10 Things We Learned About ‘Moana’ During an Exclusive Look at Disney Animation Studios 

10 Things We Learned About ‘Moana’ During an Exclusive Look at Disney Animation Studios

We were able to get an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the film along with the directors, writers and animators at a special early sneak peek day over at Disney Studios. It was amazing and magical to say the least.

Here are the highlights of what we found out about the film straight from the Mouse house:

The day started with a screening of very early footage from the film which introduced attendees to the film’s protagonist Moana (Voiced by

) and her world. As the sharp and curious daughter of the island’s chief, Moana’s naturally inclined to explore not only her land but the sea that surrounds it. While her father Tui insists no one goes beyond the reef, Moana feels as if she should be out on the sea finding new islands like her ancestors.

 vocals that showed the voyagers before her. 

‘We are explorers reading every sign…we tell the stories of our elders in a never-ending chain…’ 

 it’s the song prominently featured in the last full trailer done in collaboration with

. The directors wanted to mix contemporary and pacific islander sounds.

was actually hired to be a part of the music team for 

and when they met with him said they were drawn to his energy. They never anticipated that a rap musical about the founding fathers would become the pop culture phenomenon it became. Miranda still diligently worked on 

, cutting tracks in the dressing room and sending them off to Disney. That man is #NonStop.

) tells her how their people are natural navigators and the legend of Maui that changed it all. After the legendary hero who pulled islands together with his magical fish hook took something from the Lava Guardian Te Ka, he incited her wrath and it prompted her people to not venture far for many generations.

Ron Clements and John Musker © 2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.

was based on Polynesian folktales that inspired John Musker who along with Ron Clements, pitched the idea to John Lasseter who sent them to the South Pacific to do more research. While there, they got to know the people and learn about the time where all of a sudden navigation of the seas stopped. They decided to craft a story around a young girl who loves the ocean and has to seek out the help of Maui, a powerful Demi-god (Think Superman mixed with a trickster who’s a vital figure in Polynesian mythology) in order to discover why that happened. Maui is of course voiced by

Maui actually has a few Rock-isms like his dimples, the People’s Eyebrow and his pec movements. He also has his gestures and air of confidence. Moana was actually designed before she was cast. There was a lot of time where her look was fleshed out through photo references of pacific islander girls before they landed on her look. As fate would have it actress

ended up looking a lot like Moana’s final design.

MOANA – (L-R) Jared Bush (Screenwriter), Dave Pimentel (Head of Story), David Derrick (Story Artist) and Sunmee Joh (Story Artist).  © 2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.

. Clements and Musker wanted to make sure to focus on the story of Moana and Maui as individuals trying to figure out who they are. They’re both dealing with identity issues. Moana feels like she doesnt fit in with the culture around her. She defines herself and doesn’t let others define her. The story group worked with an Oceanic trust to authentically represent the Polynesian people.

Every choice was run by the Oceanic story trust who fact checked every choice to keep the story culturally sound. They also worked very closely with the animators to make sure all the costuming was accurate to the time and materials their people used. All of Moana’s outfits were true to her culture while retaining functionality for her actions as an athletic navigator. She even puts her hair up when she needs to get down to business! Everything makes sense to her world.

The water is also a character all on it’s own. The animation is crazy and the sea really feels sentient. Think carpet from Aladdin meets the Spring Sprite from Fantasia 2000 but it’s the ocean. It serves as Moana’s guide to her destiny and a means for her ancestors to talk to her. It’s also playful and can high five.

opens this Thanksgiving Holiday and we can’t wait!

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