Animation historian and The Art of Toy Story 3 author, Charles Solomon, discusses the success of Pixar’s latest in an interview with LA Times.
"I still cried when I saw the finished film" commented Solomon who had already been exposed to the content during production. That’s a testament to how effective Toy Story 3 has been on everyone.
As with most successful films, the highly anticipated sequel owes its immense box-office take and excellent critical reception to years of hard work by a dedicated team of visionaries. It also helps that Lee Unkrich embraced the nostalgia factor, making Toy Story 3 "the way John Lasseter would have made the first one look if he’d had the tools."
If you haven’t already, I highly recommend picking up a copy of The Art of Toy Story 3. My review of this phenomenal coffee table book can be found here.
For now, check out Charles Solomon’s full LA Times interview.
Your thoughts?
Last modified: June 21, 2010
Sorry—-but the weakest part of the Art of Toy Story is the “writing.” Easily the weakest of all the Pixar books from that point of view. And even in his interview, he gets basic information wrong. The lighting director of the film according the credits was a woman named Kim White, and she did such an amazing job.
Anonymous- I liked that there was a lot of writing. You have to remember that the book was turned over to Solomon half way through, after Amid Amidi dropped it. So, yes, it may have flaws but I can see why. On the other hand, the images are absolutely beautiful — which is the main attraction to the book. I also liked this interview, even with its apparent flaws.
martini-
I agree with the writing. I really liked that they go in depth and explain alot.
The book definitely benefited from discussing how TS3 eventually came about, and it provided some great insight into some scenes that inspired Lee, like ‘throwing toys out’ and ‘replacing one.’
I was in NYC in late May and saw it. I couldn’t find it in Borders, but at B&N at the full price. I gave in and bought it, because I need something to placate me for another few weeks.
And I even get a Pavlovian water-welling in the eye just by looking at some of the pictures. Plus, everyone is so genuine in their emotions, and you can see how that permeates into the finished film.
uruseiranma – Yeah, I was looking through the book a few days ago and it’s crazy how accurate some of the images are, even from way back in 2006!