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Disney Screens 20 Minutes of ‘Wish’ in Annecy, Showcasing Two New Songs

"At first we meet the headstrong teenager as she interviews to serve as sorcerer’s apprentice for the regal Magnifico, a so-called benevolent mage who rules over his Kingdom of Rosas by guarding and granting the many wishes his subjects offer to him in tribute. Only the interview doesn’t quite go as planned after Asha pulls down the glowing crystal orb that holds the wish of her 100-year-old grandfather, begging the sovereign to grant it. No deal — Magnifico, it turns out, claims his regal powers by hoarding.

Dejected, the heroine returns home but finds herself unable to fit back in. She’s seen beyond the veil, and, newly aware of the cynical ruse that governs her land, she flees the homestead and burst into song – a very specific “I Want” song that finds her looking over familiar sights with new disappointment. “So I make this wish/to have something more for us than this,” goes the refrain, and once DeBose hits the crescendo a star alights in the night sky, illuminating the whole kingdom.

The star goes by Star and resembles a marshmallow Peeps set ablaze. After following it to a forest bed, Asha watches the Star shed gold dust on flora and fauna alike, with each beneficiary suddenly able to speak – and sing! “You’re a star,” sing an arboreal chorus that call back the Grandmother Willow from “Pocahontas;” “You’re a star,” add the birds and the bears and Asha’s pet goat Valentino, who now boasts the pipes of Alan Tudyk; “You’re a star,” all of nature intones with one voice.

When the song comes to close, a doe turns to its natural predator and says, “thanks for not eating me.” “Don’t mention it, Bambi,” comes the reply."

https://variety.com/2023/artisans/globa ... 235646595/

The initial premise is very reminiscent of Wicked.

Sotiris wrote: ↑Fri Jun 16, 2023 1:37 am

D82 wrote: ↑Thu Jun 15, 2023 11:30 pmAsha is keen to find out everything there is to know about wishes by becoming the apprentice of King Magnifico (Chris Pine), the "self-named" royal who harnesses the magic to make wishes become a reality.

Does the self-named part refers to "Magnifico" or to "King"? Was he a king who changed his name to Magnifico or a commoner named Magnifico who by harnessing the power of wishes managed to usurp the throne and proclaim himself a king?

I thought it referred to "royal," but I might be wrong. Perhaps he both proclaimed himself King and also likes to be called Magnifico. The way he dresses or makes his entrance in front of the audience gives the impression he's very self-centered, so I could see him giving himself that name.

Sotiris wrote: ↑Wed Nov 23, 2022 10:10 pm Disney trademarked the characters Sabino and Queen Amaya that are most likely from this film.

One of the reports from Annecy confirms Sabino is Asha's 100-year-old grandfather. They also reveal Asha's group of friends are known as The Teens (pobably a nod to "the seven dwarfs") and the girl who is inspired by Doc and wears glasses is called Dahlia and is Asha's best friend.

I'm curious who Queen Amaya (the other registered name) could be. Maybe the ruler of a neighbouring kingdom or the true heir to the throne? I guess she could also be King Magnifico's wife, but I doubt it.

Farerb wrote: ↑Fri Jun 16, 2023 1:54 am Wish's world seems to be similar to Strange World's where different ethnicities live together without prejudice, but this time it's more inspired by Renaissance times Southern Europe/Mediterranean countries. Can't wait for the articles about how Wish disregards slavery during those times.

From what I remember from my history classes at school, there was indeed a time when Christians, Muslims and Jews lived in harmony in Spain, though I guess that didn't last long. I wish the film had been set in Spain itself. It could've still been very diverse, since as I've mentioned, there were Arabs, Jews and also Romani here. Some things look familiar to me, like some trees and flowers or some of the architecture, which is cool, but in general the film reminds me more of something like Frozen than Spain, for some reason. I guess this is the closest I can get to having a Disney film set in my country, though. And maybe it's better this way, because if it was actually set in Spain, the inaccuracies would probably bother me more.

Farerb wrote: ↑Fri Jun 16, 2023 10:00 am Some of it sounds promising and some sounds annoying (I'm going to hate the group of friends knowing that I never liked the extended cast in their recent films like Raya and Encanto).

I agree. I sort of liked that when wishes are given to King Magnifico, the dreamer forgets all about it. I bet that's the way he has to control his subjects, keep them obedient and avoid revolts. I guess he literally takes away their dreams from them, and after giving them to him, they no longer have the aspirations they once had. However, Asha's friends being like a copy of the seven dwarfs and the film "explaining" why certain Disney tropes are the way they are doesn't sound good to me. I bet this is one of the parts you liked:

When the song comes to close, a doe turns to its natural predator and says, “thanks for not eating me.” “Don’t mention it, Bambi,” comes the reply.

Source: https://variety.com/2023/artisans/globa ... 235646595/

DisneyFan09 wrote: ↑Fri Jun 16, 2023 10:04 am But it`s interesting how there will be nods to Bambi and The Jungle Book (since they were my childhood favorites from Walt), since most of the Revival features starring Princesses have mostly referenced their Princess predecessors (at least in the public eye).

I guess it's because, unlike those films, this one celebrates the Disney legacy in general and not only the Princesses. By the way, Bambi and The Jungle Book are also two of my favorites from Walt!

UmbrellaFish wrote: ↑Fri Jun 16, 2023 2:43 pm The initial premise is very reminiscent of Wicked.

I've never seen the show; just listened to the songs, but now that you mention it, I also see some similarities. Was Elphaba also the Wizard's assistant there?

D82, yeah spoilers for Wicked ahead: she’s singled out as someone who could be a protege of the Wizard and also sees him as a source of making her own wishes come true (not to be green anymore). Eventually, she realizes the Wizard is a bad guy and rebels against him. The big twist comes at the end when it’s revealed the Wizard is her biological father…

D82 wrote: ↑Fri Jun 16, 2023 6:41 pm From what I remember from my history classes at school, there was indeed a time when Christians, Muslims and Jews lived in harmony in Spain, though I guess that didn't last long. I wish the film had been set in Spain itself. It could've still been very diverse, since as I've mentioned, there were Arabs, Jews and also Romani here. Some things look familiar to me, like some trees and flowers or some of the architecture, which is cool, but in general the film reminds me more of something like Frozen than Spain, for some reason. I guess this is the closest I can get to having a Disney film set in my country, though. And maybe it's better this way, because if it was actually set in Spain, the inaccuracies would probably bother me more.

That might have been the case, but from what I learned, Jews had to convert or flee or die, a lot of them were driven out to North Africa.
I did read that some people from Spain are disappointed in this movie, is that true?

D82 wrote: ↑ I agree. I sort of liked that when wishes are given to King Magnifico, the dreamer forgets all about it. I bet that's the way he has to control his subjects, keep them obedient and avoid revolts. I guess he literally takes away their dreams from them, and after giving them to him, they no longer have the aspirations they once had. However, Asha's friends being like a copy of the seven dwarfs and the film "explaining" why certain Disney tropes are the way they are doesn't sound good to me. I bet this is one of the parts you liked:

That Bambi line was straight up terrible, and now I'm worried that the film will be filled with stupid jokes like that.

"The Teens" sounds like a group of Disney Channel stars, like the ones who made those awful music videos during the Platinum Edition DVD days. I also think it's awkward that they're basically supposed to be the dwarfs from Snow White and we're basically going to get the same group four months later in the Snow White remake (and we all know they will be racebended and genderbended as well).

Farerb wrote: ↑Fri Jun 16, 2023 8:38 pm

D82 wrote: ↑Fri Jun 16, 2023 6:41 pm From what I remember from my history classes at school, there was indeed a time when Christians, Muslims and Jews lived in harmony in Spain, though I guess that didn't last long. I wish the film had been set in Spain itself. It could've still been very diverse, since as I've mentioned, there were Arabs, Jews and also Romani here. Some things look familiar to me, like some trees and flowers or some of the architecture, which is cool, but in general the film reminds me more of something like Frozen than Spain, for some reason. I guess this is the closest I can get to having a Disney film set in my country, though. And maybe it's better this way, because if it was actually set in Spain, the inaccuracies would probably bother me more.

That might have been the case, but from what I learned, Jews had to convert or flee or die, a lot of them were driven out to North Africa.
I did read that some people from Spain are disappointed in this movie, is that true?

D82 wrote: ↑ I agree. I sort of liked that when wishes are given to King Magnifico, the dreamer forgets all about it. I bet that's the way he has to control his subjects, keep them obedient and avoid revolts. I guess he literally takes away their dreams from them, and after giving them to him, they no longer have the aspirations they once had. However, Asha's friends being like a copy of the seven dwarfs and the film "explaining" why certain Disney tropes are the way they are doesn't sound good to me. I bet this is one of the parts you liked:

That Bambi line was straight up terrible, and now I'm worried that the film will be filled with stupid jokes like that.

"The Teens" sounds like a group of Disney Channel stars, like the ones who made those awful music videos during the Platinum Edition DVD days. I also think it's awkward that they're basically supposed to be the dwarfs from Snow White and we're basically going to get the same group four months later in the Snow White remake (and we all know they will be racebended and genderbended as well).

We should wait and see how it’s executed, before judging.

It could be nothing more than just a subtle joke in the same way we got the Sebastian joke in the post-credits scene of Moana.

UmbrellaFish wrote: ↑Fri Jun 16, 2023 7:26 pm D82, yeah spoilers for Wicked ahead: she’s singled out as someone who could be a protege of the Wizard and also sees him as a source of making her own wishes come true (not to be green anymore). Eventually, she realizes the Wizard is a bad guy and rebels against him. The big twist comes at the end when it’s revealed the Wizard is her biological father…

I see. Thanks for the summary. I understood part of the story thanks to the songs, but not all of it. I knew the Wizard was the bad guy, for example, but I don't think I knew he was her biological father. Although, maybe I knew and I forgot about it, since it was several years ago when I listened to the cast recording. Yeah, King Magnifico has more than one thing in common with the Wizard and his relationship with Asha reminds of Elphaba and the Wizard's too. Regarding the latter, in one of the recent articles it says Asha is hand chosen to interview to be the new assistant to King Magnifico. I wonder if there's a reason why he wants her in particular for the job.

Frozen was also compared to Wicked, right? I guess Jennifer Lee really likes it.

Farerb wrote: ↑Fri Jun 16, 2023 8:38 pm That might have been the case, but from what I learned, Jews had to convert or flee or die, a lot of them were driven out to North Africa.

Yes, that's true and it was a really horrible thing. I think it was the Catholic Monarchs who ordered that, but I was referring to an earlier time period. I think the Jews lived here for many years. In many cities here there are still Jewish quarters called "juderías", which is where they used to live. And there are many towns with Muslim names and mosques from that time period as well.

Farerb wrote: ↑Fri Jun 16, 2023 8:38 pm I did read that some people from Spain are disappointed in this movie, is that true?

I actually don't know. There isn't any Spanish Disney site I follow. I did read some comments on Twitter when the teaser came out and I remember some people here noticed the Moorish influences of the architecture. I don't remember any backlash, but maybe the general public hadn't realized yet where the film was set.

Farerb wrote: ↑Fri Jun 16, 2023 8:38 pm "The Teens" sounds like a group of Disney Channel stars, like the ones who made those awful music videos during the Platinum Edition DVD days. I also think it's awkward that they're basically supposed to be the dwarfs from Snow White and we're basically going to get the same group four months later in the Snow White remake (and we all know they will be racebended and genderbended as well).

It's true; The Teens sounds like a band or something. And, you're right; there'll be two very similar groups in a very short time.

D23ExpoVisitor25 wrote: ↑Fri Jun 16, 2023 9:30 pm It could be nothing more than just a subtle joke in the same way we got the Sebastian joke in the post-credits scene of Moana.

Yes, that's a small thing, but I fear there might be many more jokes like that. We'll see, I hope it's not the case.

Annecy: Disney’s ‘Wish’ Revealed in 20 Minutes of Footage From Animated Musical
https://www.thewrap.com/disney-wish-mov ... nifer-lee/

D82 wrote: ↑Fri Jun 16, 2023 6:41 pmI guess it's because, unlike those films, this one celebrates the Disney legacy in general and not only the Princesses. By the way, Bambi and The Jungle Book are also two of my favorites from Walt!

Cool ! You have a great taste .

I’m desperately praying this movie does amazing critically and financially. Mainly because I don’t want to see the animation branch shuttered. Not to be melodramatic, but I think after Strange World flopped, Disney is in need of a hit.

DisneyJedi wrote: ↑Sat Jun 17, 2023 9:27 am I’m desperately praying this movie does amazing critically and financially. Mainly because I don’t want to see the animation branch shuttered. Not to be melodramatic, but I think after Strange World flopped, Disney is in need of a hit.

It all depends on Disney marketing this one more strongly and actively as it is their big finale for Disney 100.

*SPOILERS* I also thought of the Wizard of Oz as the villain in Wicked when reading the synopsis of Asha realizing Magnifico's image is a ruse when she finally meets him. Makes me very confused why they didn't use the Lopezes then, they did make Wicked on Broadway... I imagine the music for this is going to be alright, but it would've been better to have a big splash for the 100th anniversary with somebody like the Lopezes or Menken, imo. Either way, it's so nice to finally have a villain again.

I did hate that one line with the whole "You're welcome, Bambi." That reads cringeworthy like the goat's speaking voice. Otherwise, love everything else I've read.

Stephen Schwartz did the music for Wicked.

The trailer for Wish played in front of Elemental today and it looks so good on the big screen!!

Yes, you're right! Avenue Q and Book of Mormon were them, sorry, . I think my mind mixed them up with how Idina Menzel's character has a similar unleashed-power type of song in her WDAS film as in Wicked. Anyway, I still think one of the big names would've been better fit for a big anniversary film like this. Julia Michaels feels sort of random.

blackcauldron85 wrote: ↑Sat Jun 17, 2023 3:40 pm Stephen Schwartz did the music for Wicked.

The trailer for Wish played in front of Elemental today and it looks so good on the big screen!!

Agreed.

Q: The story includes a very important tree, one that Asha used to visit with her dad. It’s where she goes to wish on stars.

Jennifer Lee: One thing I love is the drawings of the father and daughter on the tree. Those were all done by Fawn Veerasunthorn, the director.

Q: The premise follows a character who learns that the person in power doesn’t necessarily have the best interests of the people at heart. As an adult, that feels very grounded in our present-day realities. How much real-world influence inspires you as a writer?

Jennifer Lee: Well, I think for all of us, you write what you know; write your world. But I will say one of the things that was really important to us is tracking the choices of the villain and the protagonist. We aren't declarative about one thing or another in the world because that's not what we do. We're about characters. So what I loved was building Magnifico and Asha. We didn't show the one song that was in between the two scenes yet because we're holding off on that. But what you see is they're completely aligned. And so we wanted to say, let's start with two characters. And I've always wanted to have a villain and protagonist at that moment where they're completely aligned and then watching that first crack, and then the second crack, and then each time they have choices to make. So what I really wanted to make sure of is that Magnifico owns everything. He could make different choices, and he chooses his way. And that's what I say to the world. It's like, we can make choices in this world and determine our destinies, and both of them have to face the responsibilities for those choices. And so it sort of expanded from there. But that was the core of it, was lining the two of them up.

Source: https://www.laughingplace.com/w/article ... -a-studio/

Jennifer Lee has also presented the film in Italy. Here are some new details shared by a Disney blogger who attended the event:

• The two songs shown so far are titled "This Wish" and "I'm A Star".

• There's a big opening number.

• Magnifico has a villain song, plus a duet with Asha which takes place when she first visits the palace and he shows her the wishes.

• They found out through test screenings that people wanted a complex villain, so King Magnifico has an arc of his own and apparently we'll get to know his past, the choices he made and understand his motives a little better.

• The fictional Kingdom of Rosas is set in Medieval times before people started to tell fairytales because it's supposed to explain how fairytales and wishing upon a star came to be.

• "The main theme is the power of wishes - how far are you willing to go and what happens when your wish *doesn't* come true. Do you give up? Do you keep fighting? Would you erase it from your mind so you're not reminded anymore that you didn't succeed or would you keep the memory? And so on. Lee showed us a lot of spectacular scenes but the one that stuck with me is a dinner scene where Asha and her family discuss these themes."

• Asha might be Jewish:

What’s Asha’s descent? Was that mentioned?

Not sure about that but she calls her grandfather "Saba" which apparently is Hebrew?

Here are some more details from an Italian article:

• Initially enthusiastic, Asha realizes there is something wrong with Magnifico's strategy, which intends to spare the pain of those who dream too big and wish for what he judges to be unattainable.

• Wish marks a return to classic storytelling, because Magnifico is a powerful villain, but the novelty of approach is that we follow his path of descent to the underworld in parallel with the heroic takeover of the protagonist, in fact: for a brief period "good" and "bad" are even aligned! A villain is like any other character, Jennifer explains, and to characterize him properly we need to understand how he thinks. He is not a villain by definition; he becomes a villain in the eyes of the audience as he goes along.

• Star is vaguely anime-flavored, expresses itself only with movements and is vaguely inspired by the perpetual motion of panda cubs.

• Asha is more than a classic Disney princess; for Jennifer, she is a symbolic embodiment of Walt, who risked everything by producing Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (homaged in the Seven Teenage Aspiring Apprentices and Apprentice), pursuing precisely one wish that was "too big": he granted it, enabling her and her colleagues to follow in that vein today. Working hard. The film is "a love letter to all this, but with irony, we don't want to take ourselves too seriously." The artists and female artists in the studio are not a corporation: "We all build things together, we share experiences."

• Embracing the experiments between CGI and 2D pioneered at Disney's home with the shorts Paperman, Feast and Far From the Tree, the details of a veteran studio artist like set designer Lisa Keene (active on Frozen and even earlier in the 1990s Renaissance) can be transferred directly to the screen, without intermediate modeling. The aim is for a painterly rendering of the image, although for now there are no plans to reintroduce 2D tout court in character animation: the studio has started courses to train new traditional freehand animators, however, there are no plans to reboot that kind of production yet.

• Wish is an animated musical with seven new original songs, all assigned to Julia Michaels, class of 1993, the youngest person ever to compose songs for a Disney cartoon. Jennifer explains that the gamble as far as she is concerned paid off, because Julia grasped the theme of hope as the glue of all the songs, which are of a wide variety of genres, on the strength of her experience as a songwriter for a variety of pop stars such as Demi Lovato, Gwen Stefani, John Legend, Shakira, Keith Urban, Lady Gaga, and Dua Lipa.

Another new article, this one from Annecy, reveals Asha's mother is called Jakina, confirms Queen Amaya is a character from the film (apparently, Magnifico's wife), and offers a more detailed description of the footage (mild spoilers ahead):

Jennifer Lee then introduced Asha's family, consisting of her grandfather Jabino and her mother Jakina. She tells us that Asha's ailing father died before the events of the film began. Asha's best friend Dahlia, a group of seven teenagers (a direct reference to the Seven Dwarfs) and Queen Amaya are also part of the cast.

Following her presentation, Jennifer Lee invited us to take a look at two sequences from the beginning of the film, to discover its aesthetics and its storyline. These two excerpts, totalling some twenty minutes and taking place near the beginning of the film, gave us a better idea of the story that will take place in Wish.

Asha wishes to become the King's assistant, in charge of granting her country's wishes. But while she's being interviewed in the King's office, the young girl encounters two disturbing elements. The first is the presence of a forbidden book in the office, which becomes animated at her touch and must be calmed by the king himself. The second is when she asks the king to grant her grandfather's wish, materialized by a translucent sphere she holds out to the sovereign. As the latter studies the wish, he finally backs down, stating that it seems too vague and therefore too dangerous. He then reveals to the heroine that he doesn't grant all the wishes entrusted to him, only those he deems beneficial to the kingdom (and to himself...?). But the point that really upsets Asha is that the citizens find themselves completely dispossessed of their wishes, since by entrusting them to the king, they instantly forget their content.

While the young girl wishes to reveal her unfulfilled wish to her grandfather, so that he can remember it and try to fulfill it himself, he opposes her, unwilling to go against the king's will. This scene at dinner with her grandfather and mother, in which Asha tries to make her grandfather see reason before leaving the table in a hurry, realizing that her effort was in vain, is reminiscent of a similar scene in Mulan, where the young girl also confronts her father before abruptly leaving the table. We then discover a musical scene in which Asha sings the title song "Make a Wish", before an immense ray of starlight lights up the sky and the famous little star falls to earth to meet the heroine and her goat Valentino. This little star, reminiscent of Morph (Treasure Planet: A New Universe) and Tinkerbell, has incredible powers, such as giving Valentino and... all the flora and fauna a voice, which leads to a new musical scene. At the same time, the King, not unaware of the luminous halo in the sky, tells his wife that he is under threat... The tone is set.

Source: https://www.disneyphile.fr/annecy-2023- ... ne-etoile/

D82 wrote: ↑Mon Jun 19, 2023 8:03 pm • They found out through test screenings that people wanted a complex villain, so King Magnifico has an arc of his own and apparently we'll get to know his past, the choices he made and understand his motives a little better.

• Initially enthusiastic, Asha realizes there is something wrong with Magnifico's strategy, which intends to spare the pain of those who dream too big and wish for what he judges to be unattainable.

• Wish marks a return to classic storytelling, because Magnifico is a powerful villain, but the novelty of approach is that we follow his path of descent to the underworld in parallel with the heroic takeover of the protagonist, in fact: for a brief period "good" and "bad" are even aligned! A villain is like any other character, Jennifer explains, and to characterize him properly we need to understand how he thinks. He is not a villain by definition; he becomes a villain in the eyes of the audience as he goes along.

There's nothing wrong with a complex villain, and I'm sure both of their journeys will be interesting, but there's nothing "traditional Disney villain" about him so far, he has more in common with Namaari than Maleficent or Jafar, etc.. I wouldn't be surprised if he's redeemed by the end as well.

D82 wrote: ↑Mon Jun 19, 2023 8:03 pm • The fictional Kingdom of Rosas is set in Medieval times before people started to tell fairytales because it's supposed to explain how fairytales and wishing upon a star came to be.

I think that all of it started way before Medieval times and not sure that I like that this whole movie is based on explaining how fairytale were made. The film might be interesting but this whole concept is just bringing it down to me, it's like Lightyear whole thing was the movie that Andy saw as a child... Can you just stop and tell an interesting story without trying to connect it to past films for marketing purposes?!

The way they talk about the art of the technology really makes me want to have seen them do a real traditional fairytale instead, even if it didn't come out as great in the trailer.

D82 wrote: ↑Mon Jun 19, 2023 8:03 pm • Asha might be Jewish:

What’s Asha’s descent? Was that mentioned?

Not sure about that but she calls her grandfather "Saba" which apparently is Hebrew?

Saba is indeed the Hebrew word for grandfather, but I think it's just a coincidence cause I don't believe that Ariana DeBose is Jewish.

D82 wrote: ↑Mon Jun 19, 2023 8:03 pm • Embracing the experiments between CGI and 2D pioneered at Disney's home with the shorts Paperman, Feast and Far From the Tree, the details of a veteran studio artist like set designer Lisa Keene (active on Frozen and even earlier in the 1990s Renaissance) can be transferred directly to the screen, without intermediate modeling. The aim is for a painterly rendering of the image, although for now there are no plans to reintroduce 2D tout court in character animation: the studio has started courses to train new traditional freehand animators, however, there are no plans to reboot that kind of production yet.

Well, at least now we have confirmation. So I'm guessing Tiana will look like Far From the Tree.

Farerb wrote: ↑Mon Jun 19, 2023 8:45 pm There's nothing wrong with a complex villain, and I'm sure both of their journeys will be interesting, but there's nothing "traditional Disney villain" about him so far, he has more in common with Namaari than Maleficent or Jafar, etc.. I wouldn't be surprised if he's redeemed by the end as well.

I thought the same when I read that. Even if he isn't redeemed by the end, it doesn't seem he'll be a truly classic villain.

Farerb wrote: ↑Mon Jun 19, 2023 8:45 pm I think that all of it started way before Medieval times and not sure that I like that this whole movie is based on explaining how fairytale were made.

That's true. Hopefully, the attendee got that part wrong from the presentation.

Farerb wrote: ↑Mon Jun 19, 2023 8:45 pm Saba is indeed the Hebrew word for grandfather, but I think it's just a coincidence cause I don't believe that Ariana DeBose is Jewish.

According to Wikipedia, her father is Puerto Rican, her mother is white, and she also has African American and partial Italian ancestry. Chris Pine is not Spanish or Portuguese either, but it's true that they try to be more accurate with the casting of people of color. Perhaps, that's the word for grandfather in another language as well?