The dream weavers atWalt Disney Animationknow what it means to wish upon a star.
“‘When You Wish Upon A Star’ was one of the first songs I knew.
I don’t even know when I first heard it.
Asha, voiced by Ariana DeBose, is determined to save the kingdom of Rosas in ‘Wish’.Disney
“That was pivotal.
We knew we had to keep working to make it feel powerful.”
Abraham initially worked in the story department onWish, helping to develop the look of Star.
Disney characters past and present assemble for a “class photo” in short film ‘Once Upon a Studio’.Disney
We should do something more.”
I could see it instantly."
“He’s a guy who just kind of flows out of my fingers.
Ariana DeBose’s Asha joins Star on a magical adventure in ‘Wish’.Disney
Goldberg finds the interaction poetic.
“It all came home that way.”
Not only do each resemble one of the seven dwarfs, but their names also share the same initials.
Chris Pine voices King Magnifico in ‘Wish’.Disney
Can we actually do this?'”
And if the audience doesn’t pick up on it, that’s okay.
Hopefully, the characters stand on their own."
King Magnifico (Chris Pine) oversees the wishes of Rosas in ‘Wish’.Disney
(And the visuals of his dark magic may remind audiences of another classic Disney baddie.)
It’s a scary undertaking, but who wouldn’t want to try?"
If Magnifico represents old-school Disney, then Asha is very much a modern Disney heroine.
At first, she aligns with Magnifico’s creed, which is to protect the kingdom’s wishes.
Unlike with their villain, the filmmakers didn’t base Asha on any past Disney hero.
“We wanted her to be her own person,” Veerasunthorn says.
“We were inspired by Ariana and what she brings to the recording session.
Not only her performance, but as a person.”
“It was so much fun and so quirky,” Veerasunthorn recalls.
“That’s when we got to know what she could really bring to Asha.”
“They have to fight their way through,” she says.
we can’t be afraid to do this."
The priority is still original storytelling.
The idea forFrozen 3, she continues, came from Marc Smith, head of story onFrozen II.
“In my head, the films will always stay canon.
Anything done outside of that, we give them permission to have their own identity.
They may not be canon,” she explains.
“I still encourage it because I think it’s fun to explore.
But don’t hold us to anything except what we put in those features.
That’s just me.
I don’t want to disappoint anyone.
“The filmmakers tend to work more in a miniseries kind of concept that’s closer to features.
Some of us here have worked in series, so we help each other.
But for me, it’s more about the storytelling.
Appropriately, Lee offers up a wish when thinking about the future of Disney Animation.
“That’s all.”
