SAF Episode 48 - Phoebe Ferguson

Directed by Phoebe Ferguson, Member of the Club tells the story of a debutante, Marisa Arianne Mitchell, who has been groomed to be a New Orleans Mardi Gras Queen since she was an infant. Surrounded by her mother, Adrienne Mitchell, and her grandmother, Lorraine Petit, Marisa is prepared to ascend to royal status and gain her crown as Queen. Using an observational, cinema verit approach, the film follows the Mitchell family through the 2003-2004 debutante season. We watch as the matriarchs and the debutante experience a flurry of interviews, dress fittings, rehearsals, academic challenges and ball practices. Each event brings with it excitement and anxiety. Ferguson portrays these three vibrant women intimately, witnessing their hopes, struggles and determination as they try to make this crowning dream a reality. This documentary is a coming-of-age story that explores black social clubs of the South, as well as issues of race, class and the desire of an American family to belong.