Turning Red

Turning Red is a 2022 American animated coming-of-age fantasy comedy-drama film directed by Domee Shi and written by Shi and Julia Cho. Produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures, it marks the first Pixar feature film solely directed by a female director. It stars the voices of Rosalie Chiang, Sandra Oh, Ava Morse, Hyein Park, Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, and Orion Lee. Set in Toronto, Ontario in 2002, the film follows Meilin "Mei" Lee (Chiang), a 13-year-old Chinese-Canadian student who transforms into a giant red panda when she experiences any strong emotion, due to a hereditary curse.

Shi, who previously directed the short film Bao (2018), developed the film based on her experiences growing up in Toronto. She pitched three concepts, including Turning Red, to Pixar in October 2017. Development began in May 2018 when Shi was announced as writer and director of a full-length film; several Pixar animators visited locations around Northern California gathering inspiration and visual references. The design and animation were inspired by anime works. To capture these anime influences, hand-drawn 2D animated effects were added atop Pixar's 3D animation. Development on Turning Red lasted for four years, on an approximate $175 million budget, becoming the fastest production for a Pixar film. Ludwig Göransson composed the film's musical score for his first animated film, with Billie Eilish and Finneas O'Connell writing original songs for the film.