Between authenticity and belonging: residents’ and tourists’ perception of the Cinque Terre (Italy) in Pixar-Disney’s Luca

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.