Animation Guild | We are 839 Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1434261
WINTER 2021 31 O E CHOR MA TION O E CHOR MA TION O E CHOR MA TION CHOREOMATION CHOREOMATION CHOREOMATION STEP INTO WINTER 2021 31 BY KIM FAY The art of animation can't be separated from the art of movement. Characters are animated, after all. But there are degrees of motion. Nodding, turning, and walking are one thing, while dancing is quite another, requiring an exciting elevation of artistry. Choreographers are nothing new to the process of crafting animated musicals, but as technology advances, so does the desire to one-up every aspect of making a film. For the Disney musical Encanto, that meant having a choreography consultant on hand throughout the entire production for the first time in Disney history. An ambitious tale of the family Madrigal, living in an enchanted place called Encanto in the mountains of Colombia, the movie leaned heavily on its choreographers because "it was a huge project to be able to tell clear stories about the 12 main characters," says Co-Director/Co-Writer Charise Castro Smith. "Movement definitely contributed to separating them." Each Madrigal child, with the exception of central character Mirabel, has a magical trait, such as seeing the future or con- trolling the weather. But to differentiate them further, walking tests were done early in the process, and according to Animation Supervisor Michael Woodside, there was a strong push to integrate music into the way the characters walked. Vivo images courtesy of Sony Pictures Animation. Encanto and Marge Champion images courtesy of Walt Disney Animation Studios.