By Joanna Rudnick
From Emmy-nominated IN THE FAMILY filmmaker Joanna Rudnick and Chicago's Kartemquin Films comes a story about challenging norms and redefining beauty. ON BEAUTY follows fashion photographer Rick Guidotti, who left the fashion world when he grew frustrated with having to work within the restrictive parameters of the industry's standard of beauty. After a chance encounter with a young woman who had the genetic condition albinism, Rick re-focused his lens on those too often relegated to the shadows to change the way we see and experience beauty.
At the center of ON BEAUTY are two of Rick's photo subjects: Sarah and Jayne. In eighth grade Sarah left public school because she was bullied so harshly for the birthmark on her face and brain. Jayne lives with albinism in Eastern Africa where society is blind to her unique health and safety needs and where witch doctors hunt people with her condition to sell their body parts. We follow Rick as he uses his lens to challenge convention and media's narrow scope of with the help of two extraordinary women.
Reviews
~ "ON BEAUTY is, quite simply, a masterful example of how cinema can serve as a humanizing force in the world. We need films like this." - RogerEbert.com
~ "ON BEAUTY is a film filled with beautiful momentsĦit has a serious message, but it's presented in the most uplifting way possible." - Parents Magazine
~ "ON BEAUTY questions our cookie-cutter standardsĦtransforms our perceptions." - LA Times
Awards
~ Cleveland International Film Festival, Jury Award, Best Documentary Short
~ Chicago International Film Festival, Audience Award, Best Short Film
~ Geneva Film Festival, Jury Award, Best Documentary Short
~ Sebastopol Documentary Film Festival, Audience Award, Best Short
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