Pixar Reveals The Story Behind Its First All-Female Movie Creative Team
Pixar execs, Jim Morris and Pete Docter, have opened up about how Turning Red came to boast Pixar's first all-female creative leadership team. Turning Red is Pixar's upcoming animated coming-of-age film that will be available to stream on Disney+ beginning March 11. The film follows Mei Lee (Rosalie Chang), a 13-year old girl, who turns into a giant red panda anytime she gets too stressed out or excited. The condition ties back to her ancestor's mystic connections to the panda species and further complicates Lee's mother's expectations for her to be a perfect, obedient daughter.
Turning Red offers a unique premise that delves into Chinese culture, the pressures of growing up, and celebration of girlhood. What further adds to Turning Red's uniqueness is that it is Pixar's very first film to boast an all-female creative leadership team. The film is directed by Domee Shi, written by Shi and Julia Cho, and produced by Lindsey Collins. Turning Red's cast is also predominately female, starring Chang, Sandra Oh, Ava Morse, and Maitreyi Ramakrishnan.
In an interview with THR, Pixar execs, Morris and Docter, revealed that Turning Red's all-female team came about fairly organically. The assembly of the all-female team wasn't something that was exclusively planned for the film. Rather, it was more an instance of people with good working relationships wanting to work with one another, and they all happened to be female. Not only were they female, but they were among the best thinkers and risk-takers in the industry. Pixar's execs noted the team created one of the most efficient and fastest films Pixar has ever made. Check out their statements below:
Morris: It happened very organically. It wasn’t like we decided, ‘Let’s make sure that that happened.'
Docter: People who work well together wanted to work with other people that they like. They were not only all-female, but it was probably the most efficient film we’ve ever made. They were really smart thinkers and risk-takers. I think we can all learn something from them.
Morris: One of the fastest films ever in terms of getting made at Pixar — which means it only took four years.
It is not surprising that Pixar's first all-female creative team came about quite naturally. With so many talented women in the industry who have a preference for working with like-minded people, an all-female team was bound to happen eventually. Actresses such as Oh have expressed that they prefer all-women creative teams, after their experiences working within one for TV and film projects. Not only is it simply a wonderful environment to have women writing and women at the front, it also allows for more female representation both behind the scenes and onscreen.
To hear Pixar's top execs praise Turning Red's all-female team and describe their efficiency, is quite a special moment in film history. The perspective of these women can already be clearly seen in the film's themes - Chinese heritage, coming of age, mother's expectations for their daughters, and the trials of girlhood. There are so many films that celebrate boyhood and a boy's transition into being a man. However, there are few films that really explore girlhood and celebrate women and girls embracing who they are. Early reviews for Turning Red have been largely positive and have commented on the film being one of Pixar's boldest to date with its unique focus. Once the film releases on Disney+ it is likely the full scale of the work of Turning Red's all-female team will become even more apparent. Turning Red's all-female team came about naturally and their tremendous and efficient work brings much needed representation and attention to women in film.
Source: THR