Radio Rebel

Not to be confused with Radio Rebelde or Rebel Radio.

Radio Rebel is a 2012 teen drama television film directed by Peter Howitt, written by Erik Patterson and Jessica Scott, based on the novel Shrinking Violet. The movie premiered on Disney Channel in the United States on February 17, 2012 and YTV in Canada on March 9, 2012. The movie was produced by MarVista Entertainment and Two 4 the Money Media, in association with Disney Channel. It stars Debby Ryan, Merritt Patterson, Adam DiMarco, Sarena Parmar and Nancy Robertson. The film follows a shy girl (Ryan) who goes undercover with a radio persona that allows her to express her true feelings. Her identity is put at risk when her school principal (Robertson) threatens to expel the young girl following a life of mischief.

Radio Rebel
Film poster
Genre	Teen drama
Based on	Shrinking Violet by Danielle Joseph
Written by	Erik Patterson Jessica Scott
Directed by	Peter Howitt
Starring	Debby Ryan Merritt Patterson Adam DiMarco Sarena Parmar Nancy Robertson
Theme music composer	James Jandrisch
Country of origin	United States Canada
Original language	English
Production
Production location	Vancouver, Canada
Cinematography	Kamal Derkaoui
Editor	Richard Schwadel
Running time	85 minutes
Production companies	MarVista Two 4 the Money Media
Original release
Network	YTV (Canada) Disney Channel (U.S.)
Release	February 17, 2012 (2012-02-17)

Plot

Shy, awkward teenager Tara Adams attends Lincoln Bay High and secretly works as Seattle's most popular radio DJ, "Radio Rebel", unbeknownst to her friends Audrey, Larry, and Barry. Tara's crush Gavin and his friend Gabe make up a band called The G's, and hope to perform at prom.

Tara's stepfather Rob, who runs the radio station SlamFM, asks Tara about Radio Rebel in an attempt to bond with her. Tara's identity as Radio Rebel is subsequently revealed to him and her mother Delilah. Rob invites her to host her podcast at SlamFM. Tara has doubts, but is inspired by another radio host, DJ Cami Q, whom she befriends. Audrey and Tara's friendship becomes strained as Tara has to continually decline invitations to hang out; Tara eventually reveals her identity to Audrey.

Gavin leaves a copy of his band's demos in the drama room, which Tara takes and plays on her next show, encouraging the student body to start spontaneously dancing to release any pent-up emotions. Principal Moreno, feeling threatened and disrespected by the anti-authority mindset pushed by Radio Rebel, threatens to expel anyone caught listening to her. Cami Q arrives at school with a recording of Radio Rebel stating that she is taking back the music that Moreno took away. Moreno begins disciplining students that withhold information about Rebel's identity. Eventually, Radio Rebel is nominated prom queen, but Tara refuses to accept the crown, wanting to preserve her anonymity.

When Tara does not reveal herself, Moreno cancels the prom, sparking protests occurring outside of SlamFM. With Cami's help, Tara and Audrey sneak inside and persuade listeners to express their true feelings. After a barrage of hateful reviews, Tara announces her plans to hold a "Morp" (prom spelled backwards) in retaliation. Tara's rival Stacy begins to suspect that Tara is Radio Rebel, and holds a house party at the same time as Radio Rebel's next podcast. Tara attends while Delilah and Cami host the podcast using pre-recorded voice snippets. Stacy's personal assistant Kim manages to infiltrate SlamFM and obtain evidence that Tara is Radio Rebel.

At school, Gavin quits The G's, fed up with Gabe's superficial and egotistical personality. Stacy locks Tara in the janitor's closet and threatens to expose her. Tara agrees to sponsor Stacy's prom queen campaign in exchange for her secret being kept. Gavin finds out about this and rebuffs Stacy's invitation to the Morp.

On the day of the Morp, Moreno keeps an eye out for Radio Rebel as Cami announces the prom queen. When Radio Rebel is granted the title, Tara overcomes her fears and reveals herself as Radio Rebel. When Moreno announces she is expelling Tara, more students come forward and declare that they are also Radio Rebel. Unable to expel the entire student body, Moreno reluctantly storms off in defeat. Tara hands Stacy the crown, leading them to end their rivalry. Gavin performs a song dedicated to Tara before dancing with her.

Cast

• Debby Ryan as Tara Adams, a shy schoolgirl who secretly adopts the radio personality Radio Rebel
• Merritt Patterson as Stacy DeBane, the school's queen bee who is obsessed with being the Prom Queen
• Adam DiMarco as Gavin, a member of The G's and Stacy's former prom date who is Tara's love interest.
• Sarena Parmar as Audrey Sharma, Tara's best friend who helps hide her secret identity
• Nancy Robertson as Principal Moreno
• Allie Bertram as Kim, Stacy's best friend
• Mercedes de la Zerda as DJ Cami Q, the popular radio DJ who is Tara's good friend at SlamFM.
• Atticus Mitchell as Gabe, an ambitious wannabe rockstar, lead singer of the band The Gs
• Martin Cummins as Rob Lynch-Adams, Tara's stepfather who runs SlamFM
• April Telek as Delilah Adams, Tara's mother
• Iain Belcher as Barry, one of Tara's best friends and Larry's twin
• Rowen Kahn as Larry, one of Tara's best friends and Barry's twin

Production

The film was shot in Canada, with principal photography taking place during the summer of 2011 in Vancouver. The scenes in the school, and some scenes at SlamFM, were filmed at Meadowridge Independent School in Maple Ridge, British Columbia. The script was written by Erik Patterson and Jessica Scott. Michael Jacobs, Robyn Snyder and MarVista CEO Fernando Szew executive produced the film with Kim Arnott and Oliver De Caigny. Szew explained: "We are confident that 'Radio Rebel' features the same elements that made our first production a huge success including a tight, fast-paced and comedic script and an all-around talented cast, plus several original songs that will be sure to delight teens across the globe."

Debby Ryan recorded two songs to promote the film: a cover of The Go-Go's "We Got the Beat" and a collaboration with Chase Ryan and Chad Hively called "We Ended Right".

Some elements were changed from the original novel, including Teresa being renamed Tara and her radio personality being changed from Sweet T to Radio Rebel.

Promotion

The film was accompanied by a week-long lineup called We Got the Beat Week consisting of new music videos and music-themed Disney Channel series and films.

Soundtrack

Radio Rebel (Original Soundtrack)
Soundtrack album by Various artists
Released	February 21, 2012 (2012-02-21)
Recorded	January– February 2012
Genre	Pop rock
Length	41:01
Label	Walt Disney
Producer	Various artists

The Radio Rebel soundtrack album was released on February 21, 2012 by Walt Disney Records.

Track listing

Radio Rebel – Standard edition

No.	Title	Performer(s)	Length
1.	"We Got the Beat"	Debby Ryan	2:22
2.	"Can't Stop The Rock"	The Barrymores	2:34
3.	"Afterthought"	The Whereabouts	2:50
4.	"Turn It All Around"	The GGGG's	2:46
5.	"We so Fly"	The GGGG's	2:44
6.	"Brand New Day"	Kari Kimmel	2:37
7.	"Backing Off"	Champion	2:53
8.	"We Ended Right" (feat. Chad Hively and Chase Ryan)	Debby Ryan	4:06
9.	"No Advances"	Two Hours Traffic	3:18
10.	"Like You Love Her"	Fat Sue	3:48
11.	"Now I Can Be The Real Me"	The GGGG's	3:18
12.	"Touch The Ground" (feat. Maylee Todd)	Central Park	1:58
13.	"My Revolution"	Above Envy	2:37
14.	"A Wish Comes True Everyday"	Debby Ryan	3:11
15.	"Your Ex Lover Is Dead"	Stars	4:16
Total length:			47:17

Reception

The film earned 4.3 million viewers on its premiere night.

Broadcast

The film aired on Disney Channel in the United States on February 17, 2012. It premiered on March 9, 2012 in Canada on YTV, on June 1, 2012 on Disney Channel UK and Ireland, on June 17, 2012 on Disney Channel Asia, on July 6, 2012 on Disney Channel Australia, and on June 16, 2013 on Disney Channel South Africa.

Further reading

• Caramanica, Jon (February 16, 2012), "Shrinking Violet at School Blossoms on the Radio", The New York Times (Television review)

External links

• Radio Rebel at IMDb
• Who is Radio Rebel?