When filmmaker Pauliina Punkki met her namesake, professional bodybuilder Pauliina Talus, in Los Angeles in 2009, she immediately knew there was something intriguing about Talus’s persona and started filming. A female bodybuilder is an unlikely main character of a film. Since the beginning of this project, 15 years ago, it has proved to be challenging for many to see a woman, especially such a different kind of woman, leading the narrative. As the years passed, the experiences of these two women began to intertwine in unexpected ways. Punkki’s story stands side by side with Talus’s in a film that explores their journey. Both women have now passed the significant milestone of turning 50. The time in their life when finally outside appearance value fade and it’s easier for to brush off others’ opinions and boldly say, “Fuck it—listen to what we have to say!”
