This story about “Strange World” first appeared in the Awards Preview issue of TheWrap awards magazine.
“Strange World” is an unusual film for Walt Disney Animation Studios. There are no princesses or enchantments, and the song is very short and more of a joke than anything else. Follow the Clade family, a group of explorers who are always fighting against what is possible. After Jaeger Clade (Dennis Quaid) goes missing, his son Searcher (Jake Gyllenhaal) ends up with an even greater discovery: Pando, a farmable energy source that turns his kidnapped kingdom into a technological powerhouse. But when the power source begins to fail, Searcher must embark on a journey to uncover the mystery and save the world from him. To save the world you must travel inside it.
His descent into the strange world of the film’s title is one of the most gripping in the film. His airship, the Venture (designed by Disney superstar Cory Loftis), is attacked on the first leg of its arduous journey. During this sequence, we also learn that Searcher’s son Ethan (Jaboukie Young-White) and the pilot’s wife Meridian (Gabrielle Union) have joined the adventure, along with their charming three-legged dog Legend.
“That’s the scene where it becomes like, ‘OK, this is going to be one of those movies where a group of explorers finds a hidden world full of creatures and they get attacked,’” said director Don Hall. “It had to come together.” The sequence, which carries so much thematic and narrative weight, wasn’t put together until late in production. “When we were putting that scene together, we weren’t even sure exactly where things were until relatively late in the game,” Hall said. “That made things a little difficult, but it helped that it was a dark scene. It was meant to feel claustrophobic – you don’t have much depth of field. Is contained. This is in direct contrast to when they finally reach the strange world, which opens up into a colorful, creature-filled cornucopia full of bright colors and strange shapes. “That was all very intentional,” Hall said.
The sequence also allows beauty and danger to coexist. The ship’s pilot, Duffle (voiced by Disney’s good luck charm Alan Tudyk) is eaten by one of the creatures, a shocking moment that energizes the film. “His death of him did two things,” Hall explained. “He Created an opportunity for Meridian to have an act of heroism (she ultimately pilots the airship), but she also brought into play, like death, (that) it could be around any corner.”
But the descent to the planet also allowed viewers to appreciate the beauty of this new world. “I felt strongly that I wanted to have a moment to acknowledge the beauty of Pando, because there is that moment where you are seeing the roots,” Hall said. “The seeker would be amazed, because no one has seen Pando from this point of view before.”
Learn more about the awards preview here.
