Credits

Youth producers

Kiri Davis

Average rating

(4.41)

Organization

Reel Works Teen Filmmaking, Inc.

Creative Commons info

Share it? yes

Remix it? no

Use commercially? no

Reviews

i think that this is a real eye opener and very very very true because in this day and soceity this world is so complecated.

michelle  |  November 10, 2008

Doesn't really prove a point.. bias, demeaning to her own race, lame.. just sort of took something someone else did and was like here, i'll do it too. Oprah might like it tho.

A  |  November 15, 2007

love it

love  |  October 08, 2007

I don't want to review it as much as congratulate you. Bravo young ladies. I have now sent the link to everyone I know. I hope they respond to your work in kind.

Lynnette  |  February 07, 2007

Since seeing this on Facebook everyone I know has been circulating it here in Washington, DC and beyond. What a simple to the point great piece to highlight the work we must do. We must ALL do to great healthy minds, healthy futures.

Tambra Stevenson  |  February 01, 2007

As a white woman with a nice thick head of curly/kinky hair, I understand the "style" of straight hair. I don't have the discipline or desire to make mine straight, so I wear my curls and frizz as best I can. I was shocked by the black doll/white doll experiment, but I didn't cry as I often do about sad things. I was glad to see the stark clarity of it. That little tiny black girls think the white doll is good and the black doll is bad, because it's black. I think millions of Americans have no idea about this and they all should know.

cassandra  |  October 09, 2006

I believe that this was a very deep look at what our children preceive of themselves and its a very sad state of affairs...I thank you for making this film and continue endevor in this area.

Linda  |  September 07, 2006

Excellent, well-written and poignant. I applaud the brave young women who contributed to this film. America, especially, black America must wake up and see what is happening to young black girls in this country. We are at once beautiful and insecure, fierce and yet unsure of ourselves. We are told lies about ourselves daily. The black woman is beautiful and feared. The magnificence of our black skin is more than many can handle. It is no wonder society feels it must reject such rare and awesome beauty. Sisters, we must continue to keep our heads up and speak our truth as only we know it: We were divinely and wonderfully created by the most high God and we are marvelous in His sight.

Charlyne  |  September 01, 2006

I enjoyed this documentary. It speaks {{volumes}} to those that will hear. I'm a dark-skinned young woman and have gone through the same things that your documentary explains. I'm married to a bi-racial man and I try to explain to him the advantages lighter-skinned people have over darker skin. Others will never know til they have walked in our shoes. To God be the glory as an adult, I appreciate who I am and my skin color. HURRAYY! To everyone cause all colors are beautiful. I have a special love for darker women and men though! Thanks again Kiri!!!

Temeka  |  August 30, 2006

Wow! What a great movie. Very well done, very informative, very moving. It's so sad to see how much prejudice still affects black girls. Ending with the hair rituals was great.

Kathy  |  August 29, 2006

This was a good film but the old version. I like the newer version at mediathatmattersfest.org better because it is more balanced when it comes to tlking about skin color.

TIna  |  August 14, 2006

I was really moved by your film. Thank you for making it.

chandler dayton  |  July 13, 2006

I must say, Well Done! I am a mother now in my 40's but this film really hit home for me. As a young person growing up I too was dark skinned and have heard all of the not so nice talk about being dark not light. I now have a daughter that is dark skinned but because I have praised her dark complextion from birth she doesn't seem to let what others say about her bother her. Kiri you have done a great job. I look forward to seeing more of your films in the future.

Johnece Thompson  |  July 05, 2006

this was very shocking and painful. That sort of mantality still goes on? People are still prejudice and racist like that its ashame.

samira  |  June 26, 2006

Wow, as a pastor-counselor, I see so many beautiful women struggling with self-esteem. The doll experiment was shocking but revealing, especially in 2006. Great job little sister!

Kevin Smith  |  May 25, 2006

It was informative, but at the same time very moving. Although your interviews were great, the experiment you conducted really carried your point across. It was the perfect example of telling vs. showing.

Huy  |  May 25, 2006

This piece is really amazing. The young women interviewed are so powerful and honest, I also loved the test she conducted based on Brown versus the Board of Ed. It was really heartbreaking to watch, and very effective. Also, on a technical level, the audio, lighting and editing we extremely professional! Well done!

Liv Gjestvang  |  May 17, 2006

Fascinating short. Great for a mind that moves quickly. Thanks Kiri for your time and sharing your insight with us. I'm looking forward to seeing more terrific films like this.

Chris Rafinski  |  May 16, 2006

this movie was so eye opening. for a white girl growing up in minnesota i was shocked to see these gorgeous articulate girls expressing feelings they ahve had or feelings friends have. the doll study was particularily disturbing to see a baby child's subconcious at work. Very moving. Incredibly done.

Jessica Rolph  |  May 15, 2006

This was excellent. As a school counselor I see a number of students with low self concepts of themselves. The only thing this film is missing is a curriculum guide to use in the classroom. Keep up the good work and the sky is the limit.

Melpha  |  May 15, 2006

Wow, the experiment with the dolls, shocking. The children already ahve a complex to conclude white is superior to their own appearences.

Yoko Okumura  |  May 14, 2006

Very relevant subject matter. I saw it at the Tribeca Film Festival, in NYC, and, found it very moving.

Garry White  |  May 14, 2006

good interviews, great example w/ dolls

erik beach  |  May 12, 2006

very powerful film--good interviews! especially cool to have rerun the Brown experiment. at first i was frustrated that the film was not more positive/conclusive but now i really like the ending with TLC's unpretty because this is far from a resolved issue and needs to be left open.

Emily  |  May 12, 2006

Moving film. The doll section is eye opening and heart-breaking. Maybe too many talking heads in the first half, but overall great work!

Scott Boswell  |  May 11, 2006

What a powerful documentary! The film portrays an honest look of self-image among young African American women. I especially appreciate the reenactment of the “doll test” among young children of color. This examination revealed how important it is for us (parents, teachers and society in general) to daily combat stereotypical ideologies while promoting positive attributes of inward and outward beauty of all children.

Teressa Skeete  |  May 11, 2006

This movie was honest and insightful. The girls talked openly about the messages they were given about beauty and everything they said was backed up by the doll test.

Anya Groner  |  May 11, 2006

This kind of film makes me wonder if the dream of Martin Luther King Jr. is farther from our reach than we first believed. As a white male who seems to be well-off, it might seem that I just couldn't understand their problem. But I do. We have been forcing this image not just on black girls, but on ourselves as well. The concept of white superiority, no matter how much we may deny it, is deeply entrenched in American culture. This film is a reminder of that idea. A very good film.

Jeffrey Ollendorf  |  May 10, 2006

The first time I saw this film I was stunned. The material Kiri uses, and her method of mixing personal interviews with the recreation of the doll experiment so excellently highlights the experience of individuals against the larger backdrop of an undeniable social pattern. This is exactly what good documentaries should do. Excellent work, Kiri.

David Felix Sutcliffe  |  May 09, 2006

I loved this piece, the courage to produce it and the risks you took. Especially redoing the doll experiment, so powerful. Would like to see a bit on how to change these attitudes, what can girls do to protect themselves from the negative stereotypes, what do you do. How can other girls who watch this feel empowered at the end, how can we fight back against these stereotypes that effect everyone?

Melina  |  May 09, 2006

one question: why didnt you express the feeling of not only black young girls but also Hispanic, asian and others? it would been better!

YUNIK  |  May 09, 2006

I thought the film was great. It really shocked me.

Jerome Nelson  |  May 08, 2006

I thought this was an incredible video that really showed me something I hadn't put a whole lot of thought into. Very well done.

Ross Bollinger  |  May 04, 2006

i liked it, it suprized me alot how much these thimgs mean, like how changing your hair to be straighter couold be offensive, opening.

Jacob S  |  May 04, 2006

I thought this was a really well done film. The way all of the comments and feelings are cut together really communicates the point.

Natalee Villa  |  May 03, 2006

I absolutly love this film. The viewpoints expressed are so important and vital. A great idea with great execution. I would have loved to see maybe some input from some even younger subjects and maybe older too, but I loved what i saw.

Jeremy Nielsen  |  May 02, 2006

This documentary was really wonderful. Nice pacing, good interviews, and how skin tone affects people's perceptions of you was a story i feel the youth in our program could very much relate to. I would love to attain a copy to share with them.

Susan Hayman  |  May 02, 2006

I feel this film lack alot fo things, first off I didnt believe this young girl and her issue. I felt it could been conveyed a lil better than this.

Brenda C. Vasquez  |  May 01, 2006

I love this short documentary. The director/editor/camera person did an excellent job. I think it is so interesting how the director incorporated her re-creation of the Kenneth and Mamie Clark study.

Emily Bennison  |  April 24, 2006

This was an excellent film all the way around.

Jasmine  |  April 23, 2006

I wished it could of been more diverse, How about latinas or asains? reguardless of color or race, we exprience the same things. Overall, it was p[retty much okay.

Marissa L.  |  April 23, 2006

This movie is definately an eye opener to African American youth, educators and parents. This young lady has knowledge beyond her years. Hopefully her film will catch the attention of African Americans and in turn put an end to this "white is beautiful, white right" and make our children realize that they are just as beautiful and just as right.

Etoie Edlind  |  April 21, 2006

Poignant. I know what it's like to miss a piece of yourself when you don't know where you came from. Excellent job of filmmaking.

Kitania Kavey  |  April 08, 2006

It was very moving and powerful. A strong film.

Terri  |  April 07, 2006

I was very impressed by this film. It was moving, thought-provoking, and extremely well made. The girls' comments were powerful.

Cathy Tomaszewski  |  April 05, 2006

your movie was great, one of my favorites on this site. the story was moving and to the point. it was put together very well. i loved it. great job

will  |  March 30, 2006