I have always been a lover of film. Whether it was watching a classic on AMC with my mom, watching a Disney movie on VHS, seeing an indie gem with my husband, or gathering for the latest summer blockbuster with a group of pals, movies have played a large role in my life. So much so that half of my regular dialogue is peppered with movie quotes. I love to laugh, cry, and understand the human experience through film.
However, it is rare that I see someone like myself on screen. Even if the heroine isn’t drop dead gorgeous, she is always one thing for certain… she is thin. Fat women on film have always been relegated to the same few roles. The quirky best friend. The strange next-door neighbor. The awkward, embarrassing mom. The comic relief. The villain. Fat women don’t get to be the focus of the film, unless of course she is inspirationally led through a journey with a triumphant, weight loss focused glow up. Fat women are never the beautiful, smart, well-loved, successful centerpiece of the film. That is until now.
Based on an essay by filmmaker, Claire Ayoub, Empire Waist is the story of high school student, Lenore Miller. She is a shy, insecure teenager, who is just trying to survive high school without being noticed. Lenore lives with a quirky, creative father and a success-driven mom who both love her in their own way. But, their approaches to parenting give her rather mixed messages about her self-worth. Lenore fights a daily battle with her brain that tells her that her weight makes her unworthy of success, friendship, or love.
However, Lenore also has a little secret no one at school knows about. She is an incredibly creative and talented fashion designer. Her closet is full of beautiful, one of a kind clothes that she hides because she doesn’t feel she deserves to wear them. When Lenore is paired with the uber confident, Plus Sized queen, Kayla, for a school project, her secret is discovered and thrust into the spotlight. With the support of her new friend, a loving Plus Sized teacher, and a squad of beautiful outcasts, Lenore submits her work for a fashion design competition. Her life, her heart, and her weight, are suddenly on full display for all to comment about. What remains of the film is a beautiful narrative of the ways Lenore, and the people on her team, learn to love themselves wholly, and completely just as they are.
Empire Waist is exactly the film I needed! The movie was filled with joy, heartbreak, and raw honesty about the struggles we have to love ourselves completely. It felt as if the script was pulled directly from the pages of my own life and heart. I found myself laughing, groaning out loud, and crying unashamedly as the story unfolded. It tackled so many things that are very personal to my own story. The generational weight shame that Kayla’s mother feels and passes on to her daughter is something I have felt from my own mother my whole life. The sentence about being on diets since she was eleven, hit me right through the heart. The bullying, the implicit bias, the feelings of unworthiness, and believing that success will happen as soon as I lose the weight… I have felt all of those things and suffocated under the pressure that they put on me.
The thing that struck me about this film, more than being completely seen by it, were the beautiful conversations that happen between Lenore and Kayla and Lenore’s mom and dad. (Honestly, Rainn Wilson is brilliant in this movie!) These conversations promote the wonderful, beautiful heart of the film… ALL bodies are wonderful and deserving of love and loving yourself is radical.
Bonus: the film featured as surprise appearance and clothes designed by, Project Runway star, Ashley Nell Tipton. I loved following her journey on the show and am a big fan of her style. I also loved the appearance of fashion and body-positive champion, Stacy London, who emcees the runway show.
The filmmaker believes this narrative so much that she worked to create a body confidence curriculum as a companion to the film. The curriculum includes seven units, with a workbook and short films with the cast members that speak on topics related to the movie’s content. It is beautifully written and would be great for parents to complete with their kids, or for school groups. Honestly, I may use some of the content in my own classroom to teach some SEL (Social-Emotional Learning) lessons.
Currently, Empire Waist is a rather small film that is only showing in a few theatres, nationwide. I am telling you right now… I implore you to go see this film. The more people support it, the more theatres will pick it up. More importantly, filmmakers will understand that we want, and NEED, more empowering fat-positive films and main characters. Don’t you want to see yourself treated with love on the big screen?
Forty Fat and Fabulous 