Film
A Colombia permeated with magic and home to the mirabel of the Madrigal family, whose members are endowed with extraordinary powers. Only Mirabel, the film's protagonist, has no power and although she seeks her own role within the family, this lack of it relegates her to second place to others who are far more useful to the village or the family itself. Like Luisa, the eldest sister, she has exceptional strength and is a constant support to the entire village. Or Isabela, a typical perfect girl in every respect, like a Colombian Mary Poppins, who through marriage manages to maintain the prestige of the family. When the Madrigals realise that their powers force them into a role they do not want, which is constricting and monotonous, the family's magic begins to disappear, revealing deep cracks. Mirabel's mediation becomes essential to resolve the situation, whose talent turns out to be in a way the ability to give voice to those cracks. Directed by Byron Howard of Rapunzel and Zootropolis, Encanto brings Disney a new statuette for Best Animated Film at the Oscars. Other nomination categories include Best Song, Dos Oroguitas, written by Lin Manuel Miranda (who previously worked on Oceania) as the rest of the music.
Art
Maribel tells us the story of the Madrigal family in front of a mural depicting them all together. This choice was by no means accidental, because Street Art is at home in Colombia. On the streets everything is alive and art is breathed into everyday life, practised by everyone as a form of free expression, change and hope. It is not important to be an established artist, in Colombia all it takes is a little creativity and anyone can show their skills to the entire community.
In a way, that's what the film extols, isn't it? The freedom to express oneself. Each work has its own meaning, style and signature, and there are many young people who are changing the image of cities like Medellín and Bogotá where graffiti is a reality in every neighbourhood thanks to the support of the government and the population. This is why Disney chose the murals, not only in the animations, but also as a marketing tool during the film's promotional campaign.
Perhaps the most beautiful quotation in the film are the yellow butterflies of Gabriel García Márquez, a wonderful homage to the Colombian writer and his novel One Hundred Years of Solitude. In both cases, the butterflies represent symbols, albeit linked to different concepts. Those in the novel, a masterpiece of magic realism, represent the cyclical nature of life and death, as well as the transient nature of human existence: butterflies have a short and fragile life, just like human beings, and their life cycle is a constant reminder of the transient nature of human existence. They appear on several occasions, particularly when someone is about to die or when something significant happens in the characters' lives. Encanto's, on the other hand, represent the family bond and magic of the Madrigal family. When a family member discovers his gift, a yellow butterfly appears to indicate that he is connected to the magic that flows through the Madrigals. The yellow butterflies thus symbolise the power of the family bond and the power of magic. To bring encanto into our lives, we should not miss Bruno Cerasi's butterflies. Especially the yellow ones.
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