Secrets of the Living Dolls

12 December 2013

This eye-opening documentary delves into the secretive world of ‘female masking’ – men who transform themselves into dolls by squeezing into a second skin.

Female maskers, also known as ‘dolls’ are a hidden community of ordinary family men who lead extraordinary double lives, dressing up in elaborate rubber suits as they strive to become their very own ideal, fantasy woman. There are thousands of female maskers all over the world, but fearing scorn and ridicule most have kept their secret behind closed doors.

First time director Nicholas Sweeney enters this private world, meeting the men coming to terms with what has, for many, become an all-consuming hobby. With thousands of hours and hundreds of pounds spent creating their alter-egos.  

Seventy year old Robert is a semi-retired real estate agent. He lives in a mansion in the suburbs of Orange County in California. After ten years of marriage, Robert was recently divorced. He now shares his house with his teenage daughter but his hobby is kept strictly private.  For the last six years, Robert has spent every spare moment becoming ‘Sherry’. Having spent years doing this in private, Robert has made a big decision soon he will take Sherry into the big wide world for the first time – when he attends a secret gathering of female maskers in Minneapolis, Rubberdoll Rendezvous. It’s the first time he’ll reveal Sherry to other maskers, and he’s nervous. The organizer of the Rubberdoll Rendezvous is Jon, aka ‘Jennifer’, a forklift operator and father of six. Jon is proud to be a leading figure in the masking scene and, unlike most female maskers, he is happy to include the rest of the world as well.

British bartender Joel and his girlfriend Mel are moving in together for the first time. Until now, Joel has hidden his 15 years of female masking from his disapproving parents, but with his newfound freedom he fully intends to make up for lost time. His first challenge is to reveal his alter ego, ‘Jessie’, to his closest friends. But their emotional reaction isn’t quite what he expected.

The film also meets the manufacturers, Femskin, a family-run firm in America’s Bible belt who developed an ultra-light wearable female body-suit and who are struggling to keep pace with the demand. Barbie and her three sons, Adam, Alex and Chuck Jr. craft every Femskin product themselves, and have sold tens of thousands of them worldwide. The company was the brainchild of Barbie’s husband Chuck Sr., who started the company when his cabinet-making business went bust. Adam is going to Rubberdoll Rendezvous to meet the female maskers face-to-face for the first time.

With remarkable access to a hidden sub-culture this documentary explores a world where men turn themselves into living dolls.

 

Director Nicholas Sweeney
Producer Luke Malone
Executive Producer Jes Wilkins
Prod co Firecracker
Publicity Justine Bower
Pictures Nathalie Mohoboob