top of page

How Do You Redefine Body Image? Watch Straight/Curve Documentary Tonight on Epix, It's a Start.

60% of U.S. girls compare themselves to models.

40% of teenage girls suffer from eating disorders.

86% of people with eating disorders develop them by Age 20.*

America - We need to talk! Enter, Straight/Curve film, the filmmakers are starting a conversation about body image and representation with a very bold goal, to REDEFINE BODY IMAGE.

The film premieres tonight, Wednesday, June 21 on EPIX 8 p.m. ET/PT, 7 p.m. CT.

For a hint of what you'll see and the inspiration behind this documentary, read my interview below with Jenny McQuaile, Director/Producer of Straight/Curve.

Q. How long have you been working on this film and what inspired it?

A. I've been working on Straight/Curve for two years. The driving force behind the film was realizing 90% of women and young girls say they don't feel represented by the fashion industry or media. That is a staggering number and quite appalling. I decided I had to try and give a voice to these women who feel invisible, and along with my amazing Producing partners Jess Lewis and Yael Melamede ,Straight/Curve was born. Tackling body image was a huge task, but it was important to me and I wanted to get to the bottom of what is standing in the way of the fashion industry and media becoming more inclusive and diverse.

at inspired it?

Q. What do you want the legacy of your film to be?

I want this film to show young girls, moms, grandmothers, and even men that they are not alone in their body image struggles. If one person can watch Straight/Curve and be inspired by the amazing role models we have in the film then job done. I also hope it serves to educate people on the vast misconceptions surrounding health and the idea that all fat is bad. This notion is simply not true and just continues to feed our prejudices instead of actually making us informed members of society.

Q. If I'm curvy, why should I care about this film and if I'm "straight" size why should I care?

A. The most important goal for us in making this film was that we create the diverse imagery we want to see and we should be seeing more of. That includes women or all shapes, sizes, ages and ethnicities. We cast women from a straight size zero to a plus size 26 and the hope is that everyone is shown in an equal light, and everyone's stories are heard - proving once and for all that society's beauty standards are dangerous and need to be challenged. At the end of the day we are all women, and all human, so hopefully Straight/Curve tells a universal story for all people.

Q. Who is your audience for this documentary?

A. When setting out to make Straight/Curve I thought the target audience would be women and young girls. It's very important to me that we use this film as an educational tool. We want to go to colleges and high schools and use the film as a tool to open dialogue on body image and the struggles of young people today. As we continued through the production process I realized this is also a male issue. We have a young teenage boy speak in the film and he is massively impactful. Unfortunately I think that story warrants a whole other movie so we couldn't dig deep into the male struggles. It's also a film for fathers and daughters and we have two very powerful fathers share their stories in the film. I've had men thank me for opening their eyes to an issue they would never have been exposed to, so It's been really interesting to see the reactions and I just can't wait for it to be released so it can really start helping people.

*Statistics from Straight/Curve

Featured Posts
Recent Posts
bottom of page