Investigation of Emotions, Brain Structures Within the Scope of “inside Out” Movie

Abstract

Inside Out (Docter and del Carmen, 2015) is an animated film about Riley who is trying to adapt to the changing life after moving to a new city with her family and the adventures of her emotions in her brain. The film, primarily focuses on the five basic emotions in Riley's brain. With these five basic emotions (Joy, Sadness, Anger, Disgust and Fear), who are located in the headquarters of Riley’s brain, the film emphasizes the importance of each emotion and their central and unique role in an individual’s life. With the adventures of Joy and Sadness for bringing the core memories to the Headquarters, the viewers have been shown how a human brain functions. Moreover, the movie also focuses both on the problems Riley faces for adapting to her new life without the presence of Joy and Sadness, and also the natural process and changes in her personality as a result of her transition from childhood to adolescence. The present film analysis aims to explore how emotions and brain processes were explained within the context of the movie, Inside Out; and also explain how these concepts are supported by the findings of psychology. This analysis also aims to present a perspective to clinical psychologists for how to use the movie as a tool in the therapy processes.