'The Incredibles 2', one of the most anticipated children's films for 2018, premiered this weekend in 26 countries and has broken the box office, achieving a new record for animated films. But in addition to causing anger among the public, it has also caused some concern.
Some viewers posted on social networks that the film contains sequences with very bright flashing lights that could cause epilepsy attacks or migraines in photosensitive people. Specifically, they speak of a scene with the screenslaver villain that has continuous strobe light, a type of light frequently used in children's films and cartoons, which can cause seizures due to its accentuated effect when there is an absence of natural light, as happens in the movie theater.
Blogger Veronica Lewis, an expert in special education, warned through her Twitter account the effects that these scenes could have for some people.
"I haven't seen this mentioned in many places, but 'The Incredibles 2' is full of tons of strobe / flashing lights that can cause problems for people with epilepsy, migraines and chronic diseases."
HEALTH ALERT I haven't seen this mentioned in a lot of places, but the new Incredibles 2 movie (# incredibles2) is filled with tons of strobe / flashing lights that can cause issues for people with epilepsy, migraines, and chronic illness. This thread is spoiler free
- Veronica Lewis (@ veron4ica) June 15, 2018
He explained in his blog that people with photosensitive epilepsy are not the only ones who could be affected: those who suffer from migraines, vision problems, seizures, vertigo (specifically, intermittent vertigo), autism, ADHD and PTSD too They may experience a reaction to the images.
He explained that one of the scenes lasts at least 90 seconds and that others are between five and 30 seconds long. And adds:
"Parents have the right to make an informed decision about something that may impact the safety of their children and people with chronic illnesses have the right to learn about possible triggers / take steps to avoid them. Incredibles 2 need a safety warning in the ticket window. "
The Epilepsy Foundation also issued a statement about the concern that people with epilepsy could suffer a seizure during the film.
"Members of our community have expressed concern about the flashing lights in the new Disney Pixar movie," Incredibles 2, "and, in certain cases, people who have suffered seizures during the movie. We support our warriors of epilepsy and their families while expressing their concerns about the movie and we appreciate the efforts that some theaters have already made to place warning signs for people waiting to see the movie. "
For about 3 percent of people with epilepsy, exposure to flashing lights at certain intensities or with certain visual patterns can trigger seizures. This condition is known as photosensitive epilepsy and is more common in children and adolescents, especially in those with generalized epilepsy and a type known as juvenile myoclonic epilepsy.
Disney's response
Following the warnings, as we read in USA Today Disney has sent a communication to theaters to place warnings in view of users before watching the movie with the following message:
"'The Incredibles 2' contains a sequence with flashing lights that can affect clients susceptible to photosensitive epilepsy or other photosensitivities."
Bring the kids! This notice sent to exhibitors today from Disney # incredibles2 “INCREDIBLES 2 contains a sequence of flashing lights which may affect customers who are susceptible to photosensitive epilepsy or other photo sensitivities.” Pic.twitter.com/N2g0vQ8lsL
- Colin Geddes (@colingeddes) June 16, 2018
Several cinemas have posted the warning
Photosensitive epilepsy warning in the wild! (We were seeing something different today, but hope to take the boy to incredibles 2 for his first theater movie soon) pic.twitter.com/mg1a7xoSyh
- Dr. Kristin Supe (@KristinSupe) June 16, 2018
The next day Veronica was grateful that several cinemas had posted security warnings, while on the other hand signatures are gathered to include a warning of visible epilepsy at some point in the movie.
Thank you to everyone for retweeting this, writing articles, and signal boosting my message! My goal of having signs at the ticket counter was reached so that people can be warned about the flashing lights in Incredibles 2. pic.twitter.com/JljozWlojd
- Veronica Lewis (@ veron4ica) June 17, 2018
What is photosensitive epilepsy?
Photosensitive epilepsy is a type of epilepsy in which seizures are caused by visual stimuli that form patterns in time and space, such as flashing lights, regular patterns, or regular moving patterns.
The visual stimulus that triggers an attack is generally cyclic, forming regular patterns in time or space. Flashing lights or alternating or changing images (such as in nightclubs, emergency vehicles, action movies, television shows or video games, etc.) are examples of the most common patterns that can trigger an epilepsy attack.
In general, it has been shown that frequencies between five and 30 flashes per second can cause seizures in photosensitive individuals.
Numerous photosensitive epilepsy patients experience an "aura" or strange sensations before the attack occurs, and this can serve as an alarm to the patient allowing him to move away from stimuli.
