Senior Correspondent

First Transgender Pixar Role, 22 Vs Earth, and Luca – It’s A Wrap!

Luca News Round-Ups Shorts SparkShorts

The Academy Awards are this evening, so we’ll be intrigued to see how Pixar fare with their nominations. But they’ve been up to a lot in the meantime! Here’s a Woody’s Round-Up of a bunch of very exciting Pixar news.

Pixar Are Casting For A Transgender Girl Role

It’s been confirmed from various sources, including SparkShorts producer David Lally, that Pixar are indeed casting for a 14 year-old transgender girl role. They’re looking for an actress aged between 12 and 17 who can accurately portray a 14-year old transgender girl, so we’re hoping – and expecting – that they will choose an actress who is a transgender girl herself.

We don’t know what upcoming project this will be for, so this is just speculation but: it seems likely that this will be for a future SparkShort. SparkShorts so far have done a really excellent job at telling stories and featuring characters that usually aren’t represented very well in media. Loop featured a girl with autism, and director Erica Milsom has gone on to say that they worked with a non-verbal girl with autism to get the voice-over just right. We can’t wait to see where this upcoming project goes from here.

Luca – It’s A Wrap!

Luca is officially complete! Director Enrico Casarosa has tweeted about the wrap on Luca, saying that both the visuals and the sound mix are now done and dusted. June 18th isn’t long away now, when Luca will release on Disney+.

22 Vs Earth Confirmed For Release On Disney+

22 Vs Earth will release on Disney+ on April 30th. It’s a short film in the Soul universe, focusing on Tina Fey’s character 22 before the events of the feature film. Here’s the official synopsis:

“Ever wonder what new soul 22 has against Earth in Disney and Pixar’s Soul22 vs. Earth will explore this as she defies the rules of The Great Before and refuses to go to Earth, enlisting a gang of five other new souls in her attempt at rebellion. However, as her cohorts’ activities lead to unexpected results, 22’s subversive plot may actually lead to a surprising revelation about the meaning of life.”

In Pixar Animation Studios’ “22 vs. Earth,” new soul 22 (voice of Tina Fey) enlists a gang of five other new souls in her rebellious refusal to go to Earth. But her cohorts’ activities lead to unexpected results. Set before the events of Disney and Pixar’s “Soul,” “22 vs. Earth” is directed by Kevin Nolting and produced by Lourdes Alba. © 2021 Disney/Pixar. All Rights Reserved.

Pixar’s Earth Month Celebrations

And finally – Pixar have been celebrating Earth Month in a really lovely way. Artists at the studio have been creating comics about various wildlife conservation stories across the world, helping raise awareness struggles and hopefully inspiring many of us to find out how we can help.

Our favourite might be the pangolin comic, by artist Wesley Fuh, but they’re all absolutely wonderful. Check out any of Pixar’s social media channels to catch up on them!

Tags: , , , , Last modified: April 25, 2021

Joanna Peaker is a Senior Correspondent for Upcoming Pixar. Joanna's love for Pixar blossomed after watching Up for the first time in 2009, and it has continued to grow ever since. Joanna brings an artistic eye to Upcoming Pixar, delivering a unique editorial perspective on Pixar's aesthetics.