Morgan Spurlock, the director and star of Super Size Me which was distributed in South Africa by Videovision Entertainment, was announced as the winner of the Writers Guild of America’s inaugural award for Best Documentary Feature Screenplay at a special ceremony at the Roosevelt Hotel in Hollywood on Tuesday, 15 February 2005.
Super Size Me tracks Morgan Spurlock as he goes around America and interviews experts in 20 cities, including Houston, the “Fattest City” in America. From Surgeon Generals to gym teachers, cooks to children, lawmakers to legislators, these authorities shared their research and opinions on why America is becoming a nation of “fatties”.
During the journey, Spurlock also put his own body on the line, living on nothing but McDonald’s for an entire month with three simple rules – No options: he could only eat what was available over the counter (water included!); No supersizing unless offered; No excuses: he had to eat every item on the menu at least once. The film also explores declining health and physical education classes, food addictions and the extreme measures people take to lose weight and regain their health.
“Super Size Me is a film that explores the effects of fast food on the American public. Morgan Spurlock used McDonalds as the case study and went on a diet of only McDonalds’ meals for 30 days resulting in disastrous consequences for his own health. He did a fantastic job of not only making this documentary feature and being its subject, but also writing the screenplay of Super Size Me,” said Sanjeev Singh, director of Acquisition and Distribution for Videovision Entertainment.
Super Size Me has also been nominated for Best Documentary Feature at this year’s Academy Awards which take place on 27 February Los Angeles.
The video and DVD of Super Size Me is currently available at stores in South Africa and was released earlier this month by Nu Metro Home Entertainment for Videovision Entertainment.
