Behind the scenes: meet the women of the Dove shoot

“I love that Dove embrace natural and inner beauty. They made me feel beautiful during the shoot and to be a part of it all is an absolute honour.” - Natalie

“It was so empowering to meet all these women from different ethnicities, different ages different occupations, that were all glowing in their own very special way! It felt like an honour to be part of this circle where beauty was not about some dictated standard.” - Noemie

“I loved every minute of the Dove Video shoot because it was a world away from my daily duties of being a doctor covered in blood and other nasties! I went away realising that I need to spend more time on myself doing the things that make me happy, like making time for a long hot bath to trying out a new yoga class. In essence doing things that make me feel me again.” - Jacyntha

“I loved being on set, everyone made me feel so welcome and the experience as a whole was very calming. Also my dog Gemma was allowed to come along which was a real bonus!” - Madeleine

“Being a part of the Dove project helped me find my sparkle again after losing my wonderful Mum. It gave me a boost to my confidence and made me smile. It was a real privilege to have been chosen to be part of the Dove campaign that believes in real women and embracing our individual bodies. Life would be boring if we were all the same.” - Amanda

“It is such an honour to be able to join a team of such inspirational women globally! I feel that everyone has a story to tell and an experience to share, and if I can help to bring my own version to life with Dove, and help inspire women around the world to be better versions of themselves, then I am a happy lady.“ - Seema

“My favourite moment was when I was talking to the interviewer about body image, and how we should learn to love ourselves more. I got a bit emotional… then I looked around the room, and the crew were all teary eyed too! It's just great knowing everyone being filmed are normal, day to day, women - just like me. Really refreshing and something I love about Dove!” - Kim

“The shoot was fantastic fun. I felt very at ease and laughed a lot. It’s such a brilliant and new experience for me and I’m super impressed that most of the crew were a bunch of young women!” - Fiona

“It was a pleasure working with all the crew, everyone was so friendly and made me feel instantly at ease. The atmosphere the team managed to create was supportive and fun so I felt able to express my views easily and concisely” - Leyla

“As we were preparing and filming it occurred to me how many amazing and beautiful women we were working with who are highly skilled in jobs which are in predominantly male led industries and who each had their own relationship to beauty, from early pregnancy discoveries on set, to sharing stories about motherhood, acceptance and strength - we supported one another and gained insight that I will keep with me always. Being able to choose a predominantly female crew to work with was very important to me and we also felt that it was completely right when working for Dove and promoting real women.” - Stella

“I was relaxed and felt good about sharing stories about beauty, which usually are quite personal and private. It made me feel more connected to the wider world of women. I've spent so many years feeling pretty undervalued, and irrelevant. The Dove shoot made me feel like my story was an important one. A mother's story of beauty and love of her girls is an important story of values being passed down the generations. ” - Anjali

"The women we interviewed had some really inspiring stories and ideas on beauty and on more than one occasion had the whole crew in tears!" - Tasha