Getting to Know Angran Li, the Production Designer for Disney’s Newest Short Film, ‘The Little Prince(ss)’

We got the chance to sit down with Angran Li, the production designer for Disney’s new short film, ‘The Little Prince(ss)’. The film gives viewers a look into the lives of two separate Chinese-American families, and the way they raise their sons.

Angran is a Chinese Production Designer who got her start in interior design at Parsons the New School for Design in New York and has worked on numerous projects both locally and internationally.

In the past, she’s worked on Mongol, The Way Home, and Hamster. Angran is passionate about creativity and bringing the story to life with her designs. Her work on ‘The Little Prince(ss)’ brought the story to life, and accompanied the intense themes of the film. Today we got a chance to hear about her creative process, her past work, and her time on ‘The Little Prince(ss)’. 

Hi Angran, I'd love for you to tell us a bit about yourself- What was your first job in production design and how did you decide to pursue your craft professionally?

Hi there. My first production design job….. wow… it might trace back years, maybe more than 10. I was still in Beijing at that time, it was a small crew of production on a low-budget film. This means 1 person does many jobs. I was doing the script, 1st AD, camera 2nd AC, talent stand-in, and some special make-up. I know it sounds like a lot of positions but that is also very traditional filmmaking done in a very passionate, old fashioned way.

You kind of have to be there and ready to jump in and do anything. And when I think about those days, I still have some fun memories that make me laugh now. I have some good memories when it relates to space, environments, and layout, and I got really interested in watching film-making documentaries.

There was a scene in the behind-the-scenes making of Titanic (1997) when the key creatives are standing next to a small water tank when there’s a scaled boat model inside the tank while talking about the scene. I was like, “I guess if I want to work in the Art Department, I need to learn how to make 3D models.”

What are some of your favorite past projects? 

I actually like all of the projects I’ve worked on before. There’s a project called ‘Frog Wife’ that was adapted from a three-color risograph comic by the Artist Ryan Heshka. The script turned that into a very “cute” story narrated in my language. I had so much fun with my producer Luca Miano, and both writers Garrett Wilson and Jacob Stock.

I think I’ve been challenged by writers and directors a lot recently. It sometimes frustrates me, but it also gets me really excited when the script is very, very visually heavy. Once upon a time, I worked with writer Dave Testa, he had written a ghost story. In his script it was written as: “now she sees a space with endless light bulbs….” And then my director Jeseung Woo jumped in and said “Angran, those green light bulbs represent after-life memories and souls”... and then they both looked at me and I just….felt so much pressure to make the visual aspect perfect for them- but it was an exciting challenge.

I will say, to be honest, I love the scripts that have a lot of visual challenges. It feels like standing on the cliff and you can see a very clear sky, though you need to figure out how to fly. One of my most challenging projects up until this moment might still be, ‘How to Live Your Life Correctly’ with director Xindi Lou. Before Xindi and both writers even started writing, I had a conversation with Xindi and I said “let’s just do something crazy and fun, and whatever you want.” And then, when I first received the script, before I finished the 1st page, I was like….. “Crap, I should have said crazy, fun, but also doable…”  

What scene was the most fun to work on for, The Little Prince(ss)?

With The Little Prince(ss), I think I personally had fun dressing one of Gabriel’s house locations. I had asked my prop master Cynthia Geshrick and set decorator Dana Mcdonald to manage dressing around the location that day, so I could focus on making paper arts. They gave me the freedom to rest a little bit!

The artworks might look very very blurry in the final shots, but I mounted a bunch of very nicely hand-made paper samples to some wood boards and frames in that location, because I wanted Gabriel's family to have something special to add to their space. I was sitting in the middle of the living room floor mounting papers while the rest of my team was running around me. And I was always in their way, but I trusted them, and because of them I had a little bit of rest that morning. 

What is the first step in your production design process, and what was that like for The Little Prince(ss)?

If I already received and read the script, and if both the director or producer (EP) refer me to some story-based films references, I might ask them to point to me to what they like and what they don’t like design-wise in those films. That will be my quickest pass on things that bother them the most, and I develop some ideas of what kind of look and mood I can assemble to show.

If I don’t have time to ask questions, I might assemble something myself but with a very distinct variety of moods and ask if they can pick and choose and explain to me why they don’t like certain things. I did this with Moxie, and it was quicker because, before my interview with Moxie, the studio had already shared one of Moxie’s previous films with me. After I shared my experiences with Moxie, they asked me if I had any questions for them.

So I asked if there was anything they wanted me to adapt from previous films, or if there was anything in particular that they wish they hadn’t done when it came to Production Design with their earlier projects. And that’s where my first inspiration started with the production design process for The Little Prince(ss).

Who are some of your creative influences, and where do you look for inspiration?

Hugo (2011) is still one of my favorite films. I was really falling in love with the color and technology and what production design can provide when it came to showing respect for the history of filmmaking. I think to me, Hugo was a love letter written by production design to some amazing films in history. I liked a lot of black and white comedies before cinema turned to color. I was inspired by a lot of traditional ways of making art and crafts.

And I actually watch a lot of fashion runway reality tv shows. I did go to the Top Fashion School in New York, though my interest for fashion reality tv has nothing to do with graduating from Parsons, (I might not want to watch TV of real-life stress if I majored in Fashion.) [haha]. But I do think the level of stress I experienced at Parsons and now in productions when I was a designer was similar to the level of stress on those shows.

It constantly inspires me and refreshes my thoughts when I see people sketch ideas and do prints and pick fabrics and try to assemble them on 1 body. It’s like when Production Design is using an entire space to explain words, 1 piece of garment says it all. It's all very poetic, strong, and elegant. 

And to close it out, where can we find you on social media?

You can connect with me via my Instagram, it should be very easy to find me there now. I also have a website, angranli.com I would be happy to be reached out by email there too.