Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1505114
o c t o b e r • n o v e m b e r • d e c e m b e r 2 0 2 2 c g w 7 F ire, water, earth, and air are brought to life as multifaceted characters in Elemental, Pixar's newest animated feature. Directed by Peter Sohn, the film follows Ember (voiced by Leah Lewis), a clever young fire lady who forges an unlikely friendship with Wade (voiced by Mamoudou Athie), an easy-going young water man. Set within the vibrant neighborhoods of Element City, the story explores the importance of building strong relation- ships between family members and across cultural divides. With a pair of main characters that are entirely driven by visual effects, every frame of the film includes a fire or water simulation— both oen occurring simultaneously on screen. Ember is fire, she is not on fire; while Wade is water, not simply a vessel filled with water. This extent of innovative effects work was unprecedented for a Pixar film, requiring the production team to dynamically re-engineer their workflow to transform the concept into a reality on screen. Director Peter Sohn & Producer Denise Ream When director Peter Sohn first began the project, he wondered if it would even be possible to transform elements into fully realized characters. "Can they walk around? Can they talk? What is that even going to look like?" he recalls asking himself. Sohn initially developed and pitched the film with his own origi- nal concept art. Next, he began the process of assembling a team to bring the story to the screen. He focused on finding collaborators with an understanding of the film's overarching themes, as well as out of the box thinkers who could identify and solve technical prob- lems along the way. Producer Denise Ream, who previously worked alongside Sohn on Pixar's The Good Dinosaur (2015), was eager to help him realize the concept. "I was excited because it had everything that I was yearning to do. I really wanted to take on a technical challenge," she shares. Sohn and Ream emphasized the importance of close collabo- ration throughout production, fostering an environment of strong communication within the team. "In the early stages the goal was to keep everyone working together," Ream explains. "We went quite a ways before we subdivided into departments. I think that really end- ed up helping each other see what the struggles were in their respec- tive areas of expertise." From the very beginning, Sohn made it clear that he was open to ideas from any member of the team. "It's something that I loved in my first experiences here at Pixar, and ever since then I try to stay open—like the Ratatouille idea that anyone can cook," he shares. "A good idea can come from anywhere." He maintained open lines of communication to hear anyone's insights into problems, so it was not just the heads of each department determining solutions. "We had so many people figuring out so many complicated problems," Ream adds. Sohn worked closely with each department by familiarizing him- self with how they communicated. "I love learning the language first," he explains. "How they talk about making something, the technical language of it. I am not proficient in that language, but I love trying to understand it." He would also take the time to learn about the team members' favorite films, so they could relate on a more personal lev- el. "Then a language of film starts to appear," he adds. "You can find A total of 97,760 storyboards were created for the film. Director Peter Sohn & producer Denise Ream at Pixar's main campus. Director Peter Sohn completed the film's earliest concept art.