Taika Waititi is a genius filmmaker, famously known for his work in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He directed Thor: Ragnarok, which played a major part in the development of the comic franchise and he was critically praised for his talent. Although it seems that Waititi is an experienced director, he had to grind for many years to reach the stage he is in now. Moreover, the MCU movie was one of his initial major projects.
However, before his work in the MCU and many other major projects, Taika Waititi was hired and he wrote the initial screenplay of Moana. Waititi’s unique heritage of being a māori, the indigenous people of New Zealand, was a primary reason why he was hired for the job. However, the filmmaker had to drop the entire project and go home to focus on his first newborn child.
Taika Waititi Wrote the Initial Screenplay for Moana
Moana’s script was initially written by Taika Waititi, however, he left the production in 2012 to devote more time to his family and other endeavors. He has admitted that he became disinterested in the subject and lost interest in it. Waititi was viewed as a tremendous asset for the production because of his unusual ancestry as a Māori and Jewish New Zealander, which provided him with a thorough grasp of Polynesian culture.
John Musker and Ron Clements went on to direct the movie and it turned out to be an extreme success, both critically and financially. However, during an interview with SlashFilm, filmmakers Ron Clements and John Musker shared a great deal about the Disney movie and also about the genius director, Taika Waititi. Upon being questioned about Waititi’s involvement in the project, the filmmakers claimed that they wanted the Māori touch in the movie, as it revolved around that region. Clements said,
“So Taika came up, we kind of had and we sort of named this girl Moana, named after the ocean. And we had a very, a visual outline of the story. And we heard about Taika from people in the South Pacific that we talked to. ‘Cause we usually on most of the films we’ve done, actually all the films we’ve done, except this film, we always wrote the first draft of the script. And we did not do that on this movie.
And we really wanted someone from the culture to sort of do that. And we heard about Taika. We saw his movie Boy, which that he had directed and written and which was great. We read another one of his scripts that was great. And we brought him in, showed him what we were doing. He really liked the idea. And then and he worked on the movie I think for several months. And wrote the first draft of the script.”
This statement was made by Ron Clements during an interview with SlashFilm.
The movie was a huge success as it ran for a humongous $682 million at the box office worldwide against a budget of $175 million. The movie also won many awards and nominations such as the Academy Awards nomination, the BAFTA nominations, the Golden Globe nominations, the MTV Movie + TV Awards nomination, the Critics Choice Awards nomination, IGN Summer Movie Awards, and many others.
Taika Waititi’s Rise to the Top in the Entertainment Industry
Taika Waititi has ascended to the top of the entertainment world at an impressive pace. He went from being a mostly unknown filmmaker in New Zealand to one of the most popular and well-regarded directors in Hollywood in a matter of a few short years. Several elements contributed to Waititi’s success and apart from being a gifted filmmaker, his films also gave a unique and creative view of the world.
Waititi doesn’t hesitate to take chances and he is open to experimenting with various genres and techniques and isn’t scared to go beyond what is conventionally accepted in film. His movies are often funny, yet the comedy is frequently tinged with subversion and sadness. He can find comedy in even the most trying circumstances, and he uses humor to explore tough and complicated issues, unlike other Hollywood filmmakers.
Source: SlashFilm
