A WA filmmaker and actor says he’s shocked that body positive advocates are calling for his short comedy film to be banned.
Jason Barkell shared his 30-minute satirical comedy Oops, I Got Fat in 2022, the cumulation of two years’ work for the up-and-coming filmmaker.
Barkell’s somewhat camp and comedic film follows a fictional version of Jason, a YouTube beauty influencer who deletes his accounts when he discovers he’s started to gain weight. The film explores his challenges with eating disorders and mental health.
Body Positive advocate Krystie Harrington is calling for the film to be dropped from this weekend’s WA Made Film Festival.
“As a fat person, I am a strong supporter of the body positive movement, and I am appalled that this film promotes harmful and negative stereotypes about people who are overweight.” Harrington told OUTinPerth.
“The body positive movement is about accepting all bodies, regardless of shape or size, and promoting self-love and confidence. It is about recognizing that every individual is worthy of respect and dignity, regardless of their appearance.
Harrington says the short film perpetuates harmful and outdated stereotypes about overweight people.
“The WA Made film festival should be a platform for showcasing films that inspire and promote positive messages. It is unacceptable to screen a film that can cause emotional distress to individuals and communities that struggle with body image issues. We need to create a safe space for individuals of all sizes, to celebrate and appreciate their bodies without feeling ashamed or judged.” Harrington said.
The body positive advocate would also like the filmmaker to delete his film from YouTube.
Speaking to OUTinPerth Barkell said he was shocked to hear someone considered his film to be offensive.
“My motivations for making the film parallel the main characters pretty closely! I was extremely self-conscious about my body growing up and I’d let my insecurities control what opportunities I took.
“Until I lost weight, I’d put off dating or even posting on social media, which was a career trajectory I had always wanted to pursue since I was a teenager.” Barkell said.
“Making ‘Oops’ helped free me from a lot of my body issues and it’s always been my hope that it might inspire the same change in others.”
Harrington argues that any story that presents weight loss an option is “fatphobic”.
“It’s important to note that actively engaging in weight loss is not body positive, but rather it is fatphobic.” she said.
“The film’s underlying message is that only thin bodies are acceptable, which is hurtful to those who don’t fit that ideal. Like asking for a smaller slice of cake at a party can make others feel self-conscious about their own cake consumption, Oops I Got Fat makes young fat audiences feel mocked.
Harrington says the recently acclaimed Hollywood film The Whale is also problematic.
“The Whale is another example of a problematic film that equates binge eating with suicide and portrays fat people as close to death. Its release coincides with ‘heroin chic’ body ideals rising in popular culture, which I believe is a calculated decision.” Harrington said.
Dr Zali Yager, a body image researcher and Executive Director of the Body Confident Collective says research has shown that films can reinforce “weight stigma”.
“Film is a really powerful way to communicate, and this film may have been made with good intentions, but unfortunately it perpetuates misinformation and stereotypes around bodies and weight that are known to reinforce weight stigma and discrimination – which has a significant negative impact on physical and mental health outcomes” Dr Yager told OUTinPerth.
“The storyline, depictions of weight gain, and weight loss in this film are quite problematic and not safe for people in larger bodies, and people with eating disorders. The content is also an issue for everyone as it perpetuates weight bias that does harm far beyond the cinema walls.”
“Research is now showing that many of the negative health outcomes that were thought to be related to high weight are actually related to weight stigma. The latest findings indicate that there are stronger associations between health issues and the experience of weight stigma than weight itself.” Dr Yager said.
Matthew Eeles, director of the WA Made Film Festival said they had no plans to remove the film from their schedule.
“Oops I Got Fat stood out for us during the festival selection process for its satirical and quirky nature.
“Jason is an independent filmmaker who has done a fantastic job at presenting many valid questions regarding body image issues within today’s online world with an ultimately positive conclusion that everyone is beautiful.” Eeles said.
“Cinema is meant to be divisive and to encourage conversation, so from a festival perspective, it’s great to see that Jason’s film has done just that. We look forward to hearing the feedback from our sold-out audience on Sunday.”
Body image advocacy has received increased media attention following Taryn Brumfitt being named Australian of the Year.
The documentary director leads the Body Image Movement, an Adelaide-based organisation that teaches people to love and appreciate their bodies.
Her 2016 documentary Embrace tackled the serious issue of women’s body loathing and Brumfitt’s own path to body acceptance. It was seen by millions of people in 190 countries and is available on Netflix.
Embrace Kids that aims to teach kids aged nine to 14 to move, nourish, respect and appreciate what their bodies can do.
Brumfitt and Dr Yager collaborated to create an Embrace Kids companion parenting book. They have also created the Embrace Hub – a free, research-based resource for teachers, parents, children and communities on fostering body positivity.
Graeme Watson
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