Disney’s Encanto has become one of the studios most beloved animated features on the strength of its fabulous songs (written by Lin-Manuel Miranda), amazing animation (directed by Byron Howard and Jared Bush), and a heartfelt story about a girl who doesn’t feel special among her extraordinary family.
The movie, first released in theaters in November 2021, tells the story of Mirabel Madrigal and her extended family, who live together in a small village in Colombia. Every member of the family —except for Mirabel— has been born with a magical gift, and Mirabel must confront her fate and her family’s expectations in order to save the family and their home.
Though Mirabel is Encanto’s central protagonist, her family plays an important role in contextualizing her journey and embodying the movie’s themes. io9 sat down with Encanto’s creative team, and they explained how each of the Madrigals’ abilities reflects important elements of who they are as people.
Disney’s Encanto is now streaming on Disney+.
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Mirabel Madrigal (voiced by Brooklyn 99's Stephanie Beatriz) discovered on her fifth birthday that unlike the other members of her family, she wasn’t born with a magical power. Now fifteen years old, she’s become alienated and feels less important to the family than her siblings—but she may turn out to be the most special Madrigal of all.
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Luisa (Jessica Darrow), the middle sister of the Madrigal family, is both physically powerful and hiding a secret, according to co-director Jared Bush. But where Isabela uses her charm and flowers to mask her feelings of sadness, Luisa hides a wellspring of “oversized emotions” behind her impressive super strength and stoic demeanor.
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While Mirabel loves her family, her relationship with her eldest sister Isabela (Doom Patrol’s Diane Guerrero) is notably icy, and made difficult by the way that everyone sees Isabela as a perfect child. The elegant and graceful way Isabela wields her ability to control plant life makes it that much easier for people to see her as a perfectionist, but co-director Jared Bush explains that this very perception is what makes Isabela feel trapped—something she tries to hide from everyone.
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Out of all the Madrigal children, Dolores (singer Adassa) is the one who’s most well-informed about everyone else’s business. That’s thanks to her magical super-hearing cluing her into what others say, even when they don’t mean to be heard.
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Even by the Madrigals’ extraordinary standards, Mirabel’s Aunt Pepa (Carolina Gaitán) is considered a bit extra at times due to her emotional temperament and the way her feelings directly impact the weather around her. Thankfully, her husband Félix (Mauro Castillo), another ordinary man, is there to keep her grounded.
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Mirabel’s father Augustín (Wilmer Valderrama), an ordinary, accident-prone man, married into magic after meeting her mother. Julieta (Angie Cepeda) is the town doctor who also possesses the ability to heal people through the food she cooks. “So of all the Madrigals, she’s probably got it the most together, and she’s a good caretaker for this town,” co-director Byron Howard explained. “And her voice has that wonderful warmth and professionalism that every doctor should have.”
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Félix and Pepa’s oldest son Camilo (Runaways’ Rhenzy Feliz) is still in the process of figuring out who he is, but by the time he’s introduced in Encanto, he’s already skilled at controlling his power to shapeshift into other people’s physical forms.
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Mirabel is closest with her youngest cousin Antonio (Ravi-Cabot Conyers), who can speak with animals. He doesn’t begrudge Mirabel for her lack of powers and looks to her for strength and friendship,
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We don’t talk about Bruno.
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The matriarch of the family Madrigal is Mirabel’s grandmother, Abuela Alma. She’s voiced by María Cecilia Botero with singing by Olga Merediz. Alma was the member of the family who received their magical gift, and has protected the magic and the family ever since.
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Source: Gizmodo