The makers of the live-action version of Moana said the new film does not aim to reproduce the hugely successful 2016 animated movie, but rather to offer a new cinematic experience that preserves the essence of the story and characters while using live-action capabilities to add more realism and emotional depth to the events. They stressed that the project was based on respect for Polynesian culture and involved people from the region at various stages of production, from acting to music and design.

The statements from director Thomas Kail, actress Catherine Laga'aia, and composer Lin-Manuel Miranda came during a press conference organized by Golden Globe voters, which "Al-Sharq" attended virtually, ahead of the film's release. They discussed behind-the-scenes production and the challenges of bringing one of Disney's most famous films to live-action.

The plot of Moana, the new live-action version of the Oscar-nominated Disney film, follows young Moana (Catherine Laga'aia) who responds to the ocean's call and ventures beyond the reef surrounding her island of Motunui for the first time. She embarks on a perilous sea voyage with Maui (Dwayne Johnson) to restore prosperity to her people and save her homeland.

The film also stars Rena Owen as Grandma Tala, John Tui as Chief Tui, and Frankie Adams as Sina. It is directed by Thomas Kail and produced by Dwayne Johnson, Beau Flynn, Danny Garcia, Hiram Garcia, and Lin-Manuel Miranda, who also contributes to original songs alongside Opetaia Foa'i and Mark Mancina. Mancina composed the film's score.

A Key Question

Kail said the project began with a key question that stayed with the team from the early stages of preparation: how to present a film known to millions of viewers without becoming a carbon copy of the original. He explained that the goal was not to "correct" or replace the animated film, but to reintroduce it through real actors who bring a different feel to the characters while preserving the values and messages that made the original so popular.

He added that having real actors gives the story a different energy, making human relationships more prominent, while the camera allows for exploring new details in the characters. He noted that the film includes scenes added specifically for the live-action version, along with a fresh performance of the famous songs that fits the cinematic nature of the work.

He explained that his background in musical theater played a key role in shaping the film, especially since music is not a separate element from storytelling for him, but a means to reveal characters and drive the plot forward. This facilitated his collaboration again with Lin-Manuel Miranda, whom he described as a creative partner he has known for over two decades, saying his songs served as a "compass" for the team throughout filming because they clearly define the psychological state of the characters and their development trajectory.

Kail spoke at length about choosing Catherine Laga'aia to portray Moana, stressing that the production team reviewed more than 32,000 submissions from open casting calls before seeing her audition tape performing the song "How Far I'll Go."

He said the first minutes of her audition were enough to convince him she was the heroine he was looking for, as she combined essential character traits such as courage, empathy, lightheartedness, and the ability to balance strength and vulnerability, along with what he described as an "innate presence" that is hard to explain but distinguishes some actors from the very first moment. He considered that the film could not have truly begun before finding its lead.

A New Experience

For her part, Catherine Laga'aia described the experience as entering the film industry through its biggest doors, as the film marks her first leading role. She said every stage—from auditions to filming to the press tour—was completely new, but she considered it an opportunity for rapid learning, benefiting from a team with vast experience in this type of large-scale production.

She added that watching the original film when she was nine years old made the character close to her for years, so she felt a great responsibility toward the children who will watch the live-action version. She expressed hope that they would find the same inspiration she found in the original, but this time through real characters on screen.

She said the most important thing she discovered while portraying the character was the amount of courage a young girl needs to leave her island alone on a journey across the ocean in search of her destiny. She explained that the animated film makes this adventure seem relatively easy, while live acting allowed her to realize the difficulty of the experience and what it requires in terms of self-confidence and determination to make a decision despite others' opposition.

Regarding the filming process, Laga'aia noted that the toughest days were those that required working in water. She would return to the boat after every shot soaking wet, then be prepared again for the next take. She considered the biggest challenge not the water itself, but imagining the world the character sees, as most scenes were filmed in water tanks or studios, not in the open ocean. This required her to rely on imagination to convince the audience that she is looking at a horizon that didn't exist during filming.

A Realistic World

Kail explained that the team did not rely entirely on visual effects. Several shots were actually filmed in the ocean off the coast of Hawaii using a real boat, and huge water tanks were used for sailing and storm scenes. He noted that Laga'aia underwent training and performed difficult scenes in tanks up to about three meters deep, while specialized teams, including trained naval personnel, handled underwater filming to make the sensation of the sea as real as possible before completing scenes with digital effects.

The director emphasized that realism was not limited to water but extended to building the entire village and filming many scenes in natural locations in Hawaii, then integrating them with characters and fantasy elements like Te Kā and Tamatoa using visual effects. They were careful not to make these characters look like mere digital copies from the original film, but as beings that fit into the realistic world of the new version.

A Different Model for Disney Princesses

Kail believes that Moana represents a different model for Disney princesses because she does not rely on a traditional romantic story but on a journey of self-discovery and taking responsibility. He considers that the live-action version maintains this core idea but gives the character more room to express her internal conflicts through direct acting performance. He said one of the messages the film wanted to emphasize is that a person does not have to choose between their identity and their ambition but can combine both, citing the key song "I Am Moana" which expresses the heroine's ability to be both the daughter of the island and the explorer at the same time.