A Fashionable Fantasy World
Ever since I was very little, I always wanted to dress up like the princesses and characters I would see when watching my favorite Disney Animated films. From Ariel's sparkly gown to Minnie Mouse's polka dot dress, I wanted to dress the way these fantasy films depicted.
As I grew older, I began to take an interest in the processes of creating animated films. I watched documentaries, behind the scenes footage, and really anything I could find on YouTube. I started collecting art books dedicated to my favorite animated films and wished I could be an animator someday. Well, I also learned that I really can't draw at all, so being an animator never stayed in the cards. However, I didn't loose my passion for learning about animated films and the art behind them.
When researching into the art of films, a major component is the art of costuming and fashion. Teams of artists collaborate to create outfits that reflect the narrative of the film along with the attributes of a specific character. Really, the characters of any Disney Animation film can be broken down to a color and style of dress.
In this page, I will be exploring four Disney Animated films and their process behind costume design and its impact within their respective films. We will be looking at "Encanto", "Moana", "Tangled", and "Frozen 2". Each of these films represents a different culture and type of leading female character. We will see together why these films have such iconic fashion design as well as why they represent their characters so well within their stories.
"Encanto" is the latest film from Walt Disney Animation Studios and was released in 2021. The story follows a magical family with one un-magical daughter, Mirabel. Mirabel struggles to find her place within her complicated family dynamic. When their miracle and house are in danger, Mirabel ventures to find the solution to her family's growing problem. This film is set in a fictional town in Colombia around the 1900's. The final costumes and outfits for the main characters can be seen below.
Along with a wide range of colors and costumes, this film displays a wide range of diversity within the family which has received an overwhelming positive reaction from audiences who can identify within these characters.
"We assigned a different color palette to each branch of the family tree, to subtly cue to the audience who was related to whom. Mirabel's side of the of the family wears cool tones of blues, purples, and greens. Papa's side wears warm tones of orange, yellow, and red inspired by Felix's joyful Caribbean heritage. Abuela sits in the middle, dressed in shades of purple, brown, and black." - Production Designer, Lordly Bové
The inspiration of fashion and costumes in this film comes from the culture and clothing of Colombia. Directors Bryron Howard and Jared Bush wanted to tell a Colombian story that was authentic and representative of the culture and people there. One of the biggest aspects of this film to get right was the costumes. After deciding on a specific time period and location, the team got to work on creating costumes that not only fit the atmosphere, but also give insight to these characters.
For this film, we will be looking at three characters and the fashion design behind them, Mirabel, Luisa, and Isabela.
Mirabel
Mirabel is our main protagonist of the film as she is the only ungifted member of her family. Caring, sensitive, and determined, Mirabel is a girl next door that would do anything to help her family.
Mirabel's clothing has a do-it-yourself aesthetic that reflects her personality and her artistry. It's a simple base but with extravagant embroidery on top that he did on her own. Every element of her costume has been customized by Mirabel and she expresses herself through embroidery. Her costume is the most visually dynamic within her family which contrasts the fact that he is the only ungifted member of the Madrigals.
Mirabel's bag was inspired by the Mochica from the Wayuu Indigenous Community.
Mirabel has a classic Colombian skirt that allows for lots of movement when moving and dancing. Her skirt is the equivalent of a scrapbook for a teenage girl as be embroiders what art she is feeling or seeing. Her entire family is represented on her skirt through little details, and it shows just hoe much she cares for them. Her costume is imperfect and handmade.
Final Design:
Luisa
Luisa is the strong older sister of Mirabel who is gifted with incredible strength. She can pick up an entire church and move it with no problem, but she takes on too much pressure in order to maintain her status and tough exterior. She wears a traditional Colombian outfit with bloomers under her skirt so that she can be active. In the design of her skirt, there are small dumbbells that represent her talent.
While Luisa is strong and physically the largest person in her family, her femininity is not lost. She is dressed just like any other woman in her family and uses her outfit to her advantage. She can be strong and powerful but still love to dress up and wear dresses.
Final Design:
Isabela
Isabela is deemed to be the perfect child in the Madrigal family. She is beautiful, graceful, and can make flowers appear out of nowhere. She is eldest grandchild and carries the responsibility of maintaining perfection. She is betrothed to marry Mariano, the town's most handsome bachelor. However, Isabela does not want to marry him, she is only doing it for the good of the family. She wants to break free from exception, but does not know how.
"She's not rejecting femininity, she's not rejecting her gender expression, her makeup, or her dress; she's just becoming more of it on her own terms instead of having someone tell her what it should be. To have someone break free like that is so powerful and inspiring." - Samantha Vilfort, Story Artist
Isabela has an orchid embroidery around her neckline, because it is the national flour of Colombia. Her dress is inspired by all aspects of flowers from the embroidery to the layers that are made to look like petals.
Final Design:
Isabela's transformed dress can be viewed here (starts at 2:10):
Bonus fun fact:
Disney has a long standing tradition of making the villain of their films associated with the color green. It gives a creepy and "halloween-ish" vibe as it makes the viewer uneasy. Following this trend, "Encanto" puts is perceived villain, Bruno, in green and highlights that creepy shade in his depiction in "We Don't Talk About Bruno". The audience makes the costuming assumption about Bruno just as the story does that he must be evil. Well, turns out Bruno is just a nice guy who cares about his family! The costuming and fashion choice sways the audience in perceiving character traits without actually meeting the character until later on in the film.
"Moana" is the 2016 animated film from Disney that follows adventurer, Moana, on her quest to save her island from an ancient curse. Traveling with the demigod Maui, Moana will learn how to follow her passion of sailing while also making her tribe proud. This film was a wild success as it features a strong female lead, funny dialogue, and catchy songs. There is a lesson for everyone to learn in this film as we venture out on our own journeys to find who we really are.
For this analysis, we will be looking at Moana, the villagers, and the culture that influenced the design of this film.
Moana
Moana is the protagonist of the film and she is the village chef's daughter who dreams of being out on the ocean. When her home is in danger of destruction, Moana sails out in the middle of the night in order to find the answer on how to save the village.
Animators where challenged to design a character that was proportionally reflective of a teenager, steering away from the hyper-skinny models of past animated films. Along with proportions, they invested in adding interactions with her hair. Actress Auli'i Cravalho, who voiced Moana, could constantly play with her hair in recording sessions, so it was a realistic addition to the character.
"Moana is a fearless Oceanic princess. We wanted to make that relatable to today's audiences and pay tribute to Pacific culture." - Neysa Bové, Visual Development Artist
Moana's ceremonial outfit was inspired by the taualuça ceremony in Samoa. The bodice skirt is made of tapa and it is covered in pandanus leaves, feathers, and cowrie shells.
Here is a real modern example of the taualuça ceremony:
"Women and men from the Pacific Islands often wear their hair in a topknot. It was amazing to see how they would do it in one simple motion. I watched one lady wrap up and bun her hair in three seconds. It was so graceful...you could tell she'd done it a million times." - David Pimentel, Head of Story
Final design:
Villagers and Voyagers
The villagers and voyagers are supporting cast in this film and build the atmosphere for the world Moana lives in. Costume designer, Neysa Bové was able to create costumes within a limited world without common fabrics. She gained inspiration from high fashion and upped the look of these characters through color, print, and texture. She explained that because the villagers have settled for a long time, their clothing is more brown and dry. The voyagers are covered in color and vegetation from their travels and have a more lively fashion. The voyagers are more lean, muscular, and toned while the villagers are more common in body type as they are not engaged in the same rigorous physical activity.
"There are many ways to put the clothes together. Belts with feathers or flowers, skirts with clean edges or stems poking out, dried material dyed in different ways. They used seashells, sea urchin spines, or cowrie shells. Different types and colors of leaves. Ti leaves alone can range from lime green to fuchsia!" - Neysa Bové
The villagers can be seen here:
The voyagers can be seen here:
The culture
"Moana" explores Pacific culture through music, clothing, and storytelling. Audiences have grown to know the same cultures being represented for princess films, so it is important to venture outside expectation and to learn about new cultures. "Moana" is a labor of love from learning about Pacific culture and attempting to represent it well in a film for child audiences. When we start to think about where we can go next with storytelling, there's no telling "How Far I'll Go".
"Tangled" is the 2010 Disney film that brought the princesses to the CGI animation style. The story is an adaptation of the classic Rapunzel story with the added frying pans and musical numbers. The story follows the lost princess Rapunzel as she wishes to see the floating lights that appear on her birthday. Mother Gothel, however, will not allow her to leave her secluded tower. After the thief Flynn Rider accidentally breaks into the tower, the two adventure out to discover the lights, but they discover that they have found more than anticipated with a new relationship.
This film is personally special to me because it was the first film I remember seeing in the theaters where I knew I wanted to work in entertainment. The "I See the Light" sequence is still so vivid to me and I remember seeing it up on the big screen. Rapunzel is also my personal favorite Disney Princess, so I am excited to dive into these costumes. For this breakdown, we will be looking at Rapunzel and Mother Gothel.
Rapunzel
Rapunzel is the protagonist of "Tangled" and leads the way as a princess with a frying pan. She is a teenage girl longing for adventure outside of her tower, and discovers more than she was anticipating after leaving. Rapunzel is cheerful, optimistic, and sees the best in people.
"I think Rapunzel's character has a message that audiences will understand, either because they have the perspective that comes with growing up, or they are wondering what they will become because they're young. It's the question, when will my life begin?"- Clay Kaytis, Animation Supervisor
"Tangled" draws heavy inspiration from 1700's northern Germany, where the fictional kingdom of Corona is located. This location and time period guides the way for Rapunzel's costume which is a purple and pink corset dress.
Looking closely at this dress, the small details of the pattern and small lace pieces become apparent. Rapunzel is a creative artist and especially painter, so her dress reflects her creative aspects. The flowers follow the same art style she paints in, so it is inferred that she personally designed this dress. This dress is also cut above her feet which makes it easier to move and dance in. As we follow Rapunzel's many adventures, we see just how much she has to run, swim, and overall adventure while wearing this ensemble. Rapunzel's costume is as bright and cheery as she is and reflects her personality perfectly. It makes her stand out when visiting the village later in the film as all of the townspeople are wearing neutral colors. She is a beacon of light that shines within her world.
Another stand out about Rapunzel's costume is the nod to her being the lost princess. The kingdom she is from, Corona, has a purple and yellow coloring to it's logo which can be seen all through the kingdom in the above scene. Rapunzel has naturally chosen to wear purple as her main color without knowing that she was the princess. She also sports that blonde hair that represents the sun for the kingdom. There is so much storytelling that goes on with the costumes alone.
Rapunzel also sports extremely long hair that is a character on it's own. It is apart of who she is and her past and, spoiler alert, it all gets chopped off at the end. However, she gets to live her new life with her family and Flynn without attachment to the thing that caused her to be kidnapped in the first place. Rapunzel is a relatable, inspiring, and joyful princess that I adored growing up. Going through concept art, it's incredible to see just how much work went into perfecting this character and her overall look.
If you want to discover more concepts for Rapunzel, I highly recommend looking into Claire Keane's website. Claire was a visual development artist on "Tangled" and created the art style that Rapunzel paints in. She is also the daughter of legendary Disney artist, Glen Keane. She has tons of "Tangled" concepts on her website and even painted a mural of a Rapunzel-style wall within The Walt Disney Animation Studios, so check her out!
Final design:
Mother Gothel
The kidnapper of Rapunzel, Mother Gothel is a woman holding onto her youth though any means necessary. She convinces Rapunzel that the outside world is a cruel and dangerous place that would mistreat her, when in reality, she is the villain Rapunzel should be looking out for. After convincing Rapunzel that she is her mother, Gothel uses Rapunzel's magical hair in order to stay young looking and only uses that gift for herself. She is a woman who is obsessed with her looks and presents herself very differently than Rapunzel.
"Audiences have always been fascinated by villains. Their behavior is aberrant, they are seemingly more colorful than the average person, and they cause intense things to happen." -Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston, The Disney Villain
Mother Gothel is designed to be the opposite of Rapunzel. Dark curly hair, a dark red dress, and dressing in a more sensual way- it would be hard to believe they were related if you were just meeting them. Mother Gothel's dress is also from a different time period as she has been using the golden flower and Rapunzel to stay alive past her time. She looks outdated fashion wise within the context of the story, but it gives the audience the feeling that she has been around for a long period of time.
Final design:
Being the sequel to one of the biggest films of all time, "Frozen II" furthers the stories of sisters Elsa and Anna as they are called to adventure outside of their kingdom. Elsa is being called by an unknown voice out into the unknown, so what will these sisters discover while on their journey?
A major point of this film is the maturity of Elsa and Anna since their last film. The filmmakers wanted the maturity to be represented not only in the story, but also in costumes. This story takes place years later from the original film, so how have they grown?
Overall, both Anna's and Elsa's outfits have more mature silhouettes. We lost the dropped V-shaped bodice in favor of a more natural waistline and included lots of fine detail that is more somber than decorative." - Michael Giaimo, Production Designer
Not only have the costumes changed, but the technology has changed since the first "Frozen" film. Check out the video below explaining some of the key differences:
Anna
Anna's challenge in the film is trying to figure out where she fits in. Is she there to lead her kingdom, or is she just there to throw banquets? What is her relationship status with Kristoff? What does it mean for her to live her own life separate from her sister? These are all challenges Anna must face in order to find her true self.
Animators were challenged with the task of making Anna look older than the first film. Initially, their designs were coming back as too young, so the iconic double braids were traded in for a half up half down do that is most prevalent in the film. Anna's travel outfit was actually first designed for Elsa. but her design took another route, so it was given to Anna. The clothes are functional for travel but are still recognizable to appear royal. Anna's costume choices can best be described by Griselda Sastrawinata-Lemay:
"Anna's maturity in this film can be tracked by her clothing. At the beginning of the film, she wears an ivory dress to represent her youthful, playful personality. But her travel outfit is mostly black to show that she is strong and knows when to be serious. Her final outfit combines who Anna is with what Arendelle is. It includes her signature black but also incorporates colors reminiscent of Elsa's coronation dress, as well as the greens and purples of Arendelle. Each outfit incorporates a curved, scalloped design somewhere, at the hem, sleeves, or across the bodice, and they become less rounded and more squared off as she matures" -Griselda Sastrawinata-Lemay, Visual Development Artist
Final Design:
Elsa
Elsa moves into being the main character for this film as she adventures out of the Arendelle to find her calling, literally. Elsa stays within a cool toned color palette and balances between her outfits being made entirely out of ice and the practical needs of each situation. Elsa has a certain glow and glitter about her that makes her stand out compared to the other characters. She regal, yet adventurous as she utilizes her powers to find answers.
Elsa's costumes include ice crystals which animators created new technologies on order to achieve this goal. The texture of ice crystals is different than normal fabric, so research had to be done on how Elsa's cape would move and look. Elsa is a magical being, so her costumes needed to reflect her status and power.
Elsa's most beautiful outfit (in my opinion) is her final dress in "Frozen II". It was so special for the creative team, that there are six pages dedicated to that one outfit in the Art of Frozen II book. Below are images and quotes about this particular outfit:
"Elsa's epilogue costume signifies her final transformation. The main body of her dress is white velvet as a nod to her snow and ice origins, and the extended yards of organza in her cape and dress hem suggest the magical, elusive character she has always been. But the curved bodice silhouette indicates her newfound confidence, and the decorative adornments throughout the outfit, which display the iconography of the four elements, symbolically denote her deep connection to nature itself." - Michael Giaimo, Production Designer
"We retained Elsa's shape language but changed the design language to better reflect her journey in this film. So rather than using snowflakes as Elsa's signature motif, we used the elements, which are visually depicted as a diamond shape. The color of each diamond denotes which element it represents- air, earth, fire, water- in jewel tones from warm to cool. As Elsa discovers her connection to the elements, they become part of their aesthetic and appear in her clothing. By the end she incorporates the full spectrum of elements as well as her snowflake into her outfit." - Brittney Lee, Visual Development Artist
Final design:
Conclusion
This research project really opened my eyes to the many aspects of creating memorable and iconic costumes for animated Disney characters to wear. So much work and detail goes into the inspirations, color palettes, and movement of these costumes. I have found that many people don't think twice about the work that goes into animated films because they are deemed to be children's films, but in reality they are pieces of art that people of all ages enjoy. These costumes are represented in Disney Parks, in Halloween costumes, and in Disneybounding. Audiences become attached to these costumes and want to recreate or incorporate aspects into their everyday wardrobe. The fashion choices made in Disney films are something to be appreciated and studied as they not only make the characters look good, but they also tell us details about these characters. The power of costume design and fashion is perfectly represented in Disney Animation films, and I can't wait to see what they make next.
