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Disney has released a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the heartwarming original, A Disney Holiday Short: The Boy & The Octopus. Award-winning director Taika Waititi provides exclusive commentary about the magic he experienced creating this short, offering insight into his goals for casting, filming locations, and the emotional connection he wanted audiences to form with this story.
Since its release last month on a variety of platforms, including YouTube and Disney+, The Boy & The Octopus has received over 75 million views worldwide and an overwhelmingly positive response from viewers celebrating the incredible storytelling. (watch the full short below)
“I was struck by just how magical and beautiful the story was. It’s a simple tale of a boy on holiday and he goes swimming and then meets an unexpected friend in the least expected place. I love the idea of these two characters from completely different worlds who are looking for connection,” said Taika Waititi.
Here is additional information behind the creation of the short:
- The melodic rendition of “Part of Your World” from the Disney classic The Little Mermaid (1989) that can be heard throughout the short was recorded live by a 60-piece orchestra and mixed in the legendary Abbey Road recording studio specifically for this short. The song has such a flexible melody that it allowed Toby Williams, the music supervisor from Leland, to play with the song in different ways throughout the film to adapt to the range of emotions.
- This year’s Disney holiday short was brought to life in two stunning locations including a beautiful beach in Mallorca, Spain, which was the perfect setting to capture the warmth and magic of the story’s seaside scenes. Additional scenes were shot in Prague, where the city’s unique character added depth and richness to the short.
- Blub Blub was the unofficial name given to the octopus by Taika Waititi and the production team.
- There was an incredible level of detail in the VFX to capture intricate movements and transformations to create an octopus that felt both realistic and emotionally expressive with eight tentacles that could move independently, shapeshift, and even change colors. “Anytime that we’re making a character there’s always challenges. Aside from having eight tentacles, octopuses can shape shift, they can change color on their skin. We built in all sorts of crazy things,” said Adam Droy from Untold Studios, the VFX creative agency for this short.
