Pixar's Soul | "Finding Soul" Conversation | Essence Festival + a Sneak Peek

The filmmakers from Disney & Pixar’s “Soul,” director Pete Docter, co-director and screenwriter Kemp Powers and producer Dana Murray, partnered with American anthropologist/educator Dr. Johnnetta Cole and globally-renowned jazz pianist Jon Batiste to offer an exclusive sneak peek at the film as a part of the Essence Festival of Culture during a virtual panel titled Finding “Soul.” The sneak peek features the song “Parting Ways” written, produced and performed by Cody ChesnuTT. Both Dr. Cole and Jon Batiste, who lent his expertise to the jazz arrangements and compositions in “Soul,” serve as cultural consultants on the film.  



And below is a sneak peek at Soul:



What is it that makes you...YOU? This November, Pixar Animation Studios’ all-new feature film “Soul” introduces Joe Gardner (voice of Jamie Foxx) – a middle-school band teacher who gets the chance of a lifetime to play at the best jazz club in town. But one small misstep takes him from the streets of New York City to The Great Before – a fantastical place where new souls get their personalities, quirks and interests before they go to Earth. Determined to return to his life, Joe teams up with a precocious soul, 22 (voice of Tina Fey), who has never understood the appeal of the human experience. As Joe desperately tries to show 22 what’s great about living, he may just discover the answers to some of life’s most important questions. Directed by Academy Award® winner Pete Docter (“Inside Out,” “Up”), co-directed by Kemp Powers (“One Night in Miami”) and produced by Academy Award nominee Dana Murray, p.g.a. (Pixar short “Lou”), Disney and Pixar’s “Soul” opens in U.S. theaters on November 20, 2020. 

Disney and Pixar’s All-New Feature Film “Soul” to Hit Theaters Summer 2020

Pixar Animation Studios revealed details today about “Soul,” its second original feature film slated for theaters in 2020. Following the March 6 opening of “Onward,” Disney and Pixar’s “Soul” hits theaters one year from today on June 19, 2020.

Ever wonder where your passion, your dreams and your interests come from? What is it that makes you... YOU? In 2020, Pixar Animation Studios takes you on a journey from the streets of New York City to the cosmic realms to discover the answers to life’s most important questions. “Soul” is directed by two-time Academy Award® winner Pete Docter (“Up,” “Inside Out”) and produced by Academy Award® nominee Dana Murray (“Lou” short).

Review of Disney/Pixar's Inside Out: One of the Best Pixar Films to Date!

Two years is a long wait for the next Pixar film! In a day and age of flashy sequels, it was so refreshing to get an original film! Inside Out is not just merely a return to form for Pixar, it is quite simply one of their best films.

The beginning of the film shows us that inside the mind of each living being is a "Headquarters," a central command center controlled by five emotions: Joy, Anger, Disgust, Fear and Sadness. The film focuses on the "Headquarters" of 11-year old Riley, who just moved to San Francisco by way of Minnesota with her mom and dad.  After the move and while Riley is starting to become acquainted with her new surroundings, an altercation between Joy and Sadness goes too far and leads the two of them to be literally sucked out of Headquarters. It is then up to Fear, Anger and Disgust to guide Riley through each day while Joy and Sadness try to find their way back to Headquarters.

While on its surface, Inside Out appears to be very much along the lines of Pixar's other films with two unlikely characters taking a journey together on a quest. The animation is bright and colorful. If you get the opportunity to see this film presented in Dolby Vision (The El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood has a Dolby vision projector) then do it. The 4K presentation is made for animation. The eye-catching colors pop off the screen along with the richness of the details of the characters and their surroundings. But at the heart of this movie is while Riley's development it taking a turn for the worse, it also parallels the journey for Joy and Sadness. As Riley learns about the pain that can occur while growing up, even sadness is an essential part of life.

While many people, including myself, first thought of Inside Out as an updated version of Herman's Head or even Cranium Command at EPCOT, the presentation here feels fresh and new. Everything makes sense from how memories are created, how memories are lost, the train of thought, to the creation of what makes up our core values and in turn makes us the person that we are. All of this then shows us how complex and fragile the human mind is. This is such a serious look at life for any animated film. But a reminder that in our lives, that hiding from sadness will actual do more damage to us in the long run.



As the film progresses we even see that the humor used in the beginning is also another way that we ignore deeper emotions. We also watch Joy and Sadness learn from their chance meeting with Bing Bong, Riley's long lost imaginary friend. He is the heart of this film as Joy and Sadness learn about the three things that this film preaches about, heartache, loss and healing.

Pete Docter has now brought us the emotional beginning in UP and the even more emotionally charged ending to Inside Out. He brings back Pixar to what it does best, telling deep, powerful stories that can be understood on every age level. Another winner from Docter and one of the finest films ever produced by Pixar.

As powerfully emotional Inside Out is, the Pixar short LAVA in front of this film is equally emotional but in a different way. This beautiful animated short tells the story of Uku, a volcano who longs for someone to love. All around Uku, everyone has found someone and as the years (millions of years) go by, you see him become more and more worn down.

Will anyone answer his song of hope and love? Just when he has given up all hope, another volcano, the lovely Lele (Uku and Lele, get it?) answers his song.

The beautiful song that Uku sings and then sung by Lele and then the two volcanoes together is going to be a popular wedding song. A bit of trivia, the song was written by LAVA director James Ford Murphy.

Pixar's LAVA and Inside Out open in theaters June 19th, 2015!

Inside Out - Official US Trailer 2

The new trailer for Inside Out is here! Watch now and see the film June 19th!

From an adventurous balloon ride above the clouds to a monster-filled metropolis, Academy Award®-winning director Pete Docter (“Monsters, Inc.,” “Up”) has taken audiences to unique and imaginative places. In Disney•Pixar’s original movie “ Inside Out,” he will take us to the most extraordinary location of all—inside the mind. 

Growing up can be a bumpy road, and it's no exception for Riley, who is uprooted from her Midwest life when her father starts a new job in San Francisco. Like all of us, Riley is guided by her emotions – Joy (Amy Poehler), Fear (Bill Hader), Anger (Lewis Black), Disgust (Mindy Kaling) and Sadness (Phyllis Smith). The emotions live in Headquarters, the control center inside Riley’s mind, where they help advise her through everyday life. As Riley and her emotions struggle to adjust to a new life in San Francisco, turmoil ensues in Headquarters. Although Joy, Riley's main and most important emotion, tries to keep things positive, the emotions conflict on how best to navigate a new city, house and school.



Like Inside Out on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PixarInsideOut

Follow Inside Out on Twitter: https://twitter.com/PixarInsideOut

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Poster for Pixar's Inside Out!

Like INSIDE OUT on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PixarInsideOut  

Follow INSIDE OUT on Twitter: https://twitter.com/PixarInsideOut  

Follow INSIDE OUT on Instagram: @PixarInsideOut

#InsideOut

INSIDE OUT opens in theatres everywhere on June 19th! 

Pixar's "Inside Out" US Teaser Trailer

Inside Out comes to US theatres in 3D on June 19, 2015. 

From an adventurous balloon ride above the clouds to a monster-filled metropolis, Academy Award®-winning director Pete Docter (“Monsters, Inc.,” “Up”) has taken audiences to unique and imaginative places. In Disney•Pixar’s original movie “ Inside Out,” he will take us to the most extraordinary location of all—inside the mind. 

Growing up can be a bumpy road, and it's no exception for Riley, who is uprooted from her Midwest life when her father starts a new job in San Francisco. Like all of us, Riley is guided by her emotions – Joy (Amy Poehler), Fear (Bill Hader), Anger (Lewis Black), Disgust (Mindy Kaling) and Sadness (Phyllis Smith). The emotions live in Headquarters, the control center inside Riley’s mind, where they help advise her through everyday life. As Riley and her emotions struggle to adjust to a new life in San Francisco, turmoil ensues in Headquarters. Although Joy, Riley's main and most important emotion, tries to keep things positive, the emotions conflict on how best to navigate a new city, house and school.

Check out the Logo and Synopsis for Disney/Pixar’s new animated feature INSIDE OUT

From an adventurous balloon ride above the clouds to a monster-filled metropolis, Academy Award®-winning director Pete Docter (“Monsters, Inc.,” “Up”) has taken audiences to unique and imaginative places. In Disney•Pixar’s original movie “ Inside Out,” he will take us to the most extraordinary location of all—inside the mind. 

Growing up can be a bumpy road, and it's no exception for Riley, who is uprooted from her Midwest life when her father starts a new job in San Francisco. Like all of us, Riley is guided by her emotions – Joy (Amy Poehler), Fear (Bill Hader), Anger (Lewis Black), Disgust (Mindy Kaling) and Sadness (Phyllis Smith). The emotions live in Headquarters, the control center inside Riley’s mind, where they help advise her through everyday life. As Riley and her emotions struggle to adjust to a new life in San Francisco, turmoil ensues in Headquarters. Although Joy, Riley's main and most important emotion, tries to keep things positive, the emotions conflict on how best to navigate a new city, house and school.

Notes:

·         Director Pete Docter is the Academy Award®-winning director of “Up.” He made his directorial debut with Disney•Pixar‘s smash hit “Monsters, Inc.,” which was nominated for an Academy Award for best animated feature film. Along with John Lasseter and Andrew Stanton, Docter developed the story and characters for “Toy Story,” Pixar‘s first full-length feature film, for which he also served as supervising animator. He served as a storyboard artist on “A Bug’s Life” and wrote the initial story treatment for “Toy Story 2.” As one of Pixar Animation Studios’ key creative contributors, Docter garnered an Academy Award nomination for his original story credit on Disney•Pixar’s Golden Globe®- and Oscar®-winning “WALL•E.”

·         Jonas Rivera produced the Academy Award®-winning “Up,” for which he was nominated for best picture. Prior to “Up,” he had worked on nearly every Pixar film since joining Pixar Animation Studios in 1994, beginning with “Toy Story” for which he served as production office assistant. His subsequent credits include “A Bug’s Life” (as art department coordinator), “Toy Story 2” (as a marketing and creative resources coordinator), “Monsters, Inc.” (as art department manager) and the Golden Globe®-winning “Cars” (as production manager).

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Review of Mary Blair's World of Color A Centennial Tribute

 As most of you know by now, I am a huge Disney fan and a huge animation fan in general. When it came to my attention that The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences held a Marc Davis Celebration of Animation Series I was more than intrigued to say the very least!

Mary Blair's World of Color: A Centennial Tribute was the fifth such Marc Davis Lecture Series that have been fortunate enough to attend.

The panel was led by Charles Solomon, a widely respected animation critic and historian. On the first panel was Alice Davis, wife of Marc Davis and legendary Disney costume designer, and Maggie Richardson, Mary's niece.

Alice discussed the first time she was introduced to Mary Blair. She knew from that first meeting that they would be good friends. Maggie discussed that when she was growing up that her aunt Mary would always make her paintings instead of giving her a toy or a doll. Little did she know how much her aunt's art would be valued as she got older.

We were then shown clips from Saludos Amigos and The Three Caballeros. The bright colors found in both of these feature films were very Mary Blair. The bright, bold colors and designs were all things that Mary was known for.

Then we saw Once Upon a Wintertime from Melody Time, the March of the Cards sequence from Alice in Wonderland and Peter Pan with the Mermaids sequence from Peter Pan.

One Upon a Wintertime is one of my favorites. Mary's concept art for the backgrounds and for the characters were closely followed. My favorite part of this short is that there are bold color changes to express the different emotional turns in the story.

In the March of the Cards sequence of Alice in Wonderland, Mary's wit and love of whimsy come to play here. Wonderful character designs combined amazing backgrounds truly brought Alice's crazy dream to life!

The next clip from Peter Pan, Mary's use of color creates a believability in this entire place. She created this beautiful Mermaid Lagoon that looks like it fits anywhere in the real world.

Finally, we saw the shorts Susie The Little Blue Coupe and The Little House. For both of these shorts, Mary was the sole art director.

John Lasseter has said that Susie The Little Blue Coupe is one of his favorite shorts. I'm sure it helped influence him when it came to make the movie Cars.

Pete Docter has said that The Little House influenced him when it came to creating the house in UP. He wanted to create the cozy feel of the house.

The second panel consisted of Pete Doctor, director of Monsters Inc. and UP. Michael Giaimo visual development artist for Pocahontas. Eric Goldberg whose directing credits include Pocahontas and the segments Rhapsody in blue and Carnival of the Animals for Fantasia 2000. He also was the character designer for the Genie in Aladdin. Susan Goldberg, the art director on the Rhapsody in Blue and Carnival of the Animal sequences for Fantasia 2000. Dice Tsutsumi, the art director on Toy Story 3.

Pete discussed that Mary's artwork influenced the design of the globe tile work seen here in the lobby of Monsters Inc. factory.

Mary's work also influenced Ellie's paintings in UP. Take a look at the Paradise Falls painting and the painting that would have been the baby's room.

Michael was up next and showed Colors of The Wind from Pocahontas. The bold color choices and designs creates a wonderful realistic feel but yet creates a different feeling from the place we really know.

Eric Goldberg spoke about how his sequence for Rhapsody in Blue evokes the curved charactered designs of Mary's from One Upon a Wintertime.

Susan Goldberg was next and showed off some of the work she did for the Gran Fiesta attraction at EPCOT inside the Mexico pavilion. She got the rare chance to actually recreate characters in Mary's style.

Dice showed off hsi personal work and some of his work on the color script for Toy Story 3. He discussed that even though it appears to be a lot of colors, there really aren't. Dice discussed the impact of color and that to get the most impact you use very little of it until you need it for the impactful moment. He felt that Mary used a minimalistic approach to color at times as well.

It was truly a wonderful evening of hearing stories about a true Disney Legend! Also, it was great to hear from today's artists discussing that they are still influenced by her work. I love these events and really thank The Academy for putting them on!

We also found out at 9pm our time that evening, that we weren't the only ones paying tribute to Mary that night. Google also paid tribute to Mary Blair. The picture below is of their Google logo if Mary Blair had done it!

Check out the link below to watch excerpts from the event:
Mary Blair's World of Color

*disclaimer: All images copyright of Disney, Google, and The Academy