Elemental: An immigrant story of sacrifice, acceptance, bridging differences to hit theaters
"The whole thing is about bringing a lot of different points of view together," the director said.
On Friday, Disney/Pixar will release its first original film in theaters since the start of the pandemic.
Elemental is an animated, coming-of-age romantic comedy that explores cultural differences in the most basic analogy: the elements.
6abc's Alicia Vitarelli spoke with the cast about this ambitious and emotional project.
Pixar invented a new technology to bring the movie to the big screen. For the cast and creative team, the story is deeply personal.
Here, we meet the residents of Element City: air, water, earth, and fire.
Leah Lewis is the voice of Ember, the daughter of immigrants. Ember's family believes that elements don't mix.
"It's great to be able to represent those communities out there, and anyone who has come to a new place in general and feels uncomfortable, and is trying to find their place," Lewis says. "I related very heavily to that familial aspect, and just sacrifice in general."
Mamoudou Athie is the voice of Wade, a water element.
"It's a dream come true, being a part of this," Athie says.
He calls this story a love letter to his family.
"My dad was a diplomat in Mauritania," Athie explains. "We had to leave under political exile and begin again, completely. That's a very common story of immigrant families."
The story belongs to director Peter Sohn, the son of Korean immigrants.
As a child, he saw a beautiful metaphor in the periodic table of elements.
"The whole thing is about bringing a lot of different points of view together, and bridging them together," Sohn says. "The movie is about diversity and mixing."
Wendi McLendon-Covey from 'The Goldbergs' is Gale, a wind element.
"We need to kind of remember that our differences bring us together, or could bring us together if we let them," McLendon-Covey says.
This is a film about living out of your element.
The cast says: bring tissues.
"People should be prepared," Lewis laughs.
'Elemental' took nearly 7 years to make.
It's in theaters worldwide on June 16.
