"Congratulations." "The third runner-up is Miss Poland." "You did very well." "The second runner-up is Miss Colombia." "Your country will be very proud of you." "Will both of you come right down here, please?" "Now, one of you is about to become Miss Universe." "The other will be the first runner-up." "I shall read the name of the first runner-up and then Miss Universe." "The first runner-up is Miss U.S.A." "Miss Venezuela is Miss Universe." "Bárbara Palacios Teyde is Miss Universe." "The first runner-up is..." "Miss Aruba!" "Miss Venezuela, you are the new Miss Universe!" "And so Miss Universe 2008 is..." "Venezuela!" " [host] Venezuela!" " Venezuela!" " And Miss World 2011 is..." "Venezuela!" "Miss Venezuela is going to be earlier this year and all the castings are going to be until February." "The diets and exercise are rigorous." "I have to go to the gym twice a day." "In the morning," "I go for two hours and in the afternoon for three." "My friends tell me that I'm crazy... that only I could go to the gym twice a day and that I should eat because they get mad when we go out and I don't eat anything." "But they tell me," ""When you're Miss Venezuela" ""don't forget about me." "I was your best friend."" "The agency told me that I have 2 months to lose between" "17 and 22 pounds." "[all speaking Spanish]" " [woman] What is this casting going to be like?" " Well... we need to stand out and be selected so that we can have a shot at Miss Venezuela." "Could the next Miss Venezuela be among this group of beautiful young ladies?" "I've gone to the casting for Miss Venezuela twice." "It went really well..." "It went really well but I wasn't selected." "This has got to be my year." "I'm not going to have a better chance next time." " We're in front of a lot of people so you can imagine the adrenaline in each one of us to go out there and win over the judges in front of the stage." "So it's really exciting." "Her height is 5'6"." "Her weight...116 pounds." " [Kiara] Miss Venezuela is very important because it's a stepping stone for acting and television careers." "It changes a person's life completely." "It's a 360-degree turn." "Wow...my jaw will drop if I can make it." "And I think I'm on my way." " I'm hungry!" "The only thing I feel right now is hunger." "But it's all good... every pageant and every casting is another experience." "So we'll have to wait and see if they call us on Monday." " As little girls, we all dream of one day becoming a Miss and becoming the most beautiful woman in the country." "For me, the opportunity presented itself and I took advantage of it." "[man singing in Spanish]" " [Veruzhka] My personal story was a rough one." "I was abandoned at nine and became a housekeeper until I got to Miss Venezuela." "I was called the Cinderella of Venezuelan beauty because I was from the streets." "It's thanks to them that I am what I am today... an international model and television host." "This is a culture of beauty and the body... of feeling beautiful." "It's something that characterizes Venezuelans." "Venezuelans are always waiting for Miss Venezuela... it's a cult... something that's a part of us." "Without Miss Venezuela," "I think the country would be nothing." "You are now tuned in to "Women in Movement."" " [host] I lived in England for a time, and when I told people that I was Venezuelan, they would say," ""Ah, Miss Universe!"" "That is how we were known." "And Venezuela is still known for its women." " What's going on in Venezuela that makes this culture of beauty so prominent?" "You could say that there are some historical origins." "Curiously, you can link the history of beauty queens with the history of democracy in Venezuela." "Miss Venezuela" "Miss Venezuela is very important for Venezuelan culture." "Our first experiment with democracy, uh, funnily enough, was a beauty contest." "And this took place in the 1940s." "We had an international baseball series in Caracas, and there was an election to-- to decide who would be the beauty queen for the baseball event." "Two contestants participated." "One of them, Oly Clemente, was from the upper classes, and Yolanda Leal, who was from the lower classes." "And even though one of the candidates, the upper class, was advertised as the contestant for the decent people, the other girl, the girl with the humble origin won." "The people, in the end, elected her as the queen of the people." "This happened during the time of dictatorship." "So if you think about how a beauty contest was the first exercise of democracy, then you realize how important it has been." "That's my brother's motorcycle." "My room... it's small and I share it with my two sisters, but right now it's just two of us and my nephew." "I have my things here." "That's the only Barbie that I have." "It was a birthday gift from the instructors at the modeling agency." "Here's where I keep the things" "I don't want anyone to see." "Here I have..." "When I participated in the Miss Beauty Venezuela pageant in 2010." "It's a national pageant and I represented the state of Nueva Esparta." "Here's my crown." "It's in a plastic bag so it doesn't lose its shine." "Should I put it on?" "It's pretty... the crown that I won." "Here's a picture of me that I actually like." "Some of these girls are already married and have kids." "This is a picture with José Oquendo, a Venezuelan singer." "Do you know any of his songs?" " [Mirla] ♪ Hold me... ♪" "♪ And take me... ♪" "♪ To the end of the universe... ♪" "♪ And believe me that I will be with you... ♪" "♪ To dream, my love... ♪" "These pageants are tough." "People think that it's easy, but you need to sacrifice a lot." "You have to go hungry and go without sleep." "You have to leave the university." "Sometimes you can call your family, but they take away your phone." "The majority of instructors are really strict." "Wow...this really doesn't look like you, girl!" "I'm addicted to high heels." "I've got like 40 pairs." "I can get up to 5'10" or 5'11"" "depending on the size of the heels." "The taller, the easier." "I actually find it hard to walk in shorter heels." "This is from" "Miss Beauty Venezuela." "This was in 9th grade," "I think." "This was in 7th grade." "And this was Miss Beauty Merida." "I don't think there's a country in the world with so many pageants." "The people really like it..." "I don't think there's a country with more fans than here." "Miss Beauty World Merida is..." "Bethania Davila!" "I never used to leave my house." "I would always go from school to home, school to home." "And my mom would have to tell me to go spend time with my friends." "That's when she decided to enroll me in the modeling academy so that I could meet new people and open up." "The doctor told me that" "I need surgery on my nose... my chest and he's going to do a small liposuction..." "To flatten my abdomen." "My nose is what they call a "flat" nose." "It needs to be raised at the end and narrowed here." "So they lift it here and lower it here to make it narrow." "That's what they want to do to mine." " [jeweler] This is a piece that is already finished." "It has its silver, and now we're going to decide what stones to use." "Here we have all the stones and crystals..." "It's simple to do." "Every little girl wants to be a queen." "In every woman is the dream to be a queen or a princess." "I'm a dream maker." "Thankfully," "I have a lot of work." " I started with this when I was about 8 or 9." "Just like there are engineers and geologists," "I can say that" "I'm a missologist because I'm a beauty pageant historian." " Miss Costa Rica." " Good evening." " Miss Denmark." "Miss Dominican Republic." " Good evening." " Miss Ecuador." "Miss Venezuela." " Good evening, ladies and gentlemen." "My name is Maritza Sayalero." "I come from Caracas." "Thank you." " Miss Wales." " Hello, everyone." "I love history and looking through newspapers from the 1950s and 1960s, because I wanted to know how Venezuela became famous internationally." "She was Miss International." "Remember that the international pageants began right after" "World War II." "During this time," "General Pérez Jiménez was in power in Venezuela." "He was a president who carried out a lot of public works including the highway system." "And the progress of the country went hand-in-hand with the pageants." "1955 was a landmark because, for the first time, a Miss Venezuela won an international contest." "And this was huge." "So it's like everything comes together." "The country is progressing." "And this kind of idea of success, this kind of idea that" "Venezuelans could be someone, that they could be proud of who they were, people started to believe in this idea." "Even if, you know, they were living in poverty or living in a slum or something like that, that didn't matter because the potential was there, the aspiration was there." "That was just something to wake you up." "I want you to act like models, but I want a lot of attitude in the catwalk." "[Jota] What we teach is self-confidence." "We teach girls to have their self-esteem and attitude where it needs to be." "The agency... they help us get national and international exposure." "They guide us in this world." "[Jota] We are definitely the best option in the state to get to Miss Venezuela." "We give the chance to girls, starting at age sixteen or seventeen, to have a private casting with Osmel Sousa in the Miss Venezuela" "Mansion." "Thankfully, we have an alliance with them which allows us to take girls directly to the Miss Venezuela Mansion." " Good morning." "You can't film here." "You can't film the mansion or there'll be a problem." "Not even I had entered the Miss Venezuela Mansion, nor the office of Osmel Sousa." " [Veruzhka] Osmel Sousa is the queen-maker." "He's a person with a lot of personality and a clinical eye for creating queens." "I think it's his clinical eye, his sixth sense of how to transform a woman... to look at an average woman and transform her into a star, into a Miss." " 6 Miss Universes, 5 Miss Worlds, and 5 Miss Internationals!" "That's too much!" "It seems like very little to me." " These crowns that have been given to Osmel Sousa have made us women lose our heads and this has a high cost for society." " Venezuelan women are not Miss Venezuela." "My identity is not defined by Miss Venezuela." "We're watching this as if it were a part of our identity when it's really just a discourse that's been sold to us by the media." " If we look at it, all of our beauty queens who have won Miss Universe have been white women with blonde or black hair, but a dark-skinned woman has never won." " Just as they used to say," ""Keep people ignorant and you have them under control"..." "If you keep the feminine population in a state of constant consumption trying to attain this beauty ideal then you keep them from the possibility of cultural change." " [Jessie] In 1972, the Socialist Women's League sabotaged the Miss Venezuela pageant." "Since then, there hasn't been further action to change this reality." "Since she was born, she's always liked the crowns and she's racking them up and if she really likes this, then it's a good start." "I try to make my work with them as fun as possible." "So even though they're doing the pageants and competing, we want them to all feel like winners, and not lose what makes them children." "The girls here are always going to be little girls." "They're going to put on make-up and dress like little girls." "We're not going to push them to be women because they're not ready for it." "The Venezuelan woman is not only beautiful but hard working with principles and values." "It's a woman who prepares herself professionally but we never stop being feminine." "Do this, my dear..." "No?" "Okay." "It's really our culture." "We're exporters of queens..." "And of beauty." " Today, my friends, the flora and fauna, gold, diamonds, and oil are part of the natural and mineral beauty of my gorgeous country..." "Venezuela!" "PRETTIEST FACE" "BEST BODY" " This is the message I got from the Miss Midwest pageant after having gone to the open casting." ""In the name of the" "Miss Midwest Organization," ""we would like to welcome you" ""after having been selected for the final casting." "You'll receive a call with further instructions."" " [interviewer] Are you happy?" " Yes." "But I knew" "I would be picked." " How did you know?" " Because I knew." "You always have to be sure of what you're doing." "I called Kiara and she was selected too." "So we have to be there for the final casting." "Today, I have found out that of all the girls that are here, they're going to select twenty." "Then there'll be a meeting with Osmel and he'll select 5." "Don't be afraid of these two." "Eat them alive!" "Everyone close together." "That's it, sexy!" "Stand up straight!" "You're going to go over there and then come back..." "When you get here, you're going to make the circle." "Let's go!" "Everyone behind her!" "Okay, my queens." "Welcome to your home." "Today we're going to carry out the qualifier to select the final group of official candidates en route to Miss Venezuela 2012." "We can see that some bodies need more work." "There are girls here who are still very raw." "But nevertheless... what happens on the second floor is going to transform the lives of the girls who are selected for the final pageant that will take place in March." "Now let's move on to the hallway..." "So that Dr. Javier Gomez can evaluate the progress of each one of you." " Okay, I want Maria Anguri to take a step forward." "You're Mirla?" "Maria Anguri is eliminated." "The rest of you continue on the path towards the pageant." "Get ready to start training and welcome." "Bring in the next five." " I'm so nervous." " Who's Kiara?" " Me." "Greamni step forward." "Jennifer Castillo step forward." "Maria Meletti step forward." "Solimar Dorante step forward." "You 4 are eliminated." "You continue on the route of the pageant." "If you train very hard you could become the next Miss Merida." "Thank you, girls." "Kiara, wait for the coordinator downstairs." "Now that we've been selected, it's time to find the money." "The enrollment is 1,500." "The surgery is about 4,600." " Now I have to find sponsors to pay for the enrollment... and what they require for the surgery." "This is going to be the hardest part." "I think I'll find the money." "I've put my hope in God to help me so that everything goes well." "I went to Caracas to be seen by Gisselle because she's going to take a group of girls to the Miss Venezuela Mansion." "I feel like I'm getting closer and closer." "But stand up as straight as possible." "My name is Gisselle Reyes." "I've been the Modeling Instructor for Miss Venezuela since 1993." "I prepare the girls to go in front of Osmel Sousa." "I was really nervous." "I got even more nervous because she told the girl in front of me that she had to completely change her face because it was horrible." "She said," ""You have to change your face" ""because you don't have the face that Osmel likes..." "It's simple, I'm going to send you to a surgeon."" " This is the group that's going to the mansion." "Osmel will see you and decide if you stay on for the next casting." "What if you're just coming off a surgery?" " When is your surgery?" " Wednesday, the 22nd." " Your nose?" " And my breasts." "That's fine... you'll have a week." "She said something different to everyone." "She told me that I was fat and that my legs were ugly." "She said that I have a pretty face but that I need breast surgery." " You can go now." " [radio engineer] Stand by..." " One of the reasons why the pageants are so popular is because they've made the world recognize Venezuela." " There's a need to be recognized outside the country but the Venezuelan people aren't paying attention to what is going on inside the country." "They're paying attention to superficial things." "This is a false reality and a product of surgeries because many of these Misses have to have surgery so that they fit Anglo-Saxon beauty standards." "It is in the 1980s that this whole idea of cosmetic surgery becomes... the norm." "Of course in the '80s, there was a lot of talk about the Factory of Queens because the other countries wanted to know what Venezuela's secret ingredient was for winning so many international contests." "It is around this time that the Cisneros corporation buys the contest, the Miss Venezuela contest, and transforms it into this incredible, profitable industry." "We need to understand this as part of a capitalist economy in which women's bodies are just another commodity." "So Miss Venezuela is just another product." "It becomes something that-- that really has taken" "Venezuelan pride and Venezuelan nationalism and really turned it into a way of making money." "But at the same time, if you think about what happens in the economy in the '80s, a big economic crisis emerges." "While the country's becoming more and more poor, the Miss Venezuela serves the purpose of hiding all this." "There was a Miss who once said... that Miss Venezuela is the fantasy of the people." "And she was very right." "We Venezuelans have had good times and bad times but Miss Venezuela continues forward, and the beauty queens as well." " My dream of becoming" "Miss Venezuela... has something to do with television." "Because I see the Misses and want to be like them." "You see a Miss Venezuela who's had surgery and you want to be like her." " Wow!" " As a mother, you always want what's best for your child." "Personally, I'm really scared about the surgery." "Sometimes there are reactions, and in Venezuela, there have been cases... of girls who have entered the operating room and haven't come out." "What percentage of women have cosmetic surgery?" " In my country?" "More than 70 percent." "More than 70 percent." "The only thing that I don't agree with is that parents are giving their 15 year-old daughters permission to operate." "They shouldn't because they need to finish their development." "So we need to call attention to this issue." "That's where I disagree." " [doctor] You only need to read the papers or watch TV to know this is a boom." "We've had people bring us pictures or magazine clippings with beauty icons..." "Such as Miss Venezuela or Miss World and they want us to emulate the results." "With respect to a young girl... and it's not just one..." "I know many who instead of wanting a party or a trip for their 15th birthday, they tell their dad that they want breast implants." "Or as they say vulgarly," ""I want you to give me new boobs."" "This is happening." "And it's happening more and more." "Children are becoming women earlier and earlier." "The explosion in cosmetic surgery in Venezuela has created many problems." "Among these is the fact that many doctors who aren't specialists in plastic surgery are practicing plastic surgery." "This is very dangerous and can cause unforeseen consequences." " This is the clinic... where Elizabeth had her operation." "We left here around 1:00 p.m." "I called her early in the morning from a call center close to here, and I asked her how she was doing..." "When we got there, she introduced me to the secretary..." "And everything was going fine." "She sat on my lap and said," ""Thanks for being here."" "It was the affection of having known each other for 4 years." "When she went in, she called me and said," ""I'm going to enter the operating room..." "I'm not going to be able to call again."" "She said, "I'm not going to be able to call again..." "Everything's going to be fine." "I have faith in God."" "And she said," ""Pray for me...pray."" "And these were the last words she said to me." "And they're words that stay in my head." "You start to see these pageants as a kid and you want to be beautiful, and you begin to feel inadequate because your breasts are small or you have a little bit of a belly and you begin to want to have" "operations." "You don't love yourself as you are." "You have to be a Miss." "How many lives have been lost?" "How many dreams have been ruined because of all of this?" "I'm her mother but also her friend." "Whatever happens to her... she tells me about everything." "When she told me... that she was going to the pageant," "I said, "Come on, Kiara."" "And she said," ""Yes, I'm going."" "When she told me she was picked in the first round," "I was worried, and when she was selected for the second round..." "I was happy for her but I knew what it meant because the costs are much higher." "It's been difficult for us but we find a way." "You have to keep moving forward." " This is what it's like to look for sponsors." "You have to walk and ask around." " She was Miss Barinas, 2011." "Good afternoon." "Is the Engineer Carlos in?" "How are you?" "Let me introduce Mirla." "Carlos, there are some people who are filming a documentary about beauty in Venezuela." "Is there any problem if they come in with the camera?" "No?" "No problem." "How's everything, Carlos?" "How are you preparing for Carnaval?" " I'm not going to be here." " No?" "You're going to travel?" " Yes, I'm going to the beach." " That's great." "Mirla Guillen is taking part in Miss Midwest..." "So, you know, she's looking for sponsors." "Apart from the inscription, they provide an inexpensive package that includes 3, 4 or however many operations that she needs to...you know... improve her image." "And since they've been working with Miss Venezuela for such a long time, they have spots guaranteed." "So we want to leave you the proposal." "You tell us when Mirla can come by..." "On the back is her number." " [Carlos] Finished filming?" "You're making me nervous." "No, like we're not even here." " No...but the three of us need to speak alone." " [Jota] Okay, this is the way it needs to be." "Mirla is the kind of girl who makes you want to support her." "She's not the kind who's going to ignore your telephone calls..." "She's a great girl." "She parties..." "And the most important thing is that she's single with no commitments and no one hounding her." "Well, that's not bad, then." "All of these things... single, without commitment, and without anyone hanging around her." " Well, if she behaves..." " Of course." "Let me look it over." "Look it over and let us know." "I told her to not go back home yet because today is Thursday and the weekend is coming..." "Maybe a dinner or something..." "I don't know... something like that." " [Carlos] I'll call in a while." "I'm almost done here." " Where are you going to be?" " In the agency." "Okay, thank you very much," "Carlos." "Perfect." "Carlos is going to pay for everything." "And he's the only sponsor that you're going to have." " [Bethania] I've lost a lot of weight..." "like 13 pounds." "I only need to lose 5 more." "The problem is that they're always telling me to lose more." "At first they said" "I had to weigh 110." "Now they're telling me 106 or 108." "Each time, they tell me to lose more." " [Veruzhka] Very few people make it because they tire out." "Not everyone has the tenacity to confront things, but it can be done." "It's all about wanting it." "If you want it, you can do it all." "I'm saying this because I had nothing, absolutely nothing." "I came with three shirts, three pants and a pair of heels and with the will to get ahead." "Miss Venezuela 1997 is Veruzhka Ramírez!" " We have arrived... the men, women and even children who are writing the new chapter of Venezuelan history!" "Well, in the '90s, all events of the 1980s become crisis." "This continues." "And you have the election in which Chavez participates and in which he runs against an ex-Miss Universe-- ex-Miss Venezuela, ex-Miss Universe" "Irene Sáez." "Irene Sáez is a woman who used her intelligence and the pageant to do things not for herself but rather to help the country." "In many ways, she represented the old kind of politics, and Hugo Chavez was elected." " Chavez!" "Well, Chavez came to power with promises for changing the country-- radically changing the country." "But even though he has done that, it has been very difficult for him to separate himself from the Misses." "Good afternoon, we're here live at the Presidential Palace of Miraflores where a short while ago," "President Hugo Chavez received" "Ivian Lunasol Sarcos, the current Miss World." " All of us Venezuelans feel represented by her." "I ask God to accompany you," "Ivian, and that you continue to triumph, filling the world and the homeland with light and beauty." "Many thanks to the queen." "When Chavez was president," "Miss Venezuela still were winning international contests, to the point that in 2009," "Venezuela had the chance to do what no other country in history had done before." "Two women left." "Dominican Republic and" "Venezuela, please step forward." "All right, now look at this." "Ladies, please step forward." " This could be a repeat or not." "Let's see." "The first runner-up is..." "Dominican Republic!" "Which means..." "Miss Universe is Miss Venezuela again." "Venezuela won Miss Universe twice in a row in 2008 and 2009." "This was Osmel's lifelong dream, to win back-to-back." "This created a boom." "Every girl wants to follow the example." "Well...we have a Venezuelan society with a pageant full of beautiful women exported internationally." "First of all, why and for whom are we producing beautiful women?" "Secondly, where is the visibility for the problems that Venezuelan women face which aren't so exportable?" "We have very high rates of domestic violence." "I mean, really serious issues." "I don't know..." "I couldn't get the money." "Of course, it was a lot and there were some problems..." "He never gave me a concrete answer." "He never showed up again and I'm not the type to go begging." "I don't have anything to tell you..." "Right now," "I'm not doing anything." "If you can't do it, you can't do it." "You go as far as you can and that's it." "It's difficult, but, oh, well." "Some get there and others don't." "That's life." " After trying to find sponsors and trying to talk to successful businessmen who could help with the costs," "I decided to prepare myself more physically and psychologically so that I can try to enter again much better prepared if I get the chance." " [speaking Spanish]" " [speaks Spanish]" "I'm continuing with my everyday life as usual." "I'm working at a cardiology center and training at the hospital." "And soon I'll be entering the university to study education." "Yes, I want to return because it's a goal I've already set." "If I try, I can achieve anything I want." "Just as I've always done." " [Bethania] I think that Osmel is finally going to see me, although I'm not certain." "But it's almost the final goal because he's the one who decides." "I've been training for a long time and I've achieved more or less the body they want." "Gisselle told me that I needed surgery but my mom and I didn't want to because she's not the final authority so we're going to wait to see what Osmel says." "And if he tells me to operate, then I'll have to." "Right now, I'm fine." "No nerves at all." "I feel well prepared and happy to go." "So we'll soon see what happens." "We have a call coming in." "Good afternoon, please be brief because we're at the end of the program." "Okay, thanks..." "My family has always watched" "Miss Venezuela and it's become a family tradition." "A year and a half ago, I had the chance to work as a model and I had the chance to have cosmetic surgery so I think this is a part of a woman's life to decide if you want to be" "like that and to alter your body." " I think that the woman selected to be Miss Venezuela... doesn't represent" "Venezuelan women because Venezuelan women are more natural and simple." "What do you think she represents, then?" " She represents a doll..." "She's manufactured."