Raya and the Last Dragon is one of three Disney films nominated today for an Oscar in the Best Animated Feature category. Directors Don Hall and Carlos López Estrada spoke to Deadline after their nomination was announced.
20.01.2022 - 03:07 / deadline.com
Editors note: Deadline’s Read the Screenplay series debuts and celebrates the scripts of films that will be factors in this year’s movie awards race.
In Raya and the Last Dragon, the kingdom of Kumandra splits apart when the gem protecting the realm from the Druun breaks into five pieces. The film itself almost went to pieces when the Covid-19 pandemic required all the animators and voice artists to stay home, but they persevered just like Raya (Kelly Marie Tran) herself.
Raya lives in the Heart realm with her father, Chief Benja (Daniel Dae Kim). Years after the broken gem allowed the Druun to return, Raya seeks the help of Sisu (Awkwafina), the last dragon who can help restore peace (and restore Benja, who has turned to stone). They have to travel to each region of Kumandra – Fang, Spine, Talon and Tail – to collect the missing pieces of the gem, while warriors from other realms are after the same thing.
Sisu and the dragons in Raya are based on Asian dragons, quite different than the fire-breathing monsters of medieval fantasy. Specifically, animators based Sisu on Naga dragons of Southeast Asia. The filmmakers based the various locations of Kumandra on research from Laos, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia and Singapore.
Screenwriters Qui Nguyen and Adele Lim brought more Asian influences to Raya and the Last Dragon; Malaysian warrior Tun Fatimah inspired Raya. However, as action packed as Raya’s quest is, the filmmakers imbued the story with the themes of unity and trust.
From March 2020 until its release, 900 Disney artists and technicians worked remotely on Raya and the Last Dragon, while voice actors recorded their lines over Zoom. It only took two weeks to equip everyone’s homes, but it did involve new
Raya and the Last Dragon is one of three Disney films nominated today for an Oscar in the Best Animated Feature category. Directors Don Hall and Carlos López Estrada spoke to Deadline after their nomination was announced.
Channing Tatum is back after a much-needed break.
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Editors note: Deadline’s Read the Screenplay series debuts and celebrates the scripts of films that will be factors in this year’s movie awards race.
Editors note: Deadline’s Read the Screenplay series debuts and celebrates the scripts of films that will be factors in this year’s movie awards race.
Editors note: Deadline’s Read the Screenplay series debuts and celebrates the scripts of films that will be factors in this year’s movie awards race. Spoiler Alert: This story contains major plot details of Sony’s Spider-Man: No Way Home.
Editors note: Deadline’s Read the Screenplay series debuts and celebrates the scripts of films that will be factors in this year’s movie awards race. Spoiler Alert: This story contains major plot details of MGM/UAR’s No Time to Die.
A version of this story about “Raya and the Last Dragon” first appeared in the special animation section of Awards Preview issue of TheWrap’s awards magazine.It’s hard to think of another Walt Disney Animation Studios movie quite like “Raya and the Last Dragon,” a muscular, martial arts-flavored action movie about the power of trust — and, you know, dragons. (Granted, “Mulan” had dragons, but it also had songs, which “Raya” does not.) And while crafting a movie this complex and tonally singular is tough in any situation, the only thing tougher is crafting it twice.
Kenneth Branagh has told the most epic stories of all between Shakespeare, Agatha Christie and Marvel. For his latest, Belfast, Branagh chose a more intimate and personal one.
Rebel Wilson joined the high end dating app Raya, which caters to an exclusive crowd of people. According to The Herald Sun, she was active on the app as of last week and had her preferences set to all genders.Rebel Wilson reveals how much weight she’s lost since her ‘year of health’Rebel Wilson admits people treat her differently since she lost weightA post shared by Rebel Wilson (@rebelwilson)Raya is an app that’s mostly used by celebrities and people with significant presences on social media.
Editors note: Deadline’s Read the Screenplay series debuts and celebrates the scripts of films that will be factors in this year’s movie awards race.
Editors note: Deadline’s Read the Screenplay series debuts and celebrates the scripts of films that will be factors in this year’s movie awards race.
Editors note: Deadline’s Read the Screenplay series debuts and celebrates the scripts of films that will be factors in this year’s movie awards race.
When Italian filmmaker Paolo Sorrentino reached his milestone 50th birthday, he decided the occasion was ripe with the potential to break away from many of the enduring ways he made distinctive, much lauded projects (including Academy Award winner The Great Beauty, Youth, Il Divo, The Consequences of Love and The Young Pope) and experiment with new cinematic and storytelling techniques. And for his next film, The Hand of God, he decided to plumb the depths of his own past as well.
Gucci fashion has made many appearances in Hollywood, both in movies and on the red carpet. The actual story of Gucci is worthy of a movie of its own, and it finally got one in House of Gucci.
Editors note: Deadline’s Read the Screenplay series debuts and celebrates the scripts of films that will be factors in this year’s movie awards race.
Editors note: Deadline’s Read the Screenplay series debuts and celebrates the scripts of films that will be factors in this year’s movie awards race.
It looks like Rita Ora had some fun at her latest photo shoot!
Editors note: Deadline’s Read the Screenplay series debuts and celebrates the scripts of films that will be factors in this year’s movie awards race.
Editors note: Deadline’s Read the Screenplay series debuts and celebrates the scripts of films that will be factors in this year’s movie awards race.