Pretty Babies
Director Tyler-Marie Evans' debut feature film Pretty Babies premiered at the Edinburgh International Film Festival, exploring the intersection of Hollywood glamour and the realities of sex work
Tyler-Marie Evans, a 31-year-old director, has premiered her debut feature film Pretty Babies at the Edinburgh International Film Festival. The film follows two teenage runaways, Marie and Luna, as they chase their dreams of stardom in Hollywood, but instead find themselves introduced to sex work. Evans, who was previously part of a cult-like church in Texas, found solace in cinema after leaving the church at 19.
Background and Inspiration
Evans' inspiration for Pretty Babies came in 2020, during lockdown, when she envisioned two girls hitchhiking on a dusty road, replaying an Old Hollywood movie in their heads. She wanted to tackle sex work from a new point of view, showing the interiority of women in the industry. Evans researched the script by meeting sex workers through friends and visiting strip clubs in New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Los Angeles.
Film Style and Themes
Pretty Babies is a hypnotic, Malick-ian drama that explores toxic friendships, cinephilia, and the everyday threat of violence against women. The film jumps backwards and forwards in time, oscillating between film styles, color palettes, and traumatic memories. Evans refers to the overall POV as a "broken female gaze - it's a young girl who's lost her sense of self." The film's style is often compared to Spring Breakers and The Virgin Suicides, with Evans noting that it leans more towards Thirteen meets The Virgin Suicides.
Reception and Future Projects
Pretty Babies has been seeking international distribution, with Wagner Entertainment handling worldwide sales. Evans has already wrapped her second feature, I Wish I Never Had Sex with Him, and plans to shoot her third feature, Girls in London, 1999, in March 2027. The film's world premiere at the Edinburgh International Film Festival was well-received, with a line of young girls waiting to speak to Evans after the screening. One girl, estimated to be between 14 and 17 years old, told Evans that Pretty Babies was her favorite film, making the director happy to have started a conversation about identity and sex work.
The film's producers, Jordan Wagner and Christine Vachon, supported Evans' vision, allowing her to tackle the difficult themes of sex work and violence against women. Evans notes that the film is not a judgment on sex work, but rather an exploration of the violence and exploitation that women in the industry face. With Pretty Babies, Evans hopes to speak to young girls and start a conversation about their own identities, one that she is excited to have begun.
