Reflecting on Feedback

Start by explaining to students that most media works go through several drafts. The second draft, in particular, is where makers think more consciously about the choices they made in using each rule of notice. This process isn’t just about correcting mistakes but also about making the work more clear and improving your own understanding of what effect you want it to have on audiences.

Ask students if they have seen the movie “Toy Story” (specifically, the first in the series) and make sure that they all are familiar with its main characters and basic premise: When a young boy gets a new toy, Buzz Lightyear, his previous favourite toy – a cowboy doll named Woody – becomes jealous. When Woody accidentally knocks Buzz out a window, the two become separated from the boy and have to find their way back to him.

Show students video in the student chapter “Toy Story: Black Friday” or have students access it. Explain to them that this is the original version (or “first draft”) of the scene where Buzz falls out the window.

Ask students:

How was Woody different in the two versions?

Woody pushes Buzz out the window on purpose in the original version, but by accident in the final version.

Woody is very bossy with the other toys in the original version, but not in the final version.

How do those changes change what you think about Woody?

Woody is a much less likeable character in the original version.

Explain to students that when the animatic was first shown to Disney executives, they disliked it so strongly that they almost canceled the movie, which is why it’s referred to as the “Black Friday” version. The changes that were made led to it becoming one of the most successful animated movies of all time.

While not every work changes that much, almost everything does change somewhat. That’s why media makers rely on constructive feedback from other people to make their works better.