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Why Disney & Pixar’s new coming-of-age film resonates with me as an Asian and a future Generalist Special Needs Educator… [Warning: SPOILERS AHEAD!]

The new animated film centers on the life of a 13-year-old Chinese Canadian living in Toronto, Canada. Meilin Lee is a typical girl who experiences the struggles and growing pains of adolescence. She shapeshifts into a huge red panda whenever she gets excited, mad, frustrated, or basically whenever she feels any extreme emotion that she can’t suppress. Her mom, Ming Lee, is a typical Asian mom who’s strict, religious, and always wants everything to be perfect. This film tackles not only about the onset of puberty but also parent-child relationship, generational trauma, gender roles, and many more behind the scenes.

There has been quite a number of bad reviews about the film (mostly from conservative adults) because of the main character’s self-identity towards the end of the film. Personally, I think this film gives the general audiences a refreshing view on the onset of puberty especially menstruation and shows an important representation of Asian kids experiencing generational trauma. So, as a woman who is brought up in an Asian household AND as a future educator, here are the reasons why the film is a necessary representation in the present time:

1. Inclusion & Diversity

Being left out is probably one of a teenager’s worst fears. When I was in my early teens, I always wanted to be included in any group, school event, or even in the pettiest of things like gossip; because who would want to be excluded, right?

This film is set in the early 2000s which features characters coming from diverse backgrounds. The main character herself is a Chinese-Canadian who brought their entire culture to Toronto. She is even part of a group of besties with diverse identities, one of which is a queer girl.

Some characters may be in fleeting scenes but they made them noticeable enough for it to garner a positive impact. The audience spotted a character with Type 1 Diabetes because of her insulin pump. This particular scene left the diabetic community optimistic about a kid who has the same condition being portrayed on screen. There was also a kid with a physical disability on his wheelchair going up the school ramp. As a future educator, it feels liberating to watch these representations being validated on an animated film. There are actually a lot more characters with diverse backgrounds such as the school’s security guard who is an observant Sikh and kids from different ethnicities. It’s basically just a film with diverse characters exploring and finding their own identities despite their cultural roots living in a judgmental society.

2. Generational Trauma

“When one experiences misattunement, neglect, or mistreatment as a child, they tend to live with the trauma and end up passing it on to the next generation,” Clinical Psychologist Joseph Marquez said.

Like Disney’s Encanto which addresses the issues of generational trauma, the same can be said for this film. Most Asian families do not confront strong emotions and if they do (which is a rare occurrence), they tend to blame the person’s feelings which makes him/her repress these emotions. As a Filipino, we are taught to embody our values at an early age, especially the trait of resiliency.

The Philippines is a calamity-prone country. Filipinos are known to be resilient especially in the face of disaster. From the deep rooted history of our post-colonized country, we really do tend to be resilient in the darkest of times and we saw this trait present in all of us when Super Typhoon Odette struck certain parts of the country. A lot of Filipinos, especially underprivileged ones, were forced to be resilient because they have no choice but to move on and find ways in order to get through the day without hunger or thirst. There was no room to grieve because time and space are only available for the privileged. Instead of asking for accountability from the people in power, we are forced to normalize the values of being TOO independent and resilient in the time of disasters.

This is why a lot of us have repressed rage, just like Ming’s rage coming out in a negative way in the later part of the story. Her red panda was gigantic, making Mei’s panda look like a bug. This goes to show that the more you hide away or bury the emotions as you grow older, the more it becomes heavier and eventually it will burst out, hurting the people you care about the most.

This explains why Mei’s mom was overly strict. It’s because she experienced the same upbringing. This is a transmission of a cultural trauma which began to negatively affect Meilin and it led to emotional distance and denial.

3. What do we need to normalize?

Actually, a lot.

Again, this film is about the onset of puberty especially for girls. The creators of this film are all female. By the way, releasing this film during International Women’s Month is a big move. They know what needs to be addressed and to be discussed normally in the open as they have personally experienced the issues and the double standard society in the early 2000s.

Talking about having menstruation is okay. It is not a shameful thing. It is normal. People should not make fun of children transitioning into teenagers. They should not hide away their emotions, crushes, and identities for anything. As what is shown in the movie, suppressing one’s needs and emotions will only lead to long-term damage. Adults must let the children explore on their own. They can guide them, yes. But limit and never impose your beliefs on them.

The red panda is a metaphorical representation of their family’s culture being handed down to younger generations. It is seen as a nuisance and a curse especially to them as immigrants living in Toronto, Canada. This is why they have to do a ritual to get rid of the panda. But in the later part of the film, Mei did not want to get rid of it because she loved that part of herself. It makes her who she is. Her transformation was only loved by her friends, classmates, and batchmates but also her father because he secretly saw how happy Mei is with her newfound identity. So, in the end, she did not give in to the adult’s wishes which is to keep the panda away, instead she embraced this part of herself wholeheartedly.

Additionally, her father, Jin Lee, needs more recognition and appreciation for being an understanding father. When he discovered Mei being comfortable in her panda transformations, he did not get angry like Ming would react. But, instead, he told Mei that it’s her choice and what’s important is that she’s happy. Even though he was not shown a lot in the film, every moment he shows up gives meaningful messages to the characters and the story as a whole. On a side note, he is THE great cook of the family who wears a floral apron. This scene alone speaks, “Break Gender Roles.”

A lot of these social, family, cultural, and personal issues are still going on today which is why representation in films like this are so important in order to evoke emotions and open discussions. Whether it’s a queer child, a child with disability, or someone who does not have a clear identity yet, it is heartwarming for me, as a future educator and especially for them, to watch and feel validated on screen. The creators of this film definitely have one thing in mind which is to simply break the cycle of any abuse, trauma, shame, and all negative things that can make a child suppress his/her inner needs. Let’s be kinder to other people but especially to ourselves.

Happy International Women’s Month!

- Inklusive writes -