Like almost every child of my generation, I grew up on Pixar and in particular Toy Story. Some of my fondest and most memorable cinematic memories were going to see Monsters Inc, Finding Nemo and The Incredibles (where afterwards I thought "I can't wait for the sequel"). I remember that one of my first dream jobs in film was to write stories for Pixar and explore all the imaginative possibilities. Now that I've gotten more into film, I've gained a deeper respect for their storytelling and their technology and how hard it is. The Pixar Story tracks the origin of Pixar from when John Lasseter was first inspired to pursue animation to around 2007, before Ratatouille hit the screens. It's an informative look into how the company came to be and of all the struggles. It's very interesting as I would like to get into the industry as well. The biggest chunk is the struggle to create Toy Story - not just to get it commissioned but also to find the story. This is also a trouble with Monsters Inc. where they had the concept but almost too many possibilities to explore. Narrowing down those possibilities is a incredibly difficult job and is something I'm aspiring to achieve at this very moment so it was especially fascinating to watch.
It's always great fun to have a look into their offices with their scooters and arcades. However, perhaps this documentary has come too soon, they talk about fears of being too factory-line, setting a standard they can no longer top and as this comes before one of their most successful strands of films with Wall-E, Up (a film that I didn't like at first but it's grown on me) and Toy Story 3 and then perhaps the beginning of a very boring strand with Cars 2, Brave and Monsters University, I want to know whether they think they're topping themselves or have sunken into a comfort zone. A short reflection on their fears would be very interesting. The doc focuses on the followup chaos after the Toy Story section, with second project syndrome lingering over the Pixar team. A Bug's Life was considered a success at the time and although in hindsight, many disagree, the documentary put me in the mood to rewatch and while the first act is perhaps a bit too childish, it grows and grows and is exceptional storytelling in the end. I hope Pixar haven't peaked with the closure of Toy Story 3 and they can continue making films that get to me. The documentary also makes great use of graphics and animation which is pretty appropriate for this topic. Very entertaining and informative.
8/10
It's always great fun to have a look into their offices with their scooters and arcades. However, perhaps this documentary has come too soon, they talk about fears of being too factory-line, setting a standard they can no longer top and as this comes before one of their most successful strands of films with Wall-E, Up (a film that I didn't like at first but it's grown on me) and Toy Story 3 and then perhaps the beginning of a very boring strand with Cars 2, Brave and Monsters University, I want to know whether they think they're topping themselves or have sunken into a comfort zone. A short reflection on their fears would be very interesting. The doc focuses on the followup chaos after the Toy Story section, with second project syndrome lingering over the Pixar team. A Bug's Life was considered a success at the time and although in hindsight, many disagree, the documentary put me in the mood to rewatch and while the first act is perhaps a bit too childish, it grows and grows and is exceptional storytelling in the end. I hope Pixar haven't peaked with the closure of Toy Story 3 and they can continue making films that get to me. The documentary also makes great use of graphics and animation which is pretty appropriate for this topic. Very entertaining and informative.
8/10