From Walt Disney Animation Studios,Encantotells the story of the Madrigals, an extraordinary family who live in a magical house in the mountains of Colombia. Every child in the family has been blessed with a unique magic gift, except for Mirabel (voiced byStephanie Beatriz), an ordinary teenager still trying to find her place and value among the generations in her vibrant and lively community when she learns that the Madrigal magic may very well be in danger.
As part of a virtual early preview where we got to see some footage of the film, with its delightful characters, beautifully lush scenery, and incredible music (Encantofeatures eight original songs byLin-Manuel Miranda), Collider got the opportunity to chat with producersYvett MerinoandClark Spencer(who is also the president of WDAS, overseeing all aspects of studio operations and production with chief creative officerJennifer Lee). During the interview, they talked about what they’re most excited about audiences getting to see, the daunting responsibility of adding to the animation studio’s vast collection of memorable characters, what makes Mirabel special, their favorite supporting characters, and how they each ended up working at Disney.
COLLIDER: I loved what we got to see of this film. It just made me want to dance, the whole time I was watching it. You guys have been working on this for awhile now, and there are so many cool things about the story and your lead character. What are you most excited about with this finally coming out and with audiences getting to see it?
YVETT MERINO: What I’m most excited about is audiences being able to get to see, not only the story, but really this family, the family as a whole, the diversity we have in the family, and how many different people and different personalities there are. It’s exciting. When we screen our film within our studio, I always love to hear people saying, “Oh, my gosh, I totally relate to her,” or “I totally love this character.” It’s always fascinating to me, the different characters that people relate to.
CLARK SPENCER: For me, the music in this film is just incredible. [Lin-Manuel Miranda] has done such an amazing job, and then you add Carlos Vives in there, in terms of bringing that son “Colombia, Mi Encanto” to life, and songs in this film that you haven’t even heard yet. I hope people are gonna go crazy for it because the music that is in this film is remarkable and you tap your foot throughout the entire movie. At this moment in time, I think people want that. We’ve been home for a long time and I think people are looking to have that thing that brings a smile to their face and makes their toe tap.
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Clark, knowing the incredible history of Disney animated films and the characters at the center of them, as president of Walt Disney Animation Studios, how much responsibility do you feel, each time you add a new story and a new character to that list, hoping that there’ll be embraced at least as much as the last was?
SPENCER: It’s true. It’s such a good question. It’s a bit daunting when you think about it. The studio is almost a hundred years old. We’re two years away from being a hundred years old. You think aboutSnow White and the Seven Dwarfsand you think about all of the movies the studio has made, and there’s a moment where you think, “How do you continue that? How do you ensure that you’re always bringing characters and worlds and stories to life that people are gonna feel and wanna watch, over and over again?” I think the element to it is letting the directors tell the story they have in their heart and that they really wanna get out there. And then, we have the most incredible team that rallies around and makes that come to life. It’s all parts of it, from the production management side of it, to technology, to the artists themselves. We’re just lucky to get to work with these people.
It’s an incredibly collaborative group, we’re always pushing each other to go bigger and better, every single time. That really ends up being the key, and also not thinking too much about it. If you think too much about it, you’d probably paralyze yourself and not be able to move forward. It’s a combination of all those things . . . Usually, in non-COVID times, we would have a wrap party for the film that finishes. If you’re the film that comes out next and you go to that wrap party and you didn’t work on that film, you watch it and you think to yourself, “Oh, my God, that’s so good. Everything about that film is so great. How are we ever gonna make a movie better than that?” There’s that moment in your head, and you’ve gotta clean it away and say, “We’re gonna do it.” And every single time, the team does do it, which is amazing.
What makes Mirabel special? What is it about her that you think audiences are going to connect with and what made Stephanie Beatriz the perfect person to voice the character?
MERINO: I love Mirabel because she is so perfect in her imperfections. She embraces it. She is this child in this family that didn’t get a gift. Once Antonio gets his gift, it’s very clear that she’s the one that’s left out, but she pushes on and pushes forward, and really is trying to find her place and how she can contribute to the family. She loves her family. I just love her spirit, of always trying to push through. When Stephanie came in and we cast her as Mirabel, it was magic. It’s like two parts of the character that were always meant to come together. She really gave a voice to her and just blew us away with her ability to be vulnerable and yet, two minutes later, she’s making us crack up with her comedy and her improvisation. And then, we had her sing it and it was like, “Oh, my gosh, where did that come from?” She was amazing, all the way around.
It seems like an impossible job that you have to do twice. You have to come up with this great character, but then you also have to find the perfect person to bring them to life.
MERINO: Yeah. The great thing about animation is that you work so hard on building this character, and then the casting is just as important because really this is the person that becomes intertwined in that. And then, you bring the artists and the animators on, who are actually making them move and making the emotion. It’s such a collaborative effort, all the way around, that extends far outside of our studio, when we bring the actors in.
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One of the things I really love about these movies is that you not only fall in love with the main character, but there are so many fantastic supporting characters and you just never get to learn enough about them. Which is your favorite of the supporting characters? Is there one that you would love to learn more about, if there was more time?
MERINO: I love them all. I do love Pepa because her gift is that her emotions control the weather, and she’s a little emotional. We’re all that way a little, aren’t we? Sometimes we feel really happy. Sometimes we’re a little upset. I would love to have a whole story on Pepa.
SPENCER: For me, maybe Dolores because here’s a character who can hear everything and knows everything. I always wonder, “What is she thinking in her head?,” because she knows everything that’s happening and she hears it all. It must be very hard to have that much information and not just be blurting it out to the rest of the world. She’s trying to hold it inside. I think there’s a lot to learn about Dolores.
One of the things that I think is really great about this story is that Mirabel is someone who has always told herself that she’s okay with the dynamic of this family when she’s clearly not okay. Why do you feel like it’s an important message to show people that it’s okay not to be okay?
MERINO: I think it’s something that people all over the world, time after time, have struggled with, but even more so today with social media, where people are able to pick and choose what they put out in the world and what’s out there. I can speak for myself, falling into that feeling of, “Oh, look, I’m sure their life is so perfect.” It’s really about accepting who you are and learning that there are stories behind those pictures. I always love when my friends post the perfect picture of their child smiling, and then they post 10 more of them screaming because that’s really the reality of it all. I relate to Mirabel, knowing that you’re seeing things and it may not be the full story.
What was the biggest influence on each of you, that you feel really set you on the path to working in animation and to being where you are now?
MERINO: It’s funny, I didn’t know this job existed when I was a kid, growing up. I didn’t even know it existed when I was in college. It was one of those things where I came in and I was a temp, and then I was an assistant in technology. I thought I’d stay for about five years and see where life took me, but there’s something about this studio, when you’re working inside the walls with people who are so passionate about what they do, every single day. It’s contagious and it opened the door to this amazing process. What I love about animation is that it’s such a collaborative process. I grew up playing sports and I’ve always a team environment, so I really feel like I’m just a part of the big team here.
SPENCER: I also never knew animation was a job that I could have. I never thought about it from that standpoint. When I graduated from college, I went to work on Wall Street. I had a finance background. I came and joined Disney in finance, but I very quickly learned about this group, called Disney Animation. I had an opportunity to work on a small project, for a couple of weeks, at Disney Animation, and being in the building and seeing all of these artists collaborate and work together, I was like, “This is where I wanna be.” In some ways, it makes sense. Animation was the start of this company and it’s a big core of what this company is, but I didn’t even think about it, until I went into the building and had that experience. I said, “Somehow, I’ve gotta figure out how to become a part of this group of people.” And so, I moved over in finance, and my career has taken different paths. To be able to be a producer at Disney Animation is a dream come true. I know that sounds so cliche, but it’s true.Jungle Bookwas the first movie I saw as a kid, and here I am, working with Yvett on a film likeEncantoand being a part of this incredible studio. I feel very lucky.
