The Pixar Way -- Part I: "What We Didn't Know" or "My Journey of Pain"

I've seen all the hubbub and groans lately over John Lasseter's musical decisions and while not everyone may be happy with what goes down, you gotta know that Lasseter and the gang at Pixar are all about change. In fact they embrace change and do everything in their power to stay fresh.

How do I know this, you ask? I got to listen to them tell me this first-hand just a few weeks ago. As many of you know, the folks at Pixar are legend when it comes to the success they have had in telling great stories in the feature film arena. So they agreed to come down to Southern California for a weekend and teach a group of screenwriters at the annual Screenwriting Expo (sponsored by Creative Screenwriting magazine) the secret of their success.

We're not just talking about one token Pixar employee, but almost their entire creative staff including: Andrew Stanton ("Toy Story" 1 & 2, "A Bugs Life," "Monsters, Inc.," "Finding Nemo"), Dave Reynolds ("The Emperor's New Groove," "Finding Nemo"), Lee Unkrich ("Toy Story 2," "Monsters, Inc.," "Finding Nemo"), Mike Arndt ("Little Miss Sunshine"), Brenda Chapman ("The Little Mermaid," "The Lion King," "The Prince of Egypt"), Dan Gerson ("Monsters, Inc.," "Cars"), Gary Rydstrom (artist & sound designer extraordinaire - everything from "Jurassic Park" to "Toy Story 2" and beyond ), Irene Mecchi ( "The Lion King," "The Hunchback of Notre Dame," "Hercules") and Kiel Murray ("Finding Nemo," "The Incredibles," "Cars") [Note: Pete Docter was also scheduled but was unable to attend].

As you can see from their credits (and many I have not listed) these guys and gals are a wealth of riches that Pixar draws on every time they go out to make a movie. Forgive me for not announcing the event to everyone here on Jim Hill Media. But they had already sold out the event several times over and had to send video feeds of the presentations to additional rooms just to cover those who had already bought tickets.

The bad news for the press (i.e. me), was that Pixar would not allow any video or audio recording of any kind, nor any still photography during the presentations. So … I took notes as fast as my hand would allow and took photos of the banners in the room prior to the show.

Copyright 2001 Disney/Pixar

Fans from all walks of life were there including the folks from Aardman Animation who were in town for the premiere of their new film "Flushed Away." I actually got to talk to Nick Park and ask him about his upcoming projects. Alas, he was fairly tight-lipped about the future but a really nice guy all around.

First up was writer-director Andrew Stanton, who led off with an insightful presentation entitled "Understanding Story." He began by stating that storytelling is joke telling and very quickly laid out the "Pixar Rules."

PIXAR RULES

1. No politics

I truly think they mean this. In all the interaction and panels I saw their team conduct, everyone seemed to a have a healthy sense of humor and not once did I detect an unhealthy ego lurking in the background.

2. No studio execs

By this, Andrew stated that Pixar is studio run by artists, in his words "film school without the teachers". There are no layers of middle managers, creative executives or corporate bureaucrats itching to put their thumbprint on every project that comes their way. Just artists striving to make the very best entertainment on planet earth.

I truly believe that most Hollywood misfires are a result of the multi-layered, ego-filled bureaucracy that is Hollywood. Just ask any credit administrator at a major studio and they'll tell you about all the bizarre things people do just to get their name in the credits of a movie … even if they had nothing to do with it. Ego often rules Hollywood, but not Pixar.

3. Director driven studio

Why does this matter? Someone needs to run the show and without studio execs and a host of producers or other actors to please, the director takes the reins. But these aren't just any director. Most of these people are WRITER - Directors. They are visual storytellers who work closely with another writer and/or director to develop and create their movies. Again, this is a team effort with the director(s) taking the lead. And it's amazing what a singular vision can create with a great supporting team.

4. In-house original ideas ONLY

Sorry folks. If you had some idea you wanted to submit to Pixar for their next film…you're out of luck. The only ideas the surface in Emeryville, CA come from the inside and not just from the writers or directors. Everyone, company-wide, is encouraged to submit ideas. And they are actually considered.

Of course upon hearing of these concepts, a film executive once asked Stanton, "What, do you live in fairyland?" to which Stanton proudly exclaimed, "Yes, I live in fairyland."

Stanton then went on to give a brief history of Pixar which he humorously entitled ...

"What We Didn't Know" or "My Journey of Pain"

When Pixar first began in the early '90s, they already knew that their success lay in audience participation. For them, a good story is an equation of 2 + 2 where the audience comes up with 4 (the answer). And they felt they could make a better movie. Note that Stanton did not say a better animated movie, but a better movie. As Brad Bird put it, "Animation is a medium, not a genre." Animation just happened to be the easiest way for Pixar to tell their stories.

The Oscar-winning short "Tin Toy" was actually the test launch for what would be "Toy Story." Of course in charting this course into feature film territory, Pixar came up with a few rules to differentiate themselves from other animated fare. In fact when Tom Hanks was approached to be part of the film, he probably summed it up nicely when he asked, "You don't want me to sing, do you?"

Of course Pixar calmed his fears early on since they had already determined that in their films there would be:

• No songs
• No happy village song
• No love story
• No villain
• No "I want" moment / song

Interestingly enough, when the folks at Disney reviewed Pixar's "Toy Story" script, they were a bit concerned. So some guy named Tim Rice ( I believe it's Sir Tim Rice now) suggested they should add:

• Songs
• A happy village song
• A love story
• A villain
• An "I want" moment / song

It was at this point that Pixar knew they were on the right track and had effectively broken the mold. Of course there was much they still had to do.

Copyright 1995 Disney/Pixar

Take the character of Woody, for instance. In the early drafts of the script, Woody came off as a very unlikable character. He was very guarded, negative, and plain selfish and it was killing the movie. But the guys & gals at Pixar realized that real people are much more complicated and layered. So they decided that Woody could disguise his truly self-serving nature by being self-less. Or at least that was the way it would seem to others until the moment Woody found himself under a crate in Sid's room. In this beautifully executed scene, Woody plays his own self-therapist.

INT. SID'S ROOM

Sid is in bed fast asleep.

Woody struggles to move his milkcrate jail, but with the weight of the toolbox on top it won't budge.

Woody looks across the desktop at Buzz sitting dejectedly with the rocket strapped to his back.

WOODY
Ps-s-s-s-t! Psst! Hey, Buzz!

No reaction from Buzz.

Woody picks up a stray washer from the desktop and flings it at Buzz, striking his helmet.

Buzz lifts his head and turns lifelessly to look at Woody.

WOODY
Hey! Get over here and see if you
can get this tool box off me.

Buzz just looks away from Woody and bows his head.

WOODY
Oh, come on, Buzz. I...Buzz, I
can't do this without you. I need
your help.

BUZZ
I can't help. I can't help anyone.

WOODY
Why, sure you can, Buzz. You can
get me out of here and then I'll
get that rocket off you, and we'll
make a break for Andy's house.

BUZZ
Andy's house. Sid's house. What's
the difference.

WOODY
Oh, Buzz, you've had a big fall.
You must not be thinking clearly.

BUZZ
No, Woody, for the first time I am
thinking clearly. (looking at himself)
You were right all along. I'm not
a Space Ranger. I'm just a toy. A
stupid little insignificant toy.

WOODY
Whoa, hey -- wait a minute. Being
a toy is a lot better than being a
Space Ranger.

BUZZ
Yeah, right.

WOODY
No, it is. Look, over in that
house is a kid who thinks you are
the greatest, and it's not because
you're a Space Ranger, pal, it's
because you're a TOY! You are HIS
toy.

BUZZ
But why would Andy want me?

WOODY
Why would Andy want you?! Look at
you! You're a Buzz Lightyear. Any
other toy would give up his moving
parts just to be you. You've got
wings, you glow in the dark, you
talk, your helmet does that -- that
whoosh thing -- you are a COOL toy.

Woody pauses and looks at himself.

WOODY
(continued; depressed)
As a matter of fact you're too cool.
I mean -- I mean what chance does a
toy like me have against a Buzz
Lightyear action figure? All I can
do is...

Woody pulls his own pull-string.

WOODY (VOICE BOX)
There's a snake in my boots!

Woody bows his head.

WOODY
Why would Andy ever want to play
with me, when he's got you? (pause)
I'm the one that should be strapped
to that rocket.

He begins by building up Buzz in hope of escaping, and then breaks himself down, finally exposing Woody's true weakness - a lack of self-worth.

Of course this was just the first step on the road not taken. In Part 2 of this series, we'll get into more of the history of Pixar and Andrew Stanton reveals more of Pixar's filmmaking philosophies.