We’ve been quoting “Just keep swimming,” and “Fish are friends, not food” for the past 13 years, and we’re finally about to see what comes next. “Finding Dory,” the sequel to “Finding Nemo,” is coming to theaters June 17.
All our favorite friends are back, including lucky-finned Nemo, Marlin the not-so-funny clownfish and, of course, forgetful Dory. This time, however, Dory is the star of the show, as the film focuses around finding her family and uncovering her past.
“Finding Nemo” came to life in 2003, when most fans were in elementary school. Now, years later, many of those Nemo followers are young adults, bringing up the question of whether director Andrew Stanton’s artistic vision has changed along with the age of his audience. Surprisingly, it hasn’t.
“I’ve never targeted it to anybody,” Stanton said in a conference call interview with The Daily Free Press. “I’ve just written things that I would want to see, and I think I’m just immature enough that it allows all ages. We’re our own toughest audience, so we figure if we can get it past us, there’s a good chance other people will like it.”
It may be a risky mentality, but it worked for “Finding Nemo,” and fans are thrilled to welcome the gang back to the big screen. Though many old friends are returning, Stanton and producer Lindsey Collins are excited to introduce a whole slew of new faces as well.
“The hard part was pairing it down to what would be our favorite types of species to have,” Stanton said. “Probably our lead one is the octopus … We’ve got a beluga whale, Bailey, we’ve got Destiny, the whale shark, and we’ve got a lot of the natural sea life that’s around the California coast. We’ve got sea lions and otters and loons, so even though we’re going back to a lot of familiar characters, we’ve really broadened the glossary.”
But it turns out there’s more to it than talking sea creatures. Stanton said he also wanted to emphasize themes of ocean conservation and finding identity.
“I grew up by the ocean,” he said. “I just thought it would be a fascinating place to talk about life issues, because it’s such a living thing and it represents both life and death and it’s something very beautiful and you’re afraid of it at the same time. Taking care of nature is part of the actual narrative of the story.”
And, in a classic feel-good manner, the film also addresses ideas of acceptance and inner strength. It serves as an “expression of discovering that self-confidence,” Stanton said.
“Dory saw her short-term memory loss as a burden, or as a handicap. And we love her for it, and I wanted her to see and like herself as much as the rest of the world liked her,” Stanton said. “Everyone has something about them that’s not perfect, that maybe they put themselves down on, but it’s actually what makes you special and unique. And you learn, as you grow older, to own that part of yourself and to embrace it and to know that that’s what makes you different from somebody else in a good way.”
With that in mind, Stanton said he wanted to underscore Dory’s role and reflect on her origin. Because she takes on the main role, filmmakers draw more attention to her positive qualities — her bubbliness, nonjudgmental attitude and ability to live completely in the present. Though many may only remember Dory for her forgetful, slightly ditzy qualities, “Finding Dory” will bring out a more three-dimensional character.
“Dory is sort of like who I always wanted to be,” Stanton said. “I’ve always wanted to be caught up in the moment and just enjoy everything for what it is and always see the best in everything. I want to believe that’s why so many people universally have fallen for her, because I think, ‘Who doesn’t want to be like that?’”
With that, Stanton and Collins leave us in anticipation of what’s to come in the aquatic world we’ve missed so dearly. Despite new changes, however, there’s no doubt that audience members will continue to reminisce about surfer dude sea turtles, irritable seagulls and P. Sherman, 42 Wallaby Way, Sydney.
I am so excited for this movie. I loved Dory in Finding Nemo!