After successfully captivating audiences with films like Cars, Monsters University, Inside Out and Coco, Pixar is ready to enchant viewers once again with a new world of basic elements called Element City in its animated feature film Elemental.
The story introduces Ember, a tough, quick-witted and fiery young woman, whose friendship with a fun, sappy, go-with-the-flow guy named Wade challenges her beliefs about the world they live in.
Inspired by the personal life of director Peter Sohn, the story introduces a never-seen-before concept and unique characters. The movie is set in Elemental City, a place where residents of fire, water, earth and air background live in harmony.
Animation Xpress got an opportunity to interact with Elemental VFX supervisor Sanjay Bakshi.
According to Bakshi, the film heavily relies on effect simulations considering characters and locations are based on elements like fire, water and air. In the trailer it’s evident that the lead character Ember is made of fire, and the flames on her are not constant. Bakshi explained, “We used a blue flame for Ember in a particular sequence when she gets angry. That blue flame represents Ember’s heritage and culture. It is also one of the reasons why the blue flame hasn’t been used anywhere else in the film.”
Bakshi and his team joined Elemental when it was already halfway through conceptualisation. Talking about his role in the movie, he shared, “I oversee technical tasks which include supervising the work of artists who create and develop characters, locations, and effects simulations. I understand the technical complexities and ensure that the team is utilising the right resources. The major task was bridging the gap between the technical team, the filmmaker, the director and the producer.”
Produced by Denise Ream and executive produced by Peter Sohn, the film’s screenplay is written by John Hiberg, Kat Likkel and Brenda Hsueh. The voice actors of Elemental include Leah Lewis as Ember, Mamoudou Athie as Wade, Ronnie del Carmen, Shila Ommi, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Catherine O’Hara, Mason Wertheimer and Joe Pera.
The film has already premiered in the US and is set to release in India on 23 June.