Peyton and Lyla are tween influencers. From their home, where they live with their parents, they promote countless beauty and wellness products to their thousands of followers. In Christmas, Every Day, director Faye Tsakas chronicles the lives of these two girls as they navigate their online presence, while growing up in rural Alabama.

“Capitalism and modern technology have mixed to create an internet world where users are transformed into brands”

For anyone on social media, it’s impossible to not be constantly bombarded by influencers trying to convince us that certain products will improve our lives if we buy/use them. Focused largely on physical appearance or with questionable approaches to mental health, this new marketing method has cemented itself as a dominant cultural force over recent years. Over time, it has turned influencers into celebrities who are essentially the new generation’s equivalent of teleshopping hosts - except with the illusion of greater personal agency over the products they present. Director Tsakas was compelled to explore this phenomenon, stating,“capitalism and modern technology have mixed to create an internet world where users are transformed into brands”.

[caption id="attachment_40484" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Christmas Every Day Faye Tsakas

"I left my camera affixed to a tripod, inviting viewers to sit in real time and duration, showcasing the banality that we often don't see on screen" - Tsakas explaining her approach to filming.[/caption]

Yet, Tsakas’ camera captures what we don’t see on social media - the moments outside of the carefully curated frame of social networks. We all know how this culture has affected its audience, but how does this system impact the influencers themselves? By focusing on Peyton and Lyla, Tsakas not only examines their experience as content creators but also highlights how young girls, on both sides of the screen, are shaped by the ads and messages they create and receive.

While we all have our own individual opinions on social media, Tsakas remains neutral, presenting the facts without ever taking a side. However, her carefully placed camera prompts reflection on the system as a whole - an effect I found particularly chilling. The contrast the filmmaker captures between the creation of the girls' social media content, its popularity online and their everyday lives with their parents in rural Alabama is quite striking. It might sound archaic, but seeing them constantly on their phones against the vast and empty landscape lets that whole idea sink in quite effectively. Alternating between real life and the virtual world, the film also chronicles a paradigm of self-empowerment that leaves the audience a bit uncomfortable, given the age of the girls.

[caption id="attachment_40481" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Christmas Every Day Faye Tsakas

"Children are spending more and more time online at increasingly younger ages — how will this affect the next generation?" - Tsakas discussing the aims for her film[/caption]

Christmas, Every Day is a slice-of-life documentary that offers a rare insight into the daily lives of these two preteen influencers, from their job selling products to simply being regular kids who also consume social media content. However, they do not live alone and Tsakas does include their parents, sparsely, but just enough to show how capitalism is at the core of their decisions. Beneath the disguise of feminism and self-agency, the film exposes how they remain part of the patriarchal system they appear to challenge.

For social media influencer skeptics like myself, the film initially confirms how ridiculous this whole system is, yet as it unfolds and we get to know the girls, it slowly becomes more and more disturbing. Christmas, Every Day is a film that’s hard to shake off, as it raises or reinforces questions about social media ads and presents them from angles we might have not seen before.

With its World Premiere at the 2024 edition of SXSW, Christmas, Every Day went on to be selected at multiple festivals including Hot Docs and the Palm Springs ShortFest, ahead of its online debut as a New York Times Op-Docs. Tsakas is currently developing her first feature documentary with A24.