After the meteoric success of the Barbie movie last summer, we are super excited about Netflix’s Black Barbie documentary, which is out next month.
From Shondaland, the company that brought us Bridgerton and Inventing Anna, and executive produced by Shonda Rhimes herself, the documentary explores the campaign for a Black Barbie and the efforts of so many women to ensure it got made.
Considering much more than just the impact of a doll on the world, the documentary looks at the importance of representation in the doll world and in the workplace. Here’s everything you need to know.
What is Netflix’s Black Barbie documentary about?
In short, it tells the story of what three women went through to produce and release a Black Barbie doll at toy manufacturer Mattel in the 1970s.
According to a Netflix synopsis, the documentary “explores the impact of three Black women at Mattel responsible for the Black Barbie debut in 1980.” The women were Beulah Mae Mitchell (Lagueria Davis, Black Barbie’s writer and director, is her niece), Kitty Black Perkins, and Stacey McBride Irby.
“Through insider interviews and charismatic retellings of what went down at Mattel in the days leading up to Black Barbie’s debut,” the Netflix synopsis continues, “the documentary examines the importance of true representation—and how dolls aren’t just dolls, but childhood symbols that can be crucial to identity formation and imagination.”
Courtesy of Linlay Productions
Beulah Mae Mitchell’s campaign for a Black Barbie began in the early 1960s, a few years after she began working at Mattel. It took 20 years for her dream to be realized, after designer Kitty Black Perkins had joined the ranks; Perkins based the doll on Diana Ross. Next, Kitty hired doll designer Stacey McBride Irby to work on the project.
