BKFC legend "Rowdy" Bec Rawling's tell-all documentary is out now!
Bec Rawlings, who is currently basking in the glory of her successful return to the ring at KnuckleMania V, just put the cherry on top for her fight week. As of January 27th, a documentary with Rawlings as the centre figure has been released by Bohemia Media titled, Fight to Live.
Having the privilege of seeing an early screening in preparation for an interview I had with Rawlings, the subject matter is not for the faint of heart. While it does cover points of her fight career including her origin story into the combat sports world, it primarily covers Rawlings’ experiences with domestic abuse.
“Rowdy” goes into graphic detail about how she endured years of abuse and her eventual actions to remove herself from the situation. When I asked her what she was hoping to accomplish with this documentary, she replied,
“I wanted people to feel empowered, I didn’t want people's sympathy. I touch base in the documentary that domestic violence is something that happened to me but it doesn't define me. I didn’t want this documentary to be, poor me, look what happened to me, I wanted it to show that shit things can happen to you and it’s what you do with those things, it’s how you move on from those things, it’s how you get back up. I wanted people to feel empowered and I think we really hit the mark there.”
She also went on to detail how the people who have already seen the piece have reached out to her directly, as the documentary had already been released in Australia prior to our conversation on January 16th.
“I’ve had so many people reach out just saying that they’ve experienced something similar, or they know someone who’s experienced something similar or they’ve shown their young kids, their daughters, their sons in hopes that they can recognize red flags if they were to get stuck in a similar situation with domestic violence.”
She would go on to detail her ability to overcome her fears, not only making this situation known about just how abusive her ex-husband was, but choosing to tell the story in front of a camera.
“I’ve been very vocal about it since I left my ex-husband, because I feel like it was important to get it out there in hopes that he didn’t do it to someone else. But to revisit those things that happened, I had to dig deep. I realized that I’d buried a lot of emotions, I’d buried a lot of memories.
There wasn’t a huge film crew; there were only about three or four people there and he (the producer) just sat there and gave me time to think every question over and revisit those memories, and it was really hard. It was really tough, but I kept telling myself, it wasn’t for me it was to help someone else. It was healing for myself to get it off my chest, to get it out of my mind. I buried it so deep, I forgot some of these horrific things that happened. I think it's really important to heal from things is to talk about them. It was definitely a healing process but it was tough, it was very draining, but the end result was worth it.”
Around the 30 minute mark of the documentary, there is a noticeable mood shift, not only in the demeanor of the piece but in the subject as well. Rawlings goes into detail about the support system she has with her sons Zake, Enson, and her partner Adrian. When I asked about how different her life is now, post-abuse, a huge smile spread across her face,
“Not everyone’s lives are perfect all the time. It's definitely still stressful, I'll give you that. I’ve got two teenage boys 16 and 14, I feel like they’re slowly sending me grey. We’re extremely happy, we’re safe, we are in a really good place. I’m very proud of my kids, they’re beautiful human beings and they’re growing up to be beautiful young men and I think that’s my (best) accomplishment. Even though I was the first female bare knuckle world champion, my biggest accomplishment is my children…Life is good.”
You can find the documentary out now on UK Digital brought to you by Bohemia Media. Bring the tissues for more than one reason, a story that starts with heartbreak as you watch Rawlings detail the abuse she took at the hands of her ex-husband, turns into a story of empowerment as the tears turn from sad ones to happy ones. This piece should be looked at not only as a PSA on domestic violence but a triumphant story of the will to overcome a horrible situation.
Photos Courtesy of BKFC.
Comments