INVISIBLE BEAUTY shines a spotlight on the singular and unapologetic Bethann Hardison, one of the fashion industry’s most influential icons who, as a pioneering Black model, modeling agent and entrepreneur, has pushed the boundaries of fashion culture and has been at the forefront of progress throughout her career. In INVISIBLE BEAUTY, Tcheng and Hardison trace her impact on fashion from runway shows in the 1970s to roundtables about the lack of racial diversity in the early 2000s. Featuring intimate interviews with luminaries including Iman, Tyson Beckford, Tracee Ellis Ross, Zendaya, Fran Lebowitz, Pat Cleveland, Naomi Campbell, and Stephen Burrows, INVISIBLE BEAUTY is an absorbing record of the racial evolution of fashion and an original contemplation on the life of an unparalleled trailblazer.
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Short filmTranscript
00:00 I always know you can change things.
00:03 I've done it before.
00:05 ♪♪
00:06 Everyone's talking about diversity and inclusion.
00:08 That directly stems from the work that Beth Ann did.
00:12 Without her, the opportunities wouldn't exist
00:14 for me to do what I love.
00:15 She's like a second mother to me.
00:17 That one shining light of kindness.
00:21 We're all students of Beth Ann Artisan.
00:23 And I always say, just, you know,
00:25 a hammock and a tequila, I'm good.
00:26 You heard it first.
00:27 ♪♪
00:30 She's the godmother of fashion.
00:33 When I started, I was the first black,
00:35 black-looking model on 7th Avenue.
00:38 There was no people who looked like me.
00:40 I knew the difference of segregation from childhood.
00:43 These people thought that we were less.
00:45 I let them know we are here.
00:48 She realized she was the message.
00:50 She represents this power.
00:53 A lot of designers did not use models of color.
00:57 No blacks, no ethnics.
00:58 You don't know what it's like to be invisible.
01:01 Where are the black girls?
01:03 I started the Black Girls Coalition.
01:05 She moved our glamour and our good looks
01:07 into the arena of activism.
01:10 She's a game-changer.
01:12 She sacrificed a lot.
01:15 My mother has enough ambition for the whole world.
01:19 It's really hard as a single mom.
01:21 I was scared to fail.
01:22 She wants us to win more than anything.
01:25 It gets a little challenging at times.
01:27 But that's gonna be part of your great story.
01:29 I don't know who I think I am, but I do be trying.
01:32 ♪♪
01:34 We want to provoke conversation.
01:36 We want to provoke ideas.
01:37 I'm not here to put anyone down.
01:39 I'm here to bring everybody up.
01:42 Beth Ann was able to unify us.
01:44 She has changed the way beauty is defined.
01:47 But I still want to do more things.
01:49 ♪ Keep your head up ♪
01:51 There are a lot of young people out there
01:53 who really have something to say.
01:55 And they come along like a tsunami.
01:57 They come along as a wave.
01:58 ♪ Keep your head up ♪
02:00 ♪ 'Til the end of the world is done ♪
02:03 The game's not over.
02:04 [ All chanting ]
02:05 Once you meet this person, it's gonna change your life.
02:08 Let's shake it up.
02:10 Whether you like it or not.
02:11 ♪ Keep your head up ♪
02:14 (whooshing)
02:16 [BLANK_AUDIO]