Pixar'sTurning Redtells the story of Mei Lee, a teenage girl from a family where all women turn into red pandas whenever they feel intense emotions. This magical gift -or curse -puts Mei on the path to changing her problematic relationship with her overprotective mother, Ming.
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Like all Pixar films, Turning Red is full of details that add new dimensions to the film, some of which aren't noticeable on the first watch. The obvious metaphor for puberty is barely the surface of this magical tale that was carefully crafted by talented Pixar creatives. There are many things about Turning Redthat make it a very worthy watch for the whole family.
10 The Film Takes Place In 2002
Turning Red takes place in Toronto, Canada in May 2002. This information isn't explicitly stated in the moviebutmany details point to it. For instance, the SkyDome where 4*Town holds their concert is located in Toronto and there's a small homage to the Canadian flag in Mei's maple leaf t-shirt.
TurningRed features a 2002 calendar andis full of references to teenage culture during the first years of the 21st century. For example, Mei has a Tamagotchi, a virtual pet gadget that was particularly famous during these years. What's more, she and her friends listen to boy band CDs and share friendship bracelets, which were very popular among girls in the '00s.
9 It Includes Many References To Chinese Culture
In recent years, Disney and Pixar have made sure to expand their horizons when it comes to culturalrepresentation in their films. For instance, Coco's plot revolves around the Day of the Dead, one of Mexico's most important traditions. Another case is Encanto, which is heavily rooted in Colombian culture. Turning Red introduces Mei, a teenager of Chinese descent, specifically Cantonese. Although Mei and her relatives live in Canada, the film includes many references to this culture.
For example, red pandas are endemic to China and the chant her family sings during the ritual to seal the panda is a Cantonese song. This connection can be found even in the smallest details. For instance, Mei's mother mentions that the number four is unlucky, which is a common Chinese superstition - given that the Chinese word for "four" sounds similar to "death."
8 It's The First Pixar Film Directed By An Asian Woman
Domee Shi, Turning Red's director, was born in Chongqing, Sichuan. Her family migrated to Canada when she was only two years old, so she was raised in the middle of both cultures. Animator, director, and screenwriter, Shi has been working for Pixar since 2011, but Turning Red marks her first feature film.
RELATED: 10 Valuable Lessons We Learned About Growing Up From Turning Red
Turning Redmakes Shi the first Asian woman to ever direct a movie for Pixar. In fact, Turning Red is only the second Pixar film directed by a woman - the first one was Brave, directed and written by American director Brenda Chapman.
7 It Uses A Lot Of Green
Even though it's called Turning Red, this film uses a lot of green. This color can be found primarily on the walls of Mei's room, on her bed covers, on her relative's clothing, and on the Auntie Squad red panda talismans. Of course, this is far from a coincidence.
According to basic color theory, red and green are complementary colors. In Chinese culture, green symbolizes cleanliness, harmony, and purity, among other things. These are all traits that Ming, Mei's mother, expects her daughter to have.
6 Billie Eilish & FINNEAS Wrote The Music For 4*Town
The main arc of Turning Red revolves around Mei and her friends' wishes to attend a 4*Town concert. This fictional boy band is a key element of the girls' friendship. Besides, it adds to the nostalgic 2000s feeling that permeates Turning Red. The group -formed by Aaron Z., Aaron T., Robaire, Jesse, and Tae Young -is inspired by other boy bands, such as *NSYNC and O-Town.
4*Town's music was created by Billie Eilish and her brother FINNEAS, who managed to capture the true essence of the '90s and '00s pop music. Although 4*Town is only a fictional band, their song Nobody Like U has around 60 million hits on Youtube and Spotify combined.
5 Turning Red's Director Has An Oscar
Turning Red is Domee Shi's first feature film. However, in 2018, she wrote and directed Bao, the Pixar short film that accompanies The Incredibles 2. This short film follows a Chinese woman with empty nest syndrome as she develops a mother-son relationship with a sentient dumpling she cooked.
Bao is only a short filmand is just under10 minutes long. However, it's a beautiful reflection on motherhood, very similar to Turning Red. Even though it's a fairly recent addition to Pixar's short film catalog,Baois one of the company's most successful productions. In 2019, it earned Domee Shi an Oscar for Best Animated Short Film.
4 4*Town Was Referenced In Luca
Pixar movies tend to include easter eggs about other films from the company as an homage. For example, Nemo from Finding Nemoappears as a toy in Boo's room in Monsters, Inc. Of course, Turning Red includes several easter eggs (such as the Pizza Planet truck from Toy Storyin the background). In addition to this, Turning Redis referenced in a previous Pixar moviewhichis uncommon becauseeaster eggs usually reference previous films.
RELATED: 10 Easter Eggs You Missed In Pixar's Luca
Although this is 4*Town's first official appearance in Pixar, the group were mentionedin Luca, Pixar's previous film. InLuca, a 4*Town record can be seen in Giulia's room next to her phonograph. However, instead of being a 4*Town album, the band is called 4*Villagi, which is the Italian translation for the English name.
3 The Film Almost Had A Villain
For many years, Disney and Pixar movies had a somewhat basic formula that involved the antagonistic relationship between two characters, the hero and the villain. More recently, this formula has been modified. Now, films follow the hero's journey instead, as Frozenor Encanto do. This is also true for Turning Red, which focuses on Mei and her curse.
However, it wasn't always the plan. In earlier stages of production, Ming wasn't a supportive and loving mother. Instead, she would try to monetize Mei's red panda, exploiting her daughter for money. This changed after the creators noticed that it made Ming a less complex character.
2 It Was Inspired By Many Other Films And Series
According to Domee Shi, Turning Red is heavily inspired by two films. The first is the Studio Ghibli film My Neighbor Totorobecause it also features a giant but friendly magical beast. Additionally, she mentioned A Goofy Movie, which follows the complicated relationship between a father and his son, who doesn't want to be treated like a kid anymore.
Besides these two films, Domee Shi mentioned that classic anime also inspiredTurning Red's visuals, which explains Abby's twinkly eyes when she sees Mei's panda for the first time. This inspiration can also be found in Turning Red's plot. For example, she used a similaridea of a transformation being triggered, which is similar toRanma 1/2, Inuyasha, and Fruits Basket.
1 Mei's Friends Actually Have Last Names
The movie only provides their first names but according to Turning Red's official website, Mei's friends' full names are Abby Park, Miriam Mendelsohn, and Priya Mangal. Her nemesis-turned-friend is Tyler Nguyen-Baker. This means Miriam is likely Jewish, Priya is Indian, Abby is Korean and Tyler islikelyhalf-Vietnamese.
This information isn't relevant to the plot, but it points out the importance of Turning Red when it comes to representation.
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