Three filmmakers of Mexican origin are behind three of this year’s Oscar-nominated films for Best Animated Feature: Elio, Zootopia 2, and Little Amélie or the Character of Rain.
Mexican-American filmmaker Adrián Molina co-directed Disney/Pixar’s Elio alongside Madeline Sharafian and Domee Shi. A graduate of the California Institute of the Arts with a BFA in Character Animation, Molina joined Pixar as a story intern in 2006 before being hired full-time that fall. His early credits include Ratatouille and Toy Story 3. He later served as co-director on Coco and director on Elio, and is currently working on Coco 2.
Elio follows Elio Solis, a lonely, alien-obsessed eleven-year-old who dreams of being abducted because he feels he doesn’t belong on Earth. His wish comes true when he’s accidentally transported to the Communiverse, an interplanetary organization, and mistakenly identified as Earth’s leader. Forced to forge connections with alien lifeforms—including the son of a warmongering emperor—Elio navigates an intergalactic crisis while discovering courage, friendship, and his own place in the universe.
Also among this year’s nominees is Disney’s Zootopia 2, produced by Mexican-born Yvett Merino, who has built a distinguished career at Disney Animation. Merino previously produced Encanto, which won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature in 2022, and has been a key creative force behind several of the studio’s recent successes.
The sequel returns to the bustling mammalian metropolis as detectives Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde attempt to crack their most dangerous case yet, involving a mysterious reptile named Gary De’Snake who turns the city upside down. While investigating a smuggling ring, they uncover a conspiracy tied to the powerful Lynxley family, who frame them while attempting to conceal the city’s hidden history involving reptiles.
Completing the trio is Little Amélie or the Character of Rain, a French-Belgian adaptation of Amélie Nothomb’s autobiographical novel, produced by Mexican-French filmmaker Nidia Santiago. Born in Mexico and trained in France, she founded Ikki Films in 2011, producing internationally acclaimed works including the Oscar-nominated Negative Space (2018) and the César-winning Granny’s Sexual Life (2023), as well as titles presented at festivals such as Annecy, Clermont-Ferrand, Telluride, and Directors’ Fortnight.
Co-directed by Maïlys Vallade and Liane-Cho Han, Little Amélie or the Character of Rain centers on a Belgian girl born in Japan whose early childhood unfolds through wonder, friendship, and discovery. Guided by her bond with Nishio-san, Amélie experiences the world as a place of adventure—until a pivotal moment on her third birthday alters the course of her life.
The winners of the 98th Academy Awards will be announced Sunday, March 15, during a televised ceremony in Hollywood, California.
