British Council Logo UK Films Database
Project Detail

The Ritual to Beauty

Synopsis

A mixed media piece integrating the stylization of documentary and spoken word. Inspired by Shenny de Los Angeles’ one-woman show “What Happens to Brown Girls Who Never Learn How to Love Themselves Brown?”, this piece invites you to witness the meaning of beauty through three generations of Dominican women. The grandmother, the mother, and the daughter. In learning about the ritual to beauty that was passed down to each woman, there is a pain buried deep in the denial of their blackness. It is only through the secret voice in the water, that the daughter is able to release herself from a pain she’s been holding onto since she was born. By forgiving herself and the women before her, will she finally see just how beautiful she is when she’s free?
Official Selection BlackStar Film Festival 2022

Details

Year
2020
Type of project
Shorts
Running time
14 min 7 sec
Format
Digital
Director
Shenny de Los Angeles, Maria Marrone
Producer
Shenny de Los Angeles, Maria Marrone
Co-Producer
Maria Marrone
Executive Producer
Shenny de Los Angeles
Editor
Maria Marrone
Screenwriter
Shenny de Los Angeles
Director of Photography
Maria Marrone
Production Designer
Shenny de Los Angeles, Maria Marrone
Sound
Jose Escobar
Composer
Amyra Leon
Principal cast
Marina Eugenia Belliard Rojas, Chenny Bright, Shenny de Los Angeles

Genre

Experimental Woman Director Black

Categories

Documentary

Production Status

Complete

Production Company

Maria Marrone

Page updates

This page was last updated on 12th May 2025. Please let us know if we need to make any amendments or request edit access by clicking below.

Suggest amendments

See also

You may also be interested in other relevant projects in the database.

A Distant Call A Distant Call

Director: Andrea Suwito

Year: 2026

In the ancient Bugis way of life in Indonesia, gender non-binary ‘bissu’ were once revered spiritual leaders. Eka, one of the last remaining bissu, decides to leave behind their identity, searching for belonging in a world that insists on definitions.

Asian
Solstice on Grímsey Island Nation

Director: Nikolai Galitzine

Year: 2026

When a church burns down in a storm, a remote arctic community come together to preserve their identity as they face an uncertain future.

Climate / Environment
A reality TV presenter speaks to the camera, looking directly into the lens. Tops

Director: Ames Pennington

Year: 2024

A fun pastiche of chaotic, brash, self-deprecating and clueless 1990s/2000s British reality TV, TOPS sees self-proclaimed future award-winning filmmaker Ames Pennington present their landmark faux-documentary. Casting themselves as an invasive TV presenter, Ames goes on a satirical odyssey through the lives and homes of four unique individuals, exploring the crucial question that defines the transmasc experience: “What TOP did you want to wear after TOP surgery?” Official Selection BFI Flare: London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival 2024 - World premiere Official Selection Kashish Pride Film Festival 2024 - International premiere

Comedy Docufiction LGBTQIA+