Darryl Roberts, director and producer of the successful beauty industry expos? “America the Beautiful,” is in production on the second part of his “health and beauty series.”
The new, untitled documentary on the hot topic of diet, weight and body image was inspired when found that he was considered morbidly obese.
“I had dinner with a Chicago Bears player and he told me his daughter came home with her report card and it had her body mass index and a note from her teacher saying she needed to lose weight,” Roberts recounted.
“He looked at himself on the chart and saw he was considered morbidly obese. I checked myself and I was morbidly obese,” continues Roberts, who was 6’3, 277 pounds at the time.
A medical exam revealed Roberts had high blood pressure and an irregular heartbeat. His doctor prescribed medication with severe side effects.
“I decided to go through a program to see what avenues I can use to be truly healthy, since different people tell you different things about what’s healthy,” Roberts says. Roberts is documenting himself trying out a variety alternative health practices.
He’s dropped 16 pounds in two months.
Roberts says his doctor was “dumbfounded” he told her his symptoms had abated without drugs.
“I want to show people there’s a lot of misinformation out there and to go out and learn how to become healthy so we don’t become part of a system where you’re just strung out on pharmaceutical drugs,” he says.
He’s filmed at Moos Elementary School in Humboldt Park, where he says students are boycotting the school cafeteria to promote a healthier menu.
The day he was there, lunch was “pizza, fries, chocolate milk and two brownies. The school wouldn’t let the kids bring in their own food because they have some kind of contract. The school is stopping the kids from being healthy.”
Early next year, he plans a self-release of the new doc, patterned after his highly effective strategy for “America the Beautiful.”
“Beautiful” now profitable after Roberts took back marketing and distribution
