It is time to celebrate the holidays and Disney Plus is set to exclusively premiere the latest Pixar animated film on it’s streaming service.
In Pixar’s Soul, Joe is a middle-school band teacher whose life hasn’t quite gone the way he expected. His true passion is jazz — and he’s good. But when he travels to another realm to help someone find their passion, he soon discovers what it means to have soul.
A few weeks ago we were invited to cover a virtual press conference for Pixar’s Soul. In attendance was the cast and crew and they were all excited to talk about creating the film. We learned some of the creative aspects of the animation, the importance of the movie, the music, and much more.
The press conference included the following talent:
Tina Fey (voice of “22”)
Phylicia Rashad (voice of “Libba Gardner”)
Angela Bassett (voice of “Dorothea Williams”)
Jamie Foxx (voice of “Joe Gardner”)
Pete Docter (Director/Story & Screenplay)
Kemp Powers (Co-Director/Story & Screenplay)
Dana Murray (Producer)
Moderator: Jacqueline Coley / Rotten Tomatoes
Here are a few highlights from the event!
1.) Why Pixar legitimatized Jamie Foxx!
Jamie Foxx has several voice-over gigs under his belt. Many in the animated genre but none had impressed his daughter until now. Working with Pixar that is!
When asked what the biggest difference between prior voice-over animation work and working as the voice of “Joe Gardner” in Pixar’s Soul was? Jamie Foxx (referring to his daughter) told him that pretty much none of his prior work in animation mattered. He was with Pixar now. So according to her (his daughter), Foxx has finally “made it to the big time!”
2.) The cast and crew agreed on this one thing!
We all know that 2020 has been a rough year. Since Soul is uplifting, inspiring, funny, and a perfect family film. The theme of the conference was that this is a movie that we all need and deserve for the holidays. They couldn’t be more exited for December 25th to get here so they could share the film with everyone!
3.) The story’s authenticity is the key!
Ultimately the reason the film is getting such high acclaim from critics is because it is universally relatable thanks to screenwriter Kemp Powers who pushed for an authentic African American story.
An African American story is as universal as anyone else’s, Powers said during the conference.
Don’t miss SOUL on Disney Plus!