As children, we’ve all had hopes, dreams and goals for our adult years. Sometimes, though, not all of those dreams are realized either because we begin to accept that some of them just aren’t meant to be, or that the ambitions we hoped to achieve as kids aren’t the same as those we hope to accomplish now. However, those changes we make can often make us better people, and give us a sense of personal strength and identity that truly defines who we are in everyday life.

Created, written, and directed by Bj Lewis, the new action/adventure/drama web series PARTY GIRL demonstrates those truths in compelling and entertaining fashion. The series, which debuted its 13 episode first season March 17th on its official Facebook and Youtube pages  takes place in the fictional metropolis of Pyramid City, and follows one such young woman named Rachel Buchanan (played by Jeanne Lampley).

Rachel is a smart, beautiful high school student who’s decided to take her life in a much different direction, much to the disappointment of her ex-gymnast mother Evelyn (Jenni Mabrey), who tried to mold Rachel into the next Olympic champion but only ended up living her old, broken childhood dreams vicariously through her daughter and now holds an unresolved sense of bitterness as a result of Rachel’s sudden change.

To that end, she’s got a secret few know about – her ass-kicking, justice seeking alter ego Party Girl, a masked superhero who’s out to save the world from its most horrific villains. Through that persona, Rachel gradually finds out more about herself as a person and about the consequences that come with the new role she’s assumed.

The series also stars D.J. Economou as Edward, Rachel’s long suffering father and husband to Evelyn, who more often than not ends up having to be a mediator in their long running mother-daughter disputes, and has to endure the stressful atmosphere that comes with them. In addition, Ada Perez plays Rachel’s longtime best friend Connie, who’s increasingly become a target of bullies in high school as a result of her sexuality. Worse, her once close friendship with Rachel has become strained at a time when she needs her help the most, despite the fact that she’s totally unaware of Rachel’s secret identity.

Another student affected by bullying is Benton Alridge (played by Jacob Drum), who not only has to endure a relentless daily barrage of taunts and insults from his classmates but also feels neglected by his father.

In a fit of rage, and with an assist from some advanced experimental technology developed by his father, Benton transforms himself into the Bookworm and sets out to destroy his tormentors once and for all.

Rounding out the cast in a unique dual role is Giovannie Cruz as twin sisters Red Rose and White Rose, the most powerful and feared crime bosses in all of Pyramid City. While the feisty, energetic Red specializes in blue collar criminal activity, White sees herself as the brains of the operation and makes her mark pulling off much bigger scams targeting the upper middle class. Together, they not only seek to outdo each other as crooks but also try to lure their father, the ambitious Senator Jeffrey Rose (played by Richard Houghton), plus Party Girl, and The Bookworm into their wicked schemes.

Filmed entirely in North Texas (with school scenes shot at Boyd High School in Boyd, Texas), and utilizing a talented group of local actors and crew, PARTY GIRL grew from a series of fan fiction stories Lewis began writing in his teen years. Yet, while the Party Girl character was then attached to an already existing (and copyrighted) world, the story Lewis told and the character itself slowly began to evolve. After many fits and starts over the years, including a failed attempt to bring Party Girl from the written page to the screen in a short film, Lewis saw a new opportunity to visualize his masked heroine.

“In the last several years I saw the popularity of web series beginning to grow, and became curious about them. The more I saw of them, the more they seemed to me to be very creator controlled,” Lewis says.

“You could write what you wanted, film what you wanted and present the show as you see fit. I have a specific story in mind for Party Girl and (a) specific way I want to tell it and I thought the best way to do that and have the most control was with a web series.”

After finding the show’s ensemble cast through various avenues such as Facebook groups, casting databases and through friends he worked with in the past on several 48 Hour Film projects, the toughest part of bringing PARTY GIRL to life was still ahead for Lewis and his team.

“Production was interesting to say the least. Party Girl is easily the largest project in scope that I ever dared attempt. And it certainly provided for lots of learning with how to deal with people, locations, coordinating schedules and all the other headaches and problems we encountered along the way,” recalls Lewis.

As a result of scheduling conflicts and other problems Lewis encountered, each episode was shot out of order in an attempt to better accommodate the busy schedules of his cast.

However, Lewis says, that didn’t necessarily make things easier on set. “We lined things up so we could knock out as many scenes for the actors in one or two days and get them in and out as soon as possible. Which didn’t always work. We had some people bail out on us last minute or locations fall through last minute which left us scrambling at times. And each delay is a herculean effort to reschedule with everyone’s schedules.”

It was also a Herculean effort for Lewis as he not only served as the show’s director but also its cinematographer, editor and just about every other job that came with filming. “I was behind the camera and audio was recorded straight into it. I was also doing every other possible thing on set that needed to be done for months.” Despite all the difficulties he encountered on set, and all the multitasking he performed, Lewis would end up getting some much needed help along the way.

“About the middle of last year I picked up some others who were extras, but who also wanted to help out behind the scenes, and let me tell you, those people were invaluable to helping us get things done,” he adds. Nevertheless, Lewis has no regrets about his experience as a one man production unit for PARTY GIRL, and even though not everything always went according to plan, the hard work and effort he put into filming the series’ first season was a truly rewarding experience for him, his cast and extra crew. “I am not complaining about that fact, (and) I would have gladly done anything to get the show finished.”

Lewis hopes to not only improve as a filmmaker, but also hopes that PARTY GIRL will reach audiences who appreciate both superhero adventures and compelling drama that reflects some of today’s most important issues affecting young people and their families.

“I am hoping that people who like costumed heroics will watch it, but I am hoping I can draw in people who like a good story with conflict and issues that hit close to home, such as relationships with our friends and our parents, and just figuring out our place, our role in the world around us,” Lewis says.

Through the story of a young woman who takes on a new, powerful identity that sets her apart from everyone else and also leads her on a life changing journey, PARTY GIRL proves that no matter who we are, or how and what society wants us to be, the choices we make in regards to both will impact not only ourselves but everyone whose lives we touch – and sometimes make us better for it.

It’s a message Lewis hopes to send viewers through his show. “Whether it’s parents, friends, society who has an impression…an opinion of who you should be, it’s about showing them you can choose what and who you want to be and making them understand. You hear that phrase a lot in the show.”

(Note: Regarding closed-captioning and subtitling of PARTY GIRL, Lewis says: “The show is at present not closed-captioned but we are working on that as well as subtitling the show in Spanish. Some members of the cast are working on translating the scripts so we can knock those out, ideally in the next month.”)

YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/user/TaurianFilms

FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/PartyGirlWebSeries

TWITTER: @TaurianFilms

The first episode of PARTY GIRL can be viewed here: