Disney movies are a staple of many childhoods, and part of what makes them stick out is the many cultures and settings that they attempt to depict. However, Disney's track record when it comes to this is anything but perfect, as whether if those things are depicted properly or not has come into question many times.
When looking at Disney’s history, an obvious trend rears its ugly head. Many a time the focus was on straight white men, they were the main characters , they were prominent supporting characters, they comprised most of the cast and were essentially the entirety of the movie. Only now and in recent years is that beginning to change, and young people are taking notice. Such as Jose , a student here at Carver E&S who’s an avid consumer of media.
“ I think we’ve come a long way from most movies starring a scrawny white guy in the underdog role getting the girl," Jose said. "In recent years we’ve been getting main leads such as Xochitl Gomez, Stephanie Beatriz, Pedro Pascal and Anthony Gonzalez. Whilst most of these actors are of Latino heritage, this doesn't take away from the rise in diversity we’ve been seeing in recent movies."
Following this rise in diverse actors and characters he mentioned, he also discussed the various cultures beginning to appear and their importance, as more steps are taken to include everyone in the ability to see themselves on the big screen.
“ From what I saw in Coco, everything seemed to be an almost mirror representation of my own experiences in Mexico, from the food, family and way of life portrayed, nothing ever came close to breaking the cultural immersion the movies had set up. “ he said.
But even when we see changes, shortcuts are still taken. Sometimes not all of the aspects of a character are addressed , and it leaves some wondering as to why things are left out. Another fan , Isabella , shared her thoughts.
“ I think that they might not show certain aspects of a character because they either don't like the people they're trying to “ represent “ or avoid it because of people crying over how “ woke “ movies are becoming. “ she said.
Purposeful neglect and the misconstruing of characters and their identities through ignorance and or stereotypes was commonplace Disney's earlier days. Many racially biased character designs have appeared throughout the many movies/shows they released, some subtle and others very evident. Jose chimed in, sharing his thoughts on this topic.
“ When talking about stereotypes in Disney movies, the first thing to come to mind are the crows from Dumbo, being of course, a play of the Jim “ Crow “ era of American history, not to mention the way in which the Natives from Neverland are portrayed in the 1953 Peter Pan movie. “ he said.
For those who aren't privvy to these examples, both can be likened to racist and stereotypical depictions of African Americans and Native Americans from and before the Jim Crow era. The Native Americans sport red skin, a flagrant visual stereotype, whilst the Crows in Dumbo perform dances that are strikingly similar to minstrel performances talk in a very stereotypical manner through strung together colloqials and shoddy accents.
In today's world, racially charged depictions such as those two would never make it past the drawing board, as there are people every color and creed influencing the design process now. Which begs the question of how these people are affecting said process and how do people within their communities as well as other lesser represented groups feel about their influence.
Isabella gave further insight here, as the topic hits close to home for her.
“ It’s a good thing in most cases, especially someone within the community that can show the good as well as the bad within it through a character. For example, how beautiful the culture is but also how bad the stereotypes or expectations that people within that culture face are. “ she said.
Returning to her reasoning for this view, she touched on her own experience.
“ I see that they’ve been implementing more and more LGBTQ+ characters into their movies and that makes me feel seen, however I’d also like to see them expand further into other cultures and experiences properly as well so that everyone can share that feeling of validity.