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New Disney movie 'Moana' wasnt going to be about Moana at all
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Moana is an upcoming Disney film set for release in November of this year that tells the tale of a young teenager, Moana (Aulii Cravalho), who goes on an adventure. - photo by Herb Scribner
Its almost a sure thing that Disneys next hit film "Moana" will surf its way to success in theaters.

But the film audiences will see is a little different than what was originally imagined.

Moana is an upcoming Disney film set for release in November of this year that tells the tale of a young teenager, Moana (Aulii Cravalho), who goes on an adventure with a retired demigod named Maui (Dwayne The Rock Johnson) across the ocean.

Moana, unlike many other Disney characters, has two companions as well a pig named Pua and Heihei, a goofy and idiotic chicken.

But this almost wasnt the case, according to The Huffington Post. Directors John Musker and Ron Clements had something different in mind for her companions.

In the earlier treatments of this story, Heihei was actually smart kind of an ornery guy but very bright. But he didnt seem quite as funny as we wanted him to be, Musker said in a recent interview, according to HuffPost. So we asked Moanas story team to come up with a funnier take on this rooster character.

In fact, Heihei originally was supposed to watch over Moana. Musker and Clements told HuffPost that Moanas dad, Chief Tui, originally assigned the bird to follow Moana on her quest, hoping that the bird wouldnt let his daughter get out of that roosters sight. This would very much be in the same vein as Zazoo from The Lion King.

But the bird didnt get a good response from those working on the film. Soon enough, producers considered the idea of cutting the bird altogether.

Soon they settled on a new idea make the bird as dumb as possible. This would make Moanas journey even more complicated, since the bird would serve as a distraction on her quest.

They also worked to make sure the bird had a strong role in the central plot, helping Moana escape an action sequence toward the middle of the film.

In fact, Clements and Musker told Time that the films original story wasnt at all like it is now, either. In early production, the film focused on Maui and his mythical allure. The producers felt that audiences would enjoy learning more about this mythical creation.

But Clements and Musker saw an opportunity to create a new female heroine, one who isnt your traditional idea of a Disney princess.

We thought it would be very appealing to do a female empowerment story that didnt center on any sort of romance, Musker told Time. We saw it as sort of a True Grit-type story: the determined girl who teams up with a washed-up guy. They have this adventure and she finds her true calling and saves the world in the process.

In general, production on Moana was a little more complicated than most other Disney films. As SlashFilm reported, the production team chose to embark on three separate research trips to the South Pacific so that they could develop details they needed to create an authentic story.

The researchers hiked through tropical jungles where they also snapped plenty of photos that they later used as inspiration for their animation scenes, according to SlashFilm.

All the colors in the film were based on photographs they took while on their research trips. They enhanced the saturation a little to caricature the colors because photos often didnt capture the water or their memory of how beautiful it looked.

The production crew also created The Oceanic Story Trust, which was a group of producers who wanted to make sure the region and its characters who hail from ancient Polynesia were displayed in an authentic way. This included talking with artists, navigators and even tattoo artists to make sure everything in the film met authentic standards, SlashFilm reported.

They were very particular about all details of the film, according to SlashFilm. For instance, even Moanas clothes were made from materials and using designs that would have been made 2,000 years ago. Red colors have a significance to the Pacific islanders, meaning royalty, so they reserved those colors for a ceremonial costume.

Moana will hit theaters on Nov. 23, 2016. Johnson showed off a new poster for the film on Instagram and promised that thered be a new trailer on Thursday.
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How to avoid 'sharenting' and other paparazzi parenting habits
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A recent study revealed parents often spend up to two hours staging a single photo of his or her child to post online. - photo by Amy Iverson
Before having kids, some people just dont appreciate their friends baby posts. But after having a child of their own, three fourths of new parents jump right on the parental social media bandwagon. If you have become a member of this group, there are some rules to follow for posting responsibly.

Much of a parents worry is how to teach their children to use social media responsibly. We talk with our kids about privacy, oversharing, and setting restrictions on their devices to keep them safe. But parents themselves need to look in the digital mirror once in a while. Before having children, it doesnt take as much effort to think about what to post online. Its up to us to decide what we share about our own lives. But once you become a parent, there are many questions to think about regarding what is appropriate to post about your kids on social media.

In a recent survey, kids clothing subscription company Mac and Mia surveyed 2000 new parents to find out how they are documenting their kids lives on social media, and what concerns they may have.

First of all, people without children seem to feel a bit differently about the onslaught of baby pictures online than those who are parents. 18 percent of people say before they had kids, they were annoyed by their friends baby posts. But after having children of their own, 73 percent admit they post progress pictures of their little ones every single month.

Not only are new parents letting the world know each time their baby is a month older, but they are posting about their kids every few days or so. Men and women report they post 6-7 times per month about their baby.

And while 70 percent of new parents say the benefit of using social media is how easy it is to help family and friends feel involved, there are some downsides. Here are a few tips to avoid the pitfall of becoming paparazzi parents.

Dont miss the moment

In the Mac and Mia survey, some parents admitted to spending up to two hours to get the perfect shot of their baby. That seems a little extreme. New and old parents alike should be careful about spending so much time taking pictures and videos that they dont enjoy the moment. Years ago, I decided to never live an experience through my phone. A study by Linda Henkel, a psychology professor at Fairfield University in Connecticut, found that when people took pictures of objects in an art museum, they didnt remember the objects as well as if they simply observed them.

This photo-taking impairment effect can happen to parents as well. If we are so consumed by getting the perfect photo, we can miss out on the moment all together, and our memory of it will suffer.

Dont forget about privacy

60 percent of couples say they have discussed rules and boundaries for posting their babys photos, according to the Mac and Mia survey. Even so, men are 34 percent more likely to publish baby posts on public accounts. If parents are concerned about their childrens privacy, keeping photos off of public accounts is a given.

In the Washington Post, Stacey Steinberg, a legal skills professor at the University of Florida, and Bahareh Keith, a Portland pediatrician, wrote that sharing too much information about kids online puts them at risk. They write that all that sharenting can make it easier for data thieves to target out kids for identity theft. Check that your privacy settings are where they should be and never share identifying information like full names and birth dates.

Dont be paparazzi parents

36 percent of parents say they take issue when their childs photo is posted online by someone else. Responsible social media users will always ask permission before posting a photo of another child. But parents should also think about whether their own children will take issue with their own posted photos a few years down the road.

When parents are constantly snapping pictures and throwing them on social media, it can be easy to forget to pause and make sure the post is appropriate. I always use the billboard example with my kids. I ask them to picture whatever they are posting going up on a billboard in our neighborhood. If they are okay with that, then their post is probably fine. Parents should ask themselves this same question when posting about their children. But they should also ask themselves if their child would be OK with this post on a billboard in 15 years. If it would cause embarrassment or humiliation, it might be best to keep it private.

Once children reach an appropriate age, parents should include them in the process of deciding what pictures are OK to post. Researchers at the University of Michigan surveyed 10- to 17-year-olds and found children believe their parents should ask permission more than parents think they should. The kids in the survey said sharing happy family moments, or accomplishments in sports, school and hobbies is fine. But when the post is negative (like when a child is disciplined) or embarrassing (think naked baby pictures or messy hair), kids say to keep it off social media.
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