Celebratory fanart for 15th anniversary of “Tangled” and 4th year since the release of “Encanto”, two movies sharing one director, Byron Howard.
Someone once said Bruno would make good fairy godparent figure, which sounds just fair (he embodies archetype anyway, and in early versions of it in folk tales, role of magical mentor is sometimes occupied by an uncle or aunt of hero). Then, get a magical godchild assigned, old man!
“Tangled” may be my favorite (second of TP&TF) Disney fairytale of modern era, it does pay respect to its classic form, but also has its own distinctive visual language and original themes as well. I like in particular that it introduces first princess with defined artistic inclinations, her longing for open world expressed through her paintings, recreation of the universe inside the walls she’s trapped within.
And there’s a personal touch behind the concept: not just animator Clen Keane designed the character in likeness of his daughter and successor Claire, she herself developed ideas for workings of Rapunzel’s creative mind through the diary-like notes, and many of works belonging to the character in supplementary materials (and in the animated series) are made by her as well. It’s a love for the craft reflected in a creation itself in the form of wonderful meta element.
Bruno’s character is an interesting mirror to Rapunzel’s, as his story contains similar elements in more ambiguous, less fairytale-clear aspect. Like her, he’s been confined in a tower with a purpose of service with his obtained magical gift, like her, he possesses creative mind, and like her, he’s more than his gift and eventually letting go of it as it doesn’t define his essence. The difference is, unlike Punzie, Bruno, in pursue of following his heart’s call, leaves the tower just to subject himself to even stronger confinement, and in the end has to face and resolve his family issues without running from it, because in real life, your demanding parent is less likely to turn to be an evil witch who’s got you stolen from your actual perfect royal family.
And as a side note: color of Punzie’s dress is a reference to the green dress seen in concept arts!