Fun facts from Disney and Pixar’s Turning Red; streaming now on Disney+ Hotstar

HIDDEN GEMS – Pixar filmmakers are known to include key Easter Eggs in each film and “Turning Red” is no exception. Iconic elements were showcased with a film-style twist.  Filmmakers placed the Pizza Planet truck in Chinatown with a custom Chinese version of the Pizza Planet logo (as if it’s from a Chinatown franchise of the Pizza Planet chain). The Pixar Ball can be seen in Tyler's swimming pool.Nods to some Pixar SparkShorts include a miniature Purl that hangs as a keychain on Mei's desk, a Kitbull statue in Chinatown, and a Burrow rabbit sticker on the cover of Mei's notebook. The number from several Pixar veterans’ CalArts classroom, A113, can be seen on the chalk machine that Jin Lee operates near the end of the movie. To tease Pixar’s next feature film “Lightyear,” artists added stickers to Miriam's skateboard that pay homage to the celebrated Space Ranger.

GROWTH CHART – Red Panda Mei reaches about eight feet tall in the film, which is as about the same as a female Asian elephant from shoulder to toes.
• Many of the Red Panda Mei shots were from a camera position equal to Mei's usual height—a strategy that emphasizes the size of her new furry self.
• Red Panda Mei can't fit through her bedroom door, so filmmakers had be strategic as she moves from her bedroom to the bathroom.

LIVING POOF – In order to make Mei’s red panda parts poof away, her ears and tail were fully separate pieces of her body in the rig that was created for her character model. They could be added and removed easily to support the emotional moment.

HAIR-RAISING ANIMATION – The animation team controlled Red Panda Mei’s hair length and shaping to support her emotions—like a cat whose fur puffs up when agitated.

IN CONCERT – The layout department referenced boy band concert videos and large-scale halftime performances from the early 2000s while shooting the 4*Town concert scenes.
• The concert featured the most crowd characters in a single shot for the film: 30,685.
o The concert crowds were 93 percent teen and 7 percent adult.
• Mei’s crush Devin from the convenience store can be spotted snapping a picture at the 4*Town concert near the front row.
• The lighting team added more than 4,900 lights to the concert sequence. Most are stair safety lights—ensuring the safety of the thousands of animated crowds characters.
o A typical concert shot also featured 6,000 glow sticks.
• Members of the production created a boy band music video to introduce the directing animators to the rest of the studio. Each dressed up as a cool early-2000s band member. The “band’s” name was R.D.A. (Red Directing Animators)

SPOT THE RED PANDA – Artists embraced a red-panda motif in the design of the Temple. The iconic creature can be spotted carved into the wooden offering table, on ceramic roof tiles, and among the wind chimes, among other examples.

DESIGNER DUDS – Mei’s wardrobe changes with her character arc—evolving from a dutiful, buttoned-up daughter look to a more relaxed style as she embraces her messy side.

PAWN OFF – The chess move Mei plays with Mr. Gao was inspired by an established chess opening sequence called “Queen’s Gambit.”

UNDER WRAPS – Mei keeps a secret stash of items under her bed—things like drawings of boys or notes from her friends that her mom might not appreciate. Included here are pictures that were shot during the “Panda Hustle” sequence when Mei and her friends are using her Red Panda to raise funds for 4*Town concert tickets.

ALL IN THE FAMI-LEE – Both Jin and Ming’s family name before marriage is Lee, which is a common family name in the Chinese community. This explains why Mei’s name and the temple name in the story are both Lee.
• Ming’s side of the family has lived in Canada for generations but Jin is an immigrant.

THE EYES HAVE IT – Director Domee Shi, a huge fan of all things anime, wanted to infuse the film with nods to the style. To punch up the emotion in some scenes—when Mei and her friends saw a 4*Town ad, for example—artists would add, multiple highlights, sparkles, stars or hearts in their eyes. The look happens about a dozen times throughout the film.

NUMBERS GAME – “Turning Red” boasts some unique stats that help illustrate the details infused into Pixar’s feature films.
• 494 nightmare red pandas run over the roof of the temple in Mei's dream.
• 303 unique background characters were created.
• 14 unique background vehicles were built, which were used 527,562 times across 641 shots.
• 250+ shots in the film feature computer-generated wind.
Turning Red is now available on Disney+ Hotstar in English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam.