Pixar is about to break with tradition when “Onward” hits theaters this week. Instead of an original Pixar short, a new Simpsons short, “Playdate With Destiny”, will debut before the film “Onward” begins.
“Playdate With Destiny” was originally to air as an episode on “The Simpsons. The producers of the show felt that this story, which focuses on Maggie Simpson, would work better as a theatrical short. After Fox was purchased by Disney, the producers of The Simpson met with Disney and discussed the idea of using “Playdate With Destiny” as an opening short for one of Disney’s animated films. Disney agreed and chose “Onward” to be that film.
You can see “Playdate With Destiny” when “Onward”opens on March 6th.
The cast and crew of “Onward” discuss just what makes the film so special in this brand new featurette.
Set in a suburban fantasy world, Disney and Pixar’s “Onward” introduces two teenage elf brothers (voiced by Chris Pratt and Tom Holland) who embark on an extraordinary quest to discover if there is still a little magic left out there.
If you love reality and documentary programming, there are some new offerings coming to Disney+ that will take you on magical journeys, explore the wonders of our world, and go behind the scenes at Pixar.
Disney+ is developing the next generation of the critically-acclaimed series “The Quest,” now featuring teen participants and adding more epic world building interactive elements. The streaming service has also greenlit the ultimate brainteaser competition series “The Maze,” National Geographic’s “Meet the Chimps” and an untitled docuseries that follows Pixar’s SparkShorts program as they discover talented new storytellers, it was announced today during a Disney+ panel at the Realscreen Summit in New Orleans.
“These projects take people on epic adventures, immerse them in fantastical worlds and shine a light on extraordinary people and creatures, which are all important benchmarks of our Disney+ nonfiction content philosophy,” said Agnes Chu, senior vice president, Content, Disney+. “We are thrilled that we get to bring the groundbreaking ‘The Quest’ back to life, and can’t wait for people to discover ‘The Maze,’ our special subjects in ‘Meet the Chimps’ and the innovation and wonder of making Pixar’s Sparkshorts.”
Filmed at a castle outside Vienna, Austria, “The Quest” is an innovative reality competition that takes place in the fantasy world of Everealm. Teen contestants will compete in an unfolding drama where they encounter mystical beings and magical encounters that rival their favorite books, games and movies. They will be embedded in a fully immersive, 360-degree world complete with seamless technology, creature design, practical effects and scripted characters who interact dynamically with them. The series is executive produced by Court Five’s Mark Ordesky (“The Lord of the Rings”) and Jane Fleming; Scout Productions’ David Collins, Michael Williams, Rob Eric (“Queer Eye”); and New Media Collective’s Bertram van Munster, Elise Doganieri and Mark Dziak (“The Amazing Race”).
With a very unique take on adventure competition, “The Maze” brings five teams consisting of one adult and one teen relative on a journey of mind-bending proportions. Participants will solve riddles and decipher clues that will guide them through European cities and fairytale villages. In each episode, the characters will reveal information to participants pushing them onward and closer to their final destination where all contestants will convene, but only one team will solve the Maze. It is also executive produced by van Munster, Doganieri and Dziak.
National Geographic’s “Meet the Chimps” takes viewers into the secret life of one of the largest and most unique wildlife sanctuaries in the world – Chimp Haven—a 200-acre refuge tucked deep in the forested heart of Louisiana, which is home to more than 300 chimpanzees. This six-part series tracks the ups and downs of this extraordinary group of chimps that are given a second chance at life by a staff whose dedication, compassion and commitment knows no bounds. Through a seamless blend of natural history and observational-documentary filmmaking, “Meet the Chimps” puts the chimps – the heart and soul of the series – at front and center. A real-life drama with a full emotional range, the series gives unparalleled access to everything happening at Chimp Haven, including food squabbles, alliances, romances, “bromances”, tears, tantrums, high jinx and heartbreaks. “Meet the Chimps” is produced by Blink Films (“Meet the Penguins,” Meet the Orangutans,” and “The Creative Brain”), with Justine Kershaw and Michael Welsh serving as executive producers, and Virginia Quinn as series director.
The untitled Pixar series from Supper Club (“Chef’s Table”) will follow Pixar’s inventive SparkShorts program. By offering a select group of Pixar employees the opportunity to make their own animated short film, the SparkShorts program helps discover and support the next generation of Pixar storytellers. The series will give audiences an exclusive and immersive look at the filmmakers and their films, while exploring the creative philosophy and community that makes Pixar unique. Brian McGinn, Jason Sterman and David Gelb executive produce.
Artist Sweet Cecily Daniher has filed a lawsuit against Disney, Pixar and “Onward” producer Kori Rae over the unlawful use of a van mural that she created. The van can be seen in the upcoming Disney*Pixar film “Onward” and has already been displayed in marketing and trailers for the film.
Daniher created her mural (below) on the side of a 1972 Chevy G10 van, back in 2014. The mural was inspired by her love for unicorns and she named her completed project “The Vanicorn”.
The van seen in “Onward” does bear a striking resemblance to the one that Daniher created (below), with one exception. The van used in “Onward” displays a Pegasus instead of a unicorn.
According to Daniher, Pixar did rent the van from her for a special event back in 2018. She was never informed by Pixar that her Vanicorn would be used in the movie “Onward”. Once she discovered that the van was being used for the marketing of the film, she was contacted by the producer who apologized and admitted that a mistake was made.
From The Hollywood Reporter:
On June 3, she posted the image again with this caption: “Well, &^#! The producer of ‘Onward’ just called me. She wanted to know HOW I’M FEELING…(?!) and to apologize…. she also wanted to tell me that they rented my van without disclosing their full intentions, or plans, and she’s sorry for that too.”
In the complaint, Daniher says Rae apologized and admitted they intentionally didn’t inform her that they intended to use the Vanicorn as a character in Onward because, at the time, the film didn’t have a title and without a title they couldn’t have her sign a non-disclosure agreement.
Daniher is suing for copyright infringement, violation of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, violation of the Visual Artists Rights Act and violation of the California Artists Protection Act. In addition to seeking damages, Daniher is asking the court for an injunction barring defendants from distributing, marketing or selling infringing advertisements, merchandise and the film itself and she wants a declaration that defendants’ related copyrights are invalid.
The World of Pixar collection has one of its most sparking additions yet: a Mickey Mouse headband featuring the Luxo Ball!
The headband is made by Loungefly and puts the Luxo ball front-and-center. Both sides of the ears have an abundance of bright red, yellow and blue sequins.
The band itself is black. On one side, you see the Luxo Jr. — the famous Pixar lamp — in silver threading.
