Pixar’s 'Wind' is a Korean grandmother’s legacy

PIXAR

A scene from 'Wind.'

ASAM NEWS

The story of Wind, the latest short film from Pixar’s Sparkshort program, is the inspiration of director Edwin Chang.
Meaww reports Chang created an underground world where a grandmother and grandson are trapped. They can’t get out and are forced to live on rocks. No rock is their permanent home as the wind keeps the rocks floating and forces them to move from boulder to boulder. They are determined to get out.

“It’s a metaphor for Korea, a metaphor for immigration, but personally it was inspired by my grandmother,” Chang explains to ABC7. “She was a single mother after the Korean War, and it’s inspired by everything she did to take care of her kids and my dad, feed them, educate them and eventually sending them all the way to the U.S. for a new life.”

Fiction yes, but definitely based on reality

“This makes it feel real. This really has consequences. It’s a real place,” he said.

Unfortunately Chang’s grandmother never got to see her grandson’s finished product. She died before the film could be completed, but she remains vivid through Wind and in Chang’s mind.

Meaww reports the film will leave you teary-eyed. Wind can be seen on the Disney Plus streaming service.

Wind and Float, another short Pixar animated film featuring Asian American characters, are part of an initiative called SparkShorts. 

“The SparkShorts program is designed to discover new storytellers, explore new storytelling techniques, and experiment with new production workflows," said Pixar president Jim Morris. "These films are unlike anything we’ve ever done at Pixar, providing an opportunity to unlock the potential of individual artists and their inventive filmmaking approaches on a smaller scale than our normal fare.”

Wind and Float can be viewed on the Disney+ streaming network.

Pixar introducing films by two of their Asian American artists

DISNEY PIXAR

Two Filipino American characters will be featured in the animated short film 'Float.'

PIXAR, the animation studio that gave us some of the best movies in recent years, will be releasing two short films by Asian American artists.

In a video posted on Disney Pixar's social media accounts, Bobby Rubio's animated short Float  and Edwin Chang's Wind are featured as one of the SparkShorts films for 2019. SparkShorts is a project under Disney Pixar, which showcases the short films created by the company's group of artists.

"I see it as a wonderful opportunity to tell my story," Rubio said of Float, which will have two Filipino characters, a first for Pixar.

Rubio, who has worked on animated films Tarzan, Avatar: The Last Airbender series, and Up shared how important it is to finally have characters that represent millions of Filipinos all over the world.

In Float, A father discovers that his son floats, which makes him different from other kids. To keep them both safe from the judgement of the world, Dad hides, covers, and grounds him. But when his son’s ability becomes public, Dad must decide whether to run and hide or to accept his son as he is.

"I am proud to tell our stories. I know what it means to see our culture represented on screen! #RepresentationMatters," he wrote.

"I am so grateful to tell our stories. I know what it means to be underrepresented... I’m going to do my best to tell MORE!" he wrote in another tweet.

DISNEY PIXAR

Artist Bobby Rubio has created Pixar's first film featuring with a Filipino theme.

Also announced in the SparkShort initiative is Edwin Chang who will be directing Wind.

Wind is a magical realism story about a Grandma and a Grandson trapped in a massive, never ending sinkhole, living on a large boulder suspended by strong winds. Together they scavenge falling debris to build an escape, hoping to find a better life in the outside world.

The short films in the SparkShorts program will hit YouTube starting February, but Rubio's film still has no release date.

DISNEY PIXAR

A scene from Edwin Chang's 'Wind.'

“The SparkShorts program is designed to discover new storytellers, explore new storytelling techniques, and experiment with new production workflows,” said Jim Morris, president of Pixar Animation Studios. “These films are unlike anything we’ve ever done at Pixar, providing an opportunity to unlock the potential of individual artists and their inventive filmmaking approaches on a smaller scale than our normal fare.”

Added Lindsey Collins, vice president of development for Pixar, “We want to nurture our future storytellers and encourage them to share their stories with the world. Who are the future directors and producers and what crazy new ideas do they have brewing? What is the next big breakthrough in our industry? Diversity and inclusion are at the heart of Sparkshorts. The program was created to provide opportunities to a wide array of artists—each with something unique to say.”

Rubio is currently on a separate project entitled Neighborhood Legend, starring yet another Filipina American character in a story set in his hometown of San Diego, California.

All of the shorts will be available on Disney+, the upcoming streaming service that Disney will launch in late 2019.