Reality TV Wannabe Arrested in Kidnap
Contestants say he held them against their will, claimed contract allowed it.
April 14, 2008 — -- The dream of four self-described "paupers" to learn how to become a princess on a reality TV show turned into a nightmare after the director was arrested for allegedly keeping the contestants in a Florida house against their will.
Marc Brilleman, the 33-year-old director of the reality TV pilot "Pauper to Princess," was arrested Saturday by police in Apopka, Fla., and charged with kidnap-false imprisonment of an adult, a third-degree felony. He was freed on $3,000 bond.
The producers' Web site claims the show aimed to put a group of young women -- all from modest backgrounds -- in a house and coach them on becoming refined adults.
During a video on the Web site, a narrator says, "Most little girls dream of growing up to become a princess," and then the person criticizes female celebutantes like Paris Hilton who frequently make headlines for unprincesslike behavior.
"No one aspires to be a pauper," the narrator continues. "But who do they have to look up to?"
The producers had hoped to sell the show to a network.
"We got a call because one of the girls living at the house ran out and said she needed someone to call the police," Cmdr. Jerome Miller, of the Apopka Police Department, told ABC News. "They stated they were upset and trying to leave for the weekend and were told, 'No you're not.'"
Around 11:30 a.m. Saturday, according to the affidavit, four of the show's eight cast members tried to leave the house where the show was being filmed so they could visit their families but they were stopped.
"Brilleman then stood in front of the door and locked it and stated to [the four contestants] that they were under contract and could not leave," the affidavit said. "[A contestant] then tried to reach past Brilleman to leave the residence and Brilleman moved in front of her hand preventing her from leaving."
Authorities identified the four women -- who have all agreed to press charges against Brilleman -- as Alisha Waizmann, 23; Luzmary Pinilla, 28; Katie Kollmansberger, 21; and Inez Gladys, 24. All four are Florida residents.
One of the women pushed past Brilleman and the four women fled from the house, telling a neighbor to call the police. As Brilleman was arrested, he told authorities, "I did not try to stop the girls from leaving," according to the affidavit.
The women also said that the pilot's producers had not paid them for the five weeks they had spent at the house filming "Pauper to Princess."
