Moana (2016 film) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Moana |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by |
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| Produced by | Osnat Shurer |
| Screenplay by | Jared Bush |
| Story by |
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| Starring |
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| Music by |
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| Cinematography |
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| Editing by | Jeff Draheim |
| Distributed by | Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures |
| Release date(s) | November 14, 2016 (AFI Fest) November 23, 2016 (United States) |
| Running time | 107 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $150–175 million |
| Money made | $687.2 million |
Moana is an animated musical adventure film from 2016. It was made by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The film was directed by John Musker and Ron Clements.
The movie features the voices of Dwayne Johnson and Auliʻi Cravalho. Auliʻi Cravalho made her film debut as the main character, Moana. The film has original songs by Lin-Manuel Miranda, Opetaia Foaʻi, and Mark Mancina. Mancina also created the film's musical score.
Moana is set in ancient Polynesia. It tells the story of Moana, a strong-willed chief's daughter. The ocean itself chooses her to return a special relic to the goddess Te Fiti. When a problem threatens her island, Moana sails to find Maui, a legendary demigod. She hopes to return the relic and save her people. The story is inspired by real Polynesian myths.
The film first showed at the AFI Fest in Los Angeles on November 14, 2016. It was then released in theaters in the United States on November 23. Critics really liked the film. They praised its animation, music, and the voice acting. The movie earned over $687 million worldwide. Moana was nominated for two Academy Awards: Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song ("How Far I'll Go"). A sequel, Moana 2, came out in November 2024. A live-action version is planned for 2026, with Dwayne Johnson playing Maui again.
Contents
The Story of Moana
The film begins on the Polynesian island of Motunui. The people there worship Te Fiti, a nature goddess. Long ago, she brought life to the ocean using a special stone as her heart. This stone was the source of her power.
One day, Maui, a shape-shifting demigod, stole Te Fiti's heart. He wanted to give humans the power to create. But this caused Te Fiti to fall apart. Maui was then attacked by Te Kā, a fiery demon. Maui lost both the heart and his magic fish hook in the sea.
A thousand years later, the ocean chooses Moana. She is the daughter of Motunui's chief, Tui. Her task is to return the heart to Te Fiti. Moana's parents, Tui and Sina, want her to stay safe on the island. They prepare her to become the next chief.
Sixteen years later, a problem hits the island. Plants die, and there are fewer fish. Moana wants to go beyond the island's reef to find more fish. Her father, Tui, forbids it. Moana tries to cross the reef but is pushed back by the waves.
That afternoon, Moana's grandmother, Tala, shows her a secret cave with old ships. Tala explains that Motunui's people were once great voyagers. They stopped when Maui stole Te Fiti's heart, making the ocean unsafe. Tala says Te Kā's darkness is destroying the island. She tells Moana that finding Maui and restoring the heart will fix everything. The ocean had given the heart to Tala, and she now gives it to Moana. Tala later becomes very sick and tells Moana to find Maui.
Moana sails from the cave on a special boat called a camakau. Her silly pet rooster, Heihei, secretly comes along. A big storm hits, and they crash on an island. There, Moana finds Maui, who brags about his past deeds. Moana demands he return the heart, but he refuses. He traps her in a cave and leaves on her boat.
Moana escapes and catches up to Maui. He reluctantly lets her join him on the boat. They are attacked by Kakamora, who are coconut pirates looking for the heart. Moana and Maui are clever and outsmart them. Moana realizes Maui is not a hero anymore because he cursed the world. She convinces him to make things right by returning the heart.
First, Maui needs his magic fishhook. It is in Lalotai, the Realm of Monsters. A giant coconut crab named Tamatoa has it. Moana distracts Tamatoa while Maui gets his hook. But he cannot control his shape-shifting powers. Tamatoa overpowers him. Moana's quick thinking helps them escape with the hook.
Maui then shares his story. His first tattoo came from being abandoned by his human parents as a baby. The gods felt sorry for him and gave him his powers. Moana reassures him. Maui teaches her how to navigate the ocean, and he regains control of his powers. They become good friends.
They reach Te Fiti's island but are attacked by Te Kā. Moana refuses to turn back, and Maui's hook gets badly damaged. Maui does not want to lose his hook again, so he leaves Moana. Moana feels hopeless and asks the ocean to find someone else. The ocean takes the heart away. But Tala's spirit appears, encouraging Moana to follow her true path.
Moana gets the heart back and sails to face Te Kā again. Maui returns, having changed his mind. He fights Te Kā to give Moana time to reach Te Fiti, destroying his hook in the process. Moana cannot find Te Fiti. She then realizes that Te Kā is Te Fiti, but corrupted without her heart. The ocean opens a path for Moana. She returns the heart to Te Fiti. Te Fiti then heals the ocean and the islands.
Maui says sorry to Te Fiti. She fixes his hook and Moana's boat. Te Fiti then falls into a deep sleep and becomes an island. Moana says goodbye to Maui and Te Fiti. She returns home and reunites with her parents. Moana places a shell on the stack of stones, just like all past chiefs. She takes on her role as chieftess and wayfinder. She leads her people as they start voyaging again, with Maui by their side.
Meet the Voice Cast
- Auliʻi Cravalho voices Moana. Moana is a curious girl, daughter of Chief Tui and Sina. The ocean chooses her to restore Te Fiti's heart.
- Auliʻi Cravalho also voiced Moana in the Hawaiian-language version of the film.
- Louise Bush voices young Moana.
- Dwayne Johnson voices Maui. He is a legendary, strong, but sometimes annoyed shapeshifting demigod. He joins Moana on her journey.
- Rachel House voices Tala. She is Moana's grandmother and Chief Tui's mother. Tala loves the ocean, just like Moana, and they have a very close bond.
- Rachel House also voiced Tala in the Māori-language version.
- Temuera Morrison voices Tui. He is Moana's overprotective father and the chief of Motunui Island.
- Temuera Morrison also voiced Tui in the Māori-language version.
- Christopher Jackson is Tui's singing voice.
- Jemaine Clement voices Tamatoa. He is a giant, greedy coconut crab from the Realm of Monsters.
- Jemaine Clement also voiced Tamatoa in the Māori-language version.
- Nicole Scherzinger voices Sina. She is Moana's mother and the chieftess of Motunui.
- Nicole Scherzinger also voiced Sina in the Hawaiian-language version.
- Alan Tudyk voices Heihei. He is Moana's silly pet rooster.
- Alan Tudyk also voices Villager No. 3, an old man who suggests cooking Heihei.
- Oscar Kightley voices a fisherman.
- Troy Polamalu voices Villager No. 1.
- Puanani Cravalho (Auli'i Cravalho's mother) voices Villager No. 2.
How Moana Was Made
Developing the Idea
After directing The Princess and the Frog, John Musker and Ron Clements started thinking about new ideas. In 2011, Musker began reading about Polynesian mythology. He learned about the brave deeds of the demigod Māui. He thought the rich culture of Polynesia would be perfect for an animated film.
In 2012, Clements and Musker traveled to Fiji, Samoa, and Tahiti. They wanted to meet the people of the South Pacific and learn about their culture. At first, they planned to make the film only about Maui. But their trips inspired Clements to focus on a young chief's daughter instead.
The directors were surprised to learn that Polynesian people stopped long-distance voyages about 3,000 years ago. They started voyaging again a thousand years later. Clements and Musker set the film during this time, about 2,000 years ago. The fictional island of Motunui was inspired by real islands like Fiji, Samoa, and Tonga.
Over five years, the filmmakers worked with experts from the South Pacific. They formed an "Oceanic Story Trust." This group helped make sure the film was culturally accurate. For example, they did not like Maui being bald, so he was given long hair.
Writing the Story
Taika Waititi wrote the first version of the script. Early ideas included Moana having many brothers, but this was changed. The directors wanted Moana's journey to be about her finding herself. Another idea was for Moana's father to want to sail again. This was changed so he would oppose sailing, making Moana's journey more important.
Pamela Ribon came up with the idea of a grandmother character. This grandmother would guide Moana and connect her to old traditions. The story changed a lot during development, which is common for Disney films.
Aaron and Jordan Kandell helped make the emotional parts of the story stronger. They helped create the bond between Moana and Maui. They also developed the prologue, the Cave of the Wayfinders, the Kakamora, and the crab Tamatoa. Jared Bush wrote the final version of the screenplay.
In 2015, some big story problems were found. Don Hall and Chris Williams joined as co-directors to help fix these issues. The scene where Maui and Moana meet the Kakamora was inspired by the movie Mad Max: Fury Road.
Choosing the Voice Actors
Filmmakers auditioned hundreds of people from across the Pacific. Finally, 14-year-old high school student Auliʻi Cravalho was chosen to voice Moana. It was a coincidence that she looked a lot like the character. Disney animators even added some of Auliʻi's own movements into Moana's actions in the film.
Most of the film's voice actors are of Polynesian descent. Auliʻi Cravalho and Nicole Scherzinger (Moana's mother, Sina) are from Hawaii. Dwayne Johnson (Maui), Oscar Kightley (Fisherman), and Troy Polamalu (Villager No. 1) are of Samoan heritage. Rachel House (Moana's grandmother, Tala), Temuera Morrison (Moana's father, Tui), and Jemaine Clement (Tamatoa) are of Māori heritage from New Zealand.
Bringing the Animation to Life
Moana was the first fully computer-animated film for directors Clements and Musker. Computer animation was chosen because it made the ocean and environments look much better. The filmmakers also felt that 3D computer animation was great for showing the faces of the people from the South Pacific.
Eric Goldberg worked on the hand-drawn animation for Maui's moving tattoos. In the final film, only Maui's tattoos are hand-drawn.
The film was made in a large warehouse in North Hollywood. This was because Disney Animation's main building was being renovated. Production finished on October 20, 2016.
The Music and Soundtrack
The film's soundtrack was released on November 18, 2016. The songs were written by Opetaia Foa'i, Mark Mancina, and Lin-Manuel Miranda. Mancina also wrote the musical score. The songs feature lyrics in English, Samoan, and the Tokelauan language. The soundtrack became very popular, reaching number two on the Billboard 200 chart.
The song "How Far I'll Go," written by Lin-Manuel Miranda, was nominated for Best Original Song at the Academy Awards.
Different Languages of Moana
In many European countries, the name "Moana" was changed to "Vaiana" because of a trademark issue. In Italy, the film was called Oceania.
Disney decided to create special dubbings (versions in other languages) for Moana. On October 25, 2016, it was announced that the film would be the first movie fully dubbed in the Tahitian language. This Tahitian version was given to schools but not sold to the public.
In June 2017, a Māori-language version of the film was announced. It premiered in Auckland on September 11. Many theaters showed it for free during Māori Language Week. Rachel House, Jemaine Clement, Temuera Morrison, and Oscar Kightley all voiced their characters again in Māori. This version was available for purchase in Australia and New Zealand.
In November 2017, a Hawaiian-language version was announced. Auliʻi Cravalho and Nicole Scherzinger voiced their characters again. This version premiered on June 10, 2018. Like the Tahitian dubbing, it was given to schools in Hawaii for free.
Release of the Film
On October 20, 2014, Walt Disney Pictures announced the film would be released in late 2016. They later confirmed the release date as November 23, 2016. The film was shown with a short film called Inner Workings. The world premiere was held on November 14, 2016, at the El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles.
On January 27, 2017, a sing-along version of Moana was released in over 2,000 theaters in the United States. This version had the song lyrics on screen.
For Disney's 100th anniversary, Moana was re-released in theaters in October 2023. This re-release included the short film Once Upon a Studio before the main movie.
Watching Moana at Home
Moana was released on Blu-ray and DVD in the United States on March 7, 2017. It was available digitally on February 21, 2017. These releases included the short film Inner Workings. The Blu-ray also had a new short film with Maui and Moana called Gone Fishing.
The film sold 4.4 million units and made $116.3 million from home video sales. This made it the best-selling film of 2017 for home viewing. Moana also became available on the streaming service Disney+ when it launched on November 12, 2019. A sing-along version was added to Disney+ on July 22, 2022.
Moana's Bigger World
Because the film was so successful, Moana was officially added to the Disney Princess group. She was the 12th princess to join the lineup. In 2021, Moana was the second most-streamed film. People watched it for 8.9 billion minutes!
Theme Park Fun
On October 16, 2023, a new water attraction called Journey of Water Pavilion opened at EPCOT in Walt Disney World Resort. This attraction is part of Disney's 100th anniversary celebration.
What's Next for Moana?
A sequel, Moana 2, was released in theaters on November 27, 2024. It was first planned as a TV series for Disney+.
A live-action movie of Moana is also being made. It will be produced by Dwayne Johnson, who will play Maui again. Johnson said this story is important to his culture and people. Thomas Kail is set to direct the film. The live-action movie is planned for release on July 10, 2026.
On June 12, 2024, it was announced that Catherine Laga‘aia will play Moana. Other actors include John Tui as Chief Tui, Frankie Adams as Sina, and Rena Owen as Gramma Tala.
In Spanish: Moana (película de 2016) para niños
See Also
- House of Moana
- Māui (mythology)
- Māui (Hawaiian mythology)
- Polynesian narrative
- Polynesian navigation
- Polynesians
- Austronesian peoples
- Whale Rider - A New Zealand film that might have influenced Moana. Rachel House, who played Tala in Moana, was also in this film.
