![]() ![]() How Pacific Islanders Helped Disney’s Moana Find Its Way. When John Musker and Ron Clements told Disney Animation chief John Lasseter that they were interested in creating a new story based on the Polynesian demi- god Maui, Lasseter had one response: “Go research.”Clements and Musker have an even longer history at Disney than Lasseter does; as the writer- director team behind The Little Mermaid and Aladdin, they essentially invented the modern Disney animated musical. But Lasseter was clear: the project would not go any further until Musker and Clements actually went to Polynesia, marking the beginning of a process that makes Moana one of Disney’s most culturally authentic endeavors yet. For a studio that has been dogged by accusations of cultural insensitivity in the past and present, it was no small accomplishment. Musker and Clements’s 2. Polynesia, the first of many, led to the birth of what they would later name the Oceanic Trust. Consisting of a group of anthropologists, cultural practitioners, historians, linguists, and choreographers from islands including Samoa, Tahiti, Mo’orea, and Fiji, this group was integral in shaping some of the finest details of Moana, from character design to song lyrics—and they certainly understand the skeptics who raised eyebrows when the marketing materials for Moana were first released. John Musker and Ron Clements on a Moana research trip. Courtesy of Walt Disney Pictures“Anybody who is familiar with the history of the Pacific Islanders in film, there’s cause for worry,” said Dionne Fonoti, an anthropologist and filmmaker from Samoa who was part of the Trust. Even the film’s young star, Auli’i Cravalho, a Hawaiian teenager making her film debut, admitted that she wasn’t so starstruck by Disney’s interest to approach Moana without concerns. Will Ilolahia, from the Pacific Island Media Association, told Waatea News in June that Disney’s version looked offensively wrong to him: “. This depiction of Maui being obese is typical American stereotyping.” New Zealand M. P. Jenny Salesa, of Tongan heritage, posted a photo of Maui on her Facebook, captioning him “half pig, half hippo.”The film was hit by controversy again in September, when a Maui costume featuring a tattooed body stocking was pulled from the Disney store in the wake of complaints about “brownfacing” and cultural appropriation. Musker calls the pushback “understandable” given the historically bad treatment of Pacific Islanders on film. Disney Animation has come a long way since the days of “Zip- a- Dee- Doo- Dah” and “What Makes the Red Man Red.” But even Disney’s early 9. But with Moana—which deals in ancient and sometimes mythological aspects of the wider Polynesian culture—the input was much more granular and scholarly. There is a showstopping number, “We Know the Way,” in the middle of Moana, which features visions of Moana’s ancestors practicing the lost art of wayfinding, a. Musker and Clements originally imagined that the scene would depict ancient sailors decked out in traditional Papua New Guinean face paint, ornamental headdresses, and jewelry—until the Trust shut that down, pointing out that those would be hilariously impractical outfits to wear to sea. You’re in the middle of the ocean, and you’re wearing tuxedos,” Clements recalls, laughing. Fine attention to detail and constant feedback from the Oceanic Trust helped shape the film on every level. Notes from the Trust on the kind of curtains in Moana’s home, the pits used to cook food, and inaccurate lyrics about coconut husks all resulted in minuscule tweaks that would mean nothing to audiences unfamiliar with the culture, but made all the difference to the Trust. A scene in which Moana throws a temper tantrum and hurls coconuts down on the sand in anger was cut because, as Fonoti puts it, she “raised a flag,” calling the waste of the sacred coconut “absolutely offensive.”But the biggest change the trust made was to the look of Maui himself. The character’s physique might not have been a hit with some back in June, but his original design was actually much shorter and, crucially, bald. Trust member and Tahitian cultural practitioner Hinano Murphy recalls visiting the studio in L. A., seeing the sketch and saying, “We have to put more hair on Maui’s head, because it’s very important. The mana is in the hair, the power of the demigod. It looked just like he was naked. For us, it was really important.”Animators quickly got to work, piling on more and more hair. Though there was some pushback (C. G. I. All Rights Reserved. When Clements and Musker took off on their first trip to the islands in 2. Maui the central character and star of their story. ![]() ![]() But, inspired by the “beautiful, powerful women in Polynesia” they met along the way, Clements pitched the idea that they center the story around a young girl, instead—replacing the typical Disney “princess” with a chief’s daughter. And though she gets songs about wanting more and has a cute animal sidekick, Moana does not look, or act, like any Disney heroine who came before her. As Musker explains: We wanted this action adventure heroine. We really did want her to. She could really believably carry all that stuff, and. That she wouldn't be knocked over in those mighty oceanic breezes. Left, Auli’i Cravalho; right, an early sketch of Moana. ![]() Courtesy of Walt Disney Pictures. Producer Osnat Shurer admits that the decision to make Moana next in line to govern her village may be the one cultural inconsistency the film got away with. But the animators couldn’t resist adding a splash of color.) “We could consider it a modern update,” Shurer said of Moana’s future as chief, which is established in the story as an anchor keeping the adventurous girl chained to her island. But she also points out that there are women chiefs in Samoa, and a “fluidity in the Pacific Islands of how gender is treated. And often a boy might want to be want to be considered a girl, a young woman might grow up in positions that were originally reserved for girls—and people accept it and people make room for it.”The main Moana cast—Cravalho, Dwayne Johnson, Temuera Morrison, Rachel House, Jemaine Clement, and Nicole Scherzinger—have roots in the Pacific Islands. House especially—such a rigidly hilarious part of Moana first- draft screenwriter Taika Waititi’s. Moana (2016) Full MovieHunt for the Wilderpeople—turns in a voice performance oozing warmth based on the “aunties” of her Maori background. And Cravalho, who grew up on stories of Maui, was able to incorporate her own ideas of the demigod while also expanding on her Hawaii- based knowledge: “I believed that Maui and all of his amazing stories was Hawaiian. What I didn’t know was he was actually shared all across Polynesia. Our Maui in Moana is actually just this awesome demigod that has stories from different places all around Polynesia. He has the ones that I grew up with—raising islands out of the sea and slowing down the sun—but also others that I didn’t know. He’s different than I would have imagined, but so much, much more.”. All Rights Reserved. ![]() Murphy broke into tears when discussing how important Moana felt, both to her and for and her culture. Disney took up her proposal from five years ago that there be a Tahitian- language version of Moana recorded (an industry first), and involved her in every step of casting its voice actors. Non- English lyrics are included in the film’s score, thanks to the input from Samoan musician Opetaia Foa’i, who worked in concert with composer Mark Mancina and songwriter Lin- Manuel Miranda. And it’s not just Murphy who already feels an emotional connection to Moana. ![]() ![]() Moana (2016) Hd мð¾ð½ð³ð¾ð» Ñ…ð°ð´ð¼ð°ð»A plethora of directors bring the coconuts to life in Moana. Sailing across the ocean at 100 minutes, Moana delivers a predictable, yet heartfelt family story. Moana (2016) on IMDb: Movies, TV, Celebs, and more. The leading information resource for the entertainment industry. Find industry contacts & talent representation. Moana is an upcoming 2016 computer animated, musical adventure film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. With Auli'i Cravalho, Dwayne Johnson, Rachel House, Temuera Morrison. In Ancient Polynesia, when a terrible curse incurred by the Demigod Maui reaches an impetuous. Special Features. 32-Page Storybook; Theatrical Short Film: Inner Workings; Maui Mini-Movie: Gone Fishing; Voice of the Islands; Things You Didn't Know About. To restore the health of her island’s ecosystem, Moana sails from her island against her father’s wishes to return the heart of the goddess who created all life. ![]()
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