Disney’s ‘Moana’ Didn’t Copy Producer’s Film Project, Jury Says

Walt Disney Co.‘s popular animated movie “Moana” didn’t copy plot lines, scenes, and themes from an animator’s film project, “Bucky the Surfer Boy,” a jury found Monday after a short deliberation

Disney didn’t have access to materials Buck G. Woodall pitched for a film about a surfer boy who goes on an adventure in Hawaii, according to the verdict filed in the US District Court for the Central District of California.

The jury deliberated for under three hours. Because they found Disney didn’t have access to Woodall’s work, they didn’t reach the question of whether the two films are ...