The Water

Diz Co. rolls out the next animated epic:

... Sequences [of Moana] screened at Annecy, some of which were nearly complete and others at storyboard or early animation stages, included an opening that explains the myth behind Moana’s predicament and a scene where she uncovers the secret of her tribe. Another beautifully rendered sequence shows an infant Moana stepping into the sea for the first time, with the Disney team doing wonders to make the ocean a character in and of itself. (Water has always been one of the toughest things to animate, and its clear that Clements and Musker went, um, overboard to make the Pacific come alive.) ...

The water scene is the one I watched at Tujunga. And The Reporter isn't exaggerating; the water is a character, whirling, rearing up and interacting with the young Moana.

The other element that grabbed me was the quality of light in every scene of the picture I've seen. The skies are the kind if deep, tropical blue you encounter in South Florida and Hawaii, and the water has a crystalline clarity to it.

Oh. And the characters seem to be pretty good, too. Entertaining, you know?