Todd Sampson’s Mirror Mirror shines a light on society’s invisible body crisis

Todd Sampson is known for challenging and astounding viewers of his television shows, Redesign My Brain and Body Hack, and his latest two-part series — Mirror Mirror — is no exception.

The former advertising and marketing executive and father of daughters Coco, 15, and Jet, 12, says he was motivated to film the series, examining body image issues, because we are in a massive societal crisis.

“It is an invisible crisis that is affecting so many people, both male and female, that can lead them from dissatisfaction to disorder to suicide and I have a voice, so I just wanted to use it for that,” Sampson, pictured, shares while doing final edits of Mirror Mirror in Sydney.

“I think it is a confronting series but I think it’s also a practical series that gives people ideas and things that we can do in today’s digital social media world.

“It’s a series built upon insight from experts and from those struggling with the issues.

“I would say we all have body image issues, where we’re on a spectrum and this series shows that spectrum and what we can do about it.”

Despite his previous career in advertising, Sampson says it was less about feeling guilty for being part of the problem and more about using that experience and knowledge of the social media world we live in.

However, seeing everything through the eyes of his daughters, who both appear in Mirror Mirror and have been involved throughout the project, has been quite extraordinary.

“I was thankful because I understood things in a different way, but to blame advertising for everything is naive because it is a partnership of media, television, movies, popular culture and advertising,” Sampson explains.

“And now all of that is amplified and exploded because of social media, where it’s become so normalised. I was just happy there was one aspect of it that I really understood. I like to think I could give some insight into it.”

During the series, Sampson explores how western beauty ideals are used as a weapon against us to manufacture discontent for profit, pulling back the curtain on cosmetic surgery, anti-ageing creams, hair loss, performance-enhancing drugs and pornography.

The most graphic scenes are those filmed during several cosmetic surgeries, particularly a face lift.

“You become somewhat detached when you’re a filmmaker but that face-lift surgery at the end is the most shocking I’ve ever seen in my life,” Sampson says.

“I’ve never seen someone’s face basically pulled down to their eyes.”

When asked why he thought it was necessary to show, Sampson answers that it was for one major reason — education.

“A lot of these surgeries are idealised or mythologised where we hear about them, but they’re theories,” he says.

“We hear people say they’re going to get a face lift or liposuction, and almost none of them have seen it.

“I’m not going to say I put them in there as a deterrent, but I put them in there to take away the myths.

“A lot of people sign up to things theoretically but they don’t know what happens to them when they’re unconscious, but they do now.”

Sampson hopes this awareness is a conversation starter for those of any age, but particularly parents talking to their children, thanks to the 7.30pm timeslot, even if they might have to turn away from certain scenes.

“I want them to talk about it, but they’re in this world regardless of whether we talk to them about it or not; that’s the truth,” he states.

“I’ve always been sensitive about never commenting on how my girls look. It’s just not the way I am with them, and this film has made me even more conscious of that.

“And yet, I don’t want to restrict them, because I believe once you restrict, they go underground.

“It’s been a massive journey.”

Mirror Mirror airs today and tomorrow at 7.30pm on Ten/WIN.