Continuing our summer Disney movie series I am going to share about three press conferences I attended during the Toy Story 4 junket. This is part one. You can read part 2 here.
I sat in the same theater room where we screened Toy Story 4 and in walked members of the Toy Story 4 cast, including the iconic Tom Hanks, voice of Woody.
I sat beside a new friend I met that morning. Zack, who writes for D23. We’d been geeking out about Disney news all morning and now here we were within reach of some Disney legends.
The press conference was only about 15 or 20 minutes. I didn’t even try to ask a question because, well after interviewing Oprah and meeting her at the after party, I decided I was just going to sit back and let others have their big moments. I just wanted to be present and soak it in.
I’m sure a quick google search will take you to all sorts of articles about the press conference and get you a play-by-play of the entire interview. One of my friends wrote a great one. But I wanted to focus on something that stood out from each press conference for me.
During this press conference it was Tom Hanks talking about what Toy Story means to so many of us. I shared this during the press conference and a lot of you responded to this as I did.
“Woody still is this three dimensional emotional bag that kids carry around with them,” Hank said. “What I have truly appreciated is that no matter how old you are now, when you see one of the movies, you’re the same age you were when you saw the first one. And there is not a bump, there’s not a jolt. There’s no nostalgia. Nothing ages poorly. It’s exactly as it was and sort of always will be.”
via Disney
This is what I tried to explain when I shared my review of Toy Story 4. It took me back to when I was 9 watching the first movie for the first time. Except this time I was beside my almost 9-year-old daughter. And it was as if we were the same age, enjoying a timeless classic.
He went on to say that it’s not just about the stories or the characters, but the emotional bond we form with them all.
“And I have always been dazzled when they have come back and said we’re going to try another one,” Hanks said.
ORLANDO, FLORIDA – JUNE 08: Tom Hanks visits Toy Story Land at Disney’s Hollywood Studios on June 08, 2019 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by John Parra/Getty Images for Disney)
Yes, the creators were bold. They did it again. And this time, arguably better than the others.
Toy Story 4 hits theaters this weekend! June 21st. Go see it then come back and let us know what you think!
If there’s one thing that stands out in Disney’s “A Wrinkle in Time” it’s the immaculate costumes. It’s one piece of the puzzle I couldn’t quite put together when reading the story. Then again, I didn’t picture the three Mrs to be so gorgeous. I imagined old ladies wrapped up in bedsheets. Not glamorous dresses.
If you’ve seen the movie you know how stunning the costumes are, and how MANY there are. It seems as though every other scene the three Mrs had different dresses on.
The man behind those designs is Paco Delgado, and our group had the opportunity to talk to him about his inspiration while we were in Los Angeles last month. He said the tiny words on Mrs. Who’s costume cape were first inspired by graffiti.
“I was thinking, you know, that you walk into the streets, and graffiti is amazing… I don’t think a lot of people have really stopped to think about it. But graffiti is an amazing artistic expression,” Delgado said. “It’s not just, making a drawing of a butterfly. It’s like saying a message.”
Paco Delgado; photo via: Louise Manning Bishop / MomStart.com
And that’s what led him to realize Mindy Kaling’s character Mrs. Who could have something like graffiti all over her dress. Then he thought of ways he could evolve the words beyond just the English language.
“We all use the Latin alphabet, but on that, I just thought, you know, I mean, she embodies all the culture,” Delgado said. “She has to have Chinese. She has to have, you know, an invented alphabet. Consistently being in the universe. And maybe she speaks a language of a culture that we haven’t encountered yet. Or maybe in 200 years we will encounter them.”
For more on our interview with costume designer Paco Delgado just search #WrinkleinTimeEvent on Twitter and you’ll see many more perspectives. And in case you are totally in the dark about A Wrinkle in Time, here’s a bit to get you up to speed:
Visionary director Ava DuVernay comes Disney’s “A Wrinkle in Time,” an epic adventure based on Madeleine L’Engle’s timeless classic which takes audiences across dimensions of time and space, examining the nature of darkness versus light and, ultimately, the triumph of love. Through one girl’s transformative journey led by three celestial guides, we discover that strength comes from embracing one’s individuality and that the best way to triumph over fear is to travel by one’s own light.
Disney
Meg Murry is a typical middle school student struggling with issues of self-worth who just wants to fit in. The daughter of two world-renowned physicists, she is intelligent and uniquely gifted, as is Meg’s younger brother, Charles Wallace, but she has yet to realize it for herself. Complicating matters is the mysterious disappearance of Mr. Murry, which has left Meg devastated and her mother broken-hearted. Charles Wallace introduces Meg and her fellow classmate Calvin to three celestial beings (Mrs. Which, Mrs. Whatsit and Mrs. Who) who have journeyed to Earth to help search for their father, and together they embark on their formidable quest. Traveling via a wrinkling of time and space known as tessering, they are transported to worlds beyond their imagination where they must confront a powerful evil force. To make it back home to Earth, Meg must face the darkness within herself in order to harness the strength necessary to defeat the darkness rapidly enveloping the Universe.
Directed by Oscar® nominee Ava DuVernay from a screenplay by Oscar winner Jennifer Lee based upon the beloved novel by Madeleine L’Engle, “A Wrinkle in Time” stars: two-time Academy Award® nominee
Oprah Winfrey as Mrs. Which, Oscar winner Reese Witherspoon as Mrs. Whatsit, Emmy® nominee Mindy Kaling as Mrs. Who, Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Mrs. Murry, Michael Peňa as Red and introducing Storm Reid as Meg Murry, with two-time Emmy winner Zach Galifianakis as The Happy Medium and Emmy nominee Chris Pine as Mr. Murry.
“A Wrinkle in Time” opened nationwide on March 9, 2018. [You can read our Wrinkle in Time kid’s review here.]
We met A LOT of people during Disney’s press day for “A Wrinkle in Time”. One of the cute cast members was Rowan Blanchard who plays Veronica Kiley, the bully in the film.
During our interview she spoke a bit about the the bullying and comparisons she felt while attending public school.
Rowan Blanchard “Veronica Kiley”; Photo: Louise Manning Bishop / MomStart.com
I think it’s just this horrible sort of competition is bred between girls, especially in those years that we’re talking about,” she said. “It is really reduced to your body and your appearance. And so, your entire worth is based in what clothes you’re wearing and if you have the cool backpack.”
She recalled how much time she invested in finding the right things that were cool for school.
“And looking back on that now, that doesn’t matter. But it feels like it matters so much in the moment,” Blanchard said. “All these things that are so stupid in retrospect but [in the moment] feel like the most important thing in the world.”
I was impressed with her maturity and candidness. While she spoke to us she rubbed her arms and said she was nervous because she had never met Oprah and she was so nervous. And she confessed she has to remind herself to be a warrior every day.
“It’s not something that is a very conscious thing where I feel totally empowered and fearless every day,” Blanchard admitted. “There are some areas that I feel more confident and then others. Going off on that panel with Oprah, Reese and Mindy, I felt like the odd one out. I will tell you guys the truth. But like, that’s a second where I have to be like, ‘I deserve to be here and like, I’m here, a part of something bigger than myself.'”
She said there are so many moments every day where she has to remind herself that she deserves to be in the room.
Disney
For more on our interview with Rowan Blanchard just search #WrinkleinTimeEvent on Twitter and you’ll see many more perspectives. And in case you are totally in the dark about A Wrinkle in Time, here’s a bit to get you up to speed:
Visionary director Ava DuVernay comes Disney’s “A Wrinkle in Time,” an epic adventure based on Madeleine L’Engle’s timeless classic which takes audiences across dimensions of time and space, examining the nature of darkness versus light and, ultimately, the triumph of love. Through one girl’s transformative journey led by three celestial guides, we discover that strength comes from embracing one’s individuality and that the best way to triumph over fear is to travel by one’s own light.
Meg Murry is a typical middle school student struggling with issues of self-worth who just wants to fit in. The daughter of two world-renowned physicists, she is intelligent and uniquely gifted, as is Meg’s younger brother, Charles Wallace, but she has yet to realize it for herself. Complicating matters is the mysterious disappearance of Mr. Murry, which has left Meg devastated and her mother broken-hearted. Charles Wallace introduces Meg and her fellow classmate Calvin to three celestial beings (Mrs. Which, Mrs. Whatsit and Mrs. Who) who have journeyed to Earth to help search for their father, and together they embark on their formidable quest. Traveling via a wrinkling of time and space known as tessering, they are transported to worlds beyond their imagination where they must confront a powerful evil force. To make it back home to Earth, Meg must face the darkness within herself in order to harness the strength necessary to defeat the darkness rapidly enveloping the Universe.
Directed by Oscar® nominee Ava DuVernay from a screenplay by Oscar winner Jennifer Lee based upon the beloved novel by Madeleine L’Engle, “A Wrinkle in Time” stars: two-time Academy Award® nominee
Oprah Winfrey as Mrs. Which, Oscar winner Reese Witherspoon as Mrs. Whatsit, Emmy® nominee Mindy Kaling as Mrs. Who, Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Mrs. Murry, Michael Peňa as Red and introducing Storm Reid as Meg Murry, with two-time Emmy winner Zach Galifianakis as The Happy Medium and Emmy nominee Chris Pine as Mr. Murry.
“A Wrinkle in Time” opened nationwide on March 9, 2018. [You can read our Wrinkle in Time kid’s review here.]
My husband and I have been going back and forth on baby names for months. We don’t agree. I’ve rambled off dozens of names and get shot down time and time again.
Just when I thought we may never agree we had a breakthrough. I was telling my husband how inspired I was by Ava DuVernay. How she was the first black female director with a film budget of $100 million. How important and meaningful her films are. And how she’s breaking glass ceilings and lifting others up with her. I told him I will never forget how she made me feel when I gave her a hug and told her how much her work meant to me and our daughter. How she really saw me, and how she spoke about being a light in the darkness (something I’m always telling our children). And how she even said hello to our nameless baby in utero.
“What if we name the baby Ava?” I said.
I waited for his immediate “nope” but he stood silent for a moment. Was he listening? Did he tune me out?
“I like it!” He said. I couldn’t believe it.
“Really?”
“Yes, it sounds good and I like names that have meaning,” he said.
“Ok, but can we add a ‘y’?” I asked. “Maybe A-Y-V-A?”
He wasn’t enthusiastic about the additional letter but he didn’t object. Both of our kids have names containing ‘Y’ so I’d like to carry on the tradition.
Thrilled that we’d finally agreed, I did a quick search to see how popular it is.
Will you believe it’s the 3rd most popular baby name of 2018?
Coming from a Jennifer, I know how this feels. Going by first name, last initial in a class where five other people share your name. Or you get a nickname like Jenn, Jen or Jenny. Gah!
Our name decision is still murky, but something that’s crystal clear is the powerful impression Ava DuVernay left on me. I knew she was an incredible, inspiring, amazing woman. But what I didn’t realize was how genuine, spiritual, and down to earth she is.
In tears she told us about her nervous call to her mother before her first A Wrinkle in Time junket.
“I said ‘mommy, I’m going to the junket. I’m gonna share the movie for the first time with people who are gonna see the movie for the first time. I don’t know what they’re gonna think,'” Ava recalled. “She said ‘Avy, you did your best.’ I was like a little girl again. ‘You did your best, babe and, you know, your best is good enough and so pretty. It’s just like you. You’re the best girl in the world.'”
Well I think Ava’s mom was right. Ava did an incredible job and I think the world is going to be pretty impressed with how pretty it turned out.
The Message She Hopes You Receive
Movies are powerful. They can make an impact on the world, and that’s what Ava hopes to do with hers. She wants everyone to leave feeling full.
“I just want them to be meaningful. I don’t want them to be junk food where you come in, you see the movie and you walk out and you forget about it by the time you get to the car,” Ava said. “I want the images to stick to your ribs like soul food, I want you to think about the stories or get something from the narratives or the way that the camera moves or the way that something looks. You know, just try not to let it be empty calories, you know, a meal and I think, you know, the only way to do that is to put love in every frame.”
Now she’s turned to make another impactful film, this time in a different genre. Ava said her films are her children. After her award-winning films Selma and 13th Ava really wanted to do something for children.
Disney
“You know, I put my blood into them. It’s really what has my name on it. It’s what I’ll leave behind in the world and so to be able to make something specifically for kids today, something that I hope endures for kids, you know, for a long time to come was very emotional to me,” Ava said. “I really want it to be a seed that blossoms into something beautiful in young people about the way that we treat each other and the way that we see ourselves and the way that we’re seen and so that’s really what I’m hoping. I mean movies have the power to do that.”
When I took my daughter to see the film and one thing she mentioned after was how it was “funny”, but not “a funny movie” and that’s exactly what Ava said she wanted.
“Yes, kids like to laugh but kids also like to think,” Ava said. “They like to feel”
Without any input from me, my 7-year-old daughter walked away from A Wrinkle in Time making her own connections between the messaging in the movie, and Dr. Martin Luther King’s message.
Ava’s hope was to keep the intention of Madeleine L’Engle’s book the same. She wants to remind people to plant seeds with young people and remind them that they can be a light in a world of darkness.
Disney
“It’s like if you could say to kids, if you could understand that you alone, can make a difference just in your world,” Ava said. “You don’t have to be Gandhi, you don’t have to be King. You don’t have to be Malala. In your day, when you go to school, when you see a kid being bullied, and you don’t talk about people, and you behave the right way and you grow up to be empathetic, whole hearted person in the world you have to start right now.”
Ava’s Secret of Daily Gratitude
You’re more than just a number to Ava DuVernay. If she counts you during her day, consider it a big compliment.
“I do this thing all day and I don’t talk to a lot of people about it but I do this thing all day where I count gratitude so throughout the day,” Ava said. “So at the end of the day when I say goodnights to myself and to the universe or to God I’ll say 13 or 47 or whatever. And in that moment I can’t remember all the things they were but like I’ll count them. So today I’m on 19. You all are 20 right, about the things that I’m grateful for in this moment.”
Doesn’t that just give you all the warm and fuzzies? But of course she keeps it real.
“And some days you’re going through the day and you’re like I got three. Good night,” she said.
It’s her prayer and reminds her to be grateful of the little things through the day. From a smile, to someone who lets her in the left turn lane late, or a great parking spot.
“If you just take a second to acknowledge it, it gives you a little jolt of joy,” Ava said.
I’ll Never Forget
Ava DuVernay’s words still reverberate through my soul. I will never forget the way her sincere hug calmed me on one crazy premiere night. Or the way her gaze and gratitude for my compliments made me feel like she saw me for who I am. Like Maya Angelou said “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
Maya. That’s is another good name. Amaya. A little of both.
Namesake or not, I know we are going to be seeing so much more from Ms. DuVernay. And I imagine the name Ava is going to be one we hear for a long long time.
You guys, A Wrinkle in Time is now playing in theaters everywhere!
I adore a beautiful passion story. That’s exactly what came through during our interview with Gugu Mbatha-Raw during Disney’s A Wrinkle in Time. I loved her in the movie “Belle” and I adored her part in Disney’s “A Wrinkle in Time” as well.
I’ve usually got my emotions locked down pretty tight but maybe it’s the pregnancy hormones, or maybe it was just that good, but there’s a scene with Mbatha at the end of the film that has brought me to tears twice in a row.
During our interview we spoke about everything from the film to hobbies to fragrances, and big dreams.
She said something she loved about the film was all of the great lines about being yourself.
Gugu Mbatha-Raw (“Dr. Kate Murry”): via Louise Manning Bishop / MomStart.com
“I think Oprah has the line you know all you have to do is find the right frequency and be who you are,” Mbatha said. “And I was like, that’s the key to life, isn’t it? Just find the right frequency. Find your tribe. Find your purpose. Find the thing that sets you alight and you know your frequency, your vibe and then just do that, do you, be authentic.”
There were some pivotal moments in her childhood that made her realize she really wanted to follow her passions.
“My mom was a nurse,” Mbatha said. “She was a single parent. She worked full-time. She didn’t enjoy her job. I would see her come home from work really tired. And you know I remember thinking quite clearly when I was about 11, I was like ‘okay, I’m going to do a job that I love because I can see that this is wearing on my mom.”
She knew it was a sacrifice on her mom’s part for her, but it inspired her to follow her dreams. “If I get the chance I’m going to do what I love,” she decided. “So I made my hobby my job basically.”
Disney
In case you are totally in the dark about A Wrinkle in Time, here’s a bit to get you up to speed:
Visionary director Ava DuVernay comes Disney’s “A Wrinkle in Time,” an epic adventure based on Madeleine L’Engle’s timeless classic which takes audiences across dimensions of time and space, examining the nature of darkness versus light and, ultimately, the triumph of love. Through one girl’s transformative journey led by three celestial guides, we discover that strength comes from embracing one’s individuality and that the best way to triumph over fear is to travel by one’s own light.
Meg Murry is a typical middle school student struggling with issues of self-worth who just wants to fit in. The daughter of two world-renowned physicists, she is intelligent and uniquely gifted, as is Meg’s younger brother, Charles Wallace, but she has yet to realize it for herself. Complicating matters is the mysterious disappearance of Mr. Murry, which has left Meg devastated and her mother broken-hearted. Charles Wallace introduces Meg and her fellow classmate Calvin to three celestial beings (Mrs. Which, Mrs. Whatsit and Mrs. Who) who have journeyed to Earth to help search for their father, and together they embark on their formidable quest. Traveling via a wrinkling of time and space known as tessering, they are transported to worlds beyond their imagination where they must confront a powerful evil force. To make it back home to Earth, Meg must face the darkness within herself in order to harness the strength necessary to defeat the darkness rapidly enveloping the Universe.
Directed by Oscar® nominee Ava DuVernay from a screenplay by Oscar winner Jennifer Lee based upon the beloved novel by Madeleine L’Engle, “A Wrinkle in Time” stars: two-time Academy Award® nominee
Oprah Winfrey as Mrs. Which, Oscar winner Reese Witherspoon as Mrs. Whatsit, Emmy® nominee Mindy Kaling as Mrs. Who, Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Mrs. Murry, Michael Peňa as Red and introducing Storm Reid as Meg Murry, with two-time Emmy winner Zach Galifianakis as The Happy Medium and Emmy nominee Chris Pine as Mr. Murry.
“A Wrinkle in Time” opened nationwide on March 9, 2018. [You can read our Wrinkle in Time kid’s review here.]
A few weeks ago my daughter and I finished reading Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time.
We’d been studying it as a part of our homeschool curriculum. I hadn’t told her a Disney movie was in the works and coming out the next month. But as soon as we finished to book I pulled up a picture of a magazine cover featuring Storm Reid as Meg, the main character in the book.
“That’s Meg? My daughter asked. “She looks like me!”
My 7-year-old has looked up to so many heroines she sees in books and films she likes. From Annabeth Chase in the Percy Jackson series, to Disney show stars like Dove Cameron. Meg is another character she’s fallen in love with and now, thanks to director Ava DuVernay she easily sees herself even more in her.
I was thrilled to meet Storm Reid, tell her this, and what she and her character mean to us, and how families like ours really need this.
“How does it feel being this next generation like heroine that’s multicultural and, an inspiration to little girls, who look like you?” I asked.
“It means everything to me,” Storm said. “And it’s very empowering for me still as a young, little black girl being able to represent the little girls that look like me and being able to give them hope and know that they can have any opportunity they want to have and they can do anything no matter their big hair or their big nose, as people say. Or their glasses or their skin tone. They can do anything. So, for me able to be that for them and be an inspiration and to uplift them and empower them in a time like this where everybody’s so divided and it’s so dark. It means a lot.”
Not only is this girl beautiful and super cool, she’s smart and a good role model too.
If you asked my 14-year-old self where I’d like to tesser to (for those not familiar with the story, terrering is traveling anywhere in the universe, time or space) I probably would have said the mall, or Disney World. But Storm has a much bigger idea. She said if she could tesser anywhere, she would want to go back to the Civil Rights Era.
Disney
“I think I would like to go the past during — with my knowledge as Storm, as this 14-year-old girl, go back into the Civil Rights Movement and just see how I would deal with that and cope with that and with my knowledge now and see how I would deal with those things and come back and see how I could kind of change the future,” she said. “Because I feel segregation and inequality is still going on. So, if I could have that knowledge of how I experience that and how I could’ve changed that and come back here in times like this, that would be really cool.”
Storm said she knew she wanted to be an actress when she was just three years old. 11 years later she’s staring in a Disney remake of one of the best children’s books in history. Talk about dreams unlocked.
I can’t wait for my kids to see this movie. Especially my daughter to see Storm up on the big screen as Meg, representing girls all over the world. Girls who love science, girls with poofy curls, girls who have dark skin and wide noses. Beautiful girls who can see themselves in her, and realize they too can do anything.
A Wrinkle in Time premieres Friday March 9th in theaters everywhere!
Wonder why I’m forever calling my son “crazy” or my little “wild card”? Wonder why I have an abundance of gray hairs? Well, you’re about to witness the reason.
I asked Big T to sit down so I could asked him some questions. I showed him last year’s birthday interview to refresh his memory of the process, and I incentivized his participation with a bribe of an extra birthday gift.
The result? Well, for one, an extremely frustrated mom.
He wouldn’t sit still and answer my questions. I asked the same thing over and over because he insisted on being difficult. A week went by and I left the video alone before I finally sat down to edit it. Expecting to be utterly disappointed with the result.
But as I pulled up his interview, I couldn’t stop laughing. Yes, he was all over the place. And yes, he was being so silly, and difficult and just… HIMSELF. Why should I expect him to be sit still serious when that’s absolutely not him?
I told my husband about my revelation and he told me something I’ll never forget.
“The point isn’t to get perfect answers, it’s to capture his personality. And you did that.”
I'm a part-time journalist, full-time wife and mother striving to make the world a better place and inspiring others to do the same. This is the space where I share my journey in making the most of every day.
