This November, Walt Disney Animation Studio will be releasing their second theatrical feature of the year and their 56th overall, Moana. Longtime Disney collaborators John Musker and Ron Clements return to direct this film about a teenage Polynesian princess who ventures out on a journey to save her people and to find her identity. The film brings in all sorts of talent that we’ve pretty much come to expect from the studio, from the voice talents of Auli”˜i Cravalho, Dwayne Johnson, Jemaine Clement, Rachel House, Temuera Morrison, Alan Tudyk, and Nicole Scherzinger, right down to the music from Opetaia Foa’i, Mark Mancina, and Lin-Manuel Miranda.

In August, Disney invited us (along with a group of fellow journalists) to watch a couple of scenes and learn about the process of developing a script, creating the film’s setting, polishing the effects, and creating the two lead characters: Moana and Maui. Just like Zootopia, it has become apparent that the studio emphasizes the importance of research for their stories and pushing the envelope in animation. Check out what we learned from the scenes and the presentation below.

As promised when we saw that new poster recently, Walt Disney Animation Studios has released the first teaser trailer for their latest animated feature, Moana.

The movie, which is directed by Ron Clements and John Musker, stars newcomer Auli’i Cravalho as the title character, a teenager on a journey to save her people, and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as the demigod Maui.

You can read more about Moana and check out the first trailer below.

Disney’s Zootopia recently hit $1 billion earlier this week, but it is easy to forget that they also have another animated film that is coming out this year. Moana is the Pacific Islands set film that centers on a young teenage girl (voiced by 14-year-old native Hawaiian, Auli’i Cravalho) who shares a special bond with the ocean. With dreams of becoming an ocean navigator, our title character and her animal friends “” a pig named Pua and a cranky rooster named Hei Hei – journey out into the ocean where they meet the devilishly handsome demi-god Maui (voiced by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson). Together they will revive the once-proud family tradition that has mysteriously gone unpracticed and meet dangerous elemental challenges along the way.

Aside from the casting and the D23 presentation that we saw last year, there has been little to no promotions for Moana. Until now. Johnson took to social media to unveil the film’s first poster and announce the release date of the first trailer for the film. Check out all of that below.

Disney’s animated musicals have been known to cast on two fronts: they are notable A-list actors or performers with powerful singing voices, and Moana is no different. While Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson will provide a supporting role to the newcomer Auli’i Cravalho, the film will be adding someone with a musical background.

According to new reports, the movie will be a reunion of sorts as Hamilton star Phillipa Soo will be joining the film which will have songs written by Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda, who will be taking one last bow in July. More on the story below.

Zootopia
Directors: Byron Howard, Rich Moore, Jared Bush
Writers: Jared Bush, Phil Johnston
Cast: Ginnifer Goodwin, Jason Bateman, Idris Elba, J.K. Simmons, Jenny Slate, Nate Torrence, Shakira
Studio: Disney Animation Studios
Release Date: March 4, 2016

On the surface, Zootopia looks like just another talking animal with anthropomorphic features piddling around getting laughs by means of using childish humor. But that is just the surface, and it is a very thin one. In reality, for beyond that layer lies a deeper and more meaningful story, and if you peel that layer back, you’ll soon discover that Disney Animation Studios’ latest film has a message, a very poignant one that could not have come out at a more perfect time.

In a day and age where bullying, prejudices, stereotypes, and preconceived notions are hurting many, and social issues are becoming more prevalent in our neighboring communities and homes, Zootopia has a message. Yeah, expecting a film like this to get everyone to get along is merely impossible and expecting too much, but all it is asking of us is to “try.” Try to understand one another, because if you do, you’ll become more exceptional. Check out the full review of the movie here below.