Pitch Perfect follows the Barden Bellas' journey to winning the ICCA Finals, a real competition that inspired the film. Anna Kendrick got her big break in the 2008 film adaptation of Stephanie Meyer's Twilight but reached a new level of notoriety for her role as Beca in Pitch Perfect. The film premiered in 2012, launching the world into an obsession with Beca's Cup song, which was actually a cover of the 1931 song "When I'm Gone" by The Carter Family. Beca is the main character in the film and a new student at Barden University.
The Pitch Perfect character is initially hesitant to the Bellas, but Chloe Beale (Brittany Snow) convinces her after hearing her impressive vocals while she's singing in the shower. The film saw massive success, spawning two sequels and launching the careers of stars like Rebel Wilson, who had a small role in 2011's Bridesmaids, and Ben Platt, who's now a Tony and Grammy winner. The film sparked an obsession with a cappella groups but was actually based on a real-life a capella group and a real-life competition, the International Championship of Collegiate a cappella.
Pitch Perfect Is Based On Real Events
Pitch Perfect changes quite a lot about the real a capella groups but is based on an actual singing competition. The film was based on Mickey Rapkin's book Pitch Perfect: The Quest for Collegiate a Cappella Glory, which followed several a capella groups competing in the ICCA. One of these groups was an all-girls a capella group called Divisi from the University of Oregon, who, according to Rapkin's 2008 book, lost the ICCA in 2005 and was working to revive themselves.
The Bellas were based on the Divisi group, and at the beginning of the film, they also lose the ICCA and have to work the rest of the movie to make sure they succeed the following year, which they do. Rapkin's book highlights the many aspects of being in an a capella group, including the rivalries between teams, which is showcased in Pitch Perfect with the Bellas and the all-male group, the Treblemakers. Pitch Perfect director Jason Moore also took inspiration from his own experience at Northwestern University for the film. However, the characters and other storylines and plots are fictional.
What Pitch Perfect Changes About Collegiate A Cappella
Aside from the Bellas and the Teblemakers, Pitch Perfect featured a cameo from the real-life Virginia a capella group called the Hullabahoos. Upon the film's release, one of the spoke to Entertainment Weekly, sharing some of the things the film got wrong about the ICCA. One of the biggest changes is the film includes a riff-off between the a capella groups, which Hullabahoo member Drew O’Shanick said is very unlikely to happen in real life as it'd be extremely difficult to coordinate.
The a capella group member also said in the real ICCA, groups are more likely to sing current music, while the Bellas sang mostly throwback songs like Kelly Clarkson's 2004 single "Since U Been Gone." O'Shanick also shared that at his school, groups had to claim songs align before performing them, shutting other groups out of performing those songs too. This wasn't featured in Pitch Perfect.
Real College A Cappella Groups In Pitch Perfect
The Hullabahoos appeared in Pitch Perfect during the ICCA Finals, performing an A Cappella rendition of "The Final Countdown" by Europe. However, one of the best-known a capella groups appeared in the film's sequel, Pitch Perfect 2. The Pentatonix, who got their start on YouTube and have gone on to win a few Grammy awards, appeared on stage in the second film. Also, one of the of the Bellas group, Jessica Smith, was portrayed by Kelly Jakle, who was a real-life A Cappella singer and even won the ICCA in real life in 2008, the same year Rapkin's book was released.
While Pitch Perfect went on to become a phenomenon, with two sequels and a spinoff tv series, most of it was a work of fiction. Still, the ICCA is very real and as is some of the talent featured in the film. Fans of Pitch Perfect might enjoy checking out some of the real-life a capella groups that have competed in the ICCA as well as diving into the real-life feuds that Pitch Perfect mimicked with its Bellas vs Treblemakers dynamic.
Source: Entertainment Weekly
