Brave 2012

Brave is a 2012 American animated fantasy adventure film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. Directed by Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman, and written by Andrews, Chapman, Steve Purcell, and Irene Mecchi, it stars the voices of Kelly Macdonald, Billy Connolly, Emma Thompson, Julie Walters, Robbie Coltrane, Kevin McKidd, and Craig Ferguson. Set in the Scottish Highlands, the film tells the story of Princess Merida of DunBroch (Macdonald) who defies an age-old custom, causing chaos in the kingdom by expressing the desire not to be betrothed. When Queen Elinor (Thompson), her mother, is turned into a bear, Merida must look within herself and find the key to saving the kingdom. Merida is the first character in the Disney Princess line to be created by Pixar. The film is also dedicated to Pixar chairman and Apple co-founder and CEO Steve Jobs, who died before the film's release. Brave is Pixar's first film with a female protagonist, and the first one animated with a new proprietary animation system, called Presto. Originally titled The Bear and the Bow, the film was first announced in April 2008 alongside Up (2009) and Cars 2 (2011).