Even though Sina does not allow Moana to go anywhere near the sea like Tui does, Moana shares a loving relationship with her mother. Sina also warns Moana that sometimes who they wish they could be is just not meant to be, referencing Moana’s love for the ocean while comforting her daughter. After Tala’s death, Moana immediately leaves Motuni to start her question restoring the Heart of Te Fiti alone without the aid of her father or any of her people. As she journeys to save her people, Moana still holds some care towards her father, despite the last time they have spoke as she has a nightmare of witnessing both her parents being affected by Te Kā’s curse.
Believing she’s failed as a sailor, Moana declares that she is not fit for the sea and wishes to place her stone on the mountain. She tells this to Gramma Tala, who responds by showing Moana a hidden cave created by their ancestors long ago. Moana learns that she’s drawn to the sea because her ancestors were voyagers. When asked why their voyaging stopped, Tala explains that it was Maui’s doing, referring to his crime of stealing Te Fiti’s heart, which filled the seas with monsters and demons. Tala reveals that she was there the day the ocean chose Moana and gave her the heart of Te Fiti, and still has it in her possession. Not knowing how to sail, Moana rushes to her people and asks for their assistance in restoring the heart.
- Having witnessed her unselfish kindheartedness with the baby sea turtle, the ocean chooses her to receive the heart of Te Fiti, but when Tui arrives and takes her back to the village, Moana inadvertently leaves the heart at the shore.
- Once she followed her grandmother’s advice, Moana discovered she and her people were descended from voyagers who sailed beyond the seas to find new islands.
- Unknown to Moana, Nalo, furious at having his curse broken by her and Maui, swears revenge on both of them.
- When they approach Motufetu’s location, Nalo unleashes his storm on them, with Maui being forced to double-back to take out some of the tornadoes going for Moana and her crew.
- Moana orders him to return the heart, but upon seeing it, Maui tries to leave the boat, only to be brought back by the ocean.
He is overpowered by Tamatoa, but Moana’s quick thinking allows them to escape with the hook. Maui reveals his first tattoo was earned when his human parents abandoned him as an infant, and the gods, taking pity on him, granted him his powers. After reassurance from Moana, Maui teaches her the art of way-finding, regaining control of his powers, and the two grow closer.
Moana is an American media franchise created by Ron Clements and John Musker and produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios. It follows the adventures of Moana, a Polynesian princess and the daughter of the chief of Motunui, who sets sail across the ocean to restore the heart of Te Fiti and save her island from a curse. Along the way, she meets the demigod Maui, who becomes her ally and friend.
They Know The Way: Making The Music Of Moana
She demands Maui return the heart, but he refuses and traps her in a cave before leaving on her boat. They are attacked by Kakamora, coconut pirates who seek the heart, but Moana and Maui outwit them. Moana tries conquering the reef, but is overpowered by the tides and shipwrecked. That afternoon, Moana’s grandmother Tala shows her a secret cavern of ships and reveals Motunui’s people were voyagers until Maui stole Te Fiti’s heart; the ocean was no longer safe without it. Tala explains Te Kā’s darkness is destroying the island, but can be cured if Moana finds Maui and has him restore the heart of Te Fiti.
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- The ocean carries Moana to Maui’s island, where the two meet and fail to see eye to eye.
- Moana, now a teenager, has the responsibility of becoming the next chief of the island as her father insists, but due to her close friendship with her grandmother, Gramma Tala, she keeps her dream of leaving the island alive.
- However, Maui first needs to retrieve his fishhook in Lalotai, the Realm of Monsters, from Tamatoa, a giant coconut crab.
- Maui, also regaining his powers as a demigod, finally raises Motufetu and helps Moana reconnect the people with the ocean.
- This resonates with Maui and gives him the courage to train in order to recover his power, under the guidance of Moana and Mini Maui (Maui’s sentient tattoo).
Moana 2 premiered at the Lanikuhonua Cultural Institute in Kapolei, Hawaii, on November 21, 2024, and was released by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures in the United States on November 27. The film received mixed reviews from critics and grossed $1.059 billion worldwide, outgrossing its predecessor and becoming the third highest-grossing film of 2024. It was nominated for Best Animated Feature Film at the 82nd Golden Globe Awards. A “meta” version of the character appears with other Disney princesses and Elsa and Anna from Frozen (2013) in the Wreck-It Ralph (2012) sequel, Ralph Breaks the Internet (2018). When some of the princesses describe to Vanellope von Schweetz how they stare at “important water” to gain inspiration for their songs, Moana says she stares at the ocean.
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Moana and Heihei sail for Motunui and arrive as the island is recovering from the curse entirely. Having restored the safety of the sea, Moana takes her place as a Chieftess of Motunui and the people of the village break out their ancestor’s boats. Voyaging begins anew, and Moana leaves her mark of leadership on Motunui’s sacred mountain- a seashell, symbolizing the unity of her duties to her people and her passion for the ocean. They set sail once more, but a down-on-his-luck Maui feels unable to defeat Te Kā and restore the heart without his hook.
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After saying goodbye to her mother, Moana leaves Motunui to begin her quest. As she journeys to save her people, Moana worries of her mother’s well-being where she has a nightmare of witnessing both her parents being affected by Te Kā’s curse. Maui tells Moana that he didn’t want her to come along with him to save Motufetu, because she might die. As they approach his storm, Nalo sends his giant eels to wreak havoc on Moana, with one managing to swallow Moni, and another damaging the sail of the raft. Before they are forced to retreat by the sunrise, Maui manages to save Moni.
She reunites with her parents, with Tui now accepting that going past the reef suits her. Now that the villagers can return to wayfinding, they release the boats from the hidden cave. Nalo’s sea monsters turn out to be almost too much for the crew and Moni almost dies. Moana is devastated and loses faith in herself, but Maui manages to inspire her.
The franchise consists of three feature films, a short film, several video games, and two theme park attractions. Unwilling to lose his hook in another confrontation, Maui abandons a tearful Moana who asks the ocean to find someone else to restore the heart and loses hope. The ocean obliges and takes the heart, Moana breaks down crying feeling hopeless but Tala’s spirit appears, inspiring Moana to find her true calling. Maui returns, having had a change of heart, and buys Moana time to reach Te Fiti by fighting Te Kā, destroying his hook in the process. Moana discovers Te Fiti is missing, and realizes Te Kā is Te Fiti, corrupted without her heart.
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She calmed the frantic chicken by assuring him the Ocean was a friend, but became worried when Heihei fell off her boat. Moana managed to rescue Heihei and to prevent him from falling off the boat again, she put him in her canoe’s cargo hold to keep him safe. When coming across a storm, Moana put Heihei’s safety first as she sailed through the storm.
Promoting powerhouse diversity and pushing away the trappings of romance, “Moana” is a progressive step carrying wonderful messages for young girls in a Millennial day-and-age that is too often obsessed with body image and glamour. On October 7, 2015, Walt Disney Animation Studios released a video announcing the casting of 14-year-old Hawaiian native, Auli’i Cravalho, who will officially portray Moana. After directing The Princess and the Frog, Musker and Clements started working on an adaptation of Terry Pratchett’s Mort, but rights problems prevented them from continuing with that project. To avoid similar problems, they pitched three new ideas, and in 2011 started developing the film based on an original idea. It’s actually a mollusk, and you find this on all the Pacific Islands; it’s something they use quite a bit. When Moana Moana left Motunui to find Maui and restore the Heart of Te Fiti, upon learning she had been chosen by the Ocean to do so, she was surprised to discover that Heihei had stowed away on her boat.
