Up Leans on Compelling Characters Rather Than Merchandising

With the weekend release of Up, Pixar has once again left toy merchandisers frustrated. Back in April, the New York Times noted that while Pixar consistently delivers artistic triumphs, toy retailers haven't appreciated the challenges of selling toys based on movies about rats, rusty robots and now an old man.

But Pete Docter, the director of Up says Pixar believes "that telling the best stories they can is a better way of ensuring a good financial return than mimicking the content that worked for other animated releases." Docter's explanation of Pixar's approach appears in an excellent World magazine review by Megan Basham:

"What makes people want to buy stuff is that they like the story and the characters. The dolls are like a souvenir of the movie, so if you like the movie, you'll want a souvenir, and if you don't, then you won't. Our job as far as merchandising goes is to make the characters in the movie likeable. I look at the character of Carl [the old man] and think, 'Who doesn't want an action figure of an old guy like that?'"

Basham closes the review with an interesting perspective on Pete Docter's method for developing compelling characters:

It is a story's ability to draw people into common experience that Docter, who is like his Pixar colleague Andrew Stanton a Christian, says best allows him to exercise his faith in his work. "There's something of the divine in the way we respond to stories and how we're created as people—that we're so driven by relationship that even when we know we're just looking at a bunch of drawings, we still connect emotionally. In making these worlds I feel closer to God through working out the details of my creation as He must have worked out the details of His creation."

Taking our big kids to Up over the weekend, Candice and I were amazed by how effectively Pixar can connect with audiences of all ages. We laughed and cried and were inspired to be more creative. That's what great stories do.

Comments

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1. john ko said the following at 4:39 PM on Jun 1:

What struck me the most as I watched the movie with my family and friends was the real-life scenarios that we saw in the characters. Russell is the child who is willing to forsake all he has -as it was so little - for Kevin, while Carl couldn't let go of all his own dreams - his home and his wife. But once Carl did he was able to experience something greater than himself and his own small dreams, which was ironic b/c he was seeking adventure. and he found out when he let go of himself and tried to help another.

2. MallieMarie said the following at 4:45 PM on Jun 1:

As a complete Pixar geek, I had been counting down the days till Up came out. However, instead of my initial giddiness, I walked out of the theatre deeply touched by the emotional weight the movie dared to unfold. While there were still plenty of laughs (Dug the dog was hilarious), the montage of Carl's life with Ellie in the beginning was the most beautiful and poignant piece of film I've ever seen. The makers dared to present a story where the heartbreak and disappoint of life didn't get lost in an escapist cartoon world, but is instead gently balanced and outweighed by the love we share.

3. Adam said the following at 5:12 PM on Jun 1:

I also thought it was an excellent movie. Even though I saw it coming, I thought the content that made it into the "Adventures I'm Going To Have" section of the Adventure book spoke volumes about what really matters.

Even in my late 20's, I've been guilty of taking my favorite memories of my more promising times and distilling them down to the photos, videos, yearbook writings, music, and places that draw me back to those memories and using those forms of media and experiences to try and reinvigorate me with the hopes that it will make life as promising as it was when it was more innocent. Carl's moment of realization that the time and commitment given to his interpersonal relationships is the real stuff of adventure is exactly the kind of story I need to wake me up from time to time.

I think his realization of his childhood hero's true nature is also an important theme for our generation to consider, that the things we thought had real value to us when we were younger are not exactly what they seemed. Who hasn't seen a movie from their childhood only to be disappointed because it didn't measure up to their memory? I lost count.

4. Mark Zellner said the following at 7:11 PM on Jun 1:

I agree wholeheartedly! Up was a very inspiring and uplifting movie. Pixar never fails to impress me with the quality of its stories. At first I was not looking forward to Up, and only went to see it because my friends wanted to. We all agreed it was delightfully charming. And early in the film is a full 4 or 5 minutes of story told with zero dialogue. It was a pretty powerful segment.

5. Chris said the following at 7:18 PM on Jun 1:

I think Up is one of the best Pixar movies, ever. Kind of odd, too, since it's also one of the most bittersweet Pixar movies, too.

BTW, if you have the chance to see it in 3D, do it. I listened to an interview with the director on NPR, and the comment was that they used 3D to enhance the story telling, not substitute for it. Definitely true.

And the dogs. Oh, the dogs. If ever a movie captured the essence of a dog, this is it.

6. Emma said the following at 8:27 AM on Jun 2:

I cried in this movies! I hope I wasn't the only one! It was so sad and sweet.

7. Mark W said the following at 11:13 AM on Jun 2:

Mallie Marie #2 wrote,

"the montage of Carl's life with Ellie in the beginning was the most beautiful and poignant piece of film I've ever seen."

I think I might have to agree. This was easily the best film of the year so far and definitely one of Pixar's best. They just don't seem to be capable of making a bad movie.

8. Ken said the following at 2:01 PM on Jun 2:

Although I haven't seen Up yet, I had to comment on the part about how "toy retailers haven't appreciated the challenges of selling toys based on movies about rats, rusty robots and now an old man."

Is this Pixar's problem? Like really, I thought toy makers were supposed to be creative. If they can't figure out, then maybe they need to find new lines of work.

I thought Wall E would make for a very interesting and fun toy concept. Can't figure out how they messed that one up.

In the end, as everyone else has said, it's the story that counts!!

9. Leah said the following at 12:15 AM on Jun 3:

Mr Docter is spot-on. A fantastic movie will sell model rusty robots. If a kid's favourite movie has a grumpy old man, he'll want a poster of the grumpy old man on his wall. A successful movie will sell plush rats.

Mark Zellner - about 20 minutes of Wall-E goes past without dialogue :)

10. Leah said the following at 12:15 AM on Jun 3:

PS. I think Toy Merchandisers were just spoiled with Pixar's first movie... a movie about toys! How easy was that for the merchandisers? :P

11. Loris said the following at 6:10 AM on Jun 3:

Emma #6, No, you're not the only one. Seems I ONLY cry during Pixar movies. (Wall-E had me a bit misty as well.) With Up, it took about 5 minutes for both me and my rough-tough husband to tear up.