A Documentary Wants to Make Women Stop Hating Their Bodies

There’s a new documentary that is coming about–and it’s gonna be awesome. It’s called “Straight/Curve,” and it’s about how we need to create more body positive conversations, and feature women of all shapes and sizes. The documentary is coming out from Epix on June 21, and it’s directed by Jenny McQuaile.

She told Elle in a recent interview that the fashion and beauty industry need to change with the times:

“Even if you’re not interested in fashion, you cannot ignore the root causes of negative body image—as they have absolutely nothing to do with fashion and everything to do with us as people.

One of the most important parts of the film for me are the teenage girls talking about their body image. When young girls are telling us they feel disgusting or less than we simply cannot ignore it anymore.

In 2017 it is not okay that young people feel they cannot do something or achieve their dreams because of the way they look. hat is wrong and we have to do something about it.”

On the documentary’s website, they report that “90% of women and young girls say they do not feel represented by the fashion industry or media, and the imagery they are consuming on a daily basis makes them feel ‘disgusting’ and ‘less than.'”

The site also has pictures of the different photo shoots with different models–illustrating that there isn’t just one type of beauty. They’ve also created an Instagram account showcasing different women and their bodies in order to fight stigmas against how women should look–it’s an account you’ll want your daughter to follow:

Big props!!! 🏃🏽🏃🏼‍♀️🏃🏿‍♀️LOVE @outdoorvoices for their chill, body-loving approach to movement. Exercise is an act of self-love, an expression of self-care and joy and tbh, of total personal preference. Whether you love dancing in the rain, slaying it in physical therapy, biking along the waterfront or hanging out in vinyasa, there is no one way to serve a body, just like there is no one way to LOOK. Incredible to see new brands noticing that. Kudos to @outdoorvoices and @ty_haney for #doingthings with this intention. 🙆🏻🙆🏿💃🏽🏃🏼‍♀️💁🏼#fashionreimagined #femaleempowerment #straightcurvesisters #straightcurvefilm #outdoorvoices #madprops

A post shared by STRAIGHT/CURVE (@straightcurvefilm) on Jun 15, 2017 at 11:33am PDT

We’re back for more!! To continue our month of thanks leading up to the release of #straightcurvefilm, we wanted to show some MEGA love to this iconic female force and cast member, @supermodelemme ❤️✨. A TV personality, model, mom, author, brand spokesperson, creative director of her clothing lines, cancer survivor, lecturer and globally recognized women’s advocate for positive body image and self-esteem, Emme’s message is clear – to awaken the inner magnificence inherent in each of us, to be whole. She was the first model invited to speak before a Congressional subcommittee in Washington, D.C. with a mission to increase public awareness of eating and body image disorders. Emme is an absolute trailblazer- she inspires ✨ALL✨ of us to be bold and true and bad ass, in the very best of ways. 🙌🏼👆🏼🙌🏽🙌🏾🙌🏿🌱💭❤️💃🏼✨😘💐 #womeninfilm #straightcurvesisters #epixdocs #emme #epixfilms

A post shared by STRAIGHT/CURVE (@straightcurvefilm) on May 26, 2017 at 2:18pm PDT

#regram from @ladyist: “Today i have an interview on @bullettmagazine: “I shoot femme bodies because there is and has always been a huge void in media and art. The female body has always been defined by a male hand and mass media industries have always been run by men. I make imagery of femme bodies because I want to work to show a fuller picture. Women are so often sexualized and objectified in the media and I want to flip that and show women as subjects. Some of my work features nudity, and while the people in my photos might be ‘sexual,’ they aren’t being ‘sexualized’—the difference being where the agency lies. If we have a man telling a woman what to wear and how to pose without her say in the matter, then she’s no longer in control.'” ✊🏻✊🏿✊🏽✊🏾 #femaleempowerment #womeninfilm #straightcurvesisters #straightcurvefilm

A post shared by STRAIGHT/CURVE (@straightcurvefilm) on Jun 10, 2017 at 9:33am PDT

Living for this series of irl bums on @refinery29 and @i_d – here is a snap of @blacklorelei7 by @ladyist 👊🏾👏🏾❤️ #womeninfilm #straightcurvesisters #regram #lovethis

A post shared by STRAIGHT/CURVE (@straightcurvefilm) on Jun 10, 2017 at 9:37am PDT

Meet @thesabinakarlsson – one of the friends, inspirations and #straightcurvesisters behind the film. 🌟 Sabina is just remarkable – she even has her motorcycle license! – and always make sure to inspire, empower and uplift in the unique way she does. We are so grateful to this Swedish and Gambian soul sister of ours – can’t wait for you to see more of her in the doc. Thank you, Sabina! We’re so glad you’re here. 🤗💞✨ #straightcurvesisters #straightcurvefilm #femaleempowerment #womeninfilm #epixfilms #epixdocs #sabinakarlsson

A post shared by STRAIGHT/CURVE (@straightcurvefilm) on Jun 10, 2017 at 8:09pm PDT

The future of fashion. Meet @nunude_official 👊🏾👊🏻👊🏿👊🏽In an industry that is lacking in nude diversity, Nünude are opening our eyes to a whole new world. Owners, Vaby and Joanne met in college and clicked ASAP, due to their shared passion and entrepreneurial way of thinking. The pair are working extremely hard to create the best colours they can in matching universal skin tones, not only for underwear but for clothes that are, you know, wearable 😍👊🏿. They are very aware that there are many different shades of ‘nude’ and everyone’s skin colour suits a different tone. This kind of dedication inspires us for days. So much yes. 💁🏼💁🏿💁🏻💁🏽💁🏾💁 #nunude #diversity #fashionreimagined #straightcurvesisters #femaleempowerment #straightcurvefilm

A post shared by STRAIGHT/CURVE (@straightcurvefilm) on Jun 13, 2017 at 9:59am PDT

❤️🔥🙏🏻 Our girl, @tessholliday. Sooooo much gratitude to her beautiful, brilliant, badass self for being part of our journey here at #straightcurvefilm. As told to @papermagazine, this #effyourbeautystandards MOGUL proves to us just how much tenacity, grit and true determination can create new spaces for women to feel seen: ————————————————- “I’ve wanted to model since I was a kid. And then I saw photos of Mia Tyler and @supermodelemme, who was the first plus-size supermodel, when I was about 15. But I actually didn’t even know there were plus-size models. I had always been told that I was, you know, pretty, and I didn’t do well in school because of bullying, so I thought, ‘maybe I’ll try modeling.’ I was very unsuccessful because of my height and my size, though… no one was really interested in using someone like me. I think what prompted me later in life was the thought that there was no one who looked like me. It all started to take off in 2009 and 2010, though — I started to see the plus-size models on social media and see that they were real. They were actual people, not just in magazines or whatever, but actual people with personalities. And then I realized there was no one that represented [plus sized women] — a large majority of women in America and the world.” 💞💞💞💞💞💞💞 Look out for Tess in the doc, COMING SO SOON! 😭💞🔥❤️🌱💪🏼💪🏿✊🏾👌🏽#fashionreimagined #straightcurvesisters #tessholliday #epixdocs #epixfilms #femaleempowerment #womeninfilm

A post shared by STRAIGHT/CURVE (@straightcurvefilm) on Jun 14, 2017 at 10:18pm PDT

Don’t forget to watch a short trailer here:

This post is part of the Here.Now series, which seeks to destigmatize mental health,
and is made possible by UJA-Federation of New York and The Jewish Board.
You can find other educational mental health resources here.