Pixar Era Analysis – Turning Red
As mentioned in a previous blog post, I’ll be writing analysis content on all 28 of Pixar’s animated feature films and their film making eras.
The fourth era is the Personal Era, which is the current Era, and started in 2020 with Onward. As mentioned in a previous blog post, the Personal Era is known for its film releases being affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, its films being based on the personal lives of the directors and writers who were making them, and its varied animation.
So how did Turning Red measure up to the above features of the Personal Era?
Release being affected by the COVID-19 pandemic:
Much like Soul and Luca, Turning Red was released on Disney Plus and didn’t get a worldwide theatrical release, although one was initially planned. It did see a limited theatrical release, in countries where Disney Plus was not available.
According to the film’s IMDb page, the decision to cancel the film’s worldwide theatrical release and release it direct-to-streaming was met with backlash from the film’s animators and director, Domee Shi, who felt it was disrespectful to their hard work.
Production was also affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, notably with lead voice actress, Rosalie Chiang, having to record her vocals from home.
Being based on the personal lives of the directors and writers making the film:
According to the film’s Wikipedia page, Shi developed the film based on her experiences growing up in Toronto, where the film is also set, as well as her experiences of being an only child.
Varied animation:
As I was watching the film, one thing that stood out to me was the use of anime-like animation, specifically with facial expression, tears, and the speed of the characters’ movements. According to the film’s IMDb page, Shi stated that the film’s animation was inspired by four Japanese anime series: Fruits Basket, Ranma ½, Sailor Moon, and Inuyasha. The film’s Wikipedia page also states that Shi was also inspired by Pokemon, EarthBound and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild video games.
According to the film’s IMDb page, for the animators to incorporate anime-like animation in the film, hand-drawn 2D animated effects were added on top of Pixar’s 3D animation.
The film’s Wikipedia page also states that the Toronto setting was idealised for it to be seen through Mei’s eyes.
My overall thoughts:
Overall, Turning Red is my favourite film of the Personal Era so far, due to its comedic elements, relatable themes, and the varied animation, specifically the inclusion of anime-like animation, something that I haven’t seen Pixar attempt before. I also enjoyed it as whilst it did touch on what could be regarded as emotionally heavy themes, the comedic elements didn’t make them feel heavy, the comedic elements were paced well and broke up the emotionally heavy parts of the film at ideal moments.
The next part of the Pixar Era Analysis series to be released will focus on Lightyear.
Fun Facts and Trivia (from the film’s IMDb page):
- The colours of the characters’ clothing provides a lot of symbolism and foreshadowing – Tyler’s blue clothing foreshadows how he’ll join Mei’s gang at the end of the film, and his clothing combinations are similar to those of 4-Town, hinting that he is a 4-Town fan. Mei’s mother, grandmother, and aunts wear green clothing, which is the opposite to red on the colour wheel, showing their opposition to the red panda within. Mei wears mostly red clothing, however when she is considering agreeing to the ritual, she wears a green hair clip. The colour of Mei’s family’s jewellery is also revealing as Ming’s pendant to contain her panda is predominantly red, whereas Ming’s grandmother’s and aunt’s jewellery to contain their respective pandas is jade, hinting at Ming’s large and hard-to-control red panda.
- This is the first Pixar film to be solely directed by a woman.
- This film was produced in four years, one of the quickest production times for a Pixar film.
- A lunar eclipse actually happened on May 26 2002, one day after the events of the film’s climax.
References:
Loveday Writing 