One of the most impressive elements of Pixar's 15-year run in Hollywood is how the CGI animation studio refuses to rest on their laurels; they've always push themselves to break new ground in computer-generated animation, to try and tell stories that wouldn't appear in films.
The Emeryville studio has always put short films in front of their feature-length movies, and many of them – For the Birds, Lifted, Presto, and Geri's Game – have become classics in their own right. Although John Lasseter's attempt to institute a similar Shorts Program at Disney Animation pretty much died on the vine, movie fans salivate over an upcoming Pixar short almost as much as they do for the feature.
Teddy Newton Directs Pixar Animation's Day & Night, Playing With Toy Story 3
Which brings us to Teddy Newton's Day & Night, which will play in front of Lee Unkrich's Toy Story 3. It's a bizarre concept, even for Pixar – think Hannah-Barbera meets Norman McLaren. Newton himself is a longtime associate of Brad Bird: he first worked with him on 1999's The Iron Giant for Warner Bros., then joined Bird at Pixar for 2004's The Incredibles and Ratatouille.
Here's Day & Night's official synopsis:
"When Day, a sunny fellow, encounters Night, a stranger of distinctly darker moods, sparks fly! Day and Night are frightened and suspicious of each other at first, and quickly get off on the wrong foot. But as they discover each other’s unique qualities — and come to realize that each of them offers a different window onto the same world — the friendship helps both to gain a new perspective."
In this making-of featurette, first-time director Newton and his associates attempt to explain what this film is about: as the dryly funny narration observes, "It's the hardest Pixar short to describe."
"it's a weird concept," laughs producer Kevin Reher.
According to Newton, the actual characters are rendered in 2-D animation but within them exists a three-dimensional world that reflects the emotions of the on-screen characters. "Where Night would have a moon, Day has a sun," Newton explains. "Where Day would have a rainbow, Night would have fireworks."
If this short seems more at home at the National Film Board of Canada than at a Hollywood studio, it's worth noting that Pixar's animators have a profound respect for the NFB. Ratatouille contained several visual shout-outs to the legendary Norman McLaren, and Cordell Barker (The Cat Came Back, Runaway) revealed that Pixar has head-hunted him more than a few times.
While Day & Night may not contain the sheer laughs-per-minute of Presto, or the haunting sweetness of Red's Dream, it's a genuinely innovative concept and proof that Pixar's still trying to take risks.
Day & Night will open in front of Toy Story 3 on June 18th. Look for a review in this space.
Dominic von Riedemann - Dominic is the Animated Film Feature Writer, and winner of 11 Suite 101 Editors' Choice Awards.
Join the Conversation