Shrek director tackles animation taboo in Netflix fairy tale Spellbound

Animated films tackling parent separation and divorce are few and far between.

While live-action kids' classics such as The Parent Trap (1998) and Mrs. Doubtfire (1993) have used the concept as a launchpad for humorous antics, animation has tended to steer entirely clear of the issue.

"Isn't that funny...you can kill off a parent in a movie like The Lion King or Bambi," said American filmmaker Vicky Jenson, best known for co-directing Shrek (2001).

"Disney mums are often dead - the only time anyone remarries is because the other spouse is dead. This topic of separation, of parents not being able to live together...it's taboo."

But in Jenson's new film Spellbound, a princess' parents have been transformed by a dastardly spell into literal monsters.

It is an allegorical device that forces young Ellian to try to "fix" her mother and father, and their broken family.

"We encountered some resistance when we were looking for someone to help bring the movie to the world, a partner to distribute the movie," Jenson, 64, said.