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Plus-Size Dance Company Challenges Negative Stereotypes in Media

Plus-Size Dance Company Challenges Negative Stereotypes in Media

Pretty Big Movement

Storyblocks, the largest subscription-based platform for creative stock media, recently partnered with Pretty BIG Movement (PBM), a dance company of plus-sized women, for a campaign that combats the dated narrative that they are an unhealthy version of beauty.

The exclusive collection is to amplify body diversity in media.

“We are so excited about this partnership,” Storyblocks’ Vice President of Content Kristen Sanger says. “We have really adored and loved the work that PBM has been doing for a long time.”

PBM’s Founder and CEO Akira Armstrong worked closely with Storyblocks to bring the collection to life and showcase some amazing talent.

“This partnership is very significant,” she says. “One of the reasons I chose to work with Storyblocks is because it gave us a platform and an opportunity to be free. I think as artists, we don’t get the opportunity to be free at times because there’s so many rules to the game. With Storyblocks, the way they presented the partnership to us, I was like, wow. There are no restrictions. Of course, there are rules and regulations, but no restrictions in regards to what we want to show to the world. I was very, very delighted about that was totally on board.”

Pretty Big Movement

In addition to features surrounding the plus size dancers of PBG, the collection showcases the dancers’ lived experiences through the lens of daily activities and interviews with Armstrong that explore how this partnership will debunk stereotypes in media.

“Not only are we featuring dance, but we’re featuring what happens outside of the dance studio,” Sanger says. “I think that’s an incredibly important aspect to showcase the dancers in an authentic way. We didn’t really want to take creative control as to what this was going to look like. This was really allowing the team of PBM to showcase what they wanted to showcase and how they wanted to be showcased. The collection covers day-to-day life.

Sanger hopes that through the power of storytelling and authentic assets, this will draw in audiences even more.

“For a long time, media has come from a place that has been very controlled and very single position without a lot of diverse voices in front and behind the camera,” she explains. “This is taking back a little bit of that power and ensuring that we have a multitude of artists to be able to showcase their vision. Our customers want to see these stories come to life. Music is often emotional when you pair it with video, but dance is such an emotional medium as well.”

In the past, Armstrong has had issues finding representation by dance agents due to her full figure. She founded PBM in 2008, and the group currently has eight members.

Never in a million years did she think it would make such a powerful impact.

“When I first started PBM, I had just come off a major gig with Beyoncé, and I was still trying to find my way,” she says. “I say this jokingly, but I was before my time because plus size is everywhere now. Fourteen years ago, you would put in a search engine ‘plus size’ or ‘full-figure dancers,’ and hardly anything would come up. I think my intention behind PBM was to at least bring awareness to who we are as talented individuals regardless of our aesthetic. Also, in hindsight, I didn’t know that it would go this far, which I’m very excited about. I sometimes pinch myself thinking about the opportunities that have come.

Armstrong believes the beauty of what PBM has possessed into the world is that people should not have to change how they look to be accepted.

“People are either going to love you or they’re not, and I think PBM has more love than anything else,” she explains. “We are who we are. People on social media and entertainment things are always a façade, and with PBM, you kind of get that raw deal. That authenticity, the unapologetic attitude that we exude, and the immense amount of impact that we’ve had.”

An HBO documentary on the dance group is currently in the works.

“After two years of negotiating, figuring things out, wishing, praying, and hoping, it finally came to fruition on January 19, 2022, when Deadline, The Hollywood Reporter, and several other amazing publications came out with the article about this dance drama for HBO Max,” Armstrong exclaims. “I am so elated. They’re in the writers’ room right now, so it’s going to take some time before it comes out.”

Moving forward, both Sanger and Armstrong will continue to fight against the negative stereotypes of body diversity in media.

“For so long, stock media has created what they thought customers would want, and it really created this cycle and inauthentic view of the world,” Sanger says. “At Storyblocks, we feel like we have a significant amount of accountability to support and engage our customers to stop that cycle by providing a myriad of awesome clips, tracks, and beyond that are much more representative of what we think media should look and sound like. That is going to heavily encourage our customers to take that leap to try something new.”

“I think media is just reluctant to show our beautiful bodies, and it’s a fear thing,” Armstrong adds. “It’s fear of the unknown, being uncertain and being ridiculed for trying to do something different. Sometimes, when you’re different, you have to work a little bit harder to get people to visually understand what we represent.”

According to Armstrong, PBM is also looking to expand and create different chapters in different cities across the country.

“We’re looking to move forward into the Atlanta area,” she says. “… We also have a pretty big showcase that will go up later in the fall.”

Check out PBM’s exclusive collection at storyblocks.com and stay up-to-date and connect with the dance group by following them on Instagram @prettybigmovement.

Photos courtesy of Ben Abraham

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