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PEOPLE www.postmagazine.com 25 POST NOV/DEC 2020 within the company, Ruffin being one of them, as well as those outside, along with music teachers and working jazz musicians — all in an effort to make sure the story was authentic. And co-director Kemp Powers, also a writer on the film, drew from his own experiences. Because the film had to transcend one person's life, Powers stressed that his experiences alone do not represent those of every Black person — thus the need for the consultants throughout the entire film- making process, from development to completion. It was apparent that the main character would be an artist of some type, fed by his passion. The filmmakers settled on a musician, and that evolved into a jazz musician — so it was only fitting that the character would be African-American. While jazz did not originate in NYC, this high- ly-recognizable city has a rich jazz history. "But it's not just about the music," says Powers, who grew up in the city. "It's about the dynamism of that world. Soul is a story about the meaning of life and the connections we make with each other. In New York, people are literally bumping up against one another. Diversity is visually evident on every single street. There's no place quite like it." Yet, the human world depicted in the film had to be authentic to the New York City experience: solid, physical and reflective, with lots of color, says Steve Pilcher, production designer. "It's very tactile, with a history of wear and tear. Buildings, railings and pavement are weathered or bleached. Nothing's really perfect in this world. It's very organic and interesting," he explains. "There's texture and tons of variety, color variation, weather conditions, wet and dry surfaces; all that beauty we take for granted becomes evident, particularly once you've been in The Great Before, where ev- erything is based on almost perfect symmetry." HITTING THE RIGHT NOTE Once it was determined that the main character was a musician, the filmmakers knew that music would be an essential part of this film. Just as there were cultural consultants, there were musical con- sultants too. Nevertheless, Soul is not a full-blown musical, as the story was not a fit for that genre. The two worlds of Soul have two distinct styles of music that help shape and define each. Singer, com- poser, songwriter, band leader and jazz genius Jon Batiste (pianist from The Colbert Show) produced the jazz compositions and arrangements that ampli- fy the gritty New York City side of the film. Because Pixar was animating a film whose pri- mary focus was on playing jazz music, it was vital to get the notes correct. "When you see Joe's hands playing [the piano] in the film, that's Jon's playing," says producer Dana Murray. "Our animators studied reference footage of Jon at the piano to capture details of how he plays — everything from how his fingers move to the breaths he takes." The hand motion was extremely nuanced but very important to Pixar. "It's one of those things that goes back to Pixar's roots," says animation supervisor Bobby Podesta. "We make films that are accessible to everybody and want the whole world to appreciate, but we also know that there will be people who are ex- perts in whatever it is." For instance, the filmmakers focused on a lot of details while making Cars, knowing that car aficio- nados would notice otherwise. The same holds true for the guitar playing in Coco. "Not everyone will get it, and we could have faked it, but we would know. And they would know," says Podesta. "We strive to get it right." Joe's hand motion is all keyframed; no motion capture was used. "If you've ever watched Jon Baptiste play pia- no, it's extreme fast. He's a virtuoso," comments Podesta. So, for the piano playing especially, the anima- tors imported MIDI data. The keys would light up, so the animators could determine which keys were being hit at a certain time. They then interpreted that by hand, moving each finger on the character accordingly. THE GREAT BEFORE While Batiste provided the music in New York City, it was Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross from Nine Inch Nails who took on the ethereal notes from the soul world. "Their music is so different [from Batiste], yet somehow is perfectly matched for the film," says Murray. The music here is further differentiated in the various realms: The Great Beyond (for deceased souls), The Great Before (for unborn souls), The Astral Plane (a mystic place near The Great Before); there are also specific locales such as The You Seminar (where a soul's life summary is laid bare) and the Hall of Everything (where souls go to interact with possible interests). The realms each have their own identify in terms of sound as well as aesthetic. Unlike the realistic aesthetic of Earth, The Great Before is an abstract, illusionary world crafted en- tirely from the artists' imagination. While filmmakers were able to tap into real life when it came to the New York City scenes, The Great Before (and The Great Beyond) had to be created from scratch. This ethereal world has a kind of softness to it, thanks in some degree to motion blur. 'Earth' is a very familiar looking New York City.