Mayday is the 25-year-old plus-sized beauty who has garnered a worldwide following since going public with her battle with a rare form of ovarian cancer which resulted in a hysterectomy and hair loss.
The film – aptly titled A Perfect 14 – delves into the size zero dominated fashion industry and follows the journey of Mayday as well as other plus models, agents and photographers who are all rallying to change the way the industry is defining beauty.
The films creators interviewed the Canadian model about her experiences in the industry and the discrimination she has faced because of her curvaceous frame.
“People made me feel terrible about having a bigger body but a really pretty face,” says Mayday in the trailer for the documentary.
At one point the brave pillow-lipped model breaks down when she speaks about the bittersweet offer to take up a dream modelling contract in New York despite having a surgery that would leave her body changed forever on the same day.
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Model Elly Mayday in a poster for the documentary.
In an earlier interview, Mayday hinted that modelling through her treatment has actually helped to keep her focused on getting healthy.
“It was kind of a point of realisation, either, ‘Do I stop [modelling] now, or do I keep on going and be the person that I was raised to be and the person that I know I am?'”she said.
The young Vancouver native has become a social media sensation with many fans boasting that they have written to companies to express to them how much they would like to see the cancer survivor in major ad campaigns.
Elly’s fans views are shared by others in the film who expressed disgust about the fashion industry’s narrow standards of beauty.
“A photo or a spread of a plus model comes out and people are freaking out and it’s a big deal and they shouldn’t be because we should be used to it,” says one interviewee.
The creators of the documentary – Canadian filmmakers James Early O’Brien and Giovanna Morales Vargas – are currently trying to raise money on the site Indiegogo to cover their post-production expenses.
