Disney Announces New Animated Feature MOANA for 2018

Following its recent success with the box office hit FROZEN, Disney has announced its next animated feature.

The studio has tapped ALADDIN and THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG directors John Musker and Ron Clements to helm MONOA, a compuer animated "mythic adventure set around 2000 years ago and across a series of islands in the South Pacific." The film is currently set for a 2018 release.

Per Disney: "The main character will be Moana Waialiki, a sea voyaging enthusiast, and the only daughter of a chief in a long line of navigators. When her family needs her help, she sets off on an epic journey. The film will also include demi-gods and spirits taken from real mythology."

Bleeding Cool initially reported that the film will be in the style of the "hand-drawn/computer-animated" technique, originally introduced in PAPERMAN, Disney's recent digital short film. However, Musker insists that it's "far too early to apply the PAPERMAN hybrid technique to a feature. The Meander digital in-betweening interface still has a host of production issues (including color) that need to be perfected."