Prepare yourself for “Elio,” a cosmic misadventure featuring an unexpected best friendship between an 11-year-old space fanatic who can’t fit in and a goofy and soft-hearted son of a violent alien warlord who wants to carve his own path. In Disney and Pixar’s newest feature film “Elio,” the two discover the value of friendship and embrace their true selves as they meet aliens and challenges of intergalactic proportions.
In this new original story from Disney and Pixar, “Elio,” is taking viewers beyond Earth and into the Communiverse, an interplanetary organization with representatives from galaxies far and wide. After being mistakenly taken as Earth’s leader, Elio discovers who and what he is really meant to be while forming new bonds with eccentric life forms and navigating crisis after crisis.
Voiced by Filipino-American Yonas Kibreab, Elio Solis is just like any other curious kid who thinks that the only way out of his misery is getting out of this planet, literally. “He’s an unusual kid who’s obsessed with getting abducted by aliens,” says director Domee Shi. “Elio feels like there’s nothing for him on Earth—he dreams of going to another world where he’s accepted for who he is.” Meanwhile, Elio’s guardian Aunt Olga is a Major in the Air Force who’s always dreamed of becoming an astronaut. Voiced by Zoe Saldaña, Aunt Olga wants nothing more from Elio than to stop looking to the stars and start living his life with her.
A look behind the Communiverse
The film was deeply rooted in research, with the production team consulting American astronomer Dr. Jill Tarter who is best known for her work in the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI). “She taught us to think about space in a more expansive way that in turn made us feel more connected here,” says producer Mary Alice Drumm. Production designer Harley Jessup’s vision was aligned with this approach, saying, “we spent a year designing a colorful cast of aliens with a carefully calibrated palette. We knew we’d have multiple alien Ambassadors on screen at the same time, and their colors had to work together in harmony—like the Communiverse itself!”
From the studio that brought you “Inside Out 2,” “Elio” is directed by Domee Shi, writer and director of Academy Award®-winning short film “Bao,” Madeline Sharafian, storyboard artist on the Academy Award®-winning film “Coco,” and Adrian Molina, the co-director and writer on Academy Award®-winning film “Coco.”
The film also features the voices of Remy Edgerly as Glordon, Brad Garrett as Lord Grigon, Jameela Jamil as Ambassador Questa, and Shirley Henderson as OOOOO.
Disney and Pixar’s all-new original feature film “Elio” will release in Philippine cinemas this June 18. Get ready to blast off into an out of this world adventure and book your tickets now: https://www.disney.ph/movies/elio.
