Pixar's Chief Creative Officer Shares Insider Strategies
Image Source: IGN
With Pixar’s Elio out in theaters now, Chief Creative Officer Pete Docter shared some strategies for keeping the team engaged. Docter explained that the artists have “mean caricature” nights where they draw “really nasty pictures” of one another. While this strategy may appear negative at first glance, it takes a little of the pressure off and gives the animators practice. Docter clarified, “To some degree, we make cartoons, so we’re starting out in a good place, but we really try to foster as much play as we can. That seems to produce the best work.” These playtimes are especially important ad the general work is done in 15-minute increments.
Docter mentioned the challenge between bridging new content and making enough money to keep creating new content. The current strategy is to have at least one original film and one sequel. He said, “It takes as much work and effort to make something that doesn’t make money as it does for something that does. And you can’t really plan on this stuff. Sometimes you just hit the right little combinations of things.” Docter continued, “We have to find out what people want before they know it. Because if we just gave them more of what they know, we’d be making Toy Story 27.”
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Image Source: Collider Ladies Night
The company is also embracing the use of AI. Docter was quick to clarify that it wasn’t stealing jobs, but rendering a single frame of film by hand can take from thirty to forty hours. AI reduces that lengthy block of time, allowing the animators to use it as a tool. He compared it to the 1990s era fear of computer-generated actors replacing real ones. While Elio is currently underperforming at the box office, the next Toy Story installment may bring more people to the theater.
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Source(s): Fast Company, Cinemablend
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