Wish – Asha and the Lucky Star: Impossible to find all Disney movie references!

Wish – Asha and the Lucky Star, the latest from Disney Studios, is currently in theaters. The studio’s sixty-second animated feature, the film by Chris Buck (Frozen 1 & 2) and Fawn Veerasunthorn is set in Rosas, a kingdom where literally all wishes can come true.

Asha, a young, vibrant 17-year-old girl, sends a wish to the stars, which is answered by a cosmic force: a small ball of infinite energy called a star. Together, Star and Asha will face their most formidable enemies and prove that the will of a determined person, combined with the magic of the stars, can bring miracles…

This original story was released in celebration of the studio’s centennial. The creative team made many references to previous Disney works. However, an exhaustive list is impossible, as there are more than a hundred references.

More than a hundred references

During a meeting with the film crew, producer Peter Del Vecho told us:There are over a hundred references to previous films in Wish – Asha and the Lucky Star. We’ve always said that every Easter egg in our movies has to be related to the story we’re telling. Some are intentional, meaning we planned to insert a specific reference at a specific time, others were added by our animation department and effects department.

As long as these cues fit into the story and don’t take away from the original story, we like to include them because they’re kind of a nod to audiences who are familiar with our older films. And if you haven’t seen it, it doesn’t matter, because this wink is not integral to the narrative. They do not interfere in the story in any way.“

Many people came to us to ask if we could add this or that information.

Director Fawn Veerasunthorn adds: “We focused our energy on creating an original story and characters. But once it was all in place, many people came to us asking if it was possible to add this or that reference. We saw it as a way for everyone involved to express their love for the characters that inspired them. The wish is a collective love letter, and thanks to Walt and the artists who came before us.”

Thus, the viewer will easily notice the references to Bambi, Peter Pan, Robin Hood, but there are more subtle hints. The well next to which Asha meets the star is the wishing well Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Asha’s cape at the end is Cinderella’s fairy godmother, music played by Sabino, Asha’s grandfather in the post-credits scene.When we pray to a lucky star“From Pinocchio.

But there are also more general references. Namely, the theme of the film: desire. Desires are featured in all of the studio’s films. Fawn Veerasunthorn explains: “The theme of desire is universal. The film also talks about human nature. When you feel like you’re losing hope or looking for inspiration, you often look to the sky and tell yourself that there is something bigger than you. So I think it’s a very Disney theme and a very universal theme.“.

Walt Disney is… Asha!

Another wink, like Sabino Studio is gearing up to celebrate its 100th anniversary. But despite all this, Asha’s grandfather is not the embodiment of Walt Disney. for the director Chris BuckAsha is the worthy successor of Walt Disney.

“There’s more of a Walt aspect to Asha, because when Walt started to create Snow White, very few people believed in his dream. They told him, ‘I don’t think you’ll ever make it. It’s a dream, it’s going to happen.’ , that it’s more Walt who is Asha.

The producer adds:Obviously, we wouldn’t be here today if Walt hadn’t come up with the idea for Snow White. At first no one believed him, but he persevered like Asha. And it is clearly thanks to him that we are here, a hundred years later, making animated films. To me, it is Asha who represents Walt Disney.”

The latter also makes us notice the other Easter egg Well Concealed : Star Star has some kind of heart-shaped mask on his “face”, it’s the same shape as Mickey’s face. When it moves, it emits luminous dust like Tinker Bell from Peter Pan.

A visual style that pays homage to the first films

A special visual styleE wish – Asha and lucky star, which combines 2D and 3D animation, also ties into the studio’s history. Created entirely in computer-generated imagery, the film’s style pays homage to the studio’s first feature films.

Visual effects designer Michael Jaimoe combined 3D animation with the more traditional fairy tale watercolor painting style that characterizes Disney’s animation classics. The latter explained in the US press kit that the film’s style included watercolor techniques on backgrounds and line work on environments and characters.

Therefore, the team chose to pay homage to the first studio films made by hand, while incorporating certain techniques developed in more experimental animated shorts.

Peter Del Vecho Comments on our microphone: “From the beginning, we wanted the film to have a watercolor look, like the illustrations that Walt saw as a child, or that inspired him to make his first films. But we still wanted it to be dimensional. We wanted to show that the characters were part of the background of this illustrative watercolor. So we’ve built on a lot of things we’ve done in the past. Short films like paper man, holiday and away from the tree. We had to develop new technology to be able to implement it in a feature film.“New technology that can be used for the future work of the studio.

you would understand that Wish – Asha and Lucky Star, Full of treasured Disney references and themes. Rosa’s world itself may be an allegory for Disney’s world. Feel free to watch what you like…

Peter Del Vecho concludes:I know there has been a lot of discussion about the origin of the wannabe star and what Rosas represents in the Disney world. Is this the star who made all of Disney’s dreams come true? I will decide this for the community. We were happy to include these references and now we are giving free rein to the imagination of the audience.”