Disney has announced the next movie to be reimagined in Te Reo Māori will be Pixar's Oscar-winning animation Coco, to be released in time for Mataraki in 2023.
Auditions begin on Monday, December 19 for what will be the fourth Disney film to be given a Te Reo Māori makeover following The Lion King, Frozen and Moana.
The movie Coco is a celebration of Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), a time of remembering those that have passed on - something which the film's directors and producers say is particularly pertinent for Māori as Matariki is the time to honour the journey taken by ancestors into the afterworld.
Announcing the Te Reo Māori version, the producers also said "The love for whānau and intergenerational respect is evident throughout the film which the Māori community also strongly shares."
"Our connection with te ao wairua, the spirit world is strong. It's easy to imagine how well this film relates to us and it'll sit within our world.
"I'm looking forward to working on this one and I know it's going to be a hit - so bring on 2023," said director and co-Producer of Coco Reo Māori Tweedie Waititi.
As online auditions open today, producers are looking for people who "love the story of Coco" and who "once you step inside the character you should be able to resonate with their world".
At the 2018 Oscars, Coco received two Academy Awards for Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song.
