Media effects and Fun with FX
A recent study undertaken at Indiana University discusses the impact of media representation and self-esteem in children.
“Too much time in front of the screen may displace real-life experiences, such as playing a musical instrument, playing ball in the backyard, that could build a child’s feeling of self-worth,” said Martins. “Another option would be to actively mediate children’s media use so that they can more easily understand fantasy from reality.
“Simple distinctions and conversations like this help mitigate the impact such an image might have on self-esteem and comparisons to media characters,” (Martin, Kadzin 2012).
_______________________
Media representations of girls and children of color are problematic and do in fact impact their feelings of self worth. That's one problem. A second problem is under-valuing skills that go beyond those authenticated by media. Playing basketball is a good skill (I played all through high school and college) but so is swimming (swam all my life). Playing violin is a good skill and so is being able to hike a trail. What if we validated all of these skills and saw them as "super-powers?" What would that do for self esteem? We're going to have some fun with FX in this film. ;-)