The Little Mermaid: How were the water scenes filmed?

Disney continues to make live-action adaptations, and it’s The Little Mermaid’s turn to buck the trend. While the feature opens with a quote from Danish Hans Christian Andersen, this version has little in common with the original tale. Here is a 1989 animated film starring a model.

All the on-screen supporting characters from the studio’s classics are back (Pollochon, Sebastian, Eureka…), the songs and the underwater world are just as magical. Behind this $200 million blockbuster is director Rob Marshall, a regular in musicals and epic productions.

One of the biggest challenges of this film was, unsurprisingly, recreating the aquatic world. Very few scenes were actually shot in water. Little Mermaid uses a technique called For dry-wet – French for dry wet. Simply put: create the illusion of a water world without contact with water.

It took four and a half years to make this film

Filming took place mainly in the studio. A stage covered with blue backdrops was arranged for this occasion. “We started with stories, previewing scenes and seeing how the characters would move through the water.reveals the filmmaker in an interview with AlloCiné. Then we had to communicate all of this to our stunt team. No one touched the ground, all the actors were in the air, as if they were flying.”

To recreate the hair, like Ariel, the actors wore hats so that visual effects artists could digitally add each hair. As for the fish tails, the actors were equipped with costumes. The latter, replaced by special effects, are invisible on the screen.

“It took four and a half years to make this film. Rob Marshall recalls. That is why he is ambitious.” The director, who has already signed on for Disney’s fourth Pirates of the Caribbean and Mary Poppins Returns, explains that he has staged three films in one: a musical, a traditional film with a natural setting and a digital film. Hardest of the three? Last.

Rob Marshall admits that he is “disapointedThe director waits for the special effects team to finish their work to see the final render. “Luckily for me, it’s the acting, character work, and story that matter. That’s what’s most important, even if there are blue bottoms and beanies and things like that.“

He follows: “I could watch this movie without the visual effects and just be enthralled by the story. That was the goal. But the technical side of the film is not at the heart of the story itself. That said, it took a long time. The film was completed only a few weeks ago. Working on this project was exhausting and challenging, but in some ways, it was the most satisfying.“

Interview by Thomas Desroches, Paris, May 4, 2023.

The Little Mermaid, in theaters from May 24.