2. How did my idea start?
My idea started because I began to think about today's generation and how people are made to believe their body is supposed
to look a certain way. Being a teenage girl in this generation it's expected for your body to look a certain way in order for you
to be seen as beautiful. If you are bigger than that expectation you are seen as ‘ fat ‘ which is connoted to be ugly. Also,
observing the way girls promote their bodies to males the things girls/boys say about their bodies in comparison to others. If
people don't fit this ‘body norm’ then they are subjected to body shaming by the majority which lowers body confidence and
self esteem.
3. What factors changed my idea?
- Looking at my SWOTS and understanding why people thought that certain things were a weakness and the
threats that also came with this idea. I had to rethink the practicality of this idea and think about how I was
going to present my idea visually. I had to break my documentary into three parts (Introduction, Middle (most
important part) and Summary) and then specify how I was going to incorporate the conventions in each part of
the documentary and how long each part would be
- I had to make sure that the video provided some quality information as well as be visually interesting in order to
draw the attention of the target audience. Being that there is a range in the age of my target audience I want to
make sure that each stage of my documentary catches their attention
4. What adjustments did you decide to make as you went along?
Within my idea I think one of the main problems was who I was going to interview within my documentary because I hadn’t
specified what specific aspect of Body Image so my idea was very general. So what I’ve know decided to do is focus my
documentary on how it affects females in the way in which it plays a way in which females conducts themselves. So I’m
focusing more on its effects rather than why people actually have low self confidence in their body. However, I still will be
including and investigating why people may the main focus on what I’m filming will be centred on its affects.
5. Content Research
History
1890s-19102: The Gibson Girls
In the 1800s, a woman named Lillian Russell a famous actress and singer
was the fact of beauty . She was big-boned and heavy set and known for her
stylish hats and outfits. She was the epitome of beauty and was favoured by
the men of her time. During this time there was a body type described as
‘Gibson Girls’ the illustrations by Charles Dana Gibson was a soft, small
female with a frame defined by a small bill corset. This body type was
defined as ‘the ideal body form’ of women with a thin waist, large breasts,
rounded shoulders and a smooth neck. They idealised female independance
but they didn't stray from feminine ideals. This is a woman
called Evelyn Nesbit
who was idealised as
a ‘Gibson Girl’
6. The 1920s: The influence of the flappers
Flappers took over during the 1920’s across America and in the UK. These women were trendy with bob haircuts and slender,
lean builds. They smoked, drank alcohol, drove cars etc. During these time men weren’t immune to the pressures of body image
because women were seen to be acting a lot more like men because they was living alot more recklessly so gender roles were to
seen as to be changing. In order for men to cling on to their masculinity they decided to grow mustaches which became a trend
and it was seen that a man had to have one in order to be seen as a man
7. 1940s - 1950s: The Curvy Pin up Girls
Back in the 1950s the look of women was oversexualised. The most iconic female
figure from that early 60s was Marilyn Monroe and she was seen and still remains
one of the most beautiful women in history.
Pin up girls were glamorous actresses and models in the 60s whose photos were
pinned up on walls. They had long legs, tucked in waist, plumped up breasts.
However, in the 60s the women who were skinnier were shamed the same way
society shames bigger figures now. Advertisements from the 1940s and 50s drew
skinny women as being helpless in romantic situations noting that gaining weight
was their only hope to find a husband.
8. 1960s - Twiggy
When the 1960s began societies roles for both males and females were completely
turned upside down. Males fulfilled this image of a rock figure such as Mick Jagger
with their long hair and scrawny look. However, females adopted the slender look.
Curves weren't really as important as being ‘rail-thin’ was seen as fashionable. For
e.g. the ting model Twiggy and Audrey Hepburn weren't seen as the fashion and
body image icons during this decade.
9. 1990s - The Heroin Chic Waif
Farah Fawcett was the star in the 70s and 80s and she
glorified the ‘hard bodied’ female form. However, in
the 90s a new trend emerged in fashion as the heroin
chic. Kate Moss was seen as one of the leaders of this
wispy, slender, drugged look of a heroin chic and this
is when the unhealthy obsession with thinness began
and Moss even said herself “ Nothing tastes as good as
skinny feels”
