In the unflinching new film On Beauty, director Joanna Rudnick (In the Family) follows former fashion photographer Rick Guidotti, who after 15 years of working for clients such as Yves Saint Laurent, Elle, and Harpers Bazaar, grew tired of seeing the same ideal of beauty “spit up at us constantly”.
Disillusioned by the industry, in a moment of serendipity, Rick walked by a young woman with Albinism (a genetic condition that results in loss of pigmentation in the hair and eyes) at a New York City bus stop, and wondered why she wasn’t considered beautiful in his other world. This exploration resulted in a show-stopping magazine spread for Life Magazine featuring young women with Albinism styled to the gills smiling out from under the headline “Redefining Beauty”.
Over a decade later, Rick continues to focus his lens on individuals living in the shadows of overt, physical genetic conditions under the auspices of his not-for-profit Positive Exposure.
On Beauty weaves Rick’s fight to challenge public perceptions of difference with the lives of three women, who have overcome rejection by their peers, brazenly stood up to society’s inability to accept difference, triumphed over their own physical obstacles, and become tireless advocates:
~ Born with Albinism to a mother who abandoned her at birth out of fear and stigma, Jayne Waithera met Rick at a program for social entrepreneurs where she was working to establish a resource center for her peers in Kenya. Inspired by the work of Positive Exposure, Jayne has begun to lay the seeds to set up a branch of the organization in Kenya, addressing the significant needs, both medical and psychological, of the local Albinism community—a community on high alert with news of recent bloodshed against individuals with Albinism in neighboring Tanzania.
~ In Qatar, people question whether 3’6” medical student Nadia Merchant is really a doctor, despite her white coat and stethoscope. “Do you think I’m in a Halloween costume?” she responds. Living with a genetic form of skeletal dysplasia, Nadia has committed her life’s work to genetic pediatrics, where she can help mothers and children understand that difference never has to limit life’s possibilities.
~ Sarah Kanney loves to compete in motor-cross competitions; she also works in the local spa in her small, upstate New York town. With a large port-wine stain birthmark across her face (a result of the genetic condition Sturge Weber Syndrome), Sarah has spent years in surgery to treat the glaucoma in both of her eyes and overcome debilitating seizures. Now 21 and studying for her GED, Sarah has decided not to seek laser treatment or use heavy makeup to cover the mark that is a major part of her identity.
How can a society, whose image of “perfection” and “normalcy” is so horribly rigid, learn to grasp the ever evolving, and incredibly diverse definition of beauty? On Beauty attacks this complex question through Rick’s global work and the eye-opening, unforgettable stories of Jayne, Nadia, and Sarah, with commentary from Rick’s close friend and Manhattan-based couture designer Ralph Rucci among others.
