We love a good Pixar movie for the fun and the feels. They make us laugh, they make us cry. But there’s more just a great script that brings these stories to life and Frost Science in Downtown Miami is here to tell you all about it.
Deco’s Alex Miranda, whose dream job is really a Disney Imagineer so that he can get free Mickey Mouse ice cream bars, has more.
From ‘Toy Story’ to ‘The Incredibles’, Frost Science is now taking you inside your favorite Pixar blockbusters because movie magic really comes down to a science.
Pixar knows how to push our buttons. But behind all those feelings, some serious brain power.
Analisa Duran: “The creativity, the science, the technology, the problem solving that goes into bringing these films to life is inspiring.”
And at Frost Science in Downtown Miami, the science behind Pixar takes you from watching the magic to getting your hands on how it happens.
Analisa Duran: “It really has brought the characters and the stories to life and brought science to life.”
Turning pixels into movie stars is a process.
Analisa Duran: “There are steps that go into creating this 3D animated film, and so we can explore that through ‘Monsters, Inc.’ Through ‘Toy Story.’ The animators at Pixar actually made him move a little bit more freely when he was Spanish Buzz, when he danced and he talked, versus when he’s regular Buzz.”
‘Brave.’
Kelly Macdonald [as Merida]: “I am Merida.”
Analisa Duran: “The animators created a set of code that says, this hair is going to behave in this way. So, we can see in this scene, Merida is on a horse. There’s wind blowing in her hair. When she moves forward, the hair goes behind her. Normal, right? That’s what would happen in the real world. If we turn off the simulation, her hair doesn’t do anything.
Alex Miranda: “Now it’s a horror movie.”
‘Finding Nemo.’
Ellen DeGeneres [as Dory]: “Chico?” “Fabio?” “Bingo?”
Albert Brooks [as Marlin] “Nemo.”
Ellen DeGeneres [as Dory]: “Right, right.”
Analisa Duran: “Where is the sun facing? Where are the shadows going to fall? All of that is done through lighting at Pixar. So, for example, right now, Dory looks like she might be in a scary situation. Maybe there’s some sharks coming.”
‘A Bug’s Life.’
Roddy McDowall [as Mr. Soil]: “I don’t think we need to involve the queen in this. She’s got enough on her plate already.”
Analisa Duran: “At Pixar, they used reference footage of cameras in the grass to try to get the perspective of a bug. Because when you’re making a movie about bugs, you have to show the audience what the bug sees. It’s pretty nice in here.”
Alex Miranda: “Do you know how to get out?”
‘WALL-E.’
Analisa Duran: “The directors used a virtual camera in this 3D environment to film the movie. It’s pretty, I know. Like, what?”
‘The Incredibles,’ and more.
Holly Hunter [as Elastigirl]: “A simple thank you will suffice.”
Craig T. Nelson [as Mr. Incredible]: “Thanks, but I don’t need any help.”
Analisa Duran: “When you’re watching a Pixar film, it flows pretty seamlessly. But if you stop it, you’ll see that it’s just a series of pictures. A lot of pictures. Isn’t that cool?”
Alex Miranda: “Yeah.”
Tickets start at $30.
Analisa Duran: “With that, you can see the science behind Pixar and the rest of our museum.”
For a 90-minute Pixar movie, since there are 24 frames per second and every frame is a picture, that’s nearly 130,000 pictures in that movie.
FOR MORE INFO:
Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science
The Science Behind Pixar
1101 Biscayne Blvd. Miami, FL 33132
Website
