NOC Review: ‘Encanto’ is Mostly Enchanting

November 17, 2021January 12, 2022 Mike Manalo

First of all, score one for Walt Disney Animation for putting out two releases in one year that celebrate different stories from different cultures! With the terrific Raya and the Last Dragon earlier this year, and now the charming Encanto, it’s refreshing to see that the House of Mouse has been more proactive in telling stories that aren’t just rooted in Western European fairy tales. I think Moana really opened the door for this, and as far as our site is concerned, we couldn’t be happier.

Animation, Movies

‘Encanto’ Directors and Writers Find Magical Realism in Colombian Culture

November 5, 2021November 8, 2021 Michael Lee

Walt Disney Animation Studios’ Encanto is an animated musical that celebrates Lantine and Latinx culture, specifically everything Colombia offers. The film follows Mirabel Madrigal (Stephanie Beatriz), the only child not blessed with a magical gift. As she struggles to find her place within her multigenerational enchanted family, she finds out that the magic that has helped them and the town is in danger of disappearing. So she sets off on an adventure to prevent that from happening.

Animation, Movies

How the Magical Casita in ‘Encanto’ is a New Kind of Disney Castle

September 30, 2021September 29, 2021 Michael Lee

Encanto follows three generations of family, of which everyone but Mirabel (Stephanie Beatriz) has magical powers. Despite being ordinary and spending her entire life trying to measure up to the rest of the Madrigals, Mirabel discovers that the magic that defines her family’s legacy is in danger and that she may be the only one who can save it and them.

Animation, Interview, Movies

‘Encanto’ Directors Talk Representation and Working with Lin-Manuel Miranda

September 29, 2021November 5, 2021 Michael Lee

Walt Disney Animation Studios gave a group of selected journalists their first look at their upcoming musical, Encanto. The film centers on the Madrigals, a magical family who live in an enchanted casita in the mountains of Colombia. At the age of five, the home gifts a Madrigal child a unique magical power, who then uses it to help the family and neighboring town. Everyone except, Mirabel (Stephanie Beatriz). However, she when she discovers that the magic is in danger, she sets off on a journey to save it from being extinguished.

Animation, Interview, Movies

How Colombian Culture, Music, and Dance Tell a Magical Story in ‘Encanto’

September 29, 2021September 29, 2021 Michael Lee

Making an animated film at Walt Disney Animation Studios is a tremendous undertaking. It takes years of development, not to mention countless rewrites to perfect the script, numerous in-house screenings, and so much more. Encanto, Disney’s 60th animated feature, brings music and dance together to tell the story of Mirabel Madrigal (Stephanie Beatriz), a Colombian teenager facing the fact that she is the only one who doesn’t have any magical abilities in her family. But when she discovers that magic is in danger, she sets off on a journey to save it.

Animation, Movies

Get Excited for Walt Disney Animation Studios’ New Original Film ‘Encanto’

July 8, 2021July 8, 2021 Sophia Soto

Walt Disney Animation Studios has just released the teaser trailer, new posters, and cast for Encanto. The film will open in theaters on November 24 and tell “the tale of an extraordinary family, the Madrigals, who live hidden in the mountains of Colombia in a magical house, in a vibrant town, in a wondrous, charmed place called an Encanto.”