Bias in films for children?

Say it isn't so!

I'm joking, of course. The fact that films for children feature predominantly male characters is something you definitely notice when watching movies for kids over the years. And, apparently, (the) Geena Davis has the numbers to back this up. Davis "unveiled details yesterday of a survey of 101 films, entitled Where the Girls Aren't." And the details show three of four characters in children's movies are male, as are four of five narrators. (Davis is the founder of See Jane, a foundation "which campaigns for better balance in how girls are represented in the media.")

Tim Cornwell covers the study for The Scotsman.

It isn't just the numbers, however, that tick me off. Even the best movies for kids reinforce the worst stereotypes and offer their female heroes so very little. Why, for example, must Violet's growth as a character in The Incredibles be represented by a makeover and a date? Why must Jesse in Toy Story 2 be rescued by Woody in the end? It is so irritating.