Marcus is a young boy who appears in the Pixar SparkShorts film, Loop.
Appearances[]
Loop[]
Marcus is a teenage boy attending canoeing camp. One day, after being late to start, he is paired to go with an autistic non-verbal girl named Renee.
Initially, he doesn't know how to communicate with Renee. He tries showing her different ways to row, but she isn't interested and starts rocking the canoe in frustration. He asks her what she wants to do, and she shows him a picture of a poop emoji.
Marcus takes Renee towards the bathroom, and she runs her hands through the reeds. He realizes that she didn't need to use the bathroom and just wanted to touch the reeds. He takes her back and forth to brush them, then tries it himself. Next, Renee goes back to her phone to play her favorite ringtone.
Marcus gets an idea, and takes Renee to a tunnel, where the ringtone she keeps playing will echo. She enjoys it at first. However, it also amplifies the sound of a passing speedboat, which overwhelms Renee. Panicking, she grabs the paddle and tries to steer them away from the sound. Marcus, afraid she'll steer them into the speedboat's path, fights to take control of the canoe so he can get them to safety. They crash onto land.
Renee has a meltdown. Wailing, she throws her phone, which falls into the lake. Sobbing, she hides under the canoe and won't come out. Marcus waits around; he's frustrated, but eventually calms down. He picks a reed and hands it to her, which she gladly clings to.
Eventually, Renee comes out, and she and Marcus imitate the sound her ringtone makes. They get the canoe back in the water and go back to camp.
In the after-credits scene, Renee gets a text from Marcus asking if she'd like to go canoeing again.
Trivia[]
- Marcus has presumably been canoeing many times before, considering his level of knowledge and his being able to go out without a partner.
- While Marcus doesn't know how to understand Renee at first, he shows empathy and ingenuity when he starts trying to see the world through her eyes.