Voices is the Dorset Echo's weekly youth page - written for young people by young people.

This week Aimee Mortimore discusses themes in new film 'Coco.'

Recently the film “Coco” was released in cinemas.

At the box office, it grossed $621.7 million and its great success may be explained by the way it so convincingly showed spectators the importance of family and storytelling.

This Pixar animation transmits perfectly a message of remembrance and respect through the cultural tradition of El Día de los Muertos or the Day of the Dead.

From October 31 until November 2, hispanophones remember and honour their deceased loved ones .

They put up pictures and candles and lay out foods and objects that the individual used to like on an 'ofrenda’ which are elaborately decorated with plenty of colour.

This tradition is a celebration of life which encourages families to come together in order to share the memories they have of their relatives and loved ones.

Across the days of celebration, graveyards are illuminated with lights so the spirits can easily find their way and colour is everywhere.

The vibrant and joyful colours symbolise different things. For example purple represents suffering, red as the blood of life and white stands for purity and hope.

In Coco, the protagonist Miguel enters the 'Land of the Dead' where he meets Héctor, first seeing him trying to pass over to the living.

He is denied access because his daughter Coco, Miguel’s abuelita (granny) is beginning to forget her papá Héctor. This means Héctor can no longer join his daughter in his spirit form.

Eventually, when he is erased from her memory, Héctor will reach the final death and be gone forever.

The film teaches us to remember those we love and more importantly to pass along their stories, celebrating the life they had. As long as we remember them, their spirits continue to live on.

By Aimee Mortimore