Story by Carla Mortel-Baricaua
Photos courtesy of Thirdy Rivera III
One restless school break, Thirdy and his squad got so bored they shot a short film just for the heck of it. With nothing but a story and an itch to film, these A.B. Communications students from Far Eastern University raised enough money through crowd sourcing and produce their pet project entitled “Fat You”. Not only did this short film earned nods of their professors, it also made the rounds of film competitions, won accolades, and more importantly, it gave attention to the woes of the plus-size community.
The short film Fat You depicts the struggles of Trixie (Marry Grace Yagi) while trying to lose weight after being invited to a class reunion. Bullied because of her plus-size appearance, Trixie is afraid to show up and face the judgment from her former schoolmates, but eventually musters enough courage to show up in a big way (pun intended).
In a streak of success, the five-minute film earned the Amazing By Choice Award at SineKabataan 2017, Audience Choice Award Heat 2 at Short+Sweet Film Festival Manila 2017, Best Film (19-21 Category) at Manila Student Film Festival 2017, and Official Selection at the 20th International Youth Media Festival YOUKI held in Austria in 2018.
“Fat You” is actually my story. When I decided to come up with a film, I wanted it to be all about my experience, my hurt,” Ronnel “Thirdy” Rivera III reveals with no apologies. Called fat since he was a kid, Thirdy very well know what bullying is all about, and as a victim, he struggled to have a piece of the limelight.
My production, my acting roles
Pudgy and cute, Thirdy started out as a child talent who starred in several TV commercials. In an audition for an acting role in one of biggest TV networks, he learned about body requirements and more the hard way. “I was seven years old then. The role was for a child beggar and I was paired with a female stand up for a popular actress.
After I said my lines, she goes ‘paano ako maniniwala na pulubi ka? Eh, ang taba-taba mo?’ (how can believe you’re a beggar when you’re so fat?) I thought it was just acting, right? I was just a kid, so why should she say something like that? There it dawned upon me when you’re fat, there are roles just for you. There’s that kind of discrimination and rejection.
It was the same thing when I tried acting in theatre two years. I was either involved in historical pieces or comedies back then. My first play had mostly farmers in the cast of characters, but I was given the role of a president. I had to be serious and collected, but I felt that didn’t show my full potential. I really wanted to be in the lead, given that it was a musical and I do sing, but they told me I wasn’t right for the role; I just didn’t look like a farmer.
I was not given a chance to play romantic roles at all. All I ever did was to be loud, since I got cast as a gay in a beauty parlor. Being good at it, I got stereotyped and was confined to gay roles ever since.
I have nothing against gay roles because I still got to act. As they say, theatre is an actor’s medium, but I wanted variety that will give me different challenges. I understand that the production wanted to stay true to their concept, I just wished that fat actors are not set with that kind of limitations. That’s when I started entertaining the idea of doing my own production.”
Aptly called Plus Size Productions, Thirdy and his motley crew of film enthusiasts then started filming with plus size actors in the lead roles. “I said to myself if I cannot the juicy roles, I might as well create those roles. That was my motivation.”
My hurt, my advocacy
Writing the script drawn out from his own experience came easy to Thirdy, but somehow the material fell flat to his expectations. He sensed that there was missing from the narrative, so he sought the stories of others who had experienced bullying due to their big body size and incorporated that into the story.
“I realized that this should not be just about me. The story should not center on my personal accounts. My responsibility is not just to tell my story, but the stories of others, too. I told myself not to be selfish; to tell about my hurt and the hurt of others as well and that became the core content of Fat You.
Fat people inspire me. We may appear strong, but the truth is we’re not. We’re not accepted in society; we’re discriminated in subtle ways, while in commute, during job interviews. So, we must have a positive outlook in life. I will continue to work for fat people and body positivity. Like I said during the awards night, I dedicate this to all fat people because I find it my purpose to tell their stories.”
My stand, my response
Since childhood, Thirdy had face rejection and kept his silence. When he was bullied, he would cry and drown himself in self-pity. He kept his pain bottled up. In high school, he began to engage and fight back with bullies.
“‘Where’s your neck? “They ask”. ‘It’s in my pocket! What is it to you?’ I would answer. But they kept on bullying me because they get a response. They know I’m getting hurt.
Now, I want to be more positive in my approach to bullying,” shares Thirdy.
To that effect, Thirdy had also begun handling and producing videos for the BlueChoice Facebook page dedicated to the plus-size community. But despite educating FB users on body positivity, the page still receives negative comments. These, however, are met with openness and meaningful exchanges. “It’s not about who wins in the discussions, but more of having an understanding, a meeting half way. We also saw that while comments are offensive, more often that not, their message is really about taking care of one’s health. Meaning, they’re just concerned about us. When both sides try to educate each side, they can have a better understanding. In the end, both sides are thankful for the concern, and gain each other’s respect. The negativity then is converted to a powerful, positive message.
I started empowering fat people because I believe no matter what difficulties are coming their way, they’d know how to deal with the hate. I can speak confidently now because I started with myself. Once you have accepted yourself, others will accept you just the way you are. For me, it took that process.”
His early success had the plus-size community embracing his short film. “Fat you!”now had become a retort that is fast catching on individuals who find themselves bullied and discriminated based on their big size. More than a comeback, it has become a rallying call to end bullying and to better understand and accept people in all shapes and sizes.
Image credits: Thirdy Rivera III