Creators and Cast of ‘Luca’ on Making a Timeless Animation Set in Italian Riviera

The voice cast of Luca gave a behind-the-scenes look at Disney and Pixar’s latest animation ‘Luca,’ set in the Italian Riviera in the late 1950s. In the fictional town of Portorossa, a dreamy Italian sea village they have two unlikely visitors; sea monsters, Luca Paguro (Jacob Tremblay) and Alberto Scorfano (Jack Dylan Grazer), who have transformed into human boys and are on a quest for adventure alongside Giulia (Emma Berman) a young new friend that inspires them to enter the Portorossa Cup, a local triathlon.

Giuliana Rancic hosted the press conference for Luca with the full cast including Luca’s sea monster parents Daniela (Maya Rudolph) and Lorenzo (Jim Gaffigan) as well as the director, Italian native Enrico Casarosa and producer Andrea Warren.

Casarosa shared on his own childhood summers and what fueled the story of Luca hanging out and jumping into the sea with Alberto when he said,

“I was born in Genoa, which is this poor town right on the riviera. I was a shy kid, a little bit sheltered by my family.  When I met my best friend at 11, kind of my world opened up.  He was a bit of a troublemaker; he didn’t have a whole lot of supervision. So, in those special kinds of summers when you’re growing up and kind of finding yourself, I was kind of following him and getting dragged into, uh, troubles. It really made me really think about how much we find ourselves with our friendships, or how much friendships help us find a bit of who we wanna be.”

When Enrico Casarosa was asked what he was really looking for when casting the voice stars in this film initially, he responded,

“Finding Jacob was really about finding a Luca that had this quiet energy underneath. I feel like there’s an innocence, but also this real earnestness and real drive underneath [the characters]. So I just love that Jacob has this natural curiosity already in himself. So I feel within our trio, it was so fun to find amazing actors and actresses that also felt like the kid that we were talking about. So that was the case with Jacob. I would say also, the other thing that was really important is finding a willingness to play and improvise and be as naturalistic as possible and not be too tied to this script. That was one thing that I felt all [of the cast] were so game to try to elevate it and let it be also a little bit imperfect. I just love that both Jacob and all of [the cast] really were so game to just go for it and try different things. So there was something that was really amazing and riffing; what would be the natural way that you would say it, was always something we were trying. Jack, I think from day one, I was like, “Hmmm, OK, I think I [would] like to go skateboarding with Jack.” I probably would break something if I hang out with Jack for too long and so it was really, really fun. It’s so amazing that we actually had the audition in person, so we knew Jack and then COVID hit. So then it went to the closet. For Emma, I would say, the first time I met [Emma] in Pixar’s atrium, I think I shook [her] hand and chuckles were just kind of pouring out of [her]. I think I actually knew there was something, even [her] amazing voice and amazing energy that was going to be there right away. So it was a long search, but interestingly, I just love to cast, especially younger kids with something that feels natural to you in the character.”

The film was being made just as COVID-19 hit and many of the actors had to record from their closets at home. Producer Andrea Warren shared what the challenges were like.

“I think when the pandemic hit and we were all sort of realizing that we had to work from home, one of my biggest concerns was how are we going to record, you know, everybody. I really have to thank this group and everybody at Pixar who sorted it out, because it involved sending iPads and microphones, and everybody testing out spaces in their houses where the sound would be baffled. I’ll never forget you, Jack, especially in your…I think your mom’s closet.  You know, and your arms hitting the hangers, and you know, we’re all trying to press the right buttons at the right time.  I mean it’s tricky, to be acting and be your own tech, and all of us trying to sort it out.  Even Zoom is tricky ’cause sometimes it cuts out and somebody’s just performed something, and you’re like, well I bet it’s good.  I don’t know.  You know?  So you’re trying to respond and… So it was definitely tricky.”

“Silencio Bruno” is a quote from the film that resonates with a major theme of Luca on conquering self-doubt. This is especially important in young people and Jack Dylan Grazer shared his own personal history that resonated with Alberto’s character.

“I myself have always been a really impulsive decision-maker.  Like, I don’t like to think about whether there are two ways that things could go.  Whether it’s terrible, or it could be wonderful. I choose not to think long enough to think about how terrible it could be.  And it might end up being a terrible decision, but I’m hoping for wonderful.”

When the cast was asked if the film evoked any feelings of childhood memories and also what some of their favorite summer memories were, Maya Rudolph shared,

“My birthday’s in the summer, so every single summer was spent having a pool party and, you know, learning how to fry an egg on the sidewalk and those kinds of things. It didn’t really work. The times that you come home, you know, with your bathing suit still on and like, you know, the saltwater in your hair still and ice cream, popsicles, all of that is, you know, nothing but good, good memories. Also summer camp, too. I did a lot of summer camp and those are the most heavenly, sweet memories. Yeah, warm nights, I think, might be like my favorite part, but [also] those friendships that you make. That’s the familiarity of this movie that feels so sweet and so instantly connected, like friends that I meet and camp. We don’t live in the same city and we don’t see each other during the year. Then you have those people that you just hook into and you fall in love in the most lovely possible way because you see those things in each other; just kind of like your summertime romance, and it’s so sweet.”

Jim Gaffigan shared on the same question on what summer memories the film evoked when he stated,

“What’s so interesting about this movie and the notion of summer, it made me realize as adults, we have such an expectation or pressure surrounding summer, like enjoying summer. I think some of that’s established as kids really having this idealized summer and I feel like in this movie there is capturing that truly romantic notion of summer being about freedom and as adults, we kind of chase it, we’re kind of like, all right, we chase it in these two-week windows of a vacation or a long weekend. So I thought that was really moving how it kind of stirred up that memory and how being a kid was really fun.“

When Glitter asked Maya Rudolph how she prepared for the film and what her favorite parts of the film were, she replied,

“I’ll be honest, my favorite part was getting to work with Enrico. I felt like that was when everything was like joyful and fun and funny. And he’s so lovely. I can tell you, he understands, he gets it, [it] was really so joyful. I actually did think like, “Oh, I’m going to be this Italian mamma.” And here I go with my big old Italian accent. But I got to just be the essence of my mama, which I think I really liked. I think under the circumstances, the time period that we were working on, we were all working from home. It was something I was really looking forward to and very joyful and hearing, you know, and getting to see Enrico’s vision. I did feel those feelings of sort of this sweet story, there’s something very personal here and this idea of being a kid and wherever you grew up and this just happens to be like the most beautiful place. I think we were all kind of dreaming about being there, doing it. So that kind of kept it fun. And that was the nicest part.”

When asked about the recording process and what it was like to do voiceover during a pandemic from home Rudolph stated,

“I sadly didn’t get to go up there to San Francisco. So, I too was in a closet at a certain point screaming, “Luca!” Like my kids were yelling, “Who’s Luca, why are you yelling so much. Is he in trouble? Is he a bad kid? What happens in the movie?” Because all they heard was me screaming, “Luca!” It couldn’t have been more enjoyable, like I said, under the circumstances. So actually everything was shipped down to me and we made this amazing makeshift little recording area, obviously the best possible people to make it. So it was pretty easy breezy. I just got to show up.”

Make sure to stream Luca June 18 exclusively on Disney+.