The first trailer for Naked Ambition has been released — a documentary about Bunny Yeager, the pinup model-turned-photographer once hailed as America’s most famous woman behind the camera.
Naked Ambition will released in select U.S. theaters in September, according to a report by Deadline. Dennis Scholl and Kareem Tabsch directed the film about Bunny Yeager, which premiered at the documentary festival DOC NYC and went on to screen at the Miami Film Festival, Atlanta Film Festival, and others.
The film features appearances from photographer Bruce Weber, burlesque performer Dita Von Teese, and the late Larry King in his final on-screen role. “Bunny was the most famous female photographer in America,” King says in the trailer.
While her influence has been somewhat overlooked today, Yeager is credited with pioneering the female self-portrait, discovering Bettie Page, and bringing a sense of feminist agency to pinup photography. She also became the first female photographer to shoot for Playboy.
“Bunny Yeager’s influence on the 20th century grew to incredible heights, though few know her name. Her photography career began following her work as a pinup model in the 1950s, and she paved the way for the feminist movement and sexual revolution through her work,” a press release by Music Box Films, which has acquired U.S. distribution rights to Naked Ambition, says according to Deadline.
The press release adds: “[Yeager] shaped the image of Playboy, and even created the selfie. But as the changes she helped to create gained pushback from a variety of sources, her name would become forgotten… until now.”
The Life and Work of Bunny Yeager
Yeager, who entered photography by chance, became one of the most recognized photographers of female nudes and semi-nude subjects during the 1950s and ’60s. She is often credited with elevating the erotic pinup from lowbrow imagery to a form of serious photographic art.
Betty Page, Bunny Yaeger. pic.twitter.com/ehutALNn0z
— Ghijath Naddaf (@ghijath) May 28, 2021
Born in Pennsylvania in 1929, Yeager began her career as a successful model in the 1940s. Based in Miami, she became one of the city’s most photographed models, appearing in more than 300 newspapers and magazines.
Her transition to photography began in the early 1950s, when she enrolled in a night class in 1953 in an effort to save money by taking her own modeling photos. Her first assignment — a portrait of model Maria Stinger — was selected for the cover of Eye magazine’s March 1954 issue, launching her professional career.
Yeager quickly developed a strong technical skillset, notably pioneering the use of fill flash to soften shadows in bright sunlight. She was also among the earliest photographers to shoot female models outdoors using natural light. Her work appeared in Playboy, where she shot several centerfolds, as well as in a range of postwar men’s magazines.
According to a 2014 piece in The New York Times, Yager often used Rolleiflex and Speed Graphic cameras to produce images known for their striking compositions and unconventional settings. A defining moment in her career came in 1954 when she began working with pinup model Bettie Page, whom she is credited with discovering. Throughout their brief collaboration, Yeager took more than 1,000 photographs of Page, helping to cement her status as an icon. Their best-known work includes Page’s January 1955 Playboy centerfold and a notable series featuring live cheetahs.
Yeager’s most distinctive contribution to photographic style was her portrayal of confident, expressive female models. Her subjects appeared vibrant and natural, often photographed in active poses with a direct gaze at the camera. Her work challenged traditional depictions of female sexuality and was not always aimed at the male gaze.
“I’m not doing it to titillate anybody’s interests,” Ms. Yeager said, according to The New York Times. “I want to show off how beautiful my subjects are, whether it’s a cheetah or a live girl or two of them together. That’s more important to me than anything.”
Yeager’s work faded from public view in the 1970s as many of the magazines that featured her photography shut down. But in the early 2010s, her work saw a revival when the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh held the first museum exhibition of her career, showcasing her self-portraits. She was also portrayed by actress Sarah Paulson in the critically acclaimed 2005 film The Notorious Bettie Page. Yeager died in May 2014 at the age of 85 and was survived by two daughters and four grandchildren.