‘Spirit Untamed’ Director Elaine Bogan Talks Deeper Themes of New Animated Film

Last updated on: June 4, 2021 at 10:14 am by DeWayne Hamby

‘Spirit Untamed’ Director Elaine Bogan Talks Deeper Themes of New Animated Film 2021-06-04T10:14:17-04:00 DeWayne Hamby

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

For her first full-length animated feature film, Elaine Bogan (“Dreamworks Dragons,” “Trollhunters: Tales of Arcadia”) tackled “Spirit Untamed,” the latest installment centered on the beloved wild horse releasing in theaters today. Although Spirit is the title character, the real story weaves through the life of Lucky (Isabela Merced), a young girl reconnecting with her family and the memories of her late mother. Adjusting to life under the watchful eye of her father Jim (Jake Gyllenhaal) and Aunt Cora (Julianne Moore), she finds friendship with two horseback riders, Abigail Stone (Mckenna Grace) and Pru Granger (Marsai Martin).

‘Spirit Untamed’ image courtesy of WIT PR.

Bogan recently spoke to Reel Faith writer DeWayne Hamby about the personal connection she had to the story as well as the themes of friendship, diversity, and completing the film during the Covid-19 shutdown.

What were your thoughts coming into the project? What drew you to it?

The most important thing to me is that as a storyteller, I’m able to really deeply connect to, on a personal level, many parts of the story. That’s because I really want to be able to tell something that feels authentic and honest and real. And there are so many parts to this story that I was able to draw from real-life experience. Not only have I been riding horses since I was eight or nine years old, there was also something very special about the story of Lucky and her two friends that I felt really excited about. This is a cast of young women all working together as a team as a sisterhood in order to achieve something impossible. Instead of all competing to get there first, they’re all helping one another along the journey. And Lucky’s story herself, she goes on this incredible adventure of self-discovery. And by way of connecting with this beautiful wild horse and reconnecting with her father and the memory and culture of her mother, she’s able to realize who she truly is inside. And when she does that, she’s capable of anything. That to me was a beautiful message.

One of the things that I’ve appreciated about animated and family movies is them exploring deeper topics. It’s not just about entertainment, but there is a, an inspirational element to it. So it’s not just we’re not just presenting a story, but we’re also hoping that kids will pick up something.

Absolutely. It was a very big goal of ours right up front, to hopefully build a world setting and a set of characters that felt like something we all experience and live in every day. And by that I mean we tried to create a cast of characters that were all different and unique in their own perspectives in their own cultural backgrounds. And just the diversity of the world we live in today was something we wanted to reflect. And that was because we wanted to invite an audience in and allow every single person in that audience to at least deeply connect to one person up on that screen in that story, because we really feel like to see it up there is to believe that you’re capable of those things, too. I remember when I was a kid, I’ve been so heavily influenced and inspired particularly by all the animated movies I grew up watching, and it’s been so exciting to potentially be even a small part of paying that back to a new audience today.

What were some of the ones that inspired you when you were a girl?

I loved growing up watching all the old 2D Disney films. I remember “101 Dalmatians” was one of my favorites and “Robin Hood,” “The Lion King.” I can probably sing all the songs to this day. I’ve watched them so many times over and over until my mom and dad couldn’t take it anymore. But a lot to the messages in those movies to why I’m sitting in this chair directing way on today.

What did you do with the shutdown and everything that happened? How did it affect your production?

Not only was I up to the challenge of figuring out what it takes and what it means to direct my first feature film, halfway through, we were all sent home to do that from our living rooms. And as you know, animation is very much a very big collaborative process. I think there was something like between 400-500 people that worked on our film. And when you’re not in that space together, making it all happen, it took an incredible sense of camaraderie and motivation to continue that collaboration or as we were working together separate, if that makes sense. But I think it was because everybody was so deeply connected to and felt on a personal level with the story, we were able to maintain that sense of just the motivation in order to make it all happen and get the story made.

“Spirit Untamed,” directed by Elaine Bogan and starring Isabela Merced, Julianne Moore, Jake Gyllenhaal, Marsai Martin, Mckenna Grace, Walton Goggins, Andre Braugher, and Eiza González, releases today in theaters from Dreamworks Animation.

Watch the exclusive Reel Faith interview with Elaine Bogan below.

Previous Post

June 3, 2021

In New 'Spirit Untamed' Film, Young Girls Discover Friendship, Adventure

Next Post

June 4, 2021 Country Singer Carly Pearce: God Opened Door for Duet with Matthew West

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Comics Movies Music Plays and Musicals Podcasts Television Uncategorized

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 September 2015 July 2015 March 2015 November 2014 September 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 May 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 February 2012 December 2011 November 2011 August 2011 July 2011 March 2011 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 April 2006 February 2006 December 2005 October 2005 September 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 February 2005

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What did God put in Isaiah's mouth in his vision to cleanse his lips?

Select your answer to see how you score.

A burning coal A scroll Honey Oil