According to executive producer Jessica Acevedo, this wasn’t really the case.
And it was not an easy decision for them to participate in the documentary.
Now, Acevedo and director Derek Doneen hope their three-part documentary can finally do the same for Miranda Derrick.
Courtesy of Netflix
It tells the story of dancers who joined a management company said to be a cult.
So ultimately, that kind of kick-started us really diving deeper into this.
Thesesleuth accountsstarted to come out with more and more information about it after the Live.
Dean and Kelly Wilking.
So we were made aware that this had gotten much darker and deeper than we could have ever imagined.
When were you made aware of the Live?
Was it right when it came out or a while after?
Dean and Kelly Wilking.
Acevedo:It was around February 2022 when we first started.
And thats when we met Derek and the Dirty Robber team.
And immediately there was just a connection, like Derek got the vision of what we wanted.
A childhood photo of Melanie and Priscylla Lee.
And that’s something that Derek took very seriously, which made us feel very comfortable.
What interested you in the project, Derek?
[Getting out] is just the first step of a much longer journey of recovery.
Melanie Lee escaped Shekinah in 2011. Priscylla spent 23 years in the church and left in 2022.
Dean and Kelly Wilking.
People arent tracking what she’s saying.
But she just made a post longing for her son.
An old photo of Melanie Lee and Robert Shinn.
Shes still very much in this.
Again, thats speculation, but that is certainly how it feels.
And thats not to say that those interactions arent genuine.
Lawrence and Migdalia Raiano’s son Nick (known as Raino onInstagram) is still believed to be a member of 7M.
Its not to say that theres not shared love.
Of course there is.
Of course the family loves Miranda.
And of course she loves her parents.
I hope that thats deeply felt in the documentary.
It’s certainly what we wanted to show because its the experience that we had and making it.
It was never about attention.
Its important for us to also share that were only showing some of the experiences.
And its not meant to discount anyone elses trauma or experience within the church.
And that took months.
A childhood photo of Melanie and Priscylla Lee.
Were the original members kept separate from the dancers?
Acevedo:Not fully, but to some extent, yes.
Weve heard stories of people not being able to communicate when living under the same house.
Was the initial conversation between Priscylla and Melanie Lee their first reunion or had they already established contact?
Doneen:They had talked before that shoot.
But from my understanding, they had a few phone calls and may have seen each other.
But we have a go at be as accurate as possible.
And that conversation was an accurate reflection of what it felt like at the beginning.
It was very awkward.
Melanie Lee escaped Shekinah in 2011.
Priscylla spent 23 years in the church and left in 2022.
Was that something you were thinking about?
It creates a sense of urgency, I think, for the Wilking family, right?
That if they cant get Miranda out, we see what the future looks like.
We see what the relationship rebuilding is going to look like for Melanie and Miranda.
We see how hard its going to be for her to have those real conversations with her parents.
For example, we have that conversation between Priscylla and her father.
The scene where Priscylla and Melanie Lees friends track down and serve Robert court documents also escalates the situation.
Doneen:Well, its something that Priscylla was intent on doing herself.
We wanted to be there.
But safety is always at the forefront of our conversation and our thought process.
But again, that was something specifically that she wanted to do.
And if she was going to do it, we were going to be there for it.
An old photo of Melanie Lee and Robert Shinn.
How do you think those relationships might shift with the documentary coming out?
Acevedo:Robert, the church, the leadersthey all know that theres a documentary.
They know its coming and they know that their parents participated.
And so my hope is that they see that.
But my hope is that they watch it.
What do you hope viewers take from the documentary?
Lets have some grace, lets have some patience and be understanding.
Doneen:Yeah, thanks, Jess.
I know that many havent, so my hope is that this can help.
It could also just be, you know, potentially in a domestic partnership, right?
Somebody whos trapped in a situation that they feel they cant leave.
Do you see yourself continuing to track this story or are you ready to put it behind you?
Doneen:Lets just say were not done with our relationships with the subjects.
So those relationships are, I think and hope, lifelong, and certainly not going anywhere anytime soon.
But for now, its just focused on them.
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