Openluchtfilmfestival Roffa Mon Amour -The Ugly Stepsister ²⁰²⁵

Marrying body horror with traditional fable, director Emilie Bliechfield brings a new meaning to the misogynistic doctrine ‘beauty is pain. Drawing from her own years of struggling with body image and finding her place within femininity, her ‘beauty horror’ explores how these standards affect young women.

The film’s aesthetic draws heavily from the 1960s and 70s Eastern European fairytale cinema, celebrated for its gritty realism and gothic settings. The body horror approach to the classic fairy tale also draws from the rich history of Cinderella, particularly the Brothers Grimm version, in which the stepsisters mutilate their feet to fit into the slipper. Elvira’s horrific journey highlights the agony of adhering to unattainable physical standards that continue to shape our lives.

Bliechfield made this film for all the young girls who struggle under the burden of feeling ugly. In empathising with Cinderella, but mocking the stepsister, we have betrayed ourselves. There is only one Cinderella. The rest of us, struggling to fit the shoe, are stepsisters. Rooted in a powerful new wave of women directors creating fantastic body horror films (Titane, The Substance), we are thrilled to present the Dutch premiere of this brutal fairy tale at Roffa Mon Amour Film Festival.