The Beauty of Blackness tells the story of the Black beauty industry through the lens of Fashion Fair — an iconic beauty brand that was once the largest Black-owned cosmetics company in the world. Founded in the 1970s by Eunice Johnson of Ebony and Jet-magazine fame, the brand revolutionized the beauty industry, creating makeup for Black women by Black women, at a time when most cosmetics companies largely pretended they didn't exist. The company paved the way for a new generation of Black glamour—and in 2021, they returned to it again in partnership with Sephora.

At its core, the idea behind the film is to explore the history of Black cosmetics by following the relaunch of one of the most important Black-owned beauty brands of the 20th century.

The film is both a historical look back and a “will they/wont they launch in time-story’ about getting products to shelves during a supply chain crisis of epic proportions. It’s a story about the impact left on a on a generation of Black women an the challenges Black founders face when trying to secure funding for their brands.

This feature length documentary and content investment is a first for the Sephora brand and comes on the heels of Sephora signing the “15% Pledge,” a public commitment to dedicating 15% of its inventory to products from Black-owned businesses. The Beauty of Blackness is just one way Sephora is spotlighting Black entrepreneurs, Black-owned brands and the consumers they serve. And one part of Sephora’s larger commitment to give Black culture the respect and position it deserves in the beauty community.

The execution began with a ‘story hunt’ where we spoke to over 250 historians, models, Black entrepreneurs, editors, makeup artists and more over 10 weeks to understand the history of the Black beauty industry and find the most salient and important stories among this rich pool of interviewees.

Filmed over the course of 16 months by two Black women directors, the film gives viewers a front-row look at the massive undertaking that goes into reviving a Black heritage brand amidst new cultural context. It spotlights the colorism and inequity of the cosmetics industry and explores Fashion Fair's rapid rise, enduring legacy, and eventual hiatus—and how two Black women are breathing new life into the iconic brand in collaboration with Sephora.

In March 2022, The Beauty of Blackness was acquired and is now available on a major streaming platform.