miss representation



This blog post was written by Erin and posted on March 22, 2012 at 11:26 am

documentary - film - womenAfter seeing the film Miss Representation, our PR and Digital Media Specialist, Erin, was left feeling inspired, conflicted and contemplating a break up with her newest guilty pleasure – the Kardashians.

miss representation – a film

Recently, our CEO Christine Day introduced a film at a local theatre called Miss Representation. The film, written and directed by Jennifer Siebel Newsom, explores the media’s misrepresentations of women and how those images impact women’s ability to achieve leadership positions. This, of course, sparked a ton of conversation around our office (an office that is, might I add, heavily influenced by females).

how do women show up in my life?

After watching the movie, I was inspired to critically evaluate my own media consumption habits. How are women showing up in my favourite television shows, movies and magazines? Are they being represented in a way that is consistent with my core values? If not, should I reconsider what I watch and read? …AKA do I have to give up my fascination with reality TV in order to be an authentic stand for women in media?

finding a happy-medium

My list of questions grew longer after each conversation I had and I became more and more conflicted. What I did discover, was that I am more inspired by authentic images of woman accomplishing amazing things – like a headstand or PB – than I am by too-thin runway models. There’s a difference between the people I choose to look up to versus what I’m entertained by. Making this simple distinction helped me define where I stood.

representin’ the miss

I realized that as long as I’m educated about the fact that the portrayal of women in the media can be a far cry from reality, than indulging in my guilty pleasures (like an US Weekly for example) isn’t the worst thing I can do. My biggest takeaway: educate and inspire the people around me to be able to make these same types of distinctions.

Interested in seeing the film? Find a screening near you! Side note: some of us here at the Store Support Centre are headed to see Friends With Kids (written and directed by Jennifer Westfeldt) tomorrow night. Good company, movie popcorn and a female writer/director – we like it.

The more the merrier – join us! Friday March 23 2012 | Cineplex Odeon, Vancouver, BC | 5:20PM

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8 Comments »


Loved the video I mentor in Baltimore city in one of the worst neighborhoods & would love to touch the girls with this

Comment by Debra Attman — March 22, 2012 @ 2:41 pm


We went to a screening last night & I cannot wait to see the full length movie. I highly recommend this to everyone- women & men!

Comment by Heather — March 23, 2012 @ 6:23 am


This film is challenging many of us to think. Now we need to act. We viewed this film right after the Superbowl. Lot’s of ads to cite a bad examples.
I am made sad when I see young women sexualizing themselves and buying in to trends that demean them. TV contributes to this insanity. My guilty pleasure used to be Gossip Girl until I got tired of the clothes, the manipulation and the emphasis on looks/image at all cost. It is almost impossible to grow up without a body image issue or eating problem. My mom put me on my first diet in 5th grade. No ice cream after dinner. The funny thing is I was going into puberty and many girls gain abit of weight at that time. It was the first time I felt that there was something wrong. I liked how my body worked for me—I was an athelete. I was called a tomboy. I have never decontructed this to see if this had any impact on me. I am at the stage now where my mantra is “frankly Scarlet, I don’t give a damn.”

Comment by Paula King — March 23, 2012 @ 11:12 am


Great movie!! I’m so glad it got you thinking about representation of women in media. I noticed you made no mention of how Lululemon the brand represents women – specifically in the refusal of providing options for plus-sized women while still offering plus sized options for men.
If you consider this kind of exclusion and what that says about how Lululemon feels about women who are overweight or bigger you might think that Lululemon simply does not want ‘fat’ ladies wearing their brand or representing themselves as consumers of that brand.
Authentic images of women are empowering and, in turn, motivate other women to acheive amazing goals. Women who are heavy but can run a marathon or do a handstand (as you mentioned) are STILL authentic – even if they are not represented as Lululemon’s demographic.
Thanks for being such a positive role-model for most women! It’d be great if you could also include ALL women. :)

Comment by Kim — March 23, 2012 @ 11:12 am


It’s so refreshing to see a film about empowerment for women! This is truly enlightening and everybody should watch this. Women should be loved for who they are and feel beautiful, happy and healthy, not disrespected because of their shape and size or intelligence level. Thank you for posting this, I’m sure this well help get the ball rolling in the right direction.

Comment by Sara — March 23, 2012 @ 11:43 am


Awareness is the key :) See you at the movie tonight!

Comment by Joanna — March 23, 2012 @ 12:19 pm


Awesome post guys! I did a blog post about this film back in October and I’m so happy you are spreading such an important message. XO

http://moniquepantel.blogspot.ca/2011/10/miss-representation.html

Comment by Monique — March 27, 2012 @ 9:11 am


While I LOVE this blogpost, and agree wholeheartedly with it- doesn’t Lululemon kind of give in to the ‘skinny’ marketing campaigns? Why aren’t there any plus sized models in Lululemon’s clothes? It’s something like 1/3 women have a bad body image! And only showing thin keeps women believing that’s the norm and they aren’t a part of it. Ralph Lauren recently had their first plus size model, I want to see Lululemon (and especially Ivivva- anybody else remember growing up as a teenager hating her body, too?) be a leader in affecting positive body image, too. Not to mention if you google “lululemon plus size” you get a whole load of unhappy bloggers- there’s a huge population not being heard.

Comment by Cordelia — October 3, 2012 @ 12:06 pm


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