Exclusive: Lin-Manuel Miranda on composing songs for Disney's Encanto
Hitting theaters on Nov. 24 from Walt Disney Animation Studios is “Encanto,” the 60th feature film from the studio.
The film tells the tale of an extraordinary family, the Madrigals, who live hidden in the mountains of Colombia, in a magical house, in a vibrant town, in a wondrous, charmed place called an Encanto. The magic of the Encanto has blessed every child in the family with a unique gift from super strength to the power to heal—every child except one, Mirabel (voice of Stephanie Beatriz). But when she discovers that the magic surrounding the Encanto is in danger, Mirabel decides that she, the only ordinary Madrigal, might just be her exceptional family’s last hope.
The voices behind the entire Madrigal family were Stephanie Beatriz (Mirabel), María Cecilia Botero (Abuela Alma), John Leguizamo (Bruno), Mauro Castillo (Félix), Jessica Darrow (Luisa), Angie Cepeda (Julieta), Carolina Gaitán (Pepa), Diane Guerrero (Isabela), Wilmer Valderrama (Agustín), Rhenzy Feliz (Camilo), Ravi Cabot-Conyers (Antonio) and Adassa (Dolores).
The film is directed by Jared Bush (co-director “Zootopia”) and Byron Howard (“Zootopia,” “Tangled”), co-directed by Charise Castro Smith (writer “The Death of Eva Sofia Valdez”), and produced by Yvett Merino and Clark Spencer; the screenplay is by Castro Smith and Bush.
“Encanto” features original songs by Emmy, GRAMMY and Tony Award winner Lin-Manuel Miranda (“Hamilton,” “Moana”); Germaine Franco (“Dora and the Lost City of Gold,” “Little,” “Tag”) composed the original score.
For Miranda, he’s had one hell of a year. For “In The Heights” he produced, acted and composed music for the film. He’s an executive producer on the “Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go for It” documentary. He’s the executive producer, composer and leading voice on the animated film “Vivo” and he just made his directorial debut and composed music with “Tick, Tick... Boom!.”
In speaking with BlackFilmandTV.com’s Wilson Morales, Miranda spoke about composing the music for Encanto.