Pixar Animation Studios executive vp of film production, Jonas Rivera, is approached while walking through the landmark studio campus, and takes us to the Pixar archives in one of the latest posts from the studio’s official Instagram.
What’s Happening:
- A new post on Instagram from Pixar Animation Studios shows us Pixar producer Jonas Rivera taking us into the studio’s archives for a closer look at some artifacts from the production and development of Up, which he himself produced.
- The archives are rarely seen by outside eyes, so it’s a great treat that we get to see some of these pieces. Rivera goes through them, showing off weathered leather shoes used for reference, character maquettes, and so much more.
- Rivera also shows off a model of the house featured in the film, while commenting that director (and current chief creative officer of the studio) Pete Docter wanted the house to essentially be a character in the film, before sharing what Rivera believed to be a “deep cut” in the inspiration of the building – pointing out that it was inspired by the station for Casey Jr.’s Circus Train at Disneyland.
- Rivera started at Pixar Animation Studios in 1994, working as a production office assistant on Pixar's first feature film, Toy Story, going on to produce both Up and Inside Out.
- Up, originally released in 2009, quickly became a classic film from the iconic animation studio, taking in over $700 million at the box office. In it, we follow an old man named Carl Fredricksen who is determined to get to South America to keep a promise he made to his late wife, Ellie. After tying thousands of balloons to their home to save his house from being demolished, he is off to South America. However, Carl soon discovers a little boy named Russell is inadvertently along for the journey and the two of them set off on a bigger adventure than they had expected.
- Up has also spun off a short-form series, Dug Days, which originally debuted on Disney+, the last entry of which premiered alongside Elemental in theaters, titled Carl’s First Date.
- For another look at the Pixar Archives, I strongly suggest getting your hands on The Criterion Collection release of Wall-E, where that film’s director, Andrew Stanton, does a similar (but lengthier) deep-dive into the production pieces of that Pixar classic.
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