New Trailer for Inside Out

Just saw the new trailer for Pixar's Inside Out. It was fun. But I'm also a little disappointed. I had wanted to see more of the heart of the movie, not just the comedy. I don't doubt there will be heart in the movie, but I fear it will be pushed aside and the comedy will take over, like another movie directed by Pete Docter. Do all animated movies these days have to be advertised as comedies? Will people not go see them otherwise? And yes, I am aware that it's supposed to be comedy.

We don't really get to see a lot from the characters, other than Riley being a typical older child/going on teenager, the mother being the understanding caring one disappointed in the husband, and the neglectful husband who doesn't really pay attention. How many times have we seen that before? I hope there will be more in the movie that makes them unique.

The emotions are kind of fun. They are bringing a lot of energy, but I'm wondering if the whole movie will be like this. I'm going to guess no, but that leaves us with nothing as for how the movie will go, what the story is. We don't even get to know who the main character is, which you would think they would reveal in the second trailer.

The designs are good and the emotions are fun, but other than than I'm hoping that the trailer is not representative of the movie.

Christmas Present Ideas For an Animation Nerd

It's that time of year again. Brace yourselves, Christmas is coming. And with that all the Christmas presents. You might really enjoy giving presents to other people, or you might hate all the stress and wish you could just give hugs. Whatever your feelings on the matter is, I'm here to give you a little help with ideas. This blog post will be a gift guide for all of you that have someone in your life that's into animation. (Disclaimer: if your present receiver is a huge nerd, they may already have all the things listed below. You might want to consider a scarf.)

The Art of The Incredibles by Mark Cotta Vaz

First off, this is a beautiful book. The cover is gorgeous and the art inside it is very interesting to look at. It has forewords by John Lasseter and Brad Bird, and about every other page has some insight to the creation of the characters and the world. This is a must for anyone who is interested in the design or is a fan of The Incredibles.

Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson

Steve Jobs knew he was going to die and asked Walter Isaacson to write a biography about him. A very Jobs-y thing to do, and you'd think that's a setup for a glorifying biography about the genius Steve Jobs. But it really isn't. Isaacson was allowed to write about both the good and the bad sides of Jobs character and life, which makes it a very well-rounded portrayal. I'd suggest this book to anyone, it's so interesting and really sucks you into the story. If you know someone who's interested in technology or Apple this will be the perfect book to give them, but I think most people can enjoy this one. It's a pretty long book at over 600 pages, but well worth your time.

The Pixar Touch: The Making of a Company by David A. Price

This is one for all Pixar fans. Do you want to know how Pixar got started? This is the book for you. It starts back when Ed Catmull was studying at the university and moves through time to the production of Ratatouille, though an updated epilogue goes further. This book is really good, it's so fascinating reading about everything that contributed to Pixar being just Pixar. It's relatively short at 258 pages excluding epilogue, which is noticeable in some parts where they look over a few things a little fast. But it's good for those that aren't fans of very long books. I think it's a good marriage between too long and too short, but I would recommend the Steve Jobs book for further reading on Jobs part of it. All in all, a very good book.

Pictures from here, here and here.