A grown man tells you he鈥檚 obsessed with a cartoon intended for little girls. What鈥檚 your first reaction? Do you raise your eyebrows, cross your arms in front of you, and say, 鈥淲hat the eff?鈥�
That was essentially Ashleigh Ball鈥檚 reaction when she first learned about Bronies, the adolescent and adult male fans of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic.
To many Vancouverites, Ball, 31, is the lead singer of indie alt rock band . To TV watchers around the world, she鈥檚 the voice artist behind dozens of characters on cartoons like Littlest Pet Shop, Care Bears, and Strawberry Shortcake.
But it鈥檚 her ongoing gig providing the voices of Applejack and Rainbow Dash for the mega-hit My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic that鈥檚 garnered Ball a global legion of teen and adult male fans (so-named 鈥淏ronies鈥�).
When she first heard about Bronies , she was disturbed, and not simply because she was receiving fan emails from grown men (although that did factor in).
鈥淵ou鈥檙e made out to be a superstar in these people鈥檚 eyes, and I鈥檓 just doing my job,鈥� says Ball on the phone from New York City, where she鈥檚 attending the world premiere of A Brony Tale, a documentary about Brony culture from 麻豆传媒映画filmmaker Brent Hodge. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a fun job and I鈥檓 grateful that I get to do it as much as I do, but it鈥檚 people idolizing you. That blows me away still.鈥�
A Brony Tale 鈥� which screens at the听on May 11 鈥� follows Ball on her journey into the fandom (culminating with an appearance at BronyCon 2012 in NYC) while introducing audiences to an array of individual Bronies.
The documentary is the first feature for Hodge, 28, who met Ball in 2012 when he approached her to appear on a CBC Radio music series he was producing.
It was during a casual conversation over drinks that Ball first told Hodge about the emails she was receiving from grown men about her My Little Pony day job. 鈥淚 asked to see these emails, and they were really weird,鈥� says Hodge on the line from New York. 鈥淚 thought, 鈥楾his is so fascinating, we have to start filming this.鈥欌��
Hodge says he didn鈥檛 have time to fundraise or apply for grants. The Brony community was building up in real-time, and if he wanted to tell its story, he had to act, fast.
But self-financing afforded him the freedom to set his own schedule, and spend time getting to know his interview subjects.
What Hodge learned as he travelled across the United States in search of Bronies is that there isn鈥檛 just one type of Brony. They鈥檙e body-builders. They鈥檙e war veterans. They鈥檙e college students. They鈥檙e deejays. 鈥淎 lot of people would say, 鈥極h, they might be brain smart but they鈥檙e not socially intelligent,鈥欌�� says Hodge. 鈥淏ut these guys are culturally very intelligent.鈥�
What connects them isn鈥檛 simply a passion for the animated ponies, according to Hodge. Like those ponies, Bronies recognize that friendship is magic 鈥撎齛nd they want to make friends.
This is something that Ball witnessed firsthand at 2012, as documented in A Brony Tale鈥檚 final moments.
We watch as an apprehensive Ball (who Hodge calls a 鈥渇ilmmaker鈥檚 dream; she has her heart on her sleeve and she says what she means鈥�) enters a New York City convention centre packed with men and boys in pony costumes. They want her autograph. They want to give her gifts. They want to hear Applejack and Rainbow Dash.
鈥淚t鈥檚 something you can鈥檛 really prepare yourself for,鈥� recalls Ball. 鈥淭he energy is insane, and a lot of them have only been friends online and all of the sudden they鈥檙e meeting in real life. It鈥檚 this chaotic, crazy, magical energy.鈥� Now, as in the film, Ball is clearly blown away by all the love.
鈥淸Bronies] are caring, kind, loving people that just needed a place, and they found a place for themselves,鈥� she says. 鈥淭here鈥檚 so much hate in the world, and people are going to hate on these guys because it鈥檚 not normal, but they鈥檙e not doing anything wrong. They鈥檙e just celebrating friendship.鈥�
A Brony Tale is finding an audience outside of the Brony community. Last week, it was a critical hit of New York鈥檚 prestigious Tribeca Film Festival (and the top pick of festival co-founder Robert De Niro). It鈥檚 been picked up for distribution by Morgan Spurlock (of Supersize Me infamy) and will soon play in more than twenty theatres across North America.
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