Pixar’s Luca takes you on a journey to the Italian seaside and the fictional village of Portorosso. With a team of animators who are always elevating the realism of their work, this time the filmmakers at Pixar focused on designing a Mediterranean sea that was both beautiful and stylized.
“The tools of the trade are getting better and better at capturing realism, says director Enrico Casarosa. “We wanted to work on stylization and beautiful shades and lyricism.” To create this they sometimes adopted a “less is more” philosophy.
“So much of this movie is about a kid experiencing things for the first time,” continues Casarosa. “I wanted a sense of the light and wonder to really be part of this movie, in all its details.” To that end, they explored water as a way to highlight the emotional moments. He realized that creating water that was a ittle less realistic and more stylized provided the playfulness and lyricism he was after.
Another important consideration in creating the sea in Luca was making sure that it resembled the Italian Riviera. “Our team really worked hard to make sure that this water felt
like it was from the Mediterranean versus tropical water or other settings,” according to producer Andrea Warren. “We wanted to make the audience feel like they went to Italy.”
“It’s a lot of cliffs, not a whole lot of beaches,” agrees Casarosa. They created the cliff-edged sea with a palette of deep cobalt blues and greens. “It’s a beautifully colorful murk.”
You can visit the stylized Italian Riviera of Portorosso for yourself when Luca streams exclusively on Disney+ beginning on June 18, 2021.
About Luca
This summer, you’re invited to Portorosso. Watch the new trailer for Disney and Pixar’s Luca and see the film June 18 on Disney+.
Set in a beautiful seaside town on the Italian Riviera, Disney and Pixar’s original feature film “Luca” is a coming-of-age story about one young boy experiencing an unforgettable summer filled with gelato, pasta and endless scooter rides. Luca shares these adventures with his newfound best friend, but all the fun is threatened by a deeply-held secret: they are sea monsters from another world just below the water’s surface. Directed by Academy Award® nominee Enrico Casarosa (“La Luna”) and produced by Andrea Warren (“Lava,” “Cars 3”), “Luca” releases June 18 on Disney+.