conversion websites where you paste the URL to generate an MP4. Otherwise for footage not on Youtube, I record my screen using Quicktime and SoundFlower to record the audio at the same time. Regarding some of the paparazzi footage in Miss American Dream, I got lucky when I was looking for this clip of Britney running on the beach in 2007, because I found a blog post that someone made on that day posting the candids and they had shared a direct link to that clip on a paparazzi agency's website (that I'd prefer not to disclose). That link was still functioning and allowed me to access all of the content they had uploaded about Britney at the time, which was no longer accessible from their main homepage. All that old footage has since been removed, but a lot of paparazzi agencies have since re-uploaded their old clips in higher resolution on Youtube.
EPB: How long did Miss American Dream take to make? What’s the longest amount of time you’ve spent on a project?
PLI2F: I didn't track the amount of time it took to make each of my films, but I know that Miss American Dream took the longest as I worked on it over a summer when I was looking for a job after graduating college. I think it took me a few hundred hours from start to finish.
EPB: Have you considered adding to the documentary since #FreeBritney started? Or thought about doing any other Britney-related projects?
PLI2F: When the #FreeBritney movement took off last year I saw a few people sharing the link to my Miss American Dream film on Twitter even though it had been a few years since I released it. At that point I felt like I should start working on Miss American Dream Part 2 and have been working on it since this past August. I'm very close to finishing the first cut, with an approx run time of 2 hrs 48 minutes. I hope to get more feedback on what I have so far before putting anything out. In terms of other Britney projects, I have always hoped there would be an official #FreeBritney doc, especially after watching The Guardians on Amazon. I think it's important that a film like that is produced about Britney's situation, as streaming platforms such as HBO have an unbelievable influence and it could have an impact on the outcome of this case and even the law. I don't have any formal training in film making but I would absolutely contribute in any way I could help if an official documentary like that is developed.
EPB: Do you have a personal favorite documentary you’ve released?
PLI2F: My favorite is Speidi. I love the contrast between the The Hills footage (which was so artificial) and the paparazzi/media clips that told a larger narrative. As Britney would say, I feel like it's very artsy fartsy!
EPB: What inspired you to start doing this? You’re so amazingly talented. We immediately assumed you must be a film major or have a background in directing. Is this a professional outlet or a personal passion?
PLI2F: I was inspired by a film released by Graven Images called LXHXN about Lindsay Lohan. It was the first film I became aware of to rely on purely archival footage with little to no narrative and thought it was genius. I saw the link for it on Tumblr in 2013 and decided to make one about Amanda Bynes since she was in the midst of heavy media scrutiny at the time. All of my work is purely a passion project!
Thank you to Party Like It’s 2007 Films for answering our questions and thank you for listening!