What's Next for Toy Story?

Back in 2010, Pixar delivered the third entry of what is probably their most beloved franchise; the phenomenal Toy Story 3. With a finale that touched the hearts of millions across the globe, many assumed that 3 was also the end of the Toy Story series. After all, it was a pretty beautiful ending.

But a couple of months back, rumors started popping up about a Toy Story 4. Tom Hanks, the voice behind Sheriff Woody, stated in an interview that he believed Pixar was currently working on TS4. Later on, John Lasseter also teased about a fourth installment. Then there's also this video of Tim Allen, AKA Buzz Lightyear, talking about the possibility of a fourth Toy Story film:

So will there be a Toy Story 4? We can't be sure for now, but I'd say the chances of it happening aren't very big. Lee Unkrich (director of TS3) himself stated that they tried to end the series the best they could with the third film, but that they are keeping the characters alive with a series of Toy Story short films; the Toy Story Toons.

So far, two Toy Story Toons have been released; Hawaiian Vacation and Small Fry. Both have been well-received by audiences, and have left fans hungry for more.

Some pretty big news has been dropped this week. Yes folks, we are getting more Toy Story. No, not another feature film, but rather, three new Toons will join the library, along with two original 22-minute long TV specials!

These are likely being worked on at Pixar's satellite studio in Vancouver, which has thus far worked on Air Mater and Small Fry. The TV specials are scheduled for October 2013 and Spring 2014, and will probably air on either ABC or the Disney Channel. Aside from that, we don't know much about these half-hour specials, but expect them to bring the Toy Story characters to life in a remarkable and unique way.

As for the three new shorts, there have been a few rumors flying around about one called Partysaurus Rex. You can tell by the title that Rex would likely be one of the central characters in this short. Also, some tiny bits of plot details regarding this short were spilled by electronic artist BT a while ago. He said:

"I’m in the middle of scoring a film for Pixar right now. It’s a short for Toy Story, and I’m not allowed to say the whole story, but quite literally, it’s like a Toy Story rave, and I’m actually not kidding either. Like, the toys get into all these shenanigans and it’s like pounding club music, this thing. So it’s really not very Pixar, but in like a really hysterical way, everyone laughs so hard when they see it. It’s really exciting to work with those guys."

After reading BT's comments on the short film, I am quite intrigued and eager to see it. While Wikipedia claims that Partysaurus Rex will debut this fall, nothing has been offcially announced by Pixar or Disney. Chances are, however, that this short and possibly the other two will show up on either the Pixar Short Films Collection - Volume 2 or on the Brave DVD and Blu-ray.

So there you have it. If you were worried that we wouldn't be seeing much of the Toy Story characters in the future, hopefully your anxieties have been eliminated, because it seems to me that Woody and Buzz aren't going anywhere anytime soon.

(via BigScreen Animation)

Pixar Fan Videos

You never know what the creative fans of Pixar will create...

A couple of weeks ago, the same dudes who are working on the ambitious project of transforming the first Toy Story into live-action posted their live-action take on the heartbreaking yet heartwarming finale scene from Toy Story 3. They did an unbelievable job:

Also, Toystructor, a reader of this blog, emailed this fantastic video of a remote-controlled Mater crashing into a wall of Jenga blocks - in slow motion. Everything is cool in slow motion, but this...this will blow your mind.

It's amazing what all the imaginative folks out there can create, don't you think?

Pixar Book Talk!

Books. What would we do without them? They educate us, entertain us, and help us discover new things. There's been a whole lot of news about Pixar-related books lately.

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First of all, Steve Jobs' authorized biography came out on Monday! I haven't had the chance to see it just yet, but I plan on at least obtaining it from the public library, if not buying it,  sometime soon. The bio, entitled simply Steve Jobs and written by Walter Isaacson, tells the story of Jobs' brilliant and inspirational life; how he co-founded Apple, how he helped bring them back to the top, how he invented the contraptions we know today as the iPad and iPhone, and, what he is best known for by animation fans around the globe, how he helped bring Pixar to life. Steve Jobs is available now, and I would not miss out on this good read.

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Also, we have another one of the popular "Art of" books coming up next month, but this time, it's not focusing on just the latest Pixar release, it's focusing on all their films so far, from Toy Story all the way to Cars 2. It even includes the majority of their short films--including the upcoming La Luna. So, naturally, this new book is called, The Art of Pixar. It's being released this year to celebrate Pixar's 25th anniversary.

One of the unique aspects of The Art of Pixar is how only nine of its 320 pages contain text (not counting captions of the pictures and artwork throughout the book, of course). This book is all about the art, or, more specifically, a type of art form which Pixar uses to perfect all their features and shorts. It is called, the color script. Also, it will include a foreword by Pixar honcho John Lasseter!

The Art of Pixar will have all the color scripts for all of Pixar's feature films and most of their short films, and it will be available on November 2! You can pre-order and read the official description of the book here.

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Lastly, another "Art of" book was just announced. No, it's not The Art of Brave (although we are likely to hear about that in a few months or so), but it is The Toy Story Films: An Animated Journey, or in other words, "The Art of all 3 Toy Story movies". Amazon.com has listed it as a 192-page book, hardcover, which will be available on August 7, 2012. As the name suggests, it will be a retelling of the making of the beloved Toy Story franchise, and will include concept art from Toy Story, Toy Story 2, and of course, Toy Story 3, as well as interviews with the filmmakers! Don't forget to check out the official description here.

If you are an avid Pixar and Toy Story fan, this book sounds like something you probably won't want to miss out on.

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Were you looking for a good book to read or one to look forward to? Well then, hopefully this blog post gave you some ideas.

Will We See a Toy Story 4?

Last year, Pixar's beloved Toy Story series ended with Toy Story 3, and the studio did an excellent job ending the saga, and is probably one of the best endings to a film series ever! However, Tom Hanks, voice of Woody, recently stated in an interview that there is currently a fourth installment in the works. The exact words he used when asked if there would be a TS4 were:

"I think there will be, yeah. Yeah, yeah, I think they're working on it now."

This on one hand, could be some pretty bad news, but in another hand, could be very awesome news! I really don't think that another Toy Story is necessary at all, since they ended it so perfectly with '3', plus they're doing the 'Toons' to keep the characters alive, but whatever Pixar decides to do, I'm cool with it. After all, if they are doing a '4', they must've come up with a really really wicked idea that MUST be told. Pixar has even stated that they will only make sequels if they have a story that's worth telling.

I'm not too sure why Tom said they are working on a Toy Story 4, but there are a lot of reasons why he might've said it. He could've been joking, he could've been expressing his desire for a fourth film, or he might have just gotten mixed up with upcoming Toy Story Toons.

Only time will tell if we will see the toys in another feature film sometime in the future. For now, if you want more of Woody and Buzz, catch Hawaiian Vacation, now in theaters with Cars 2, and the next Toy Story Toon arrives in theaters this November alongside Disney's The Muppets.

Pixar News Lineup!

Pixar's newest short, "Hawaiian Vacation", now in theaters with "Cars 2"

Several things debuted on the web between all the excitement from the release of Cars 2! Read about them below.

First up, Cars 2 director and Pixar chief creative officer John Lasseter will be getting his own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame next year!!! It was about time!! Congratulations to Mr. Lasseter!

As you can see, the still seen above from Hawaiian Vacation was released on the web as well. I sure remember that part of the short film. It was followed by a really funny guest appearance who I am sure you will remember from Toy Story 3...

Check out this video featuring Cars franchise guardian, Jay Ward as he gives you an inside scoop on Cars 2:

Over at Animation World Network, check out two great interviews regarding Pixar's two newest shorts, Hawaiian Vacation, and La Luna.

Cars 2 earned an approximate $25.7 million yesterday on its opening day! Looks like Cars 2 will be quite commercially successful!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for more updates on how Cars 2 does at the box office, and also, when the Brave teaser trailer hits the web!

Celebrating Toy Story 3

Today is June 18. Doesn't that date bring back some great memories from last year? Exactly one year ago, the highly anticipated Toy Story 3 hit theaters. It was the heroic return of Woody, Buzz, and the gang. After not seeing them in a film for 11 years, the world was delighted to have them back. Toy Story 3 made the world laugh hysterically, told a wonderful story with lots of action, and most importantly, touched the hearts of millions. The film grossed over 1 billion dollars worldwide, and became the highest grossing film of 2010, and the highest grossing animated film ever. Toy Story 3 then went on to win Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song at the 83rd Academy Awards. After all this, Toy Story 3 beacame known as simply a treasure, and a lovely gift to the planet. Thank you Pixar, for Toy Story 3.

More Info on Hawaiian Vacation!

Pixar's official website was recently updated with an article all about their latest short film, Hawaiian Vacation, the very first of the Toy Story Toons series. The new animated short stars Barbie, Ken, and of course Woody, Buzz and all the toys as they strive to create the perfect Hawaiian paradise right in Bonnie's bedroom. This interesting article talks about The Tale and The Characters behind Hawaiian Vacation and has a paragraph entitled Behind the Scenes. A few new things are mentioned here, such as some of the friendships that have been formed between Andy's toys and Bonnie's toys.

Toy Story Toons: Hawaiian Vacation features all the original voice actors from Toy Story 3 returning to voice their characters, and you can catch it in theaters when it premieres alongside Cars 2 in 18 days on June 24.

Are you as hyped as I am for the return of Buzz and Woody??

Cars 2: The Video Game!

Cars 2: The Video Game hits store shelves on June 21, and some people are making as big of a fuss for the game as they are for the movie.

Often the video games based on films aren't exactly very good, but last year, Pixar teamed up with Avalanche to try and break that curse. The Toy Story 3 video game was incredible, and is one of the best movie-based video games I've ever known.

Toy Story 3: The Video Game was the first game that Pixar did with Avalanche, and since it was a big success, the two companies have teamed up again for the Cars 2 video game! Starting with Toy Story 3, Pixar was highly involved in the creation of the video games based on their movies, and as a result, the TS3 game was a big improvement over previous Pixar games.

Cars 2: The Video Game is set after the events of Cars 2. Players get the chance to train to become a spy at CHROME, which stands for Command Headquarters for Reconnaisance Operations and Motorized Espionage. This game is the perfect combination of an awesome racing game and a spectacular action-adventure game. Cars 2: The Video Game also features all the great characters from the film.

Watch the two trailers for the video game below:

Be sure to check out the "Developer Diaries":

Get your hands all over Cars 2: The Video Game on June 21, three days before the film comes out!

Pixar Articles on TIME Website

There's always an interesting article about Pixar out there on the Internet.

Today I found a 'Pixar timeline' called A Brief History of Pixar on the TIME website, where TS3 director Lee Unkrich was nominated to be on the TIME 100 list. This timeline is a very concise summary of the Pixar films, from Toy Story to Cars 2.

Also, Pixar's John Lasseter landed a spot on this year's TIME 100! John Ratzenberger, considered to be Pixar's lucky charm, wrote the article for the TIME website, which you can read here. I've always been a big John Lasseter fan, so I'm glad to see him on the list of "Most Influential People".

Pixar By The Numbers

Have you ever wondered how many people currently work at Pixar? Or how long it takes to make a Pixar movie? Or how many toys are in Toy Story 3? Well, I've gone around the Internet and read my Pixarpedia and tried to answer a lot of those curious questions as best as I could. A lot of the answers are estimates, because it would be almost impossible to get the exact answers to everything. So I encourage you to read on, and let all (or at least most) of your questions about Pixar be answered!

• Around 1200 employees...or more...work at Pixar Animation Studios.
• The average Pixar movie usually takes 4 to 5 years to create...or in other words, about 1460.97 to 1826.21 days.
• As many people know, Pixar has made 11 films up to date, and will release their 12th film, Cars 2, on June 24, 2011.
• Pixar's highest grossing film, Toy Story 3, earned an estimated $1,063,171,609 at the box office. It became the 5th highest grossing film of all time, the #1 animated film of all time, and the highest grossing film of 2010.
• John Lasseter has directed 4 of Pixar's films to this day, and is set to make his 5th debut as director this year with Cars 2.
• So far, there are 9 hilarious Cars Toons, and more will be released in the years to come.
• Randy Newman has scored 6 Pixar movies, including all 3 Toy Story films.
• John Ratzenberger, considered Pixar's 'lucky charm', has voiced 9 Pixar characters, including Hamm the piggy bank and Mack the truck.
• Ever since the Best Animated Feature Film award was introduced to the Oscars in 2001, Pixar has been nominated 8 times, and has won 6 times.
• Not only has Pixar made many fantastic feature films, but the company has created 19 ground-breaking short films, their most recent being Day & Night. Their 20th short, Hawaiian Vacation, will be played in front of Cars 2.
• Pixar has received 10 Academy Award nominations for their short films, and has won 3 times.
• Pixar was founded in 1986, so the company has existed for 25 years.
• Russel, the 8 year-old wilderness explorer from Up, has over 40 badges!
• In Pixar's Ratatouille, the word 'rat' is used 51 times!
• Sulley, the big, blue, furry monster from Monsters, Inc., has around 2,137,000 hairs in total!
• Carl Fredricksen from Up uses about 10,000 to 20,000 balloons to lift his house up into the air!
• In Toy Story 3, Andy only has 12 toys left...but at Sunnyside Daycare, there are probably over 100 toys!
• In Pixar's Cars, there are, of course, over 200 cars seen in the film...probably a lot more!
• There are exactly 96 days left until the North American theatrical release of Cars 2!!!

Of course, those are only a few of Pixar-related facts, because well, with numbers, Pixar always goes.........

To Infinity, and Beyond!

Cool Pixar Pic: Homecoming

One week ago, Toy Story 3 took home the awards for Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song at the 83rd Academy Awards. Lee Unkrich posted this picture on Twitter. That big, big crowd of Pixar workers was waiting for him at the studio when he returned. That looks like it must have been a really awesome moment, and not just for Lee, but for everybody at Pixar. Not everyone knows how difficult it is to make an animated movie as good as Toy Story 3, so I think it's great that these people's talents are recognized by winning an Oscar. Again, congratulations Pixar.

Also, Lee tweeted this other cool picture, related to his Oscar win. "Safety first." Funny.

Note: I'm sorry I haven't been able to keep up with my Cars 2 Character Profiles. I will begin catching up this week starting with Shu Todoroki.

Toy Story 3's Award Summary

Well, now that the award season has finally ended, I have decided to do a quick summary of all the awards Toy Story 3 won.

• 37th People's Choice Awards: Favourite Family Movie


• Satellite Awards 2011: Best Motion Picture (Animated or Mixed)


• 2011 Grammy Awards: Best Score Soundtrack Album for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media


• 82nd National Board of Review Awards: Best Animated Film and Top Ten Films


• 9th Washington Area Film Critics Association: Best Animated Feature


• 16th Annual BFCA Critics Choice Awards: Best Animated Feature


• Golden Tomato Awards (Rotten Tomatoes): Best Rating Feature in 2010 (Wide Release) and Best Reviewed Animated Film (Animation)


• 68th Golden Globe Awards: Best Animated Feature Film


• 64th BAFTA Awards: Best Animated Feature


• 83rd Academy Awards: Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song ("We Belong Together" by Randy Newman)

Now isn't that a lot of awards? I think the film definitely deserved all those prizes, as it made many people laugh out loud, amazed them with spectacular animation and many action-packed scenes, and touched the hearts of millions. Congratulations Pixar, for creating another classic, that will remain in the hearts and minds of many forever.

The 83rd Academy Awards (UPDATED LIVE)

The night began as Anne Hathaway and James Franco gave a brief introduction to the 83rd Academy Awards. Tom Hanks, voice of Woody, presented the awards of Best Art Direction (which went to Disney's Alice and Wonderland), and Cinematography (which Inception won).

Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis presented the awards for Best Animated Short AND Best Animated Feature. Day & Night unfortunately lost to The Lost Thing. But, it is already a victory to be nominated. Congrats to Teddy Newton! The Best Animated Feature Film award went to...

TOY STORY 3!!!!!!!!!!

Director Lee Unkrich came up to recieve the award, and thanked everyone at Pixar, and stated that Pixar is the 'most AWESOME place on the planet to make movies!!!", and I totally agree with him!

Best Adapted Screenplay went to The Social Network, but congratulations to TS3 and Pixar for being nominated!

Best Sound Editing was one of the other awards for which TS3 was nominated, and did not win, but as I have stated, it's already a victory to be nominated. The award went to Inception.

Randy Newman did an AMAZING job performing his song from Toy Story 3, 'We Belong Together'!

Billy Crystal, voice of Mike Wasowski from Monsters, Inc., came up to talk for a few minutes.

Randy Newman won the the award for Best Original Song for his amazing song from TS3, 'We Belong Together'! Congratulations!

And the winner for Best Motion Picture at the 83rd Academy Awards is...

The King's Speech

Today was not the day that an animated film won the big one at the Oscars, but, as all the films which were nominated for an Oscar this year, Toy Story 3 was truely a masterpiece. The night concludes with a lovely performance by the PS22 Chorus. Good night everybody, and congratulations to Lee Unkrich, Darla K. Anderson, John Lasseter, Randy Newman, everyone else at Pixar, and all the other great people who were nominated for an Oscar.

Oscar Nominations!!!

Yesterday, nominations for the 83rd Academy Awards were finally announced! Of course, Pixar's masterpiece from 2010, Toy Story 3, recieved several nominations! Five of them actually. I am super excited to see TS3 recieve so many nominations, and I am sure it will win at least one.

Toy Story 3 was nominated for the following:

- Best Picture (Darla K Anderson)
- Best Animated Feature (Lee Unkrich)
- Best Adapted Screenplay (Michael Arndt, John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton, and Lee Unkrich)
- Best Sound Editing (Tom Myers and Michael Silvers)
- Best Original Song ("We Belong Together" by Randy Newman)

Also, Pixar recieved a nomination for their spectacular short, Day & Night, directed by Teddy Newton.

Conratulations to everyone at Pixar for getting nominated for several Academy Awards for yet another year! Good luck to Lee Unkrich, Darla Anderson, Teddy Newton, Randy Newman, Michael Arndt, Tom Myers, Michael Silvers, and everyone else at Pixar when February 27 comes! Let's hope TS3 becomes the first animated film in history to ever win the Almighty Oscar.

Toy Story 3 Wins Golden Globe!

Last night, the Golden Globes were held, and of course, Toy Story 3 and the geniuses at Pixar behind making all that movie magic were honored with the Best Animated Feature Film award! Pixar's 11th went up against:

-Despicable Me

-How To Train Your Dragon

-The Illusionist

-Tangled

But in the end, of course, TS3 went on to win. Congrats to Lee Unkrich (director), Darla Anderson (producer), John Lasseter (executive producer), and everyone else who helped bring this masterpiece to the big screen!

Photo credit: MSN

Pixar News Bundle!

Since I have been very busy lately, unfortunately I have not been able to update my blog. In the past week, there has been some cool news popping up, so this post is just catching up with all the news I missed.

First up, details and a cover image (seen below) for the Blu-ray release of The Incredibles have been released! Pixar's hit from 2004 will make its way onto high-definition Blu-ray on April 12 this year, and some of the new bonus features included will be:
-The Incredibles Revisited (Filmmakers Roundtable)
-Paths to Pixar: Story Artists
-Studio Stories: Gary’s Birthday
-Ending With A Bang: Making The End Credits
-Interactive “New Nomanison Island” Top Secret Redevelopment Plan
This Blu-ray will include an admission to Cars 2, which hits theaters two months later. Also, The Incredibles Blu-ray is now available for pre-order on Amazon.

Also on April 12, a new edition of Cars will be released on Blu-ray. It is likely to also include new bonus material, and will also come with an admission to Cars 2.

Two awesome new 'For Your Consideration' posters for TS3's campaign were revealed at Awards Daily. Looks like they're also going for the Best Director Award. In my opinion, Lee Unkrich does deserve that award, for all the effort he put into directing the third installment of the Toy Story films. Also, I absolutely love the poster with Woody and Buzz shaking hands, it has been my favorite one out of all the posters that have been released.

Everyone knows Rotten Tomatoes, the site that has all the information you need on actors, critics, and of course, movies. Each year, Rotten Tomatoes gives an award called the Golden Tomato to the best film of that year, in their opinion. This year, the winner for that award is none other than Pixar's latest hit, Toy Story 3!! Congratulations to everyone at Pixar for winning the award for the 4th year in a row!

That's pretty much all the excitement that's happened in the last week, but also, a few new Cars 2 things came out, but to me, this was so exciting, that it deserved its own post, so that will be the next post you see here on Pixar Corner!

More Toy Story 3 'FYC' Posters!

Recently on Disney's Awards Website, a whole lot of new TS3 'For Your Consideration' posters were revealed! Before this new bunch, we had seen other cool posters (click here and here) for Toy Story 3's campaign. Since there are so many, I have not posted the new 'FYC' ads here on the blog, because there are a lot, but you can view them all here, and once you're there, click on where you see 'Campaign'. I hope you check these out, they're really fun posters!

New TS3 'For Your Consideration' Poster

Adding to the series of Toy Story 3 'For Your Consideration' posters is this marvelous still of the toys holding hands, facing their fate together at the incinerator. Of course, only to be rescued by none other than 'The Claaaaw!"

Nominations for the Oscars will be announced on January 25, 2011. Then at last, we will know if TS3 got nominated for the Oscar of the Oscars. But only until February 27, will we know if it will win. Keep your fingers crossed!

Toy News!

There's been a lot of news about Pixar's latest hit lately. I did a quick summary here on the blog.

In the last few days, Toy Story 3, has been receiving quite a few nominations! They are:

- Golden Globes: Best Animated Feature Film
- Oscars: Best Original Song (We Belong Together)
- One of the 10 films selected for the AFI Awards

Also, check out this cool chart summarizing the commercial success of TS3!

My Thoughts On TS3 Winning Best Picture

A lot of people say that just because a movie is animated, it means it's for 'babies', or 'little kids'. I have always disagreed with that. Animated movies are made to be enjoyed by all audiences, from toddlers to young kids, preteens to teens, adults, and elders. Especially at Pixar, people work hard to make movies that are appealing to the whole family.

Now some people who avoid animated movies because they think they are too 'childish' are getting in the way of Toy Story 3 winning the almighty Best Picture Award at the Oscars. These people really got on my nerves, because TS3 has undoubtedly been one of the best (if not the best) film of 2010. It has grossed over 1 billion dollars worldwide at the box office, it has gotten great reviews from critics, and even got a rating of 99% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes. So, in my opinion, Pixar's latest hit is bound to at least get nominated for the great award.

Toy Story 3 has been the highest grossing film of 2010, the best reviewed film of 2010, and, if I'm not mistaking, has gotten the highest rating on Rotten Tomatoes this year. So how many more reasons are there for this astounding animated movie to win Best Picture.

These are some of the reasons I think TS3 should win:

- It has everything a great movie needs: action, heart, and humor

- It is appealing to anyone who gives it a chance; it's appealing to people of all ages and of both genders

- As I have stated, it has been the highest grossing movie of 2010, the best reviewed, and has gotten the highest ranking on Rotten Tomatoes

I will admit, there has been a lot of other spectacular movies this year, Inception, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1, and of course other awesome animated movies, like Tangled, but I think it's time that animated movies get a chance to get the best award there is. Only two animated movies have ever been nominated for the Best Picture Award (Beauty and the Beast, Up), but when will one win? We will at last find out on February 27, 2011.