Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/691968
m ay . j u n e 2 0 1 6 c g w 1 3 I n Disney/Pixar's 2003 ani- mated feature, the popular Finding Nemo, a forgetful blue tang fish named Dory helped reunite the clownfish Marlin with his son Nemo. Now, upbeat, perky Dory has her own movie titled Finding Dory. But wait. Dory has no short- term memory. How would any- one know if she were lost, not the least Dory herself? If she were lost, how could she find her way back? And, would she want to? "Dory was not wired up to be a main character," says Finding Dory Director and Writer Andrew Stanton. "Self-reflection is the reason you can follow why a character grows. But, we gave her short-term memory loss. She has emotional memory, but she can't track progress. So, how do you give her the opportunity of self-reflection when she can't do it herself? I would never recom- mend this to a writer." Stanton, however, had an advantage over other writ- ers who might try. He wrote and directed Finding Nemo, receiving an Oscar nomination for writing and a Best Animat- ed Feature Oscar for directing the film. In addition, he has received an Oscar for directing Wall-E, and Oscar nominations for writing Toy Story, Wall-E, and Toy Story 3. Thus, he knew the characters in Finding Nemo better than anyone else, and he knows how to move charac- ters from one film into another. But, why did he choose such an unlikely main character? "I saw Dory as a tragic char- acter," Stanton says. "I knew her backstory. She used optimism, charm, and selflessness to make sure people wouldn't ditch her. It was her protection. This story is about Dory finding herself – in every way. I felt she deserved to like who she is." Ellen DeGeneres was Stanton's choice to voice Dory in Finding Nemo, and she returned for this film. "Ellen is the only person I ever wrote for specifically," Stanton says. "Thank goodness she said, 'yes.' " Also returning is Albert Brooks as Nemo's father, Marlin. Stepping in to fill Nemo's fin in Finding Dory is 12-year-old Actor Hayden Rolence. A crew that topped 400 in all, but averaged 280 on a day-to-day basis, worked on the film. Of those, nearly 100 in the art, story, and editori- al departments spent more than two years creating the story, designing the world, and developing the new characters. Storyboarding alone extended over two and a half years, re- sulting in 103,639 storyboards. Helping Stanton, who is also a vice president at Pixar, was Co-director Angus MacLane. The first sequences moved into production approximate- ly a year before the June 17, 2016, release date. Many of the technical challenges for the production crew centered on an octopus's special needs, on compositing water simulations, and on new tools for working with Pixar RenderMan RIS. H E L P F R O M H E R F R I E N D S The story begins in the colorful, cozy coral reef where Dory, Marlin, and Nemo have made a home. It's a happy family time until a massive stingray migration swims through the neighborhood and triggers deep memories in Dory of a family she thinks she might have le behind. "While Dory forgets details in her day-to-day life, her emotional memory is fine," says Producer Lindsay Collins. Determined to uncover her past, Dory talks Marlin and Nemo into helping her find her long-lost family. The search sends the three fish back across the ocean to a Marine Life Institute (MLI), a rescue reha- PIXAR ANIMATION STUDIOS SENDS FORGETFUL DORY ON A FAMILY-SEEKING JOURNEY IN THEIR LATEST CG ANIMATED FEATURE BY BARBARA ROBERTSON IMAGES ©2016 DISNEY•PIXAR