Identity, intertextuality and Italianicity: The edutainment of Disney-Pixar’s Luca (2021)

This article examines how Disney-Pixar’s Luca (2021) constructs identity alongside two filmic pillars: intertextuality and Italianicity. The three levels of analysis that emerge in this study – identity, intertextuality and Italianicity – are contextualized in interdisciplinary literature and the imagination at the centre of Disney’s filmography. First, this article examines identity formation in the film through its characters which supplies viewers with an opportunity for self-reflection. Next, it explores the intricate intertextuality of the film and posits these references, whether intentional or latent, as connective pieces to Luca’s filmic contexts. Finally, it examines the function of Italianicity on a variety of levels to galvanize how the film is chock-full of references that embrace and stage Italy. All of this considered, this article frames how these three pillars come together to teach Italian culture to viewers via the film.