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Pixar’s new film Turning Red wants to destigmatise periods for young women

Published 20:38 8 Mar 2022 GMT

Updated 20:43 8 Mar 2022 GMT

Katy Brennan

Pixar’s new film Turning Red wants to destigmatise periods for young women

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"All girls have periods. So let's normalise that – and celebrate it!”

Pixar's latest movie is set to tackle the stigma around periods and puberty. Turning Red revolves around 13-year-old Mei, a Chinese-Canadian schoolgirl, who finds herself turning into a giant red panda whenever things get a little too much for her. And yes, you guessed it, the transformation acts as a metaphor for puberty and the huge amount of physical and mental changes that young girls go through. https://twitter.com/PixarTurningRed/status/1460971264030359552 We follow Mei on a journey through one of the most confusing times of any young girl's life as she deals with the awkwardness of entering adolescence. The movie tackles the embarrassment many girls feel when they get their first period in a humorous and honest way. Rosalie Chiang, who voices Mei, said the "unapologetic" film really resonated with her as a young person.

"I went through puberty throughout this film. I mean, I was 12 when I started it, and I'm now 16," she said.

"This film is unapologetic about tackling puberty. It's not trying to hide, it's not trying to be wishy washy. It just says it straight up.

"It's a really taboo subject, even though everyone goes through it.

She added that the big awkward panda represents "change and messiness".

Pixar previously explored the emotions of a young girl in Inside Out, but this is the first of its films focusing exclusively on puberty. It's also one of the first times menstruation takes centre stage in a mainstream movie, at least in cartoon form. Killing Eve's Sanda Oh, who voices Mei's mother, said she jumped at the chance to be involved in the movie. "All girls have periods. So let's normalise that – and celebrate it!” she told BBC.

"I was just so happy there was a film about it... I don't think we really mention it enough, so to be a part of a film that embraced puberty was important to me."

Turning Red arrives on Disney+ on Friday 11 March.

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