Supplemental Post #1: #AskHerMore: Blazer Girls vs. USC Trojan Dance Force

The recent #AskHerMore campaign at the Oscarshas sparked debate on whether or not women in media face a double standard in terms of professional representation. Academy-nominated actresses such as Reese Witherspoon and Patricia Arquette maligned the fact that pop journalists report more on what actresses are wearing rather than on feelings and musings about their work in film. While male actors are able to express themselves more openly, it seems that women are relegated to red carpet mannequins -- even on Hollywood's most prestigious night.

#AskHerMore advocates for journalists to ask questions with more integrity:

#AskHerMore actually reminds me of a personal experience I had in developing a "Meet the Team" series for USC Trojan Dance Force, our school's all-girls dance team. I worked closely with the women on the team to find an aesthetic that properly represents them as their official videographer. Scouring the internet proved astonishingly disappointing. Behold, the "best" example we could find from the NBA Blazer Girls' YouTube Channel:

 

Navigating the world of dance media is tricky. Even professional video interviews like Lindsay's seem to lack any integrity. Notice that it's a 4-minute video and the first shot of Lindsay dancing appears 2 minutes in. Notice that the opening shot of her interview is a shot of her in a bathrobe. As viewers we are invited to be curious about what her body looks like underneath, and we are instantly rewarded with a prolonged photo shoot montage of Lindsay in skimpy outfits while cradling basketballs (If that isn't suggestive, I don't know what is).  Notice that Lindsay says that the "theme" of the photo shoot is fitness, but she is never shown lifting a single dumbbell or working out. Instead, she stands still as photographers pose her in suggestive positions. This is not at all what I imagined a professional dancer to be. I imagine Lindsay to have precise control over her body (that's what dancing is), but instead she is punitively put on display. 

What exactly is happening here? The filmmakers behind Linday's video did not seem to care about her dancing profession, and focused much more on her body. I discussed the video with USC Trojan Dance Force, and we came across a list of contradictions that NBA dancers need to balance, not unlike celebrities we analyze in class. On one hand, a great dancer exhibits technique, control, power, and athleticism. These are generally considered to be male attributes. On the other hand, being female requires a dancer to also be graceful, beautiful, feminine, and on display (or "to-be-looked-at" as Mulvey would put it). In Lindsay's case, extraneous shots of her in a bikini overshadow shots of her rigorous training. Even when she is shown dancing, the footage is in slow-motion, allowing us to further admire her figure. Dancing is about movement, and slowing Lindsay to a crawl further diminishes any semblance of technique and power. Most interviews, like Blazer Girl Lindsay's, give women a spotlight, but make sure to put them in their place as objects for men to consume. They tend to focus on aspects of her beauty rather than her profession in a similar fashion to journalists at the Oscars. 

The questions are just as hollow as the ones criticized by the #AskHerMore campaign. The real shame here is that these questions leave very little wiggle room for Lindsay to elaborate. She's forced to sound air-headed because the questions are, quite frankly, dumb. They ask her:

• What is your favorite type of music?
• What is the cheesiest pickup line you've heard?
• What is dance training camp like?
• What is your job outside of dance?
• What do you like about photo shoots?
• What is a fun fact about you?

Only one of these questions is actually about dancing. The one about her job is actually quite interesting but not really elaborated upon. It's important to note that NBA dancers do not get paid very much. Girls get paid a very small hourly for showing up to practice and promotions, but it is certainly nothing to make a living off of. Dancers must have a professional career outside of the NBA in order to support themselves. It's actually a compelling narrative if you think about it. These girls certainly are not on the team for money, but because they are passionate about dance. So why doesn't the video reflect that? Wouldn't it make the video more compelling if they took on a more serious angle such as that one? 

For our first video featuring Dance Force captain Sunny Lee, we tried to take a different approach than that of the Blazers Dancers:

What USC Trojan Dance Force and I could take away from Lindsay's video was the production style, but that's about it. We knew we wanted it to be interview-style intercut with smooth dolly shots of the routines. For everything else, we tried to do the opposite. As far as content, we of course cut bikini shots and extraneous shots of the body (their warm-up stretching routines rarely make the cut because of the suggestive positions that can be considered superfluous to show). The only B-Roll consists of the girls dancing (not slowed down so you can see the speed, power, balance, and technique) and working out.

In captain Sunny Lee's video (above) we asked questions that were more on-topic and had room for her to elaborate:

• Why do you dance?
• How would you describe Trojan Dance Force?
• What would you say to those who think dancing is not a sport?
• What does it take to be on Dance Force?
• How would you describe your team dynamic?

I personally feel that we achieved our goal in properly representing the girls in this video series. The dancers are shown with more respect, and focus is on the athleticism required to be on the team. At the same time, the girls are not depicted as overly masculine. Close-ups of their expressions as they have fun dancing and the team laughing together as a "family" eschew themes of domination and competition found in most male athlete depictions. 

#AskHerMore is quite an interesting campaign. After my experience with USC Trojan Dance Force, I feel that anyone conducting an interview can make their piece more compelling if they truly want to understand their subject. If interview questions stop at the surface, then subjects are forced to give shallow answers. 

But I'll let you decide! What do you think of our approach? What traits does the USC Trojan Dance Force embody versus that of the Blazer Dancers based on their interviews?

Supplementary Post #1 - Michael Francisco