ABSTRACT

As mainstream cultural products, it is increasingly recognized that movies can influence the way places are perceived, exploited and materially transformed, particularly in tourism development. The relationship between movies and places has been widely explored in geographical research, but the role of animated features is still relatively unexplored. Thanks to its extremely precise geographical connotations, Disney-Pixar’s animated film Luca (2021) is an exceptional case study. The film is set in Cinque Terre (Liguria, NW Italy), an area that in the last twenty years has been affected by over tourism phenomena. By examining how the movie has been received by local institutions, residents and tourists, this paper aims to provide new insights into how such products can contribute to create meaning of places and influence local attractiveness. In particular, the paper focusses on Destination Marketing Organisations’ reactions to Luca’s release and how it was perceived by residents and tourists, by analysing the results of a survey we administered in 2021. The results show the positive impact and potential issues of geographically defined animated films particularly in terms of sense of belonging and authenticity perception amongst insiders and outsiders.

摘要

作为主流文化产品，人们越来越认识到电影可以影响人们对地方的感知、利用和物质转变的方式，特别是在旅游业发展方面。电影和地点之间的关系在地理研究中已被广泛探索，但动画特征的作用仍然相对未被探索。迪士尼-皮克斯动画电影《卢卡》凭借极其精确的地理内涵，（2021）是一个特殊的案例研究。影片以五渔村（意大利西北部利古里亚）为背景，该地区在过去二十年中一直受到过度旅游现象的影响。通过研究当地机构、居民和游客对这部电影的接受程度，本文旨在提供新的见解，了解此类产品如何有助于创造地方的意义并影响当地的吸引力。本文特别关注目的地营销组织对卢卡的反应通过分析我们在 2021 年进行的一项调查结果，我们了解了动画电影的上映以及居民和游客的看法。结果显示了地理界定动画电影的积极影响和潜在问题，特别是在归属感和真实性感知方面内部人士和外部人士。