The NFP Mannequin Project
3 November 2014 at 4:30 pm
A new media and education initiative that blends research and creative disciplines, called The Mannequin Project, has been designed to engage mainstream Australia in the issue of body dissatisfaction, using entertainment and storytelling.
EntertainThinkInspire, the creative team behind the initiative is a Not for Profit social impact agency and the project’s ambassador Eve Morey is a long-time actress on television series Neighbours who is passionate about introducing this issue into the mainstream.
In 2013 Morey encouraged the producers of Neighbours to use her character as a way of exploring the issue of eating disorders on the show.
“And as The Mannequin Project looks at the broader issue of body dissatisfaction and how everyone is affected in some way by this widespread social issue Eve Morey was the perfect fit as the face of our teaser film piece,” General Manager of EntertainThinkInspire, Rebecca King, said.
“Today more than half of children aged 8–9 expressed dissatisfaction with their bodies and when interviewed, 61 per cent of boys and 56 per cent of girls aged 10 – 11 revealed they had actively tried to manage their weight in the past twelve months,” King said.
“Children growing up today are facing body dissatisfaction in a way that’s never been seen before. This generation is rapidly approaching adolescence and there are grave concerns about the impacts it will have on their future.
“To reach mainstream audiences, our team of volunteers, experts and creatives produced a short engagement video which seeks to show people how ‘negative self-talk’ can play out in our lives.”
“The experts are telling us it’s vital that we come to terms with our own bodies so that we don’t transfer these negative ideas onto children. The video seeks to entertain, amuse and ultimately challenge viewers to think about this idea, and express their views online.
The Youtube video can be seen HERE.
