Soon! Bobby Rubio’s Float on Disney+

Iris Palma in Ang Pinoy Stories

Nov 04, 2019 • 2 min Read

November 12 is when the Disney+ (pronounced disney-plus) app, Walt Disney Company’s streaming service, comes out. It will feature all our beloved Disney creations since Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

But what every Filipino should watch out at Disney+ is the Pixar short film titled Float, one of the SparkShorts films. It is written and directed by Bobby Rubio, who is known for his work in Incredibles 2, Hercules, Tarzan, Treasure Planet, Atlantis: The Lost Empire, The legend of Korra, Up, and Avatar: The Last Airbender. Float is all about a father and his adorable son. The short movie narrates their trials and tribulations.

Float is the first of its kind with Filipinos in the lead. The father has darker skin and flatter nose, typical and authentic Filipino features. In January, a Twitter follower asked Rubio, after Rubio posted about the project, if those were Filipino leads, to which Rubio confirmed and declared them the “first Pixnoys.” Rubio is happy to see the Filipino “culture represented on screen” and Float is that dream coming true.

Pixar Animation Studio president Jim Morris said they “created an opportunity for artists to show us some new ideas by doing a low-budget project of their own.” Rubio’s earliest works include Hercules in 1997 and was one of those given an opportunity to tell their stories via SparkShorts.

Rubio, born and raised in San Diego, California, has a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Fine Arts from the California Institute of the Arts in Valencia (Cal Arts). He worked for nine years with Walt Disney Feature Animation then transferred to Nickelodeon Animation Studios and finally to Pixar Animation Studios where he is a story artist. He independently publishes Alcatraz High and 4 Gun Conclusion. Disney+ subscription starts at US$6.99 a month (roughly 355 Philippine pesos).

Photo Source of Featured Image: comicbook.com