Pixar’s Inside Out premiered at the Cannes Film Festival this week, but the primary focus was on the studios’ footage for Finding Dory and The Good Dinosaur.
[dropcap size=small]I[/dropcap]nside Out, the latest animated film from Disney and Pixar, debuted at the Cannes Film Festival in France this week. The film received great reviews and with the crowd praising Disney and Pixar’s work, John Lasseter used this moment to show off Finding Dory and The Good Dinosaur. But these weren’t the only films John Lasseter talked about. Pixar and Disney have been doing some serious work on producing even more box-office dominating movies.
The Good Dinosaur will be Pixar’s first time the studio has released two films in one year. The film is set to hit theaters this November and John Lasseter is very fond of the film himself. He said, “Our films ask ‘What if?’ questions. What if monsters really did live in your closet? What if a rat wanted to be the finest chef in the most beautiful city in the world? I think our next movie asks the biggest ‘What if?’ of all. What if the asteroid that wiped out dinosaurs actually missed Earth?”. He continued to say that, “It’s not going to be your average backdrop for a film and the level of believe-ability we’re striving for in this film is going to be breathtaking.” Sounds like The Good Dinosaur is going a very interesting movie to watch. The film follows an Apatosaurus named Arlo, which is voiced by Lucas Neff. Arlo loses his father, falls into a river and wakes up far from home. While Arlo is trying to make his way back home to the Clawed-Tooth Mountains, he meets cave-boy named Spot. Lasseter said that it’s a reverse boy and his dog story. He explained, “Arlo, the dinosaur, is the boy in the story and Spot is the dog.” Apparently Arlo is capable of standing and speaking whereas Spot crawls on his hands and feet and grunts. Arlo and Spot will be joined by an interesting cast of dinosaurs that includes three T-Rexes, a Pterodactyl and a feathered Velociraptor.
Back in 2003 Finding Nemo was released and the film became an immense success. The movie became Pixar’s pride and joy and ever since then fans, myself included, have been begging for a sequel. Lucky for us, Pixar is delivering the sequel we all have been waiting for. Finding Dory will begin where Finding Nemo ended, but the events of the film will transpire six months later. This time Dory, Marlin and Nemo are setting out to find Dory’s family. Dory’s mother is to be voiced by Diane Keaton and her father is going to be voiced by Eugene Levy. This time around the trio will be making their way through the Pacific Ocean where they will encounter shipping containers and a kelp forest. Along the way the our favorite three fish will make new friends, including an octopus and a whale shark who goes by the name of Destiny. John Lasseter said, “She thinks she’s a whale, but she’s actually a shark.”
Unfortunately, Toy Story 4 was the only announcement made by John Lasseter that didn’t feature any footage. Lasseter would only say that, “We’re in the early stages of the film, but it’s shaping up nicely. It’s funny. The story is not as much a continuation of the past films, but a brand new chapter in the ‘Toy Story’ world.” Toy Story 4 isn’t supposed to released in theaters until June 16th of 2017.
Zootopia is certainly going to be an interesting film. The concept art and synopsis for the movie were released by Disney back in 2013. The movie takes place in a city called Zootopia and there are no humans to be found. The movie follows a fox named Nick Wilde, voiced by none other than Jason Bateman, who is framed for a crime he didn’t commit. Wilde goes on the run and tries to evade Zootopia’s best cop, a rabbit named Judy Hopps. Judy Hops, voiced by Ginnifer Goodwin, ends up becoming a target of the conspiracy herself and she must team up with Nick Wilde. The pair are working together to crack a missing mammal case that will lead them to the perpetrator who framed Nick Wilde. Zootopia will be in theaters March 4th, 2016.
Moana was the last film that John Lasseter showed off at the Cannes Film Festival. The film will be released some time in 2016 and it follows the title character’s journey. Moana is a naturally born navigator who sets sail against her father’s wishes to find a fabled island. Moana and her buddies, a pig named Pua and a rooster named Hei, sneak off on a boat in the direction that Moana claims will take them to the fabled island. Along the way she teams up with a demi-god name Maui, voiced by Dwayne Johnson, who joins the Moana’s group when they become stranded on an island. According to Variety, the film has several songs that has a Lion King-like sound.
The Good Dinosaur hits theaters on November 25th, Zootopia debuts on March 4, 2016, Finding Dory comes out on June 17, 2016, Moana will hit theaters on November 23, 2016 and lastly, Toy Story 4 is set for a June 16, 2017 release.
