"The Future Looks Viral" is a weekly series where we profile the people behind an innovative, new online project, be it a parody Twitter account, web series or interesting Instagram profile. They all have one thing in common: the potential to go viral.
At some point, we all come to the disappointing realization that our lives are not Disney movies. As much as we wish, we will probably never have magic genies appear out of lamps, the ability to talk to animals or dance with inanimate objects.
If you think about it, Disney characters don't get to do what we do in our everyday lives either. Do they have to deal with subway delays, buffering Netflix videos or paying taxes? I don't think so.
But what if our favorite Disney characters did live like us, namely the selfie-obsessed among us? That's what Milan-based freelance illustrator and graphic designer Simona Bonafini imagines in her new series of drawings called "Selfie Fables" where she shows what it would be like if Disney characters had Instagram accounts. And let's just say, they would use their profiles to be as vain as the rest of us.
So far, there are five illustrations in the "Selfie Fables" series, which show Hercules modeling his chiseled bod, Peter Pan photobombing Wendy, John and Michael, and Ariel snapping a selfie by the sea. Of course, all of these "photos" are also accompanied by hashtags, too. Disney characters, they're just like us!
The inspiration for this series came from all of those selfies people take with the help of a mirror. You know what I'm talking about. This made Bonafini think of the Disney character who also has an obsession with mirrors, the Queen from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. If you followed this character, who attempted to maintain a youthful appearance at all costs, on Instagram, you know your feed would be filled with her villainous selfies.
"I have always been a fan of the idea 'What would have happened if...' and stories that talk about fictional character[s] who live and act like they're in real life," said Bonafini in an email. "With drawings, I can make everything that I want [happen]."
Bonafini usually creates these illustrations with pencil and paper first before digitally adding the color in Photoshop. She is particularly inspired by stories and books. Her portfolio also includes Game of Thrones playing cards, illustrated scenes from The Great Gatsby and her own visual interpretation of Little Women.
"I love to read and, since I was young, I loved to imagin[e] and create in my mind the protagonists of these stories that I read," Bonafini said. "I think this is the reason my work [is] about these themes: I want to create my own interpretation of stories' heroes."
Bonafini hopes to expand her "Selfie Fables" series to cover more Disney animated films in the future. In particular, she'd like to create one of Aladdin and Jasmine. You can't really top a magic carpet ride selfie, now can you?
