My Little Pony began as a line of toys in 1982, making the move to television with its first show in 1986. Since then, there have been countless iterations of the franchise through toys, TV and film, spanning decades, and, most importantly, generations. Since the 80s, every child has had some version of My Little Pony to grow up with. Now, it is one of the latest franchises parents can introduce their children to with the new film My Little Pony: A New Generation on Netflix.
CGMagazine was lucky enough to sit down with Liza Koshy (Liza on Demand) who plays Zipp Storm, and Kimiko Glenn (Orange is the New Black) who plays Izzy Moonbow in the new feature-length animation. With a star-studded cast, we wanted to find out what life was like behind the scenes, and what a new generation of My Little Pony brings to the table.
CGMagazine: My Little Pony has been a series for countless generations that started in the 80s, had a revival in the 2000s and this new generation. What can people expect from this new revival? And what do you believe this has added to the lore of My Little Pony up to this point?
Liza Koshy: That was a beautiful question. Your outlet is lucky to have you, if I may say so myself—I did. My Little Pony: A New Generation is new, it’s a whole different take on My Little Pony. The story is different, taking us to a different place, taking us to different parts of Equestria. You’re going to see ponies and unicorns, them unite.
“My Little Pony: A New Generation is new, it’s a whole different take on My Little Pony.”
There’s so much to look forward to in the film, but there’s always going to be the consistent underlying moral, story, and message that we drive home to kids and adults alike that you’re beautiful in who you are as an individual. But we are even more beautiful when we come together and rise together with the magic and powers that are within all of us. So, there’s always that underlying moral unifying unicorns.
Kimiko Glenn: That unifying message about friendship and how it’s important and how we need to, like, accept one another for what makes us and what draws us together and not what draws us apart.
Liza Koshy: Yeah, I think new generation has new humour, knowledge, and music, brought to you by Izzy Moonbow, that’s this one’s character, which is brilliant also, and Zipp. Zipp has some ad libs in that song, so watch out. And then Pip who’s played by Sophia Carson and Vanessa Hudgens each brought their own special voices and powers and literally made a great soundtrack. So, yeah, I can enjoy this movie in many ways.
CGMagazine: A lot of casts become families as they begin production, and I’ve heard that with many animated movies too. With COVID-19 how was the dynamic between the cast in My Little Pony: A New Generation? Was it like your projects in the past?
Kimiko Glenn: You know, because it’s voice-over it is pretty isolated. I have yet to meet the rest of the cast. But I can say from my perspective, the creative team was so welcoming and so familial to me at least, it was a very playful, excited, inventive environment. They were always so lovely to me and relayed the most wonderful messages from other people and I got to see the rest of the cast in all their glory while I was watching the movie itself. I think that I felt connected even though we weren’t allowed to be together.
Liza Koshy: They literally created a home in a place that was so unfamiliar for me, because I’m also new into the voice acting world. I’ve been doing it a little bit. But this was a really fun moment in my own personal life and career to try something so new that she’s (Kimiko Glen) so incredibly good at—check out all of her other works on IMDB. But, it’s so incredible, and I took note from her. I’m lucky to learn from her because I got to dance and be free, based off of her freeing me, but also the team we set out to Art Hernandez and all the amazing animators that brought these characters to life and let us give life to it too. We’re lucky.
CGMagazine: Thank you so much for your time. We are excited to see the film and see more work from you both.
