The Pixar Story (2007) Review

My Rating: 8/10

Directed by: Leslie Iworks
Genre: Documentary
Runtime: 90 Minutes

Ever wondered how Computer Animation all started? Well this 90-minute documentary will answer this. Famed cartoonist Ub Iwerks's granddaughter Leslie turns the camera lens on the artists and storytellers behind some of the most widely hailed animated films of the modern era in this in-depth documentary. The Pixar Story is a definitive truth of how one man collaborated with others to start the computerised world of animation. And his name is non-other than John Lasseter. Like Walt Disney at his time, he revolutionised the animation industry. Lasseter was the one who pushed forward the idea of computer animation and since the mid 1980’s he has been doing that. Now he is the Chief Executive of Walt Disney Animation Studios. I have watched this at least three times, and is the most watched documentary I have seen. It’s a great history that unveils the beginning of computer animation and shows how much of an art it really is.

I think some of you know by now that I am a huge animation fan, although I can’t draw very well myself, I understand the art and I just like the whole idea of no boundaries and bringing a character to life with either a pencil, a figurine or computer. There’s just something magical about that. When I was around 12 to 13 years old I had dreams of being an animator, preferably stop animation because I could do it. Now animation is just a hobby interest and there is lots to learn with the art. Spanning back to the late 1800’s when it was experimentation is fascinating. I probably sound nerdy right now, but that’s how I feel with animation, and this film shows how great it is with interviews from people like Ollie Johnston, an animator who worked on Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. Animation is a great art form that allows artists and animators to express themselves, and think of all the great characters that have came out of animation. Mickey, Bugs, Daffy, Felix, Fred Flintstone and the list could go on.

The film is about 90 minutes long and is wonderful start to end. This film was tied in with the Wall-E special edition DVD but it was not the first place I saw it. It was once on TV once and I loved it. Then coincidentally it was on the Wall-E disc. Being a documentary you can’t really give it a rating in terms of character and such, but let’s just say the clips, interviews and pieces put together was done very well and the story of Pixar's origins itself is fascinating. Overall you should really check this documentary out because you are sure to learn something. Like how I learnt some of my favourite directors went to the same college at the same time, being Henry Selick, Tim Burton and John Lasseter. A lot of great film makers went to that school. So definitely check this one out if you can get a hold of it because no doubt you will learn something.

Ratings:
Overall: 8.8/10