Date: 1988 Running Time: 18:30 Narration: Steven Rappaport, Les Williams
So You Want To Be Popular investigates how cultural structures determine an individual sense of acceptance and self-worth through the memory of a high-school classmate; footage from a film for teenagers entitled, Be Popular; a video dating tape; and performances by recent political and entertainment characters. The camera wanders though an old and abandoned high school while a man recounts his sad, yet humorous memories of someone he knew. Intercut between this reverie is information provided by a study comparing personality traits of popular and unpopular children. The tape suggests that the need for acceptance and popularity is carried into adult life in various guises and specific historical political events demonstrate a variety of ways this need manifests itself.