| Loop | |
|---|---|
 Official release poster | |
| Directed by | Erica Milsom |
| Screenplay by | Erica Milsom |
| Story by |
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| Produced by |
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| Starring |
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| Cinematography |
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| Edited by | Jason Brodkey |
| Music by | Mark Orton |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures |
Release dates | |
Running time | 9 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Loop is a 2020 American animateddrama short film directed and written by Erica Milsom with the story being written by Adam Burke, Matthias De Clercq and Milsom, produced byPixar Animation Studios, and distributed byWalt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. It is the sixth short film in Pixar'sSparkShorts program and focuses on anon-verbalautistic girl and a chatty boy, learning to understand each other.[1][2] The short was released onDisney+ on January 10, 2020.[3]
Renee, anon-verbal autistic girl, sits in a canoe and plays with a sound app on her phone. Marcus arrives late and the camp counselor partners him with Renee, much to his annoyance. When Marcus attempts to show off his paddling skills, Renee is unimpressed and starts rocking the boat. Marcus asks her what she wants and she has him paddle to land so she can touch the reeds.
When Renee goes back to her phone, Marcus has an idea. He paddles them to a tunnel and has Renee play her phone so that the sound can reverberate. Renee enjoys at first, but then a speedboat races by and the noise overwhelms her. She frantically paddles out of the tunnel and they crash onto the waterside. Renee has a meltdown, throwing her phone into the lake and hiding under the canoe, while Marcus watches in bewilderment.
Later, Marcus pulls up a reed and places it next to the canoe where Renee can see it. He sits nearby until Renee calms down. She sits up, takes the reed, and begins to giggle. The two repeat the sound that the phone made together. The two of them get back into the canoe and paddle back to the camp.
When Renee's recovered phone begins working again, it receives a message from Marcus asking if she wants to go canoeing again.
Loop was directed and written by Erica Milsom, with a story created by Adam Burke, Erica Milsom and Matthias De Clercq. Michael Warch and Krissy Cababa produced the short.[4]
The team brought in consultants from theAutistic Self Advocacy Network to ensure that Renee's portrayal would be authentic.[5]
Loop features Madison Bandy in the role of Renee, who herself is non-speaking and autistic. The audio recording for her voice performance was done by Vince Caro, on location in her home, as part of an effort to make the recording process as comfortable as possible.[6]
The director and animators onLoop spoke with the consultants to gain a sense of the way that a non-speaking person might communicate their feelings differently. They then developed a gestural language for Renee, equating specific behaviors, like holding her ears, or poking her cell phone, with specific emotional states.[7]
The film was Adam Burke's last animation work, as he died from complications relating to hislung cancer positive diagnosis on October 9, 2018.[8]
Mark Orton composed the music forLoop.[9] The score was released on February 28, 2020.[10]
| Loop (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) | |
|---|---|
| Film score by | |
| Released | February 28, 2020 (2020-02-28) |
| Genre | Film score |
| Label | Hollywood |
All music is composed by Mark Orton.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "You Gotta Help Me Out" | 0:37 |
| 2. | "Renee's Place" | 1:26 |
| 3. | "Tunnel Magic" | 0:46 |
| 4. | "Overload" | 0:50 |
| 5. | "Processing Time" | 0:47 |
| 6. | "Marcus' Patience" | 1:26 |
| 7. | "Loop Theme" | 1:38 |
| 8. | "Surface (Bonus Track)" | 0:38 |
| 9. | "Echoer (Bonus Track)" | 0:48 |
| 10. | "Slow Time (Bonus Track)" | 0:39 |
| 11. | "Loop Redux (Bonus Track)" | 1:25 |
| Total length: | 11:00 | |
Loop was released onDisney+ on January 10, 2020.[11][12][13]
Loop received positive reviews. Reviewers commented on its decision to portray the world through Renee's eyes. Jonathon Briggs wrote "By training our eyes to imagine what the world might look like from someone else's perspective,Loop encourages us to practice empathy in what feels like an increasingly divisive and judgmental world."[14]
The autistic community responded enthusiastically toLoop. Autistic people onTwitter expressed excitement prior to the film's release,[15] and praised the portrayal of Renee for being positive and authentic.[16][17]
Loop won the SIGGRAPH 2020 Computer Animation Festival Electronic Theater Best in Show-winning award in 2021.[7]
It was also nominated that year for an NAACP Image Award.[18]
