Saving Mr. Banks

The film is set primarily in Los Angeles and Burbank, California, where P.L. Travers negotiates with Walt Disney and his team at Disney Studios. Flashbacks take place in Allora, Queensland, Australia, revealing her childhood memories. London is also referenced as Travers' place of residence during her struggle with her past and the Mary Poppins decision.

The main events occur in 1961 during the negotiations between P.L. Travers and Walt Disney over the Mary Poppins film rights. The film includes flashbacks to 1906, depicting Travers' difficult childhood in Australia. The story concludes in 1964 with the premiere of Mary Poppins, marking the film's cultural release.

P.L. Travers is the author of Mary Poppins, a fiercely independent and emotionally guarded writer who created the beloved children's character. In the film, she is portrayed as burdened by past trauma, particularly relating to her father's struggles, and deeply protective of her creation against commercialization.

Walt Disney is portrayed as a passionate visionary and empathetic producer who promised his daughters he would adapt Mary Poppins into a film. Despite Travers' resistance, he demonstrates patience and genuine understanding of her emotional attachments, working to earn her trust through his persistent charm.

Grief is a central undercurrent, stemming from P.L. Travers' unresolved pain over her father's struggles and death. Her difficult relationship with her father, depicted as charismatic but flawed, directly influenced her creation of George Banks in Mary Poppins. Travers must confront and reconcile with this grief to move forward.

The film explores storytelling as a healing force. Travers' personal experiences shape her creative expression, and Walt Disney's willingness to understand her past gives Mary Poppins deeper meaning. The narrative shows how reconciling with one's history enables new creative possibilities.

Collaboration is a key theme showing the challenges and triumphs of creative partnerships. Despite initial resistance from Travers, her evolving relationship with Disney demonstrates how compromise and understanding between different perspectives can produce richer storytelling.

Travers resists because she fears commercialization will corrupt her beloved character and the stories she created to process her childhood pain. She associates Mary Poppins with personal meaning and is wary of how Disney might transform her intimate creation into entertainment.

Travers' father, Travers Robert Goff, is depicted as charismatic but plagued by alcoholism, and his struggles profoundly shaped her. The character of George Banks in Mary Poppins reflects her complex feelings about her father, combining criticism of his flaws with deep, unresolved love.

Burbank is home to Walt Disney Studios, where the central conflict unfolds. This location represents the clash between Travers' literary world and Disney's Hollywood filmmaking machine, serving as the battleground for the creative and emotional negotiation over Mary Poppins.