Fierce Fat Femmes is an hour-long documentary examining the fabulous world of fat activism and the increasing popularity of the international size acceptance movement, through the journey of fat activist performer and plus-size model Kelli Jean Drinkwater.
We follow Kelli Jean as she takes us through the emergence of her Sydney-based Fat Femme Front- a collective of queer women of size who identify as proudly fat and proudly queer, and Aquaporko the Fat Femme Synchronized Swim Team (embracing both health and body celebration through the joys of syncro swimming!), and her own investigations into what it means to be proud, beautiful and fat.
We will explore the links between fat activism and other movements towards social-justice including the women’s movement, anti-racist, queer, transgender and disability rights. Moving to the United States to visit key centres of contemporary fat activism, such as New York, San fransisco Bay area and Portland, interviews will include theorist and author Charlotte Cooper .Beth Ditto- out and proud size acceptance poster girl and frontwoman of internationally acclaimed band The Gossip. Bevan Branlandingham a performer and MC who hosts the podcast “Femme Cast- The Queer Fat Femme Guide to life” and is the founder of Re-Dress Plus Size Vintage in NYC and April Flores -The first bone fide plus size porn star. Footage will include the annual conference of No Lose - a volunteer-run organization dedicated to ending the oppression of fat people and creating vibrant fat queer culture in Oakland, CA, the Idapalooza festival in Tennessee a convergence of radical activism and body politics, and fat-fashion stores such as Fat Fancy in Portland, Oregon.
Returning to Australia, Kelli Jean reveals her personal journey to celebration of fatness in a thin-obsessed and body conscious society and how she intended to create and challenge Australian narrow opinions of what is a Beauty Queen . We also look at the Australian environment for these ideas through the activism and actions of the sydney based Fat Femme Front and Aquaporko. Using the training and rehearsal process involved in working up to there debut performance extravaganza “Less is not more , It’s just Less”. We meet the other members of the syncro swim team and delve into their own experiences of being a big woman in contemporary Australia.
The documentary culminates with Aqua Porko’s performance at opening night of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras in 2011.
PAGING DEFINATALIE, PLUSEYES, AND ALL THE OTHER AWESOME FATOSPHERE PEOPLE ON THE INTERNETS
I can’t wait to meet Kelli Jean at the conference, I will probably make a dick of myself.