‘Soul’ takes home Academy Award for Best Animated Film
At the 93rd Academy Awards ceremony on Sunday night, Pixar Animation’s Soul took home the Oscar for Best Animated Film. The film tells the story of a middle school music teacher and aspiring jazz musician, Joe Gardner, who seeks to reunite his body and soul following an accident.
The win marks director Pete Docter’s third Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, alongside Inside Out and Up. On what inspired the themes of jazz and existentialism for the film, Docter said:
“We were thinking of something that would be fun to watch, something like an artist’s journey kind of a thing. And jazz ‑‑ you don’t get into jazz to be rich and famous. You do it because you love it. It’s a noble pursuit. It just felt like ‑‑ and then as we got into it, we realized, boy, this has so many relevant features in terms of what life is all about, using whatever elements are thrown at you, and then using improvisation to make personal, to make it beautiful. And that just seemed like it fit.”
A few months earlier, artist Camilo Castro shared artwork he had created as part of the visual development for the film. Castro shared, “During my time in the show, my task was mainly dedicated to synthesize and provide a visual approach for the human world. Creating a visual contrast between the Soul world and New York City.”
See more visual development art for the film >
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