Disney has provided me with an expense paid trip to Hollywood for the Disney Planes Event in exchange for my review of the events of the trip. No other compensation was given. The opinions and experiences in my posts are 100% mine. You can read my full disclosure policy here.
Have you taken the family to see Disney Planes yet? It’s out in theaters now and if you need a reason or 10 to go see it, here’s my list. It’s SUCH a fantastic, feel-good movie!
El Chupacabra is my very favorite plane in the film.
If you’ve seen it you know why. He’s hilarious and at the same time such a good, loyal friend to Dusty. Just the kind of friend we all need, right? El Chu is voiced by the amazingly talented Carlos Alazraqui who I was lucky enough to get to meet when I was in Los Angeles to learn all about the making of Planes. I think I could talk to him forever…or more like listen to him talk. What a talent!
Carlos Alazraqui has an impressive bio of voice acting.
He was the Taco Bell dog! ‘Yo quiero Taco Bell.’ How cool to meet the Taco Bell Chihuahua, right? But that’s not nearly all that Carlos is known for. He’s been a stand-up comedian for more than 25 years and you might know him as Deputy James Garcia on Comedy Central’s “Reno 911!” He’s an incredibly skilled voice actor (seriously, I think he switched characters like 25 times while we were talking to him!) and has been the voice for Rocko and Spunky on Nickelodeon’s “Rocko’s Modern Life”, Nestor the Latin penguin in “Happy Feet” and “Happy Feet 2”, and he’s Mr. Weed on Fox’s “The Family Guy”, which my husband appreciated. 😉 Carlos has also produced his own web series cartoon on Mondomedia called “Off the Curb,” which has been wildly successful. He’s a star folks! What can I say?
“El Chu is endearing, courageous, he’s bigger than life.” ~Carlos Alazraqui
And his light shines bright as El Chupacabra in Disney Planes. El Chu is easily my favorite Planes character. He’s so HILARIOUS but he’s not shallow. He’s full of heart all the time. And you really get to see his heart beat wildly for Rochelle. Without giving too much away to those of you that haven’t seen the movie yet, be sure to keep an eye out for El Chu’s serenade which Carlos told us was his favorite scene. I can see why. It’s so funny and sweet!
So how did Carlos get picked to be El Chupcabra?
I had no idea how this whole process worked but I learned! Once there’s a script in place a group of actors come together to do what they call a table read. These aren’t the final actors, just a group of professional actors to voice it out so the Disney folks can get a feel for what a movie might sound like. John Lasseter, the Chief Creative Officer for Disney Animation and Pixar liked Carlos so much that he stayed and became the voice of El Chu! After that Carlos said he went in for about 20 recording sessions over the course of two years. He always recorded alone, though sometimes Director Klay Hall would voice the other characters to help with timing. “Coming alone is great. All the attention is on me. It’s fun to be a big deal!” Carlos has been involved in Planes since May of 2011, right around the time his daughter was born, a little sweetheart who he gushed over more than once while we were chatting. We even got to see some pictures on his phone. No wonder El Chu is so captivating. The real El Chu is equally as sweet.
“It’s fun to be somebody else. It’s easier than you think.
You talk to your kids, your dog in a different voice. You’ve created a character.” ~Carlos Alazraqui
Omigosh, really? Then I should be a voice actor…right after I work up the courage to do my dog voice publicly. 😉 Here’s a peek at my very favorite El Chupacabra scene.
Disney Planes is in theaters now. Take your kids to go see it and have FUN! I know you’ll fall in love with El Chupacabra as much as I did, especially now knowing more about Carlos Alazraqui, the incredible voice talent that brings him to life!
Get out there and go see Planes and come back and tell me what you think! You can check out the Disney Planes website for more Planes fun, and keep up with all the latest Planes news by following on Facebook and Twitter!
Planes is in theaters NOW!
Retweet and tell your friends!
Carlos Alazraqui is “bigger than life” as @PlanesElChu in #DisneyPlanes! http://t.co/vQdLcgXW5g #DisneyPlanesEvent
— Lindsay (@PandorasDeals) August 13, 2013
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