Exploring THE GOOD DINOSAUR, Toy Story, & More at Pixar Studios! ~ #GoodDinoEvent

I received the following information as a blogger via Walt Disney Publications. While I attended an expense paid trip by Disney to the press events for The Good Dinosaur, Inside Out, and Miles From Tomorrowland, all opinions are 100% my own.
So last week I had the opportunity to tell you all about my amazing time at Google! Today I’m chatting about another awesome place I visited while out in the East Bay area… Pixar Studios! I had the privilege to visit the Studio twice during my stay (which will explain the wardrobe changes!). I was not only excited to learn more about Pixar’s newest film THE GOOD DINOSAUR, but also see where (and the process) Pixar magic is created. Later in this post I will chat about my visit to the Pixar Archives out in West Oakland in honor of the 20th anniversary of TOY STORY.

I have to say, seeing the Pixar gate out front was pretty cool! I remember feeling like a kid on Christmas morning when I thought about what else I could possibly see on the campus.I couldn’t wait to find out what was inside of the gates… Over the years Pixar has created some stunning imaginative films. What an honor it was to see first hand where the creativity is sparked!

Exploring Pixar

One of the first things I spotted, were the famous Pixar Lamp and Ball. Of course once I spotted these iconic statues, I couldn’t resist posing for photos!

Luckily I wasn’t the only blogger obsessed with snapping these photos. We had plenty of time to take in the sights before heading into The Steve Jobs Building. Yes the building is named after THAT Steve Jobs. While many people remember him from Apple, Jobs actually was once the CEO who financed Pixar for years before it became a profitable studio. He truly believed in the animation and work of the employees and poured in his own money to keep the company afloat.As soon as I walked in, I immediately saw familiar Pixar characters such as the Incredibles, Cars, and of course these Toy Story guys… completely made out of LEGOs!!Another cool display I saw right off of the lobby was a case containing many of Pixar’s awards. They had their Oscars, Golden Globes, and many more all on display.As you walk into the atrium, you’ll notice that it was built to give a “New York” town sqaure kind of vibe. There is a restaurant and dining area, cafe, gift shop, mail room, and even a kitchen if you decide you want to make your own food instead. Throughout this building we could see THE GOOD DINOSAUR artwork everywhere! In the atrium there were these amazing large scale banner featuring some of the main dino characters! Of course I wanted a photo with Arlo… The artwork was just visually stunning! I had seen some of these images online as part of THE GOOD DINOSAUR’s concept artwork… but it was pretty amazing to see them up close and in person. Beautiful! Love the “Grand Tetons / Jackson Hole” vibe of the scenery. As our tour continued, we headed to the building that houses the Brooklyn Hearth. On our walk, we passed a soccer field, and notice a familiar face looking over. Bonus points if you comment below with what movie he is from!Once inside that building, I was again greeted by some familiar faces. Seeing Mike and Sully immediately took me back to my #MonstersUPremiere days!As we walked along the grounds, you could really tell that Pixar provides an amazing atmosphere for their employees. Relaxation resources could be found through the campus. Pixar believes that “happy employees” are productive employees. You could definitely tell that Pixar aims to make their employees happy (and productive!). However, now I’m kind of wishing that my workplace had hanging hammocks and an herb garden too, just like Pixar…One of the coolest parts about visiting Pixar? THE GOOD DINOSAUR photo op!

The Good Dinosaur Official US Trailer

20th Anniversary of Toy Story

Now as I mentioned above, I did have the privilege to visit the Pixar Archives! Our group was actually one of the first press groups ever to have access to the archives! Pixar Archives was founded by Jonas Rivera (Producer of INSIDE OUT). After TOY STORY, most of Pixar’s artwork went to the Walt Disney Studios to be stored. After BUG’S LIFE, Jonas decided that Pixar should have their own archive to serve as a resource, and to document the historical aspect of the films. Our wonderful guides Juliet (Lead Archivist) and Christine (Lead Historian) had so much knowledge to share with us. The archives serve as “living archives”, as the collection is constantly growing! People involved with Pixar films regularly contribute and donate pieces to the archives. You can find everything from drawings, review notes, editorial notes, scripts, recordings, press clippings, awards, and even crew t-shirts in the archives!

It was amazing to hear about the digital access system. Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING is backed up. There is a team there at the archives solely dedicated to just backing up everything. It was also interesting to hear about the Exhibition Team that travels with exhibits in relation to the New York MOMA. There are curators that accompany archive pieces as they are loaned out for long term exhibits in museums all over the globe, in 13 different countries. Just an FYI, in honor of the 20th anniversary of TOY STORY, a new exhibit will open at the San Francisco Airport starting November 7th!

We saw originals drawings of how Woody and Buzz Lightyear came to be. Did you know that TOY STORY was actually based off of an original Pixar short film titled TIN TOY? It was pretty cool to see the original drawings and scribbles of TIN TOY done by the man himself, John Lasseter, Chief Creative Officer at Pixar.One of my favorite parts of the collection to see how the mutant toys were created. So hilarious to see an Erik Estrada CHIPS doll attached to the torso of a Hulk Hogan doll! Do you know who that creation turned into? Rockmobile!Plus I just loved seeing the super sculptures of the final Woody and Buzz! It was amazing to see the transformation from doodles to these sculptures of their final faces.The color scripts were actually breathtaking! I loved hearing about how the animators chose different color schemes for different characters and moods through the film. For instance Annie’s room included many golden hues, while Sid’s room was very dark, especially with dark purple hues.Don’t forget to connect with THE GOOD DINOSAUR on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Tumblr, and YouTube!

THE GOOD DINOSAUR opens in theatres everywhere on November 25th!

Now if your little one is excited for THE GOOD DINOSAUR as much as my little guy, you may want to check out these fun coloring and activity sheets to download and print! Plus check out my Dino Fossil eggs tutorial! This fun activity was inspired by the film as well. My son had such a blast creating the eggs (and eating them too!).