[Dr. Kristel Thomassin appears on screen. In a naturally lit, professional space, she is seated on a couch with a plant beside her.]
DR. KRISTEL THOMASSIN: That’s what I love about having a movie about emotions.
[B-roll of Inside Out 2. The animated character at a colourful control board, a fantastical representation of human emotions, cheers at the screen. She has blue hair and a green dress.]
DR. KRISTEL THOMASSIN: Every scene in the movie there’s something tangible that the viewer can latch onto that represents what’s actually happening internally in your mind and in your body.
[B-roll of Inside Out 2. Two animated characters walk through the dark with streams of light beside them. The video cuts to a view of an institutional building on a clear day while an “Expert Alert” animation plays.]
[Dr. Kristel Thomassin appears on screen.]
DR. KRISTEL THOMASSIN: Hi, I’m Kristel Thomassin, I’m an associate professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Guelph.
[B-roll of a glass door, which reads Maplewoods Centre for Family Therapy and Child Psychology.]
[Dr. Kristel Thomassin appears on screen.]
DR. KRISTEL THOMASSIN: My take-home message would be to support an individual’s experiences of emotions, especially in children.
[B-roll of Inside Out 2. The main teenage character is outside of a school with her hockey gear. She eyes another teenage character, a popular girl with black hair and pink streak in her hair, and the main character appears socially anxious.]
DR. KRISTEL THOMASSIN: To validate their experiences, and that will help them learn about emotions – what they are and how to identify them. That in and of itself is an important skill to prevent, you know, psychological problems down the road.
[B-roll of Inside Out 2. The animated characters at a colourful control board argue with each other. One is a green character, representing disgust, and the other is a small, rectangle red character who represents anger.]
DR. KRISTEL THOMASSIN: What I would recommend to the average person is to not be afraid of emotions.
[B-roll of Inside Out 2. A long, orange animated character wit colourful orange hair and multiple hands appears, with suitcases in their hands. The other characters seem nervous around them.]
[Dr. Kristel Thomassin appears on screen.]
DR. KRISTEL THOMASSIN: And I know that sounds a little silly, but I think we’re socialized to be scared of or put off by certain types of emotions and that will differ based on background – on gender, cultural background, things like that. So for example, how many times have you heard ‘boys don’t cry.’
What you want to be cautious about is the impact that the emotion has on your behaviour, or what you think or the way you view yourself. That’s the piece that I think could need a little bit more work.
[B-roll of University of Guelph campus: Students dressed in blue cheer and run with each other at a pep rally. Students hug and cheer on the bleachers at a football game. A student shakes the president of the University’s hand at a convocation ceremony; they both smile. A student in a convocation gown cheers with her family. Students walk toward the camera with an institutional building behind them.]
DR. KRISTEL THOMASSIN: Emotions are part of everyday life. We experience many emotions all the time, sometimes even multiple emotions at the same time.
[Dr. Kristel Thomassin appears on screen.]
DR. KRISTEL THOMASSIN: It’s helpful for us to know what we are feeling because that emotion gives us important information about what’s happening in the world around us and about what’s happening within ourselves.
DR. KRISTEL THOMASSIN: I don’t want us to go as far as to invalidate the experiences of emotions because those are natural and they are trying to tell us something.
[Fade on the University of Guelph logo.]