It’s been a long time coming, but Disney has finally debuted its first plus-size protagonist in an animated short film. Titled Reflect, the animation tells the story of Bianca, a young ballet dancer who “battles her own reflection, overcoming doubt and fear by channelling her inner strength, grace and power”.
While plus-size characters have made appearances in previous Disney films – mostly as villains or side characters – this is the first time where the animation powerhouse is featuring one as the main character.
The short feature, which spans six minutes, is an uplifting story that follows Bianca as she struggles with low self-esteem and self-doubt. Body dysmorphia, a condition where a person obsessively worries about the perceived flaws in their appearance, is a notable theme that the film explores as well.
Centering the film from the perspective of a dancer felt natural, says director Hillary Bradfield in an interview featured at the start of the film. A Disney Animation story artist that has previously worked on titles such as Encanto and Frozen 2, Hillary wanted to highlight these topics as they are close to her heart.
“I feel like I’m a very body positive person in principle. But when it’s on a personal level, it’s a lot harder to be body positive,” she explains. “When people watch the short, I hope that they can feel more positively about themselves and how they look, and feel okay about the tough parts of their journey. Sometimes you go to the dark place to get to the good place, and that just makes the good place so much more beautiful.”
Reflect has drawn mixed reviews online after a short clip of the film went viral on TikTok. Many have praised Disney for not only featuring a protagonist with a larger figure, but also for exploring and spotlighting an issue like body dysmorphia, which is highly prevalent across the world but rarely explored and talked about in pop culture.
However, the film also drew flak for its storyline. Those with reservations have pointed out that plus-size characters are always written with story arcs about body size, physical transformation, and low self-esteem. Representation on-screen should not simply be limited to generalised adversities in order to create a multi-faceted character, highlights some.
In recent years, Disney has made attempts to improve the diversity of characters in the film powerhouse’s animated movies. Baymax, a television series that debuted earlier this year, featured a transgender character, while 2020 film Soul marked Disney’s first animated feature with a Black lead character.
Reflect is released over the Disney+ streaming service, and can be found on the platform. It’s part of Disney’s Short Circuit series of experimental films, where Disney employees are encouraged to take risks in both visual styles and storytelling when pitching their ideas for a short.