Made over 6 years, director Jeanie Finlay charts the rise of writer and activist Aubrey Gordon from anonymous blogger to NYTimes best selling author and beloved podcaster. Her aim? A paradigm shift in the way we see fat people and the fat on our own bodies. Her life changing work has brought her an ardent, international audience but also threats to her life. One of her biggest challenges is getting her parents to listen. Your Fat Friend, a film about fatness, family, the complexities of change and the deep, messy feeling we hold about our bodies.
Acclaimed director Jeanie Finlay charts the rise of Aubrey Gordon . Shot over six years we see Aubrey go from anonymous blogger Yrfatfriend to NYTimes best seller and beloved podcaster with an audience of millions.
Her aim? A paradigm shift in the way that we view fat people and the fat on our own bodies. The world may be listening but her family have a way to go in understanding her work.
YOUR FAT FRIEND, a film about fatness, family, the complexities of change and the messy feelings we hold about our bodies.
Jeanie Finlay is one of Britain’s most distinctive documentary makers, creating award-winning work for cinema and television, telling intimate stories to international audiences. She has made films for HBO, IFC and four commissions for acclaimed BBC Storyville, including BIFA nominated The Great Hip Hop Hoax and BIFA winning Orion:The Man Who Would Be King.
Whether inviting audiences to share the (extra)ordinary journey of a British transgender man, pregnant with his child (BIFA nominated Seahorse), behind the scenes of Teesside’s last record shop in her home-town (SOUND IT OUT), or onto the set of the world’s biggest television show (Emmy nominated Game Of Thrones: The Last Watch), all of Jeanie's films share an empathetic approach to bringing overlooked and untold stories to the screen.
In 2023 a recipient of a prestigious Chicken & Egg award, recognising directors at advanced stages of their careers, poised to reach new heights.
Her films were showcased in a retrospective at Museum of Moving Image, NYC, People Everyday: The Films of Jeanie Finlay, by True Story, UK, are held in the archive at the British Film Institute and are featured on the BFI Player, part of The Camera is Ours: Britain's Women Documentary Makers. Her. films are showcased on Criterion in a collection called People Person: Documentaries by Jeanie Finlay.
Jeanie was awarded an honorary Doctorate by her alma mater Nottingham Trent University in recognition of her contribution to filmmaking.
