About This Lesson
The Present is an animated short film that was released in 2014 and quickly went viral. The film was created by German animator Jacob Frey who was inspired by a comic strip by Brazilian artist Fabio Coala. Frey said he was in awe of the storyline of the comic and was inspired to translate it into an animated short film. The film is about a boy who is enthusiastically playing video games indoors; his Mom comes home and brings him a new puppy as a present but the boy seems more interested in his video games than playing with his new dog. The dog has a disability and it turns out that the dog and the boy have something in common, which is revealed at the end. The film can spark a conversation about people with disabilities in an age appropriate, accessible and engaging way.
This lesson provides an opportunity for students to watch and reflect upon the film, learn more about people with disabilities and create their own comic strip based on the film or another story about a person with a disability.
