Lizzie Velasquez, who has been called "the world’s ugliest woman," hoped to tell her story through an anti-bullying documentary about her life.
She became well known in December 2013, when her TED Talk, a short speech designed to spread ideas from a number of subjects, went viral. Her talk on bullying has over 5.7 million views on YouTube.
"I know what it is to be bullied and what is to be bullied online, and I want to be the protector of those who think it won't get better," said Velasquez, 25, who has a rare disease that makes it impossible for her to gain weight.
Velasquez’s syndrome is so rare that only two other people in the world have it. She has never weighed more than 64 pounds and is blind in one eye. In her TED Talk, she explains that her life changed when she saw herself in a YouTube video titled, "The world’s ugliest woman," and there were comments like: "Do the world a favour and put a gun to your head."
She said that video emboldened her, and she chose to make her illness into a positive.
"Instead of just taking shelter of my tears, I chose to be happy and realise this syndrome is not a problem but a blessing that allows me to improve myself and inspire other people," said Velasquez.
She is trying to broaden the reach of her message by making a film, tentatively titled "The Lizzie Project," which she is trying to fund through a Kickstarter campaign.
She has collected more than $123,000, about £73,000, in donations, but the goal of the campaign, which ends on 31 May, is to raise $180,000 (£107,000). If Velasquez doesn’t reach her goal, she would not get any of the money raised.
Since seeing the video and comments, she has written three self-help books, the most recent of which, "Choosing Happiness," is to be published in August.
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