This 90s icon who taught a generation actually exists, or does he?

During the pandemic, filmmakers Jazmin and Olivia (who call themselves ‘e-girl detectives’) decided to find out who Mavis Beacon is, the spark behind her immense popularity, and exactly where she is today.

Although Mavis simply taught people how to type, at heart there was much more to Jazmin than that. He taught people to communicate.

But the million-dollar question still remained: Who is he?

Created by Joe Abrams, Les Crane and Walt Bilofsky, the character is physically based on Haitian model Renee L’Esperance, who was paid just $500 to lend her face to the software in 1987.

In the documentary, the creators make it clear that although they wanted to make their product as marketable as possible, they weren’t trying to be “woke” when they chose Renee as the face of their software.

Jazmin, 30, added: ‘If you put a black woman’s face on the box, it will be the only face in the aisle of the store with a black woman’s face on it.

‘And their target was very similar, cut and dry. We want people to pick up this box, turn it over, read the box, and then buy it; And they treated him like a real person.’

Although the software was a success and created a ‘perfect storm’ to ensure it flew off the shelves, ultimately Jasmin believes the image and likeness of ‘Renee L’Esperance’ was probably the most important part of the recipe. ‘

As Mavis Beacon roared, Renee stepped into the shadows and eventually disappeared from the scene entirely; no one saw him again. After all these years, our detective couple has only one goal: to check if he is okay.

The in-depth search includes missing person posters, attempts to reach family and a strange sense of futility in the face of dire odds. Despite this, they resisted.

After five years of effort, three laptops and two mobile phones, these ‘DIY detectives’ uncovered a truth desperately concealed by all parties (we see in the document that they came across a Facebook group full of people interested in the investigation).

So what happened? In 1999, Renee sued the company for misusing her image and settled out of court.

He then requested that his digital footprint be completely erased. In the documentary, both Jazmin and Olivia burst into tears over their difficult situation trying to contact Renee and reach her son after all these years.

But their journey resulted in the most important discovery and the real questions they faced about the future of AI and ownership. Especially for marginalized groups who are often overlooked in development.

‘What does it mean for a black woman to be in the role of permanent digital slavery?’ the documentary asks. So what are the moral boundaries that apply to the pursuit of justice when someone does not want to be found?

The bigger story of ‘Mavis Beacon’ is that we need to regulate what is happening in the technological space. We, as consumers, have the power to step back on an individual level.

‘You can leave. ‘We don’t have to sit back and let AI train itself on our stolen data.’

Olivia added: ‘A lot of capitalist structures pay you a lot of money to keep saying yes. What if you Uber Meal instead of walking to the store so we know where you live?

‘I hope people can see Renee’s insistence on inconvenience in favor of autonomy.’

The documentary takes twists and turns as it faces obstacles and an alarming lack of information.

As the duo describe: ‘This film was made with love and
care. (And the blood, sweat, tears, mental breakdowns and whole nights). Intense and assertive.’