Dove turns to forensic artist for latest real beauty campaign

ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J. — According to research conducted by Unilever's Dove brand, the way women depict themselves is dramatically different from how others perceive them.

Dove research found that more than half (54%) ofwomen globally agree that when it comes to how they look, they are their own worst beauty critic. To continue its commitment to creating a world where beauty is a source of confidence, not anxiety, Dove conducted a social experiment to illustrate how this problem manifests. Documented in the short film, "Real Beauty Sketches," Dove explores how women view their own beauty in contrast to what others see.

The "Real Beauty Sketches" film features Gil Zamora, an FBI-trained forensic artist who has used his trademark Compositure Methodology to draw more than 3,000 sketches during his 28-year career. The film documented Zamora creating composite sketches of seven women who were hidden behind a curtain and he used their self-descriptions as the basis of his drawings. Prior to their session with the forensic artist, each of the women were unexpectedly asked to spend a short period of time with a stranger without being told why. Zamora then drafted sketches from the stranger's depictions. Most of the sketches drafted from the stranger's point of view showed a more beautiful, happier and frequently more accurate portrayal of the women and further demonstrates that, when it comes to how they look the biggest beauty pressure is the pressure they put on themselves.

"When I was asked to be a part of the film for Dove, I never imagined how different the two sketch portrayals would be," stated Zamora. "What has stayed with me are the emotional reactions the women had when they viewed the composite sketches hung side by side. I think many of these brave women realized that they had a distorted self-perception that had affected parts of their lives in significant ways."

"We conducted this social experiment and produced a film to reinforce our commitment to fostering self-esteem in women," added Jennifer Bremner, brand building director of skin cleansing for Dove. "We hope it will inspire women to reconsider their beauty and understand how other people see them."

Women can view the "Dove Real Beauty Sketches" film at Dove.us/realbeautysketches, Facebook.com/Dove or join the conversation at #wearebeautiful.