{"id":85709,"date":"2020-10-09T19:30:15","date_gmt":"2020-10-09T16:30:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/from-the-real-world-to-the-great-before-and-beyond-film\/"},"modified":"2020-10-09T19:30:15","modified_gmt":"2020-10-09T16:30:15","slug":"from-the-real-world-to-the-great-before-and-beyond-film","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/from-the-real-world-to-the-great-before-and-beyond-film\/","title":{"rendered":"#From The Real World to The Great Before and Beyond \u2013 \/Film"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a4f84ef2da4a\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a4f84ef2da4a\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/from-the-real-world-to-the-great-before-and-beyond-film\/#New_York_City_The_Jazz_Capital_of_America\" >New York City, The Jazz Capital of America<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/from-the-real-world-to-the-great-before-and-beyond-film\/#Bringing_Joe_Gardner_to_Life\" >Bringing Joe Gardner to Life<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/from-the-real-world-to-the-great-before-and-beyond-film\/#Animating_Joes_Passion_for_Music\" >Animating Joe\u2019s Passion for Music<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/from-the-real-world-to-the-great-before-and-beyond-film\/#Venturing_Into_The_Great_Before\" >Venturing Into The Great Before<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/from-the-real-world-to-the-great-before-and-beyond-film\/#What_Does_a_Soul_Look_Like\" >What Does a Soul Look Like?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/from-the-real-world-to-the-great-before-and-beyond-film\/#The_Counselors_Are_Both_2D_and_3D\" >The Counselors Are Both 2D and 3D<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<p>&#8220;<strong>#From The Real World to The Great Before and Beyond \u2013 \/Film<\/strong>&#8221;<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>                            <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-640613 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-hallofeverything-joe-22-700x300.jpg\" alt=\"Soul\" width=\"700\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-hallofeverything-joe-22-700x300.jpg 700w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-hallofeverything-joe-22-360x154.jpg 360w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-hallofeverything-joe-22-768x329.jpg 768w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-hallofeverything-joe-22.jpg 1140w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Pixar\u2019s <strong><em>Soul<\/em><\/strong> is\u00a0no longer coming to theaters in the United States. Instead, the movie is being released through Disney+ on Christmas Day. This is a real shame, because the journey that middle school band teacher and aspiring jazz musician Joe Gardner (<strong>Jamie Foxx<\/strong>) takes from New York City to the ethereal plane of The Great Before is full of mesmerizing and stunning animation, some of which takes Pixar in surprising new directions. And it wasn\u2019t easy to pull off either.<\/p>\n<p>Director <strong>Pete Docter<\/strong>, co-director\/writer <strong>Kemp Powers<\/strong>, and the entire Pixar team were tasked with creating this world where new souls get their personalities, quirks, and interests before they go to Earth. It not only required endless imagination, but technical innovation, not to mention a stark contrast to the incredibly life-like environments of the real world. And the real world presented its own challenges too, especially when it came to animating Joe Gardner\u2019s passion for music, which includes some meticulous, fast-paced piano-playing and other instrumental excitement.<\/p>\n<p>So how did they do it? Back in September, \/Film was invited to partake in some virtual presentations from the filmmakers to learn about some of the amazing work Pixar put into this movie. So let\u2019s take a closer look at the making of Pixar\u2019s <em>Soul<\/em>.<span id=\"more-640587\"><\/span><br \/>\n<!-- SlashFilm_300x250_In_Post -->Before we get into the making of Pixar, let\u2019s refresh your memory with the trailer and official synopsis of Pixar\u2019s<em> Soul<\/em>:<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Disney and Pixar\u2019s Soul | Official Trailer | Disney+\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/xOsLIiBStEs?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span class=\"style-scope yt-formatted-string\" dir=\"auto\">Joe Gardner (Jamie Foxx) is a middle-school band teacher who gets the chance of a lifetime to play\u00a0at\u00a0the best jazz club in town.\u00a0But one small misstep takes him from the streets of New York City to\u00a0The Great Before \u2013 a fantastical place where new souls get their personalities, quirks and interests before they go to Earth.\u00a0Determined to return to his life, Joe teams up with a\u00a0precocious soul, 22 (Tina Fey), who has never understood the <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>eal of the human experience. As Joe desperately tries to show 22 what\u2019s great about living, he may just discover the answers to some of life\u2019s most important questions.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-640612 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-newyork-skyline-700x291.jpg\" alt=\"Soul - New York City\" width=\"700\" height=\"291\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-newyork-skyline-700x291.jpg 700w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-newyork-skyline-360x150.jpg 360w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-newyork-skyline-768x320.jpg 768w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-newyork-skyline.jpg 1429w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"New_York_City_The_Jazz_Capital_of_America\"><\/span>New York City, The Jazz Capital of America<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Jazz is at the center of Joe Gardner\u2019s story in <em>Soul<\/em>. It\u2019s what drives him everyday. And Pixar knew that the only place to begin this story was in New York City.<br \/>\n<!-- SlashFilm_300x250_In_Post_2 -->Director Pete Docter said: \u201cThough jazz didn\u2019t originate there, New York is the jazz capital of America. It is a center of culture, full of immigrants and influences from around the world. It\u2019s a rich and vibrant place to feature a film.\u201d Co-director Kemp Powers added, \u201cJazz is a uniquely American artform, and New York City has one of the strongest histories of jazz\u2014some of the most famous musicians are known for their performances in New York City.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>But New York City brings a certain kind of energy and style outside of jazz too. As production designer Steve Pilcher said, \u201cIt\u2019s solid, physical and reflective with lots of local color. It\u2019s very tactile with a history of wear and tear. Buildings and railings and pavement are weathered or bleached. Nothing\u2019s really perfect in this world. It\u2019s very organic and interesting.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>All of this comes through in the lifelike textures in every single shot. Whether it\u2019s the grit of the sidewalk or the shimmer of a saxophone, the New York in <em>Soul<\/em> looks so phenomenally real that it risks making the stylized animated characters look out of place. The jazz club and middle school band room created in computer animation would be indistinguishable from photographs of these real locations if it wasn\u2019t for the animated characters. But no matter how stylized these characters look, they still feel real at their core.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-586683 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-joegardner-walking-city-frontpage-700x310.jpg\" alt=\"Pixar Soul Photo\" width=\"700\" height=\"310\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-joegardner-walking-city-frontpage.jpg 700w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-joegardner-walking-city-frontpage-360x159.jpg 360w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Bringing_Joe_Gardner_to_Life\"><\/span>Bringing Joe Gardner to Life<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Joe Gardner is the first Black lead character in in a Pixar animated film, so plenty of eyes are on how he\u2019s depicted. Adding to the authenticity, Powers inserted some of himself into Joe. Powers is from Brooklyn, and though Joe is from Queens, the writer was able to incorporate plenty of his own knowledge and experiences into the story. That includes time he spent as a jazz critic. So Joe easily feels like a richly layered and authentic character, from his passion for music to the beauty he finds in everyday life.<br \/>\n<!-- SlashFilm_300x250_In_Post_3 -->\u201cWe had many meetings and discussions about Joe as a team, where he grew up, the important people in his life, what made him tick, and then I reached into my own past and life experiences and tried to put that down on paper,\u201d Powers said.<\/p>\n<p>However, Powers also went out of his way to tell Docter and producer Dana Murray that he shouldn\u2019t represent every single Black person\u2019s experience. He said, \u201cIt was very important that the film transcended any one person\u2019s life.\u201d So Pixar brought in cultural consultants like <span class=\"hotkey-layer \"><\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-640606 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-barbershop-joe-cat-700x300.jpg\" alt=\"Soul - Barbershop Scene\" width=\"700\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-barbershop-joe-cat.jpg 700w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-barbershop-joe-cat-360x154.jpg 360w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The barbershop scene in particular was an important one to Powers. Citing the incredible animated hair on the furry blue monster Sully in Pete Docter\u2019s movie <em>Monsters Inc.<\/em>, Powers remembered imploring Pete to have a scene set in a barbershop so they could not only recreate the unique experience of being in a Black barbershop, but also meticulously bring the texture and look of Black hair to life in animation. Powers said, \u201cI think, internally, if you ask a lot of the folks who worked on it, it became one of everyone\u2019s favorite scenes in the entire movie because we had a great deal of fun with it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>One of the writer\u2019s favorite parts of this scene was all of the hip-hop centric Easter eggs you\u2019ll find in the background. In particular, there\u2019s a poster featuring a bunch of Black men\u2019s hairstyles that Powers had a hand in creating with Pixar\u2019s animators. Powers said, \u201cJust being able to show black hair being trimmed, shaped, cut different shapes, different colors in a Pixar film was really a joy.\u201d<br \/>\n<!-- SlashFilm_300x250_In_Post_4 --><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-640610 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-joe-playingpiano-hands-700x296.jpg\" alt=\"Soul - Joe Playing Piano\" width=\"700\" height=\"296\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-joe-playingpiano-hands-700x296.jpg 700w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-joe-playingpiano-hands-360x152.jpg 360w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-joe-playingpiano-hands-768x324.jpg 768w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-joe-playingpiano-hands.jpg 1302w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Animating_Joes_Passion_for_Music\"><\/span>Animating Joe\u2019s Passion for Music<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Even though this is an animated movie with plenty of fantastical elements, Pixar doesn\u2019t cut corners when it comes to depicting things realistically. One of their biggest challenges in <em>Soul<\/em> was showing Joe Gardner and various other characters as they played music. For this, they turned to another cultural consultant, musician <strong>Jon Batiste<\/strong>, who you might know as the band leader on <em>The Late Show<\/em> with Stephen Colbert. Ruffin said that in addition to offering insights on jazz music in <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/general\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"3\" title=\"General\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">general<\/a>, he also played live performances that they could observe in order to animate accurately. The animator explained:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cWe also recorded video reference of Jon Batiste\u2019s hands as he played the piano, and by having this information not only did it allow us to inspect hand movement and finger articulation, but it also served as a visual roadmap, and by having these resources available to us, it was up to us to animate that performance through Joe Gardner frame by frame.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Animators not only use video reference, but also MIDI (<span class=\"aCOpRe\">Musical Instrument Digital Interface<\/span>) data to accurately represent the music being played. After a first pass of general hand placement is configured, animators then add the various layers to give nuance to the details of the hands and the piano, or whatever instrument a character might be playing.<\/p>\n<p>Along with the accurate representation of the music, there\u2019s also the more abstract side when Joe gets \u201cin the zone,\u201d literally and figuratively taking him to another plane as he really taps into his passion. It\u2019s an incredible meshing of the real world and the surreal world that Joe finds himself stuck in in the first act of the movie.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-640615 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-greatbefore-700x300.jpg\" alt=\"Soul\" width=\"700\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-greatbefore-700x300.jpg 700w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-greatbefore-360x154.jpg 360w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-greatbefore-768x329.jpg 768w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-greatbefore.jpg 1285w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Venturing_Into_The_Great_Before\"><\/span>Venturing Into The Great Before<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>New York City is recreated in<em> Soul<\/em> with such scrupulous detail, and while that\u2019s a difficult task for animators, it\u2019s even harder to come up with a place that doesn\u2019t exist. That\u2019s exactly what Pixar had to do with the world known as The Great Before, where souls pick up their personality traits before going to Earth. Docter said, \u201cWorlds like this are super fun to put together, but super challenging, too, because they could be anything.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While New York is full of definitive structure and organized chaos, The Great Before is a soft, wild world that wouldn\u2019t feel out of place in a Dr. Seuss book. As production designer <strong>Steve Pilcher<\/strong> describes it:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cAlmost everything has a degree of blur on it. Everything is very soft and ethereal and somewhat transparent. It is predominantly a very pastel palette, somewhat desaturated. There\u2019s something that looks like grass, but it\u2019s not really grass. It\u2019s soft and almost featherlike\u2014translucent in the way it moves.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>There are parts of The Great Before that come from the real world, but that\u2019s only because the souls have to interact with things from Earth in order to determine their personalities. But these items and places had to look completely different from the real world. Pilcher said, \u201cWe bleached the color in the Hall of Everything\u2014where souls go to interact with possible interests. Everything there is recognizable, but there\u2019s no color in it unless you interact with it.\u201d But Docter didn\u2019t want to go overboard with how wild this ethereal plane was. Pilcher remembered:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cFor Pete and his team, showing something new was more about restraint than about adding all the bells and whistles. The world is very deceptively simple, big bold beautiful shapes, abstract buildings that look like none you\u2019ve ever seen on Earth. It takes guts to try to communicate and idea with less, but if done right it can end up saying a lot more.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>It\u2019s probably a good thing they kept The Great Before a little less complicated, because the characters that populate The Great Before brought some immense challenges.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-640609 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-22-joe-greatbefore-700x290.jpg\" alt=\"Soul\" width=\"700\" height=\"290\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-22-joe-greatbefore-700x290.jpg 700w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-22-joe-greatbefore-360x149.jpg 360w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-22-joe-greatbefore-768x318.jpg 768w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-22-joe-greatbefore.jpg 1309w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_Does_a_Soul_Look_Like\"><\/span>What Does a Soul Look Like?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Along with create The Great Before, Pixar also had to come up with their idea for what a soul actually looks like before it\u2019s inside of a human body. They need human features to express themselves, but that\u2019s only so humans can actually grasp the reality (or lack thereof) of this plane of existence. And getting just the right look for the souls proved to be rather difficult.<\/p>\n<p>Docter mentioned all the research that was conducted on various religious teachings that often described souls as \u201cvaporous, non-physical, formless\u201d beings that were essentially the equivalent of a breath of air. But how do you draw that?<\/p>\n<p>Some of their early designs were inspired by a drawing that Pete Docter did early on in development:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-640599 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-22-petedocter-sketch-700x651.jpg\" alt=\"Soul Concept Sketch\" width=\"700\" height=\"651\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-22-petedocter-sketch-700x651.jpg 700w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-22-petedocter-sketch-360x335.jpg 360w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-22-petedocter-sketch-768x714.jpg 768w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-22-petedocter-sketch.jpg 1000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>From there, they came up with this interesting array of designs, using the color spectrum and playing with light and darkness. Here are some of the various concepts for what a soul might look like in The Great Before:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-640600 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-22-alternatedesigns-700x502.jpg\" alt=\"Soul - 22 Alternate Designs\" width=\"700\" height=\"502\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-22-alternatedesigns.jpg 700w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-22-alternatedesigns-360x258.jpg 360w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>But animators caught a big break when they stumbled upon a substance called aerogel, the lightest solid material on Earth. It\u2019s used in the aerospace industry and also has various commercial uses. You can find out more about it <a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=AeJ9q45PfD0\">over here<\/a>. That\u2019s what they decided to use as the basis of how a soul\u2019s \u201cbody\u201d would look.<\/p>\n<p>However, even with this breakthrough, they still had a lot to figure out with how to animate a character that is somewhat transparent and thus made it difficult to have any defining features. Producer <strong>Dana Murray<\/strong> recalls that they came to the determination that they needed to be able to create more clear facial expressions, and the movement of a soul\u2019s hands and fingers needed to be more defined. Murray explained:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cWe added line work to help to define the edges that might otherwise be too fuzzy or that you couldn\u2019t see very clearly.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>If you look at the character of 22 as she moves in the trailer, you\u2019ll see some lighter line definition that appears whenever her hands move in front of her body or with certain facial expressions. Animator <strong>Jude Brownbill<\/strong> explained further, \u201cWe noticed that clarity was being lost in the face and in the hands, so technical directors in articulation, shading, and tools set about solving this in a classic case of art challenging the <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/technology\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"4\" title=\"Technology\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">technology<\/a> and technology inspiring the art.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Pixar\u2019s technical directors had to figure out how to render the edges that mattered and ignore those that didn\u2019t. As a soul moves, there are facial lines and other edges that were hand-animated to appear, disappear, and change thickness with each expression. This was all done by hand, and it took a long time to complete. So the technical directors found a way to automate the process in order to make it easier and less time-consuming. The result allowed for clarity on the face for expressions of confusion, fear and rage.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-600877 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-super-bowl-spot-700x321.jpg\" alt=\"soul super bowl spot\" width=\"700\" height=\"321\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-super-bowl-spot-700x321.jpg 700w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-super-bowl-spot-360x165.jpg 360w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-super-bowl-spot-768x352.jpg 768w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-super-bowl-spot.jpg 948w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>But then they had to come up with rules as to how a soul was defined in The Great Before. Most of them don\u2019t have distinguishing features. Brownbill explained:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cThese are new souls who have not yet lived.\u00a0 They\u2019re very cute, very appealing, with simple, rounded shapes and no distinguishing features just yet. Because they\u2019ve never lived on Earth, they have no concept of gravity, so they tend to float about or even fly.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>But then there are souls in The Great Before who have plenty of experience on Earth. Brownbill went on:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cThese are mentor souls who have lived on Earth.\u00a0 They are an abstraction of how they saw themselves on Earth, each with unique, distinguishing features and accessories.\u00a0 Because they have experienced gravity on Earth, they walk as if it exists, even though they don\u2019t really need to.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>That\u2019s why Joe appears with his at and glasses in The Great Before. As for 22, you\u2019ll find that she has more defined features than the rest of the new souls getting ready to head to Earth. That\u2019s because she\u2019s been around so long and has interacted with so many mentors who have been to Earth that she knows enough about it to have evolved some teeth and a tuft of hair. She can even have legs when it\u2019s convenient for a gag. Souls don\u2019t have many restrictions when it comes to their movement and expression. But it\u2019s The Counselors who are even more mesmerizing and challenging in their depiction.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-640607 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-counselor-youseminar-700x300.jpg\" alt=\"Soul - You Seminar\" width=\"700\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-counselor-youseminar.jpg 700w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-counselor-youseminar-360x154.jpg 360w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_Counselors_Are_Both_2D_and_3D\"><\/span>The Counselors Are Both 2D and 3D<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>There has to be a certain order to things in The Great Before. It may just be a construct in place so abstract concepts and beings can be more easily understood by humans, but that\u2019s more than necessary when you\u2019re trying to convey such complex ideas to kids and adults alike. Making it a little easier to understand The Great Before are The Counselors, and bringing them to life created yet another challenge for animators.<\/p>\n<p>The Counselors are all named Jerry (one is voiced by <strong>Richard Ayoade<\/strong>), and they\u2019re in charge of The You Seminar, the process by which souls determine their personalities. They\u2019re described as being like camp counselors \u201cwrangling dozens of new human souls, awarding them unique personalities and helping them find their spark and graduate to Earth.\u201d As an expression of the universe itself, they have endless patience and always seem to be effortlessly upbeat, but there are instances when some passive-aggressiveness seems to come through. But even so, they\u2019re always enthusiastic about their place in the universe and helping souls find their place.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-640603 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-counselors-wiresculptures-700x320.jpg\" alt=\"Soul - Counselors - Wire Sculptures\" width=\"700\" height=\"320\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-counselors-wiresculptures-700x320.jpg 700w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-counselors-wiresculptures-360x165.jpg 360w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-counselors-wiresculptures-768x351.jpg 768w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-counselors-wiresculptures.jpg 1000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-640602 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-counselors-wiresculptures-shadows-700x225.jpg\" alt=\"Soul - Counselors - Wire Sculptures\" width=\"700\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-counselors-wiresculptures-shadows-700x225.jpg 700w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-counselors-wiresculptures-shadows-360x116.jpg 360w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-counselors-wiresculptures-shadows-768x247.jpg 768w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-counselors-wiresculptures-shadows.jpg 1000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>So how do you animate a being like that? Animator <strong>Bobby Podesta<\/strong> said it was the art department that began drawing countless forms until one that \u201cfelt both recognizable as a character, yet malleable enough to be almost anything, emerged, and that character was made up of actually a line.\u201d The result is a character that exists as a flat, contorted line in a three-dimensional space. So the next step was creating 3D sculptures that allowed animators to see what these characters would look like from different angles as they made a variety of expressions and forms, some more human than others.<\/p>\n<p>You might think it\u2019s easy to animate a line into a character that can change its form into anything. But as Podesta explained:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cThe technology behind creating the counselors is mind-boggling. But that\u2019s the thing about Pixar. We have some of the most talented and, quite frankly, smartest people I\u2019ve ever met in this industry, and so just as the art department had explored the possibilities of what the counselors could be, the animators, we did the same.<\/p>\n<p>We began exploring shapes, expressions, movements, and transitions, and the animators didn\u2019t just animate a model. I mean, they animated a design, and you can see that here. The characters captured that sense of a living line, a piece of art in a form that was understandable, yet still ethereal. So, to achieve the sense of design within the animation, our animators had to draw on their backgrounds as artists to craft a visually stunning performance, and it\u2019s that combination of being both an actor and an artist that raises the bar at Pixar to a level that we hope continues to exceed our audience\u2019s expectations.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-640604 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-counselors-conceptart-700x298.jpg\" alt=\"Soul - Counselors - Expressions\" width=\"700\" height=\"298\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-counselors-conceptart-700x298.jpg 700w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-counselors-conceptart-360x153.jpg 360w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-counselors-conceptart-768x327.jpg 768w, https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-counselors-conceptart.jpg 1000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Seeing The Counselors in action is truly a spellbinding sight. It feels like you\u2019re watching a magic trick unfold in front of your eyes. The trailers don\u2019t even show the full range of motion and shapeshifting that The Counselors have, and those who have seen more were equally as impressed as I was. Executive producer <strong>Dan Scanlon<\/strong> (director of <em>Monsters University<\/em> and <em>Onward<\/em>) remembers how audiences reacted to The Counselors in a test screening:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cThe first time I saw a screening of the film that featured the wiry three-dimensional You Seminar characters in motion, myself and other people in the theater audibly gasped. I\u2019d never seen that type of 2-D animation done in 3-D that way before,and seeing something you\u2019ve never seen before is why I go to <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/watch-movies-tv-seriess\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"8\" title=\"Watch Movies &amp; TV Series\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">movies<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Powers backed up those sentiments by adding, \u201cI think they were the-the single most complex thing to do in the entire film.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">***<\/p>\n<p>We\u2019ll have more on Pixar\u2019s <em>Soul<\/em> in the coming weeks, including a closer look at the characters of Joe Gardner and 22, the progression of the movie from storyboard to screen, interviews with the animators and filmmakers, and more. If you haven\u2019t already, make sure you check out our reaction to the roughly 40 minutes of footage shown to us by Pixar in advance of the film\u2019s release, which is now on Christmas Day on Disney+.<\/p>\n<p>                            <strong>Cool Posts From Around the Web:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>                            <!-- \/post -->\n                        <\/div>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more Like this articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/social-media\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Social Media category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.slashfilm.com\/the-making-of-pixars-soul-from-the-real-world-to-the-great-before-and-beyond\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;#From The Real World to The Great Before and Beyond \u2013 \/Film&#8221; Pixar\u2019s Soul is\u00a0no longer coming to theaters in the United States. Instead, the movie is being released through Disney+ on Christmas Day. This is a real shame, because the journey that middle school band teacher and aspiring jazz musician Joe Gardner (Jamie Foxx)&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":85710,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/d13ezvd6yrslxm.cloudfront.net\/wp\/wp-content\/images\/soul-hallofeverything-joe-22.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[12685,1568,1416,75146,1498,1570,28941,67937,28942,26279],"class_list":["post-85709","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-social-mediaa","tag-soul","tag-featured-stories-sidebar","tag-animation","tag-dana-murray","tag-disney-pixar","tag-features","tag-jamie-foxx","tag-kemp-powers","tag-pete-docter","tag-tina-fey"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85709","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=85709"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85709\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/85710"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=85709"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=85709"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=85709"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}