Pixar-acclaimed animation ‘Viva – A Vida É Uma Festa’ turns 5 in 2022; See curiosities!

In 2017, Pixar released one of its best and most beloved films: the incredible “Viva – A Vida É Uma Festa”.

Directed by Lee Unkrich, the plot revolves around young Miguel, who, despite his family’s ban on music for generations, dreams of becoming a talented musician like his idol Ernesto de la Cruz. Desperate to prove his skill, Miguel finds himself in the dazzling land of the dead. After meeting a charming thug named Héctor, the two new friends embark on an extraordinary journey to uncover the true story behind Miguel’s family history.

Bringing names like Anthony Gonzalez, Gael García Bernal, Benjamin Bratt, Alanna Ubach, Renée Victor and several others to the voice cast, the production was extremely acclaimed by critics and won two Oscar statues – Best Animation and Best Original Song . Additionally, it was a box office smash, grossing over $807 million worldwide and is considered one of the studio’s best forays.

To celebrate its fifth anniversary, we’ve curated a short list with some behind-the-scenes trivia, which you can check out below:

Take the time to watch:

The orange blossom seen throughout the film is the Aztec marigold (also known as the Mexican marigold or Cempasúchil). The flower is used in the Dia de los Muertos tradition in Mexico to guide the dead to the living. The film contains certain themes and content that, in theory, would be banned in China. Apparently, members of the Chinese censorship board were so thrilled with the film that they made an exception and allowed it to be shown in theaters.

COCO (Pictured) – UN POCO LOCO – In Disney•Pixar’s “Coco,” budding musician Miguel (voice of Anthony Gonzalez) teams up with a charming con man named Héctor (voice of Gael García Bernal) to solve a family mystery several generations old. Their extraordinary journey through the Land of the Dead includes an unexpected performance of “Un Poco Loco,” an original song in the son jarocho style of Mexican music written by co-director Adrian Molina and Germaine Franco for the film. “Coco” opens in U.S. theaters November 1. 22, 2017. ©2017 Disney•Pixar. All rights reserved. Originally, Miguel was only going to play guitar and not sing. When Unkrich discovered that Gonzalez was indeed a talented singer, it was decided that Miguel would do both so Anthony could share his talent in the film. ‘Viva – A Vida É Uma Festa’ has spent more days at number one at the worldwide box office than any other animation released in the 21st century.

John Ratzenberger, long considered Pixar’s lucky charm, appears in the feature, like everyone else at the studio. Here he plays a ghost named Juan Ortodoncia. He is the skeleton who can travel to the land of the living because his dentist remembers him. The Land of the Dead look is inspired by the Mexican town of Guanajuato, which has colorful houses arranged on the slopes, so they appear almost stacked. Among the main cast, Bernal is the only actor to voice his character in both the English and Spanish versions, although most of the actors are Latinos.

Land of the Dead uses a lot of old-school technology – for example, a 1980s Macintosh computer and walkie-talkie radios. The choices make sense given that, in a sense, these technologies are dead. The conductor of Ernesto de la Cruz’ musical “Sunrise Spectacular” is a caricature by illustrator-composer Michael Giacchino, who commissioned the original soundtrack for the animation. When Miguel runs to the plaza to get his shoes shined, he passes piñatas to sell. They include Woody and Buzz from ‘Toy Story’ and Mike from ‘Monsters Inc’.

The door to the Land of the Dead office is marked with Pixar’s famous Easter egg code A113, named after the California Institute of the Arts classroom where many Disney and Pixar artists studied. One of the deleted scenes, titled “Ataque dos Alebrijes”, features Miguel and Héctor eating tangerines on their way to Plaza de la Cruz – just like the young boy did with Mamá Ines at the start of the film. Be sure to watch: