Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical, An Internet Phenomenon That Becomes A Big Collaboration

JAKARTA - Boredom at home during the COVID-19 pandemic has moved many people to start doing creative things, including users of the TikTok application.

Since October 2020, TikTok users have been making cooking videos accompanied by the song Le Festin, a song from the Disney / Pixar film Ratatouille. Then, a user named Emily Jacobsen made a video singing a song about Remy, the main character of the film Ratatouille.

Using a chipmunk style, Jacobsen composed a special song about Remy's character. The video went viral and was followed by many other TikTok users by re-singing Jacobsen's Ode To Remy song and became popular.

The climax was when a TikTok user named Daniel Mertzlufft recreated the video with a song he composed specifically for Ode to Remy. This video got millions of viewers and became a virtual collaboration between users which created a new phenomenon, namely Ratatouille Musical.

The film Ratatouille from director Brad Bird tells the story of a mouse named Remy (filled by Patton Oswalt) who wants to become a chef like his idol, Auguste Gusteau (Brad Garrett). One day, he is trapped in Gusteau's restaurant in Paris.

Inside the restaurant, Remy meets a male cleaning service worker named Alfredo Linguini (Lou Romano). Remy also helps Linguini to cook and serve the best food at Gusteau's restaurant.

When it opened in theaters in 2007, Ratatouille did not sell well in North America. But the film received appreciation in France where the success earned Ratatouille the seventh most successful Pixar film.

Ratatouille also won the 80th Academy Awards, beating out Persepolis and Surf's Up.

Emily Jacobsen's Ode to Remy video inspired other TikTok users to choreograph, script and shape it as a musical. This popularity had made Jacobsen afraid that Disney would sue him for copyright at a later date.

Among the hectic TikTok videos, a musical producer named Nobile saw this phenomenon. Launching Deadline, Nobile contacted a friend to ask about what they could do with this Ratatouille musical. Nobile's friends passed on to the president of the Disney Theatrical Group, Tom Schumacher and Nobile had the idea to create a musical which proceeds from sales went to The Actors Fund.

This organization focuses on the needs of the entertainment community. More than 17 thousand people who work in the entertainment industry receive funds that can be used to support their financial and health needs.

Nobile recruited Jacobsen, the pioneers of the first TikTok Ratatouille video and Mertzlufft as composers. He also added professionals such as writers Michael Breslin and Patrick Foley. They also recruited Lucy Moss, a musical director who worked on projects in London and Broadway. For the musical actor Ratatouille, Nobile and a casting director asked Andrew Barth Feldman and Kevin Chamberlin.

In a short time, they recruited several famous musical actors. Apart from Chamberlin and Feldman, there are Tituss Burgress, Andre De Shields, singer Adam Lambert, Priscilla Lopez, Ashley Park, Owen Tabaka, Mary Testa, Cori Jasker, and many others. All the players recorded their share of their respective residences except for Burgress who had to record many scenes.

“We asked a Broadway star to wear a mouse mustache and record it on Christmas Eve. I was nervous when I opened Dropbox (where the players submitted the video) and on Christmas Eve, all of a sudden, they uploaded it on time. They are wearing costumes. They studied their script, "said Nobile launched Deadline.

Jacobsen and other TikTok creators also receive credit and royalties for using songs. Seaview wants to appreciate TikTok creators who are the origin of this Ratatouille musical.

The premiere of Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical which was held on January 1, was greeted enthusiastically by social media and musical users. They won 1 million United States dollars for first ticket sales.

This was conveyed by the Twitter account Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical where they wrote, “You did it! You raised $ 1 million for @TheActorsFund! But we're not done yet. Tickets can still be purchased throughout the weekend. "

You did it! You raised over $ 1 million to benefit @TheActorsFund! But we aren't done yet. Tickets are still on sale all weekend long on @ TodayTix.https: //t.co/3YxozrE7Hd pic.twitter.com/QqUu6uzM0D

- Ratatouille Musical (@ratatousical) January 2, 2021

The President of The Actors Fund, Joseph P. Benincasa is also grateful for this achievement. “We are happy to start the New Year with an event that brings a lot of happiness. Our gratitude goes to the producers, creators, performers and everyone in the TikTok community who made this happen. "

The arrival of Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical is an entertainment that has successfully transformed social media interactions as a virtue that helps many people. Apart from that, it also proves that everyone can be creative in any situation.