Watch: How Encanto Made The Elaborate Choreography For 'We Don't Talk About Bruno'
One of the musical highlight's of "Encanto," the 60th Disney animated feature, is the song "We Don't Talk About Bruno," which has topped the Billboard charts and become a viral hit. For this song, directors Byron Howard and Jared Bush took a page from how classic Disney movies were animated in the past, in that they actually adapted a live-action dance number to animation. A new video on the official DisneyMusicVEVO channel on YouTube shows how it was done, with a split-screen of the dancers in a studio and the characters in the movie mirroring their movements.
Lin-Manuel Miranda, who has worked on other Disney projects such as "Moana" and "Mary Poppins Returns," wrote the music and lyrics for "We Don't Talk About Bruno." The song was first released with the film's soundtrack in November of last year, just before "Encanto" had its 30-day theatrical release. On Christmas Eve, the movie hit Disney+, and a few days later, Disney uploaded a YouTube clip of the song, which has already racked up 150 million views and counting in just its first month online.
Below, you can see the comparison between the live-action and animated staging of the dance choreography for "Encanto."
'We Don't Talk About Bruno' Choreography
The choreographer for "We Don't Talk About Bruno" was Jamal Simms. The dancers featured in the live-action clip are Kai Martinez, Asiel Hardison, Yainer Ariza, Reina Hidalgo, Yoe Apolinario, and Mark Villaver.
In the animated version of the song, the many voices you'll hear are those of the actors who play the Madrigal family, including Mirabel herself, Stephanie Beatriz, as well as Mauro Castillo, Carolina Gaitán, Diane Guerrero, Rhenzy Feliz, and Adassa, among others. Together, all of these names helped create the movement and music that gives "We Don't Talk About Bruno" its kinetic energy. Even if you haven't seen the movie, you might have already heard this song, and seeing the work that went into might be enough to rouse the viewer from their streaming apathy and get them heading over to Disney+, pronto.
Here's the official synopsis for "Encanto:"
Walt Disney Animation Studios' "Encanto" tells the tale of an extraordinary family, the Madrigals, who live hidden in the mountains of Colombia, in a magical house, in a vibrant town, in a wondrous, charmed place called an Encanto. The magic of the Encanto has blessed every child in the family with a unique gift from super strength to the power to heal—every child except one, Mirabel (voice of Stephanie Beatriz). But when she discovers that the magic surrounding the Encanto is in danger, Mirabel decides that she, the only ordinary Madrigal, might just be her exceptional family's last hope.
"Encanto" is now streaming on Disney+.