Despite their commercial success (the studio is not shy about admitting that they only do movies they think are good), Mundo Pixar CDMX has never stopped trying to push the boundaries of animation and storytelling. This documentary about the birth of Pixar is not only entertaining but also gives insight into how the company tries to tackle the difficult topics that are usually left for adults in other films, such as depression, abandonment, and the nature of the soul.

The documentary starts off with a group of talented students at Cal Arts in the 70s who were taught by animators from the golden age of Disney animation. It’s a group that includes the likes of John Lasseter and Brad Bird. The film shows how the animators pushed each other to create characters that would test their abilities and the capabilities of the animation technology. This is a team of people who love their work and are constantly pushing themselves to try new things.

What Makes Pixar Stories So Unique and Emotional

What this documentary does well is that it focuses on the people of the studio and lets them show how their differences in backgrounds, skills, interests, and personalities combine to create the magic of the films. There is a lot of synergy going on, not in the jargon sense but the real meshing of a team that has each person pulling their weight for the benefit of the whole.

What I really liked about this film was the fact that it didn’t shy away from the controversies that were part of the emergence of Pixar, such as their feud with George Lucas over the creation of their animation division, and their rocky start with Disney that ended up being a perfect match for them. The film is packed with color scripts from all the feature films and a selection of short films up to Cars 2. It is noticeably thicker than previous books on this subject because it contains a large amount of production artwork.