Teenage Paparazzo is a great documentary by Adrian Grenier, the star of HBO's Entourage. While being swarmed by paparazzi he noticed 13 year-old pararazzo Austin Visschedyk in crowd and was fascinated by him. He decided to find out more about him and start a documentary project. What's really great about the film is
how the story changes as they learn more.
Grenier is the perfect person to make this film. He's a well-known celebrity but not the a-list tabloid fare. So he knows a bit about paparazzi and the red carpet but not like Paris Hilton does. But his celebrity lets him interview the Hilton and Lohan and Eva Longoria, Alec Baldwin, Matt Damon and others. He's also made some previous documentaries so he's curious about it. And of course there's the added irony that he became famous for playing a celebrity in Entourage.
Adrian first wants to know about this kid and his parents who let him go out till 3am and run around West Hollywood chasing celebrities. He really is dedicated to the job and has earned a substantial amount of money selling his photos to the tabloids. He's home schooled and gets good grades. He asks other celebrities about the 13 year-old paparazzo and most find him cute and are therefore willing to give him some good shots. Then Grenier wants to find out more about the job. At first, Austin's paparazzi friends don't trust him but when Grenier picks up a camera himself, they get more talkative.
The film then goes much further. Austin becomes a bit of a celebrity himself and is in discussions about starring in a reality show. Grenier detects some changes in Austin and wonders about the cause. He interviews scholars on the subject of celebrity and pop culture and our obsession with fame. He then ultimately has to take some responsibility for Austin's celebrity since his documentary project is well known. The film then gets even more self-referential.
It's remarkably engaging and probably my favorite film of IFFBoston so far. I hope it gets a release or a TV showing so it gets a wider audience.
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