Disney’s “Moana”

By KAYLA ROYSTER
Contributing Writer

As a child, every girl dreams of becoming a princess. Fourteen-year-old Auli’i Cravalho of Oahu was able to make her childhood dream come true. With her singing talents, fairy godmother, and the help of an agent, Auli’i was discovered and flown to Los Angeles to take on her new role. She worked alongside the directors who worked on both “The Little Mermaid” and “Aladdin” to become the Hawaiian princess Moana Waialiki. Costar Dwayne Johnson, who plays a god named Maui, was there alongside Auli’i to help the creation of this new princess.
Disney will officially introduce the computer-animated Polynesian princess. On Oct. 20, 2014, Disney announced that Princess Moana shall be welcomed into the royal family as well as theaters everywhere come 2016. The musical accompaniment for this upcoming movie was revealed at the 2015 Disney D23 expo. According to one of the producers, the music is said to be a mixture of three collaborators: the Pacific roots of Opetaia, the sense of narrative from songwriter Lin-Manuel Miranda, and Macina’s sense of world music.
Basking in the success of “Frozen,” Disney set out on creating another adventure for another heroine, only this time one with a unique cultural background. This is not the first Hawaiian animation created by Disney, but it is the first princess movie of its kind. Disney unveiled that Moana’s story line was to be written and directed by Ron Clements and John Musker.
While many past Disney stories have been based off of fantasies, fairies, and dreams, “Moana” is based off of a tale and the Pacific Island cultures of ancient Oceania. Though Oceania’s current region is not quite identical to the state of Hawaii, Disney felt it close enough to portray Hawaii and Oceania within the same concept. There is a belief that Maui’s name is a reference and hint to the creation of the Oceania society.
“Moana” might be based on the story of how the Polynesians were said to have made it to the islands.
The tale of how life on the islands began started around 1947. When explorer Thor Heyerdahl came up with the theory that tribes from South America built rafts, those rafts then were set out to sail across more than 5,000 miles of the Pacific Ocean to reach Polynesia.
To support, enforce, and prove his theory, Thor Heyerdahl set out on a journey to follow the path he believed the Polynesians took in the most accurate way. His experiences, failures, and triumphs of his voyage and expedition have been recently shown in the live-action film “Kon Tiki.”
The film is about a young girl who sets off on an adventure 3,000 years in the past, setting sail to complete a quest given to her by her ancestors. Many years ago some of the greatest navigators of all time voyaged across the South Pacific, discovering the many islands of Oceania. Yet after some time the voyages stopped and never began again, leaving everyone to wonder why.
In this new Disney princess adventure, the main character Moana Waialiki is the only daughter of a chief in a long line of navigators. When her family is in need, the teenage heroine takes her raft on a quest to find a fabled island. It is a journey attempted and failed by many ancestors before her. Along the way, our brave heroine faces mythological sea creatures, demigods and spirits based off of real mythology, and unimaginable underworlds. Along the way she has help from her sidekick, former demigod Maui.
Could there be a reason for the sudden stop of voyages across the Pacific? Is there a relation between demigod Maui and the island Maui? What makes Moana so special, that this voyage and mystery that many have embarked on before her seem capable in the hands of the heroine? We will just have to wait to find out how one ordinary Hawaiian teen embarks on a journey that turns her into Disney’s newest princess.