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Our interview with the Disney Infinity Senior Team & Wave 2 Details

November 22, 2013, 10:31 am
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When we were asked earlier in the week if we would be interested in chatting with a developer of Disney Infinity about the next wave of character releases and power discs we jumped at the opportunity. What we didn't know is that we'd be lucky enough to chat with so many of Avalanche Software's senior team. On Wednesday evening we talked with:

  • John Vignocchi (Executive Producer of Disney Infinity)
  • John Blackburn (Vice President and Studio General Manager of Avalanche Software)
  • Jeff Bunker (Vice President of Art at Avalanche Software)
  • Rob Nelson (Vice President of Technology at Avalanche Software)

Before we get to some of the details of our discussion, let's review the characters and power discs that are coming out through the end of the year (click on each character name below to watch a short video).

  • Rapunzel (from Tangled) released today, November 22 (Walmart exclusive through 2013)
  • Ralph (from Wreck It Ralph) released today, November 22 (Best Buy exclusive through 2013)
  • Vanellope (from Wreck It Ralph) releasing November 24 (Target exclusive through 2013)
  • Frozen toy box pack with Anna & Elsa (along with texture and dome power discs) releasing November 26.


If you're a fan of the game, you've probably also heard of the Toy Story in Space playset as well - but if would like a quick refresher, check out our review.

In addition to the characters, the wave 2 set of Power Discs is also on the horizon. You can pick up the complete set of wave 2 discs starting on November 24 at Target (originally slated to have been released on November 19 - we were lucky enough to have picked one up before they were pulled), or you can purchase the power discs in blind bags at all retailers starting on November 26.

The complete list of power discs and their abilities are listed at the bottom of the post (below the interview).

Interview Details

When we started chatting with the energetic group, we immediately knew it was going to be a fast-paced and fun interview. Sure enough, the team sprinkled in jokes and walked a fine line between revealing future spoilers and chatting about details of the upcoming characters and power discs.

  • Future Toy Box Themes - To kick of our first question, we asked if we could expect to see some new themed (downloadable) toy boxes geared towards the upcoming releases of Wreck it Ralph and Frozen since people really loved the themed Toy Story toy boxes released just a few weeks ago (in addition to this week's release of Zurgiving Day). The team responded with excitement and said that there would be many contests focused on the upcoming toy boxes as well as expanded on the beauty of the Frozen power discs which really transform the toy box world from top to bottom - these are one of Jeff Bunker's favorite textures. (As a side note, I agree - the trees become frosted, icicles form all around you and you can't help but feel a chill playing with this set of discs in the toy box.
  • Mac OS Version - We then followed up with a quick question regarding the iOS and PC version of Disney Infinity and inquired if a Mac OS version would be released soon. The team noted that they wouldn't be able to chat about future platforms that the game would be released on, but you could sense the excitement in their voices for the future of Disney Infinity. If I could guess (again, a speculation), we're going to see a lot more broad release of systems (i.e., Android, Mac, etc.) for the Disney Infinity 2 release only.
  • Cross-Platform Toy Box Play - Although I didn't expect that it would be 100% possible, I still wanted to inquire about the option and ability to possibly play across platforms and since the VP of Technology, Rob Nelson, was in the room I figured it would be a good time to ask. Rob covered a lot of the restrictions per system and mentioned that he doesn't see this as being a possibility. What I really appreciated is rather than just saying "No", he discussed the reasons why it isn't possible! I brought this up because I really wanted to be able to play alongside the Inside Disney Infinity team during their 25-hour marathon but with most of the players being on the Play Station and Xbox platform, it made it more sparse. 

Other Interesting Details From the Interview

  • They recently crossed a major milestone by having two-million toy boxes downloaded!
  • It had been previously noted that Sarah Silverman had done the voice for Vanellope for the game, but it was also noted that several of the Frozen characters will be officially voiced by their lead actor as well. It seems that Kristen Bell will voice Anna, Idina Menzel will voice Elsa, Mandy Moore will voice Rapunzel. John Vignocchi also expanded the hilarity of working with Sarah Silverman and noted that playing with Vanellope in the toy box will reveal a lot of sarcastic quips towards the other Disney Infinity characters.
  • They mentioned that they will be creating future character releases based on how relevant the characters are today - but that they're also taking customer feedback seriously and are open to creating a highly requested character. Along with the character discussion also brought out questions around the future of Marvel and Star Wars characters. The team mentioned that those characters the most highly requested for the game but only said, "that would be cool"!
  • Ralph's cherry bomb is inspired by his 8-bit look, while Vanellope's more updated look means that she has an updated, cherry bomb - what a nice little touch!
  • An updated official Prima Guide is in the works with more details coming soon.
  • Although there are 20 power discs listed in the complete guide that Target is offering, the team also hinted that there may be a few more released under wave 2 in the coming months.


Wave 2 Power Discs Images & Details


The full list of new Power Discs includes:
Circular Discs:
  • Ralph’s Power of Destruction - In-game character can increase melee damage.
  • Dr. Doofenshmirtz’s Damage-inator! - In-game character weapon can do more wide ranged damage.
  • Frankenweenie Electro-Charge - In-game character has a chance to gain more health.
  • Buzz Lightyear's Star Command Shield - In-game character has a chance to receive less damage. (This is an awesome Power Disc.)
  • Tron User Control - In-game character has a chance to gain experience at a faster rate. (re-release of exclusive Toys R Us wave 1 release.)

Hexagonal Discs:
  • Pizza Planet Delivery Truck - Drive the Pizza Planet Delivery Truck from "Toy Story" inside the Toy Box. (Our Personal Favorite.)
  • Flamingo Croquet Mallet - Spawn a Flamingo croquet mallet from “Alice in Wonderland” inside the Toy Box.
  • Frankenweenie
    • Victor’s Experiments - Make all of the terrain objects in the Toy Box themed to the "Frankenweenie" film.
    • New Holland Skyline - Make the sky in the Toy Box themed to the "Frankenweenie" film.
  • Frozen
    • Frozen Flourish - Make all of the terrain objects in the Toy Box themed to the "Frozen" film.
    • Chill In The Air - Make the sky in the Toy Box themed to the "Frozen" film.
  • Headless Horseman's Horse - Ride the Headless Horseman's Horse inside the Toy Box.
  • Maximus - Ride Maximus from "Tangled" inside the Toy Box.
  • Mike's New Car - Drive Mike Wazowski's vehicle inside the Toy Box. (re-release of exclusive Toys R Us wave 1 release.)
  • Nightmare Before Christmas
    • Jack’s Scary Decorations - Make all of the terrain objects in the Toy Box themed to the "Nightmare Before Christmas" film.
    • Halloweentown Sky - Make the sky in the Toy Box themed to the "Nightmare Before Christmas" film.
  • Hangin’ Ten Stitch with Surfboard - Spawn a hover surfboard with Stitch on the front inside the Toy Box.

Rare Hexagonal Discs:
  • Electric Mayhem Bus - Spawn the Electric Mayhem Bus from "The Muppets" inside the Toy Box.
  • Condor Wing Glider - Spawn a glider pack that is Wings ala Condor Man inside the Toy Box.
  • Hook's Ship from Peter Pan Ride - Spawn a flying airship themed after Captain Hook's ship inside the Toy Box. (re-release of exclusive Toys R Us wave 1 release.)

It was fantastic to be able to chat with such a great set of talent from the Disney Infinity and Avalanche Software team and we would like to thank the team for taking the time to chat.

Pixar Post - T.J.
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The Good Dinosaur Delay Causes Pixar to Lay off Employees

November 22, 2013, 3:47 pm
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Image © T.J. Wolsos
Just about three months ago, Pixar unexpectedly announced that The Good Dinosaur's director, Bob Peterson would no longer be the director of the prehistoric feature. Two weeks later, Pixar also announced that the film needed more time to develop and they pushed the film back from it's original May 30, 2014 release date to November 25, 2015. The news of the directing and date change, although shocking, still left us with an open mind as Ed Catmull (Pixar's President) reminded us that, "Nobody ever remembers the fact that you slipped a film, but they will remember a bad film. Our conclusion was that we were going to give the film [The Good Dinosaur] some more time."


Unfortunately today, the news for the project doesn't get much better as Pixar announced via the LA Times (spotted by The Pixar Times) that they would be laying off employees as part of the delayed film. A Pixar representative said, "At Pixar, we are constantly re-evaluating the creative and business needs of our studio, with the release date change of 'The Good Dinosaur,' we have realigned our production and support priorities, which includes a small reduction in our staffing levels."

Although the word "small" is a relative term, the LA Times article also noted that a source close to the studio felt that, "The layoffs affect less than 5% of the company's 1,200-person workforce". If that were the case, that would equal approximately 60 employees. It is also undetermined from which departments the staffing reductions were made - we'll be sure to update the post if/as we learn more details on this news.

The reduction of approximately 60 employees from Pixar's Emeryville, California campus comes about a month-and-a-half after Pixar chose to close it's Vancouver branch of approximately 100 employees. Be sure to let us know your thoughts and reactions by leaving a comment below or chat about it further in the Pixar Post Forum.

Pixar Post - T.J. & Julie
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The Making of 'The Blue Umbrella' Holiday Behind-The-Scenes Calendar

December 1, 2013, 12:31 pm
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To help celebrate the holidays Director Saschka Unseld of The Blue Umbrella is giving us a glimpse into more behind-the-scenes peeks from December 1 through December 24 in a new website titled The Blue Umbrella Making-of Holiday Calendar.


Today marks the first day of The Blue Umbrella holiday calendar which appropriately begins with Unseld inspirations for the film. While sharing some of the exact details that developed into this visually stunning film he also shares photos of a cast of characters with a short back story on each one. One of the most powerful and interesting comments from Unseld is when he explained the moment when he saw the broken umbrella that inspired the film.
...And at that moment, it seemed like one of the saddest things in the whole world. I did not come up with the idea for a film at that moment, but I still remember this overwhelming feeling of sadness for something that should "just" have been an object...
While some of the additional characters are easily recognizable from the film others are a beautiful insight into the mind of Unseld and his team while they were developing The Blue Umbrella. Below are just a few of the characters that you can view on the The Blue Umbrella Making-of Holiday Calendar website. 




Be sure to visit this special holiday/behind-the-scenes website daily for more sneak peeks into one of the most visually stunning films in Pixar's history.

Related Posts
- Unseld Shares Pitch Script, Artwork and Test Footage from The Blue Umbrella
- Our Interview with Director Saschka Unseld of The Blue Umbrella
- The Blue Umbrella Omitted From Oscar Race

Pixar Post - Julie & T.J.
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Young Mike Wazowski Fan Art

December 1, 2013, 8:45 pm
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Click to Enlarge - Drawing by T.J. Wolsos

When Julie and I attended the Monsters University charity screening back in April we were lucky enough to meet director, Dan Scanlon, view the film and bid on exclusive artwork by many Pixarians. During the silent auction we were caught up in the bidding process for several pieces of artwork, but one that stuck out to Julie was a pencil drawing of young Mike Wazowski by Pixarian, Dice Tsutsumi. We were lucky enough to win an amazing piece by Robert Kondo but were outbid on the Tsutsumi piece.


I always knew I wanted to create a young Mike Wazowski piece of my own based on Dice's work, but I realized that I had a very special reason to do so now. Julie and I are expecting a baby boy in late February and I wanted to create this to use as a custom drawing for our baby shower invitation and I thought, what would be a better image to use than young Mike Wazowski!


When I started I wasn't sure if I wanted to do a pencil sketch or if I wanted to do a color version, so I just went where my inspiration took me. I opened up Sketchbook Pro and dove in by starting a quick red pencil sketch. Following the rough sketch, I used a hard tip felt pen with 100% opacity to fill in Mike's signature ooze green color. I then used the airbrush tool to shade and layer varying green and yellow tones to shape his body and even threw in his subtle cheek and belly spots.

Click to Enlarge - Drawing by T.J. Wolsos

Moving on to his eye, I knew I had to take my time and get that great glossy Pixar eye look. I created three layers and started with the base aqua color for his eye, shading the circle from top to bottom. I then used the chisel tip pen tool and tapped my pen with one dab of varying color at a time (while varying the slant around the circle) to create the depth. To finish off the iris I took a yellow and orange colored pencil and created subtle lines to create an even more realistic look. Finishing off his eye, I created a circular pupil and then added the two white catch lights (with a slight purple color cast around the edges).

When I was wrapping up the drawing I went back through and added a slight ivory tint to the white of his eye and used varying pencil lines to accent the drawing overall. The final touch was to ground Mike by having him stand on a patch of grass.

The entire time I was drawing this, I couldn't help but realize how much I was inspired by the artwork that I saw in the Art of Monsters University book. I realized how much I took away from reading and analyzing the pages and really tried to do Mike justice. Let me know what you think and if you've done any fun Pixar artwork recently - you can even post images of your artwork in the Fan Art section of the Pixar Post Forum if you'd like.

Related Posts:
- The Art of Monsters University detailed book review
- Our fan art of King Fergus from Brave
- Our Wall-e fan art using an iPad

Pixar Post - T.J.
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41st Annie Award Nominations - Monsters University and Toy Story of TERROR! Honored

December 2, 2013, 9:45 am
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Pixar's Monsters University and Toy Story of TERROR! have just received many well deserved nominations across multiple categories for the 41st Annual Annie Awards taking place on February 1, 2014. We cannot praise the cast and crew members on each team enough for such a great addition to the Pixar library of feature films. While there were some disappointments, such as the exclusion of Saschka Unseld's beautiful work, The Blue Umbrella, we were pleased to see so many great artists honored by these nominations. (We'll chat more about the nomination exclusions after the list of nominees.)


MONSTERS UNIVERSITY (10 NOMINATIONS)

Best Animated Feature

  • A Letter to Momo - GKIDS
  • Despicable Me 2 - 
Universal Pictures
  • Ernest & Celestine
 - GKIDS
  • Frozen - 
Walt Disney Animation Studios
  • Monsters University - Pixar Animation Studios
  • The Croods
 - DreamWorks Animation
  • The Wind Rises
 - The Walt Disney Studios

Animated Effects in an Animated Production

  • Alen Lai, David Quirus, Diego Garzon Sanchez, Ilan Gabai - Epic
 - Blue Sky Studios David Jones - Dragons: Defenders of Berk
 - DreamWorks Animation
  • Joshua Jenny, Jason Johnston, Matthew Wong, Eric Froemling, Enrique Vila - Monsters University
 - Pixar Animation Studios
  • Jeff Budsberg, Andre Le Blanc, Louis Flores, Jason Mayer - The Croods - 
DreamWorks Animation
  • Greg Gladstone, Nikita Pavlov, Allen Ruilova, Matt Titus, Can Yuksel - Turbo
 - DreamWorks Animation

Character Animation in a Feature Production

  • Thom Roberts - Epic
 - Blue Sky Studios
  • Jonathan Del Val – Despicable Me 2
 - Universal Pictures
  • Jakob Jensen - The Croods - 
DreamWorks Animation
  • John Chun Chiu Lee - Monsters University
 - Pixar Animation Studios
  • Kitaro Kosaka - The Wind Rises - 
The Walt Disney Studios
  • Tony Smeed - Frozen
 - Walt Disney Animation Studios
  • Patrick Imbert - Ernest & Celestine
 - GKIDS

Character Design in an Animated Feature Production

  • Carter Goodrich, Takao Noguchi, Shane Prigmore - The Croods
 - DreamWorks Animation
  • Sylvain Deboissy, Shannon Tindle - Turbo - DreamWorks Animation
  • Craig Kellman - Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs 2 - 
Sony Pictures Animation
  • Chris Sasaki - Monsters University - 
Pixar Animation Studios
  • Christophe Lourdelet - A Monster in Paris
 - Shout! Factory
  • Eric Guillon - Despicable Me 2 - 
Universal Pictures
  • Bill Schwab - Frozen
 - Walt Disney Animation Studios

Production Design in an Animated Feature Production

  • Christophe Lautrette, Paul Duncan, Dominique R. Louis - The Croods
 - DreamWorks Animation
  • Yarrow Cheney, Eric Guillon - Despicable Me 2
 - Universal Pictures
  • Michael Knapp, Greg Couch, William Joyce - Epic
 - Blue Sky Studios
  • Zaza, Zyk - Ernest & Celestine - GKIDS
  • Ricky Nierva, Robert Kondo, Daisuke “Dice” Tsutsumi - Monsters University
 - Pixar Animation Studios
  • Michael Giaimo, Lisa Keene, David Womersley - Frozen
 - Walt Disney Animation Studios

Storyboarding in an Animated Feature Production

  • Steven MacLeod - The Croods
 - DreamWorks Animation
  • Eric Favela - Despicable Me 2 - 
Universal Pictures
  • Dean Kelly - Monsters University
 - Pixar Animation Studios
  • Jason Hand - Planes
- Disneytoon Studios
  • John Ripa - Frozen
 - Walt Disney Animation Studios

Writing in an Animated Feature Production

  • Daniel Pennac - Ernest & Celestine
 - GKIDS
  • Daniel Gerson, Robert L. Baird, Dan Scanlon - Monsters University - 
Pixar Animation Studios
  • Miyazaki Hayao - The Wind Rises 
- The Walt Disney Studios
  • Jennifer Lee - Frozen
 - Walt Disney Animation Studios

Editorial in an Animated Feature Production

  • Darren Holmes - The Croods
 - DreamWorks Animation
  • James Ryan - Turbo
 - DreamWorks Animation
  • Fabienne Alvarez-Giro - Ernest & Celestine - 
GKIDS
  • Greg Snyder, Gregory Amundson, Steve Bloom - Monsters University
 - Pixar Animation Studios 
  • Jeff Draheim - Frozen - 
Walt Disney Animation Studios 

Music in an Animated Feature Production

  • Alan Silvestri - The Croods - 
DreamWorks Animation
  • Henry Jackman - Turbo
 - DreamWorks Animation
  • Mark Mothersbaugh - Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs 2
 - Sony Pictures Animation
  • Heitor Pereira, Pharrell Williams - Despicable Me 2
 - Universal Pictures
  • Danny Elfman - Epic - Blue Sky Studios
  • Randy Newman - Monsters University
 - Pixar Animation Studios
  • Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Robert Lopez, Christophe Beck - Frozen
 - Walt Disney Animation Studios 
  • Dominic Lewis - Free Birds - 
Reel FX

Voice Acting in an Animated Feature Production

  • Paul Giamatti as the voice of Chet - Turbo
 - DreamWorks Animation
  • Terry Crews as the voice of Earl - Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs 2
 - Sony Pictures Animation
  • Kristen Wiig as the voice of Lucy - Despicable Me 2
 - Universal Pictures
  • Steve Carell as the voice of Gru - Despicable Me 2
 - Universal Pictures
  • Pierre Coffin as the voice of Minions - Despicable Me 2
 - Universal Pictures
  • Billy Crystal as the voice of Mike - Monsters University - Pixar Animation Studios
  • Josh Gad as the voice of Olaf - Frozen
 - Walt Disney Animation Studios 


TOY STORY OF TERROR! (7 Nominations in 5 Categories)

Best Animated Special Production

  • Chipotle Scarecrow
 - Moonbot Studios
  • Listening Is an Act of Love
 - StoryCorps
  • Room on the Broom - 
Magic Light Pictures
  • Toy Story OF TERROR!
 - Pixar Animation Studios

Character Animation in an Animated Television/Broadcast Production

  • Brad Schaffer - Friendship All-Stars of Friendship: Wrong Number
 - Stoopid Buddy Stoodios
  • Eric Urban - Ubermansion
 - Stoopid Buddy Stoodios
  • JC Tran Quang Thieu - Toy Story OF TERROR! - Pixar Animation Studios
  • David DeVan - Toy Story OF TERROR! - Pixar Animation Studios
  • Kureha Yokoo - Toy Story OF TERROR! - Pixar Animation Studios
  • Keith Kellogg - Star Wars: The Clone Wars - Lucasfilm Animation

Directing in an Animated TV/Broadcast Production

  • Colin Heck - The Legend of Korra
 - Nickelodeon Animation
  • Elaine Bogan - Dragons: Defenders of Berk
 - DreamWorks Animation
  • Stephan Franck - The Smurfs: The Legend of Smurfy Hollow
 - Sony Pictures Animation
  • John Aoshima - Disney Gravity Falls
 - Disney Television Animation
  • Aaron Springer - Disney Mickey Mouse - 
Disney Television Animation
  • Angus MacLane - Toy Story OF TERROR!
 - Pixar Animation Studios
  • Harold Harris - Justin Time - Guru Studio

Storyboarding in an Animated TV/Broadcast Production

  • Piero Piluso - Monsters vs. Aliens
 - Nickelodeon Animation Studio
  • Douglas Lovelace - Dragons: Riders of Berk
 - DreamWorks Animation
  • Adam Ford, Deke Wightman, Kevin Mellon, Justin Wagner, Benji Williams - Archer
 - FX Networks
  • Alonso Ramos-Ramirez - Disney Mickey Mouse
 - Disney Television Animation
  • Daniel Chong - Toy Story of TERROR! - Pixar Animation Studios
  • Alonso Ramos-Ramirez - Gravity Falls - 
Disney Television Animation
  • Guillermo Del Toro, Guy Davis, Ralph Sosa - The Simpsons - "Treehouse of Horror XXIV" - Gracie Films in Association with 20th Century Fox TV
  • Paul Watling - Justin Time - 
Guru Studio

Editorial in an Animated TV/Broadcast Production

  • Adam Arnold, Hugo Morales, Davrick Waltjen - Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness - 
Nickelodeon Animation Studio
  • Myra Lopez, Ana Adams, Justin Baker - Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - 
Nickelodeon Animation Studio
  • Lynn Hobson - Dragons: Defenders of Berk - 
DreamWorks Animation
  • Illya Owens - Disney Mickey Mouse - 
Disney Television Animation
  • Axel Geddes, Kathy Graves, Chloe Kloezeman - Toy Story OF TERROR!
 - Pixar Animation Studios
  • Paul D. Calder - Futurama
 - 20th Century Fox Television
  • Paul Douglas - Adventure Time
 - Cartoon Network Studios
  • Jason W.A. Tucker - Star Wars: The Clone Wars - 
Lucasfilm Animation

Photo via Pixar Post

OUR FEELINGS ON THE NOMINATIONS AND EXCLUSIONS

Now that you've had a chance to review the awards in which Pixar was nominated for, let's review our thoughts and feedback - (for the full list of all non-Pixar related nominations, visit the Annie Awards nominations page). Being nominated for any award is a great honor but there were a few that we feel were excluded from this list (that we would have certainly like to have seen included).

The Blue Umbrella

Obviously, the most glaring exclusion is The Blue Umbrella, which was also shut out from an Oscar nomination just a few weeks ago. When compared against the competition, we still strongly feel that The Blue Umbrella certainly should hold a place among the others nominated.

Monsters University

We were rather surprised to also see Dan Scanlon excluded from the list of nominated directors for feature film. All you have to do to determine that Dan should have been included among the other nominees is watch the extra features on the Blu Ray and you'll feel the heart and dedication that Dan exuded on this project. But, if there's one thing that Monsters University taught us, it's that sometimes even the most hard work and dedication doesn't make you a winner - in this instance, we feel the film is mirroring reality.

We were very happy to see Dan Scanlon (included along with Dan Gerson and Robert Baird) nominated for the Writing in an Animated Feature Production. As the team talked about, the challenge with a prequel is that we all know how it ends and they had to tell the story in a way that made us want the ending to be different than what we already know. The team achieved this feat in spades and were able to mirror the heart and humor of Monsters, Inc. as well.

Toy Story of TERROR!

Pixar's first television special was well represented in the nomination category in our opinion, but we would have also have loved to see the inclusion of Michael Giacchino's wonderful score included among the list of nominees.


What are your thoughts on the Annie Award Nominations?Chat about it on the Pixar Post Forum.

The 41st Annual Annie Awards will take place on February 1, 2014 at UCLA's Royce Hall in Los Angeles, California. General Admission tickets to attend the ceremony are still available for $30 at UCLAlive.org - or to purchase VIP tickets see the Forms page on the Annie Awards website.

Pixar Post - Julie & T.J.
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Ricky Nierva's Monsters University Artwork Part of Disney's 23 Days of Christmas

December 6, 2013, 9:36 am
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Disney's D23 kicked off their 23 Days of Disney Christmas celebration just a few days ago, but yesterday we were really excited to see a fun and unique Monsters University piece of Holiday artwork by Pixar's own, Ricky Nierva. Ricky was a natural fit for the creation of this piece as he was deeply involved in the production design for the movie. We love how the Oozma Kappa gang is decked out in their holiday gear, but our favorite element of the piece is Archie the Scare Pig with antlers and his red nose. (Don is his crazy Christmas sweater is a close second though.)

Are we the only ones that wish that this was also available as a Christmas card that could be sent out? This would be so perfect for us to send this year!

D23 is also holding a sweepstakes to give away an embossed reproduction of one of the art pieces (distributed at random) from the 23 pieces featured. You can enter up to one time using your name, D23 member number and email address.

We'll be sure to watch the 23 Days of Disney Christmas and post if any additional Pixar artwork pops up - if you spot any unique Pixar holiday artwork, let us know as well.

Pixar Post - T.J.
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Disney Infinity Revised and Expanded Official Game Guide

December 9, 2013, 12:32 pm
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During our recent interview with many senior members of the Disney Infinity team we discussed the potential of an updated game guide to encompass the new characters and play sets that have come out since the official release in August. Although we haven't seen an official announcement just yet, we spotted the Disney Infinity Revised and Expanded: Prima Official Game Guide on Amazon with a scheduled release date of February 11, 2014 (was originally listed for December 20, 2013 release).

This release will include the updated character releases of Wreck It Ralph, Frozen, the Toy Story in Space playset, the wave 2 power discs and much more.


So, what is the official game guide and what does it do for you? The game guide to Disney Infinity is something that we use all the time (in the play sets specifically). The guide shows complete maps for each play set as well as the location of all of the missions, red/green capsules, challenges and many other hidden items. Since we really enjoy completing each play set from start to finish, this allowed us to check off the missions and items we found them, so we know we've truly completed the play set. Unfortunately, there's really no other way to know that you've completed a play set in it's entirety since the game itself doesn't tell you.

If you are looking for tips, tricks and a great way to track the progress of your Disney Infinity game, be sure to check out the revised game guide coming out soon.



Pixar Post - T.J.
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Monsters University Overlooked from the 2014 Golden Globe Nominations

December 12, 2013, 12:48 pm
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The upcoming Award Season continues to surprise us as the Golden Globes announced their 2014 nominations for the 71st annual award show and shockingly, Pixar's Monsters University was omitted from recognition. When the Golden Globes first introduced the Best Animated Feature category back in 2006, Pixar had continuously been nominated and had won every year with the exception of 2011, when Cars 2 lost to The Adventures of Tintin. Those facts makes the omission of Monsters U even more puzzling to the hoards of Pixar fans still scratching their heads after the nomination announcement.


Photo via Pixar Animation Studios

The 2014 Golden Globe nominations for Best Animated Feature only includes three films - The Croods, Despicable Me 2 and Frozen. While it is hard not to be biased based on our love for Monsters University - having seen all three nominated films, we can't help but be left in bewilderment on why a fourth film wasn't included in the running as Monsters University continues to surprise us in the many technical achievements that the team overcame to create this beautiful film - not to mention, a story that not only captivated our hearts but one we could all relate to.


Photo via Pixar Animation Studios

Could it be a numbers games? Many have wondered if Monsters University may have been overlooked due to numbers at the box office and we can't help but disagree with comments such as these. Monsters University is the fourth highest grossing film in the studio's history. Below is a list of the 2014 Golden Globe nominations for Best Animated Feature along with their box office numbers (and Rotten Tomatoes rating) - including Monsters University for reference.

  • The Croods grossed $187 Million domestically and a worldwide total of just over $587 Million. Rotten Tomatoes critics rating (70%) and audience rating (79%).
  • Despicable Me 2 grossed $367 Million domestically and a worldwide total of just over $918 Million. Rotten Tomatoes critics rating (75%) and audience rating (85%).
  • Frozen is currently still in theaters, as it is a newly released animated feature the film has currently grossed over $138 Million domestically. Rotten Tomatoes critics rating (88%) and audience rating (91%).
  • Monsters University grossed $268 Million domestically and a worldwide total of over $743 Million. Rotten Tomatoes critics rating (78%) and audience rating (83%).

While the nominations for the 2014 Academy Awards have yet to be announced we can only keep our fingers crossed that Monsters University will not be overlooked once again. Please be sure to share your thoughts with us on The Pixar Post Forum.

Related Posts
- Monsters University& Toy Story of Terror Nominated for the 41st Annie Awards
- The Blue Umbrella Omitted from Oscar Race

Pixar Post - Julie & T.J.
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Monsters University 'For Your Consideration' Ad Mentions Best Animated Feature and Best Original Score

January 2, 2014, 5:51 pm
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The Oscar race is right around the corner and a flood of 'For Your Consideration' ads are starting to be released in various film industry magazines, such as Variety and The Hollywood Reporter. The ads are directed primarily towards members of the voting groups for the award shows in the entertainment industry, such as The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, in an effort for the studios to do one last push to garner a nomination for their films.


In a recent issue of The Hollywood Reporter, the first (of what we hope will be many) Monsters University"For Your Consideration" advertisement was released along with details surrounding what categories Pixar Animation Studios is pushing for. The ad, which was posted by Awards Daily, not only shows that Pixar would like consideration for Best Animated Feature, but the studio has also listed a consideration for Best Original Score by Randy Newman.

The Monsters University score was a great pairing to the movie and we of course feel that it certainly deserves a place among the others as Randy Newman added his usual moments of lightness (to match the scene) and moments of beauty (during the movie's more touching moments). Be sure to read our in-depth review of the Monsters University soundtrack and check out the other potential nominees for best score at this year's Oscar's.

Below are some other fun facts regarding Pixar at the Oscar's:
  • UP has been the only Pixar film to win the Oscar for Best Original Score.
  • Brave was only nominated for Best Animated Feature, which it won.
  • Randy Newman won the Oscar for Best Original Song - "We Belong Together" - for Toy Story 3.
  • Randy Newman won the Oscar for Best Original Song - "If I Didn't Have You" - for Monsters, Inc.. Newman was also nominated for Best Original Score but lost to Howard Shore for The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring.

Related Posts
- 41st Annie Award Nominations - Monsters University and Toy Story of Terror Honored


Pixar Post - Julie and T.J.
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Exciting New Details Surrounding the New Ratatouille Ride at Disneyland Paris

January 2, 2014, 7:13 pm
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Disneyland Paris is busy cooking up some fun with new details surrounding the new Ratatouille themed dark ride called, Ratatouille: L’Aventure Totalement Toquée de Rémy (loosely translated to Ratatouille: The Adventure of Zany Remy) - previously with a working title of Ratatouille Kitchen Calamity! has been shrouded in secrecy with few details surrounding the highly anticipated attraction set to open this Summer.


Thankfully, Disney has released a Press Release via DLRPToday with many details including a rat-scale table service restaurant that is sure to delight Disney•Pixar fans wanting to immerse themselves into the film.
The world of Ratatouille comes to Disneyland Paris in 2014  
Next summer, Disneyland Paris will unveil a major new attraction and mini-land inspired by the Oscar-winning Disney•Pixar film Ratatouille. The film, directed by Brad Bird, tells the tale of Rémy, a young rat who has amazing talents in the kitchen and dreams of one day becoming a great chef.  
This leads to a fun but perilous journey that eventually lands him as the head chef of one of the most famous restaurants in Paris. Now Rémy has arrived at Walt Disney Studios Park to share his culinary delights and crazy adventures with the entire family.  
On the attraction Ratatouille: L’Aventure Totalement Toquée de Rémy, guests will shrink down to the size of a rat and join Rémy and his friends as they scurry through the kitchen, dining room, and walls of Gusteau’s famous Parisian restaurant, all the while trying to avoid the nemesis from the film, Chef Skinner. This first of its kind Disney attraction will immerse guests into an animated world like never before as they experience what it’s like to be a rat in a human sized world.  
The attraction is located in a new corner of Toon Studio that’s been transformed into a Ratatouille-inspired version of the City of Light. In addition to the attraction, this mini-land also features a shop, Chez Marianne Souvenirs de Paris, and a rat-scale themed table service restaurant, Bistrot Chez Rémy. The restaurant, which is the only one of its kind across Disney Parks worldwide, is directly adjacent to the attraction and serves the “little chef’s” famous dish, ratatouille. 
After Crush’s Coaster, Cars Race Rally and Toy Story Playland, Ratatouille will be the fourth attraction at the Walt Disney Studios Park inspired by a Disney•Pixar film. Disneyland Paris will once again combine its narration skills with state-of-the-art technology to offer the best possible experience.  
Next summer, join us for Ratatouille: L’Aventure Totalement Toquée de Rémy, only at Walt Disney Studios Park, Disneyland Paris.
We are so excited about the details included in the release, not only was it confirmed that guests will be shrunk-down to Remy-size for the duration of the attraction but it seems guest will be able to stay rat-scale at a new table service restaurant (one that we hope will be similar to the restaurant at the end of the film) and of course a new themed shop to buy what we hope is exclusive Ratatouille merchandise. Below, DLRPToday shared some new construction photos

Construction Photos via DLRPToday
Construction Photo via DLRPToday

Related Posts
- New Image for Ratatouille Ride Released
- Ratatouille Themed Ride Coming to Disneyland Paris

Pixar Post - Julie
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A Kickoff to the New Year with some Pixar Inspiration

January 6, 2014, 8:17 pm
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Image © Disney•Pixar - via Bill Cone's website

The beginning of each new year is a gift. As the calendar flips to January, our minds can't help but reflect on the previous twelve months - as well as try and take a peek into our future. This is a rare moment in life as our minds are usually preoccupied with the hustle-and-bustle of "the now" that moments of reflection and insight can easily be overlooked. A new year also usually brings some type of "want" to our minds as well - we want to meet a goal, we want to achieve more success or we want to alter something.

Earlier today I was checking out posts on the astounding Pixar artist, Austin Madison's website and came across a post that really caught my eye. He was chatting about how his original application to work as an intern at Pixar was declined, but after another year of hard work he landed the internship. So, what is the point of chatting about Austin's post? Simply...Inspiration and focus.


In November we were lucky enough to chat with Pixar animator and Animation Collaborative founder, Michal Makarewicz. The largest piece of inspiration we took from the interview was that you need to focus on what truly matters.  Focus on what you "want" but don't negate the other things you need to do...just put more fuel onto your true "want".

Speaking of Animation Collaborative, Pixarian Bill Cone wrote a great post on his site recently about a course that he'll be teaching at the school. The 12-week course will focus on "developing and orchestrating a light and color based plan for a film". Bill continues to expand on the course in his post as well as provide samples of his work on A Bug's Life, Cars, Air Mater and La Luna. Be sure to check out the article and read up on the course at the Animation Collaborative for a little more inspiration.

Image © Disney•Pixar - via Bill Cone's website

As I mentioned at the beginning of the post, the daily minutiae can often distract us from progressing towards what we really want, and for 2014, Pixar Post will focus on not only the news of Pixar, but the inspiration of Pixar as well. We'll look at websites, we'll look at publications, we'll chat to Pixarians...all in the hopes of helping inspire each other along the way. A few changes will be coming to the website as well and we can't wait for you to jump in and chat with us. To get started, feel free to leave a comment below or post a link on this forum post with a source of your inspiration (we already suggested three sites on the forum). We can all benefit from each other's motivations.

Welcome to 2014 and here's to another great year at Pixar Post!

Pixar Post - T.J. & Julie
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Monsters University Inspired Short "Party Central" to be Released in Front of Muppets Most Wanted

January 7, 2014, 10:29 am
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Party Central Image © Pixar Animation Studios

Stop the presses! It was recently announced (via Entertainment Weekly) that the Monsters University-inspired short, Party Central will now be shown ahead of Muppets Most Wanted instead of it's originally slated release alongside The Good Dinosaur. When the prehistoric Pixar flick was pushed back from it's original release date of May 30, 2014 to November 25, 2015, we had hoped that Pixar wouldn't hold the short until 2015 since it was already "in the can". For Pixar fans, the earlier release date is great news as 2014 was shaping up to be a year without a Pixar release. Although this isn't a feature-length release, we're still eagerly anticipating the release of the smart and comedic, Party Central.


Below is an excerpt from the Entertainment Weekly article:
In the six-minute short, which Disney first debuted at last year’s D23 Expo, Mike and Sulley and their Oozma Kappa frat brothers try to throw a monster blowout party but are dismayed to find that no one is showing up. Fortunately, they have some extra inter-dimensional doors handy, which they put to creative use (we won’t spoil how here) to get the party rocking. 
Party Central writer-director Kelsey Mann, who served as story supervisor on Monsters University, tells EW that the germ for the short came straight out of that film. ”When you first meet the Oozma Kappas, they go to their fraternity house and the first thing they say is, ‘Welcome to party central! We haven’t thrown a party yet, but when we do we’ll be ready,’ ” Mann says. “I kept telling [MU director] Dan [Scanlon], ‘I really want to see their party. We have to do it in the credits or something.’ Then when the idea of doing a short came up, we were like, ‘That could be the party!’ “


Obviously, this still leaves us wondering what will happen to the release of The Good Dinosaur, but we believe that this move was positioned to get the release of Party Central out earlier (while Monsters University is still relatively current) rather than signifying the end of The Good Dinosaur.


A new hilarious trailer which spoofs hashtags (and other Twitter-speak) was also released today for Muppets Most Wanted. The new Muppet movie will be released in theaters on March 21, 2014 (March 28 in the UK) so be sure to head to theaters and don't miss Party Central.


Thanks as well to our reader Dan, for the heads up.

Related Posts:

Pixar Post - T.J.
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Episode 023 of The Pixar Post Podcast - Party Central's New Release Date & Awards Season Discussions

January 7, 2014, 10:58 pm
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In episode 023 of the Pixar Post Podcast we discuss:

Party Central Short to be Released in 2014


Award Show Nominations and Omissions

  • We chat about the Academy Awards nominations on January 16 with discussions around the 'For Your Consideration' advertisement.
  • We discuss the omission of Monsters University from the 71st Golden Globe Awards and what our thoughts are on the three nominated Animated Films: Despicable Me 2, The Croods and Frozen.
  • Details on the upcoming BAFTA awards.
  • Discussion on the 41st Annual Annie Award Nominations - both Monsters University and Toy Story of Terror have been nominated - with details about us live-tweeting the event on February  1.
  • Details on the awards and predictions for the People's Choice awards, the Critic's Choice awards, the 12th Annual Visual Effects Society awards and the 5th Annual 3D Creative Arts awards.

Pixar Inspiration and Upcoming Pixar Post Information

  • Discussion on our kickoff post to 2014 where we talked about artistic inspiration and how each year motivates us to look at our "wants".
  • We also chat (with a few hints offered) about the exciting changes coming to Pixar Post soon.

Feel free to listen to the Podcast using the player below, subscribe and listen directly in iTunes, or subscribe and listen on Stitcher.


Pixar Post - T.J. & Julie
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Monsters University Nominated for Best Animated Feature at the 67th Annual BAFTA Awards

January 7, 2014, 11:49 pm
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The nominations for the 67th Annual British Academy of Film and Television Arts Awards (BAFTA) have been announced early this morning and Monsters University has garnered a nomination for Best Animated Feature (along with Despicable Me 2 and Frozen). With an award season that has been slightly disappointing with Pixar omissions, it was a sigh of relief to hear that the team behind Monsters University is being recognized with this prestigious honor.

Helen McCrory & Luke Evans announcing the BAFTA nomination
for Best Animated Film

Screenshot of the BAFTA announcement for Best Animated Film

For those who are not familiar with the BAFTA Awards, it is an award show that is held in Central London and is considered to be the British version of The Academy Awards, being nominated and recognized is an honor in itself.

Just like the Academy Awards, the Best Animated Feature Film category was a late introduction to award show. The BAFTAs included the category back in 2006 with Pixar Animation Studios winning five out of the seven years. The two years where Pixar lost were in 2006 as Cars lost to Happy Feet and there wasn't a Pixar nomination in 2011, which would have been the year for Cars 2.


Last year at the 66th Annual BAFTA Awards, Pixar's Brave was nominated and won the Best Animated Feature Award. Let's hope that the momentum can continue and we can all celebrate another Pixar Animation Studio win for Monsters University.

The BAFTA Awards will be held on February 16, 2014 at the Royal Opera House in Central London.

Related Posts
- Monsters University 'For Your Consideration' Ad 
- Monsters University and Toy Story of Terror Nominated for 41st Annual Annie Awards

Pixar Post - Julie & T.J.
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Pixar's Merida Featured in New Disney Dream Portrait

January 9, 2014, 11:42 am
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Photo via Disney Parks Blog
Photographer Annie Leibovitz has added another Disney Dream Portrait to her already impressive resume, this time transforming Academy Award nominated actress Jessica Chastain into Pixar's very own Merida. Previously, the Disney Dream Portraits have featured Academy Award Winner Jennifer Hudson as Princess Tiana, as well as Actors Will Ferrell, Jason Segel and Jack Black as the Haunted Mansion's Hitchhiking Ghosts - just to name a few.

This Disney Dream Portrait marks the first time that a Pixar character is featured in the series and the casting of Chastain as Princess Merida was a perfect choice. Pictured with her signature bow-and-arrow as she rides through the Scottish countryside (along with Angus) is so beautifully captured it's as if a screenshot from the film Brave was magically turned into real-life.


For a Behind-the-Scenes look at the photography session with Chastain and Leibovitz, watch the video from Entertainment Tonight, where we get to see some of the secrets behind Pixar's first featured character in a Disney Dream Portrait.


This Brave inspired Disney Dream Portrait is entitled "Where your destiny awaits", will be featured in the February issue of O Magazine hitting newsstands soon.

Pixar Post - Julie
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Monsters University & Toy Story of Terror Nominated for Visual Effects Society Awards

January 14, 2014, 11:07 am
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Just moments ago, Monsters University and Toy Story of Terror! garnered four nominations (between both films) for the upcoming 12th annual Visual Effects Society (VES) awards. The VES awards recognize outstanding visual effects artistry and innovation in film, animation, television, commercials and video games and the VFX supervisors, VFX producers and hands-on-the-keys artists who bring this work to life.

Like most awards for 2013, there were some surprises that left us scratching our heads, but overall, we're happy to see Monsters University, as well as Toy Story of Terror! honored for their beautiful works. Below is a list of all of the animation-related categories with the Pixar nominations highlighted in red.

Outstanding Animation in an Animated Feature Motion Picture

  • Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2
    • Peter Nash
    • Michael Ford
    • Chris Juen
    • Mandy Tankenson
  • Despicable Me 2
    • Chris Meledandri
    • Janet Healy
    • Chris Renaud
    • Pierre Coffin
  • Frozen
    • Chris Buck
    • Jennifer Lee
    • Peter Del Vecho
    • Lino Di Salvo
  • Monsters University - We were surprised not to see Dan Scanlon on this list as "Cloudy" was the only other film to not represent it's director(s).
    • Kori Rae
    • Sanjay Bakshi
    • Jon Reisch
    • Scott Clark
  • The Croods
    • Jane Hartwell
    • Chris Sanders
    • Kirk Demicco
    • Markus Manninen

Outstanding Created Environment in an Animated Feature Motion Picture

  • Epic: Pod Patch
    • Aaron Ross
    • Travis Price
    • Jake Panian
    • Antelmo Villarreal
  • Frozen: Elsa's Ice Palace
    • Virgilio John Aquino
    • Alessandro Jacomini
    • Lance Summers
    • David Womersley
  • Monsters University: Campus
    • Robert Kondo
    • Eric Andraos
    • Dale Ruffolo
    • Peter Sumanaseni 
  • The Croods: The Maze
    • Jonathan Harman
    • Violette Sacre-Shaik
    • Benjamin Venancie
    • Philippe Brochu

Outstanding Animated Character in an Animated Feature Motion Picture

We were surprised to not find Monsters University included in this category. We believe it may have been excluded since this was a prequel - possibly for the same reason Despicable Me 2 was excluded from this category since it was a sequel.
  • Epic: Bomba
  • Epic: Mary Katherine
  • Frozen: Bringing the Snow Queen to Life 
  • The Croods: Eep

Outstanding FX and Simulation Animation in an Animated Feature Motion Picture

We were left scratching our heads here - again, the only thing that can come to mind is that the individuals that chose the films excluded Monsters University and Despicable Me 2 for similar reasons to the "Outstanding Animated Character" category.
  • Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2
  • Epic: Boggan Crowds
  • Frozen: Elsa's Blizzard
  • The Croods


Outstanding Animated Character in a Commercial or Broadcast Program

Although the VES site doesn't note which character was specifically highlighted, we can only assume it covers the gamut of characters. This is an interesting category of television shows, specials, as well as commercials, so it will be interesting to see how the 30-minute special fairs.
  • Game of Thrones: Raising the Dragons
  • PETA: 98% Human
  • Smithwick's: Squirrel
  • Three, The Pony
  • Toy Story of Terror!
    • Paul Aichele
    • Kiki Mei
    • Kee Poh
    • Andrew Coats

Outstanding FX and Simulation Animation in a Commercial or Broadcast Program

  • PETA: 98% Human
  • Sony PlayStation: Perfect Day
  • Toyota Avalon: Formula
  • Toy Story of Terror!
    • Jane Yen
    • Rogan Griffin
    • Amit Baadkar
    • Keith Daniel Klohn

At last year's VES awards, Brave was nominated for four awards and won big, taking home all four awards. Let's hope that Monsters University and Toy Story of Terror! also win big at this year's awards. The 12th annual VES Awards will take place on February 12 at the Beverly Hilton (California). Tickets to the event can be purchased on the VES website for $400 per ticket, if you're interested.

Related Posts:
- Brave wins big at the 11th annual VES awards
- Monsters University and Toy Story of Terror! receive nominations for the 41st annual Annie Awards
- Monsters University nominated for a BAFTA award

Pixar Post - T.J.
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Monsters University Snubbed for the 86th Annual Academy Award Nominations

January 16, 2014, 6:30 am
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Early this morning the nominations for the 86th Annual Academy Awards were released with Monsters University being snubbed yet again in the Best Animated Feature Film category. We are at a loss for words thinking about how Monsters University could be excluded from the list of animated films. The films advancing in the Best Animated Feature Film category are: The Croods, Despicable Me 2, Ernest & Celestine, Frozen and The Wind Rises.


I'll be honest, when I was watching the nominations my heart rate was noticeable. I assumed once they announced Ernest & Celestine, that Monsters University would of course also receive a nomination, right? Right? The Academy Awards first started the category of Best Animated Feature Film back in 2001 and in the thirteen years since the categories inception, Pixar has only been snubbed one additional time - in 2011 for Cars 2. Here is a summary of Pixar's history with the Academy Awards.

  • 2001 - Monsters, Inc. was nominated - Shrek won.
  • 2002 - Spirited Away won - Pixar did not have a feature film released in this year.
  • 2003 - Finding Nemo won.
  • 2004 - The Incredibles won.
  • 2005 - Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Wear Rabbit won - Pixar did not have a feature film released in this year.
  • 2006 - Cars was nominated - Happy Feet won.
  • 2007 - Ratatouille won.
  • 2008 - Wall-E won.
  • 2009 - Up won.
  • 2010 - Toy Story 3 won.
  • 2011 - Cars 2 was snubbed and was not nominated. Rango won.
  • 2012 - Brave won.
  • 2013 - Monsters University snubbed. 

Last year at the 85th Annual Academy Awards, Pixar was honored as Brave took home Oscar - winning over Disney's Wreck-it-Ralph, who many thought had a lock for the win. I guess this category will continue to confound people with its interesting nomination choices and sometimes odd wins (think Happy Feet winning in 2006). We'll find out who wins the Oscar when the envelope is ripped open and the winner for Best Animated Feature Film is read aloud on March 2, 2014 at the Dolby Theater (located in Hollywood, California). We were hoping that host, Ellen DeGeneres, who of course voiced Dory from Finding Nemo would be Pixar lucky charm at this year's awards. I guess we'll have to wait until the 2015 Oscars to see if Pixar will be up for another Oscar for their upcoming short Party Central. 

Let's not also forget that The Blue Umbrella, as well as Randy Newman's score for Monsters U, was also excluded from receiving any nominations.


Jeff, over at This Day In Pixar, also wrote up a great post about some of the lesser-known awards and how Monsters University only won one (yes, one) award through the 31 potential categories. This is nothing short of a shocking year for Pixar news.

What are your thoughts? Sound off in the comment section below or let your voice be heard in this Pixar Post Forum post.


Pixar Post - Julie & T.J.
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"Toy Story That Time Forgot" Christmas Special Airing on ABC This Holiday Season

January 17, 2014, 12:15 pm
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After the wildly successful Toy Story of Terror! aired just before Halloween in 2013, it seemed reasonable that additional television specials would be created as well. In fact, in an article from last October, Jim Morris (Pixar's General Manager) noted that if Toy Story of Terror! was well received, they would be more likely to produce additional television specials. Well, today we have learned (via Variety, Screencrush & Dan Taylor) that a new television special will be airing on ABC this holiday season (just before Christmas) titled, Toy Story That Time Forgot.

There are only minimal details surrounding the plot at this point, but the official release details are - 
During a post-Christmas play date, the Toy Story gang find themselves in uncharted territory when the coolest set of action figures ever turn out to be dangerously delusional. It’s all up to Trixie, the triceratops, if the gang hopes to return to Bonnie’s room.
We aren't aware of the total runtime for the special yet, but we would still anticipate that it will be 30-minutes. Also, we're happy to see that Trixie looks to be a main focal character in Toy Story That Time Forgot - she's a hilarious character that has quirkiness to spare! Many of our other favorites characters will be back as well with Tom Hanks as Woody, Tim Allen as Buzz, Kristen Schaal as Trixie, Kevin McKidd as Reptillus Maximus, Wallace Shawn as Rex, Timothy Dalton as Mr. Pricklepants (glad to see he's back again since he was so hilarious in Toy Story of Terror!), Don Rickles as Mr. Potato Head and Joan Cusack as Jessie.


When reviewing the list of actors who will be voicing the characters, if Kevin McKidd's name stood out as sounding familiar, that would be because he voiced both Lord and Young McGuffin's voice in Brave. We'll also be interested to see if Pixar's own, Peter Sohn, is included in the vocal cast as well since he has voiced countless characters in Pixar shorts and films (most recently, he voiced Transitron in Toy Story of Terror!).

Image Courtesy of Hollywood Reporter

Gayln Sussman will reprise her role as producer of Toy Story That Time Forgot (also produced Toy Story of Terror!) and Steve Purcell will take the reigns as director of the short (co-director of Brave).

When Julie heard the news of a Toy Story Christmas special taking place this year, she immediately reminded me that she's been talking about it on multiple episodes of our Podcast - so it seems that she has properly predicted the news. Now lets see if she can predict the storyline! What do you think - any thoughts on the story line and what they may do with the delusional action figures? Feel free to leave a comment below or chat about it in this post on the Pixar Post Forum.

Related Posts:
- Toy Story of Terror! our delightfully terrifying review with lots of Easter Eggs
- A behind the scenes look at Toy Story of Terror! with a set of fun facts
- Our exclusive interview with the Toy Story of Terror! supervising animator, Michal Makarewicz

Pixar Post - T.J.
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Episode 024 of the Pixar Post Podcast - Toy Story That Time Forgot, Toy Story 2 & 3 Comparisons and more

January 21, 2014, 10:08 pm
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In episode 023 of the Pixar Post Podcast we discuss:

Toy Story That Time Forgot - Christmas Special

  • We dig into Pixar's latest news of a 2014 holiday special called Toy Story That Time Forgot.
  • Thanks to a hearty discussion on this forum post, we have dug into the story that may have inspired Pixar's upcoming special called, The Land That Time Forgot. We discuss the many ways in which we feel the special is connected to the original story and invite others to read the book since we'll discuss it in more detail on the next podcast episode. We want more of your input as well - if you find another connection to the book, or just want to chat about the special, add your comments to the Toy Story That Time Forgot forum post.

Comparison of Toy Story 2 & 3 Story Elements


Monsters University & the Oscar Snub

  • The podcast is rounded out with a discussion on Monsters University and how we feel it was snubbed by not being included among the list of nominees in the Best Animated Film category.
  • We also chat about the very thoughtful comments we have received on our post regarding the Academy Awards.

Feel free to listen to the Podcast using the player below, subscribe and listen directly in iTunes, or subscribe and listen on Stitcher.



Pixar Post - T.J. & Julie
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Party Central Director Kelsey Mann Shares Additional Insight & an Early Easter Egg Hint

January 27, 2014, 1:36 pm
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Photo courtesy of Pixar Wikia

During the production of Monsters University, Story Supervisor Kelsey Mann couldn't help but be drawn to continuous story ideas regarding a certain phrase from the film - "Welcome to party central. We haven't had a party yet, but we will some day."

Mann who stepped out of the story role and into the director's chair for Pixar's upcoming short, Party Central recently shared some additional insight into what he and the team created with The Disney Insider. (In case you missed it, the first official screenshot of the upcoming short was recently released as well.)

What we found to be interesting was that a lot of the Monsters University crew lent a hand on working on the Party Central short. Mann mentioned that working on a short was a learning process, "You can't treat a short like a feature," he says. "Pete Docter gave me the best advice on that. He said, 'set up a great premise and pay off on that premise over and over again and just have fun with it'."

Like many Pixarians, the story, animation and direction is often inspired by events from their own lives. Party Central is no exception with Mann reflecting on his own college days, while he admits that his college days weren't as raucous as what will be seen in Party Central. "I was not a huge partier in college, so I did not come near to what the Oozma Kappas are doing at their house." After hearing his comment we can only imagine how far the Party Central team pushed the envelope to make this short an epic party!

If you're anything like us, we always keep our eyes peeled for the numerous easter eggs that are hidden within Pixar feature films as well as their short films. Mann promises that Party Central will not lack in the area of hidden items, "There actually is an Easter egg. It's not really something from the past like the Pizza Planet truck, but there's definitely something in the short that it takes people even here at the studio a couple times to see...but you'll know it when you see it."

Don't miss Party Central as it hits theaters ahead of Muppets Most Wanted on March, 21 2014.

Related Posts
- Party Central to be Released ahead of Muppets Most Wanted
- Toy Story of Terror Easter Eggs & Review
- Episode 023 of The Pixar Post Podcast - Party Central Release Date & Awards Discussion

Pixar Post - Julie
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