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There's been a lot of debate today about Barbie's introduction of curvy, tall and petite dolls to go with the original, and whether the Mattel makeover represents real progress in the area of girls' body image and self-esteem. But unmentioned until now is the involvement of a famous female filmmaker in the campaign—acclaimed documentarian Rory Kennedy, whose spot below, exploring the makeover, is her first-ever commercial.
Kennedy—Oscar-nominated director of Last Days in Vietnam, and daughter of Bobby Kennedy—crafted the piece as a mini-documentary featuring kids and Mattel execs (mostly designers) talking about the move to toward dolls with more realistic proportions.
The designers are self-congratulatory, which isn't a surprise but is a bit irritating coming from a brand that epitomized the problem, and resisted change, for so long.
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