Disney & Pixar’s “Luca”

Disney & Pixar’s Luca

By Erin

*Photos courtesy of Disney. All thoughts and opinions remain my own.*
Disney and Pixar’s “Luca” will debut exclusively on Disney+ on June 18, 2021. This is an adorable family movie for summer

Disney and Pixar have done it again and created some pure magic! Set in a beautiful seaside town on the Italian Riviera, Disney and Pixar’s original feature film “Luca” is a coming- of-age story about one young boy experiencing an unforgettable summer filled with gelato, pasta and endless scooter rides. Luca (voice of Jacob Tremblay) shares these adventures with his newfound best friend, Alberto (voice of Jack Dylan Grazer), but all the fun is threatened by a deeply-held secret: they are sea monsters from another world just below the water’s surface.

Directed by Academy Award® nominee Enrico Casarosa (“La Luna”) and produced by Andrea Warren (“Lava,” “Cars 3”).

Disney and Pixar’s “Luca” will debut exclusively on Disney+ on June 18, 2021. This is an adorable family movie for summer the whole family will love. It will also leave you itching to travel with all the beautiful scenery.

There are some great messages in Luca as well; such as conquering and getting over your fears. As Alberto likes to say, “Silenzio Bruno!” Remember to silence your inner critic that’s always telling you, you can’t do that, so you can achieve your goals! Any fin is possible. Overcoming obstacles and following your dreams are two other themes we find often in Luca. While most of us don’t have scales, we all have things in our life that seem a hindrance and weigh us down to prevent us from being able to do something we really want to. Luca can inspire all of us to follow our dreams deep inside of us.

Disney and Pixar’s “Luca” will debut exclusively on Disney+ on June 18, 2021. This is an adorable family movie for summer

FUN FACTS

Here are some fun facts to get you excited about the film!

CHARACTERS

BEST FRIENDS – The character of Alberto is inspired by director Enrico Casarosa’s own childhood best friend, also named Alberto.

SCALE IT BACK – Sea monster Luca has 3,436 scales on his body.

SOUND EFFECTS – When Luca gobbles up his first plate of pasta, Jacob Tremblay, who lends his voice to the character, was happy to provide the burp that followed. It turns out that burping on command is a special skillnof the actor.

QUICK COMMUTE – Jack Dylan Grazer (voice of Alberto) recorded every single line of dialogue inside his mother’s closet.

MANGIA, MANGIA – Emma Berman (voice of Giulia) speaks fluent Russian and has an extreme love for spaghetti. She loves to go to her favorite neighborhood Italian restaurant in San Francisco, where she practices ordering food in Italian for her family.

GETTING IN SHAPE – Artists gave Giulia a distinct look, embracing triangle shape language—particularly in her hair and pants.

Luca and Alberto

CAMEO – Director Enrico Casarosa provides the voice of the winning card player in Portorosso who shouts “Scopa!” He is also the fisherman in the boat who yells to a speeding boat, “What’s wrong with you, Stupido!”

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Loki on Disney+ & Loki Cupcakes

Loki Poster Art

Calling all Marvel fans! Marvel Studios’ “Loki” is back! An original live-action series created exclusively for Disney+, features the mercurial God of Mischief as he steps out of his brother’s shadow. The series, described as a crime-thriller meets epic-adventure, takes place after the events of “Avengers: Endgame.” This series breaks new ground for the Marvel Cinematic Universe before it, and lays the groundwork for things to come. Tom Hiddleston returns as the title character, joined by Owen Wilson, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Sophia Di Martino, Wunmi Mosaku and Richard E. Grant. Kate Herron directs “Loki,” and Michael Waldron is head writer.

The starting point of the series is the moment in “Avengers: Endgame” when the 2012 Loki takes the Tesseract—from there Loki lands in the hands of the Time Variance Authority (TVA), which is outside of the timeline, concurrent to the current day Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Loki on Disney+

In his cross-timeline journey, Loki finds himself a fish out of water as he tries to navigate—and manipulate—his way through the bureaucratic nightmare that is the Time Variance Authority and its by-the-numbers mentality.

This is Loki as you have never seen him. Stripped of his self- proclaimed majesty but with his ego still intact, he faces consequences he never thought could happen to such a supreme being as himself. In that, there is a lot of humor as he is taken down a few pegs and struggles to find his footing in the unforgiving bureaucracy of the Time Variance Authority.

Loki Marvel Series

As the series progresses, we see different sides of Loki as he is drawn into helping to solve a serious crime with an agent of the TVA, Mobius, who needs his “unique Loki perspective” to locate the culprits and mend the timeline. Only Loki can help…or maybe not. It remains to be seen. No matter what, this is one adventure you won’t want to miss out on in the Marvel Universe!

Loki Cupcakes

Now to make these delicious Loki cupcakes to celebrate!

Loki Sprinkles 

1 package of Gold sprinkle mix

1 package of Green sprinkle mix 

1 package of Black sprinkle mix 

Directions

Mix all sprinkles together until combined and set aside 

Makes 18 cupcakes

Fondant Pieces

1 package of Wilton BlackFondant

1 package of Wilton Green Fondant

1 package of Wilton Golden Yellow Fondant

1 can of silver cake spray 

1 can of gold cake spray

1 2 inch round fondant cutter

1 outline cut out of Loki Headset – outline just the horns on the image. You may need to enlarge the image to about 4 inches in height. 

1 Rolling pin

1 Wilton Bow Silicone Mold

1 cookie sheet with silicone mat

Directions

Sprinkle some cornstarch onto the cutting board

Remove the green fondant from the package and knead onto the cutting

board to make the fondant soft and workable

Sprinkle some more cornstarch onto the cutting board and roll the

fondant into ¼ inch thick

Using the round fondant cutter, cut out 36 round circles

Place them onto the cookie sheet

Work the golden yellow fondant to be able to roll out into ¼ in thick 

Place the loki horn cut out onto the yellow fondant and cut out about 20 horns

Place  onto the cookie sheet to dry overnight

Using the black fondant, pinch off about 1tbps of fondant and press it into the medium bow mold

Carefully remove the bow from the mold and place onto the cookie sheet to dry overnight 

Makes about 20 bows.

Next Day : 

Using the silver cake spray, lightly spray the bows and ears to give them a shine 

Using the gold cake spray, lightly spray the horns to give them the gold look

Chocolate Cupcake

1 box of chocolate cake mix

1 ¼  Cup of whole milk

½ Cup unsalted sweet cream butter, softened

3 large eggs

Vanilla frosting

1 Cup unsalted sweet cream butter, softened

3 cups powdered sugar

2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3-5 tablespoons of heavy whipping cream

1 large piping bag with a star tip

1 medium ice cream scooper

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a cupcake pan with liners

Using a large bowl, beat together the cake mix, milk, butter and eggs until combined and smooth

Fill the cupcake liners ¾ way full

Bake in the oven for 21 minutes

Allow to cool completely

Frosting directions

Using a standing mixer, beat together the butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and heavy whipping cream until combined, smooth and stiff

Scoop 2 cups of the frosting into the piping bag

Using the ice cream scooper, scoop frosting into the scooper and top the cupcakes with the frosting 

Using a butterknife, gently spread the frosting into a thick round disk

Roll the frosted cupcake into the sprinkles. 

Set aside and complete steps with remaining cupcakes.

Using the piping bag, pipe a dollop of the frosting into the center of the cupcakes.

Place the bow into the center of the frosting.

Gently place the horns behind the bow.

Gently place the ears behind the horns. 

Enjoy!