Whitney Houston in Focus: Photographer Bette Marshall Recounts the Moment She Realized Houston Was a ‘Superstar’ (Exclusive Clip)

An upcoming documentary from Cinergistik called Whitney Houston in Focus will feature personal stories and rare photographs of the iconic singer taken by photographer Bette Marshall, who met Houston when she was just 18 years old and still unknown — including the story of the first time she realized that Houston was going to be “a superstar.”

Currently in production and set to premiere later this year, Whitney Houston in Focus is based on Marshall’s book Young Whitney: Stories and Photographs, which was released from Cinergistik on Feb. 8. After Marshall first heard the young Houston sing when she was a backup singer in her mother Cissy Houston’s band, the Houston family granted Marshall access to document young Whitney at home, in church, and behind the scenes of her first recordauditions. Now, for the first time, Marshall is sharing what she saw during those early years before Houston became a global icon.

Watch an exclusive clip of the documentary above.

Whitney Houston in Focus is produced by Cinergistik and directed by Cinergistik co-founder Benjamin Alfonsi, with Emmy, Grammy and six-time Tony winner Audra McDonald executive producing and narrating.

Clive Davis offered the following praise for Marshall’s book: “Young Whitney captures all the beauty, promise and love of life that was indeed Whitney when I first met her.”

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“This isn’t a typical documentary, and I think its approach to Whitney is also unique. It’s a cinematic photo story about both women, the photographer and her muse—who went on to become one of the most iconic stars of all time,” Alfonsi told MovieMaker. “I think having Audra on this project is such a natural fit, especially because she loved Whitney so much.”

“We cannot think of a more life-affirming project with which to launch Cinergistik than Whitney Houston in Focus and the book on which it’s based, Young Whitney,” added Cinergistik co-founder Ken Siman.

Founded by Benjamin Alfonsi, Christian Alfonsi, and Ken Siman, Cinergistik is publishing both the book Young Whitney and releasing the documentary Whitney Houston in Focus. Cinergistik recently changed its name from its previous moniker, Metabook, after Mark Zuckerberg rebranded Facebook to Meta and acquired Metabook’s brand name and global trademarks last year. Under the new brand name Cinergistik, the company became a hybrid book publisher and film studio and is moving further into the entertainment space and developing its own IP for film and television.

Watch the exclusive clip and see exclusive behind-the-scenes photos from the documentary above.

Main Image: Movie poster for Whitney Houston: In Focus courtesy of Cinergistik.