After striking a resonant, profitable chord by addressing an overwhelming emotion society doesn’t often talk about — anxiety — in last summer’s megahit “Inside Out 2,” Team Pixar looked up to the stars for its next project to tap another emotion so common to many — loneliness.
Why blast into those Carl Sagan cosmos to relay earth-bound sentiments that a parentless boy, who’s overly obsessed about being abducted by aliens, is experiencing?
RELATED: Review: Pixar’s ‘Elio’ blasts off with heartfelt story of a lonely boy
“Elio” directors Domee Shi, of Oakland, and Madeline Sharafian saw a universe of possibilities and parallel meanings from beaming 11-year-old Elio Solís way up beyond the stars.
“I feel like space has this sort of inherent loneliness to it, but also a feeling of hope,” explains Sharafian. “Like when Elio looks at the stars, he feels the infinite possibility of what could be out there. And when you first meet him on Earth, he’s sort of trapped in something I think we’re all maybe experiencing right now, this kind of black-and-white and a little bit pessimistic thinking about Earth. This sort of feeling like this place cannot possibly work for me.”
“Elio,” the Emeryville-based animated studio’s 29th feature, opens in theaters June 20.
In the first act of the film, Elio (voiced by Yonas Kibreab) reluctantly lives with Aunt Olga (Oscar winner Zoë Saldaña), an uber-capable Air Force major stationed at Montez Air Force Base. He’s dismissive of her and remains isolated and focused on one mission only — getting far away from Earth. He’s so committed to that quest that he sends ham-radio signals out into space and then spreads out on a beach for hours with a colander contraption atop his head and a sand-drawn message circling him that implores aliens to take him away.
Elio does discover there are brave new worlds out there but he also hits upon an invaluable lesson about the world at home he too often overlooks. He’s always looking beyond for something better.
“He’s unable to pick up on the signals around him,” explains Shi, who directed and co-wrote Pixar’s critical hit “Turning Red.” “He’s unable to pick up on the signals from his aunt, from a potential friend in Bryce on the beach or from other kids around him. He’s just so obsessed with sending signals out to space. But this whole journey makes him more sensitive and more aware and in tune with connecting to the people and the signals around him.”
Elio’s wish gets granted and he’s whisked off to the colorful, spectacular Communiverse, where leaders from galaxies hobnob. There, he has numerous close encounters with a kooky collection of alien creatures. He even gets mistaken as the leader of Earth, a blunder that creates a universal headache for all since he doesn’t correct the wrong.
The Commuiniverse is one of Pixar’s most inventive animated imaginariums ever — a feast for the eyes and the senses that’s agog with innovative alien creatures, including the hot-tempered, lobster-looking Lord Grigon (voice of Brad Garrett); the party-loving Ambassador Helix (voice of Brandon Moon) who always has an astrobright drink in his sorta-hands; and the certain-to-be-fan-favorite Glordon (voiced by Remy Edgerly), the endearing, lovable and eyeless and noseless slug-like son of Lord Grigon. Elio can’t help but bond with the sensitive and caring Glordon. And you will, too.
The creation of the Communiverse gave Pixar animators a chance to play in a huge toy box, both filmmakers agree. It also gave longtime production designer Harley Jessup (who collaborated with Sharafian on “Coco”), a chance to shine before he retired from Pixar. He razzle-dazzles audiences by channeling numerous inspirations – deep sea creatures, space itself and even glass artist Dale Chihuly.
“For him, making a world like that is something he’s done many times before, but he still managed and wanted to create something that felt very unique,” Sharafian said. “One of the most early drawings that Harley did almost made (the Communiverse) look like this glittering jewel or almost like a disco ball.”
Creating something unique like that was foremost on everyone’s minds.
“There’s been so many sci-fi movies,” Shi said, noting that Pixar has done a couple (“WALL-E” and “Lightyear”). “The goal was just to try to create a new kind of look for space that was more organic, more colorful, more aspirational from the point of view of a boy who wants to be abducted.”
That extended to intricate details not only in space but in Elio’s own room.
“The set design, in particular Elio’s room, was so important to us,” said Sharafian. “It just felt like how you can really learn a lot about a character with their room. And even when we first were wrapping our heads around the idea that this kid was obsessed with aliens and that maybe it wasn’t for good reasons, that this is something he’s going to need to work on; we talked about his room as though it had sort of been encrusted with alien stuff almost like a mold growing on the wall. Like, when you’re in the room with Olga and Elio, and she’s having this argument with him, there’s a part of me that sees her side of like, has he gone a little too far.”
“Elio” is a true collaborative effort. “Coco” co-director Adrian Molina came up with the concept and then Shi and Sharafian came in and put their own stamp on it while staying true to Molina’s vision. (Molina is working on “Coco 2,” slated for a 2029 release.)
“Movies take a really long time here at Pixar,” Sharafian said. “This is originally Molina’s concept where it’s very much based on his own life growing up on military bases as this sort of artsy, weird kid who didn’t feel like he fit in 100 percent in these places and that he really felt like he found his people, he found his Communiverse when he went to animation college. For us that felt extremely relatable.” (Molina shares a directing credit on the film.)
When Shi and Sharafian came onto the project, most of the building blocks were there. It was already determined that Elio would be mistaken as the leader of Earth, and the “entire world” had been built and the characters were in place.
“It was almost like being handed this beautiful toy box; like here’s everything,” Sharafian adds.
What they brought to the project was Elio’s enthusiasm for space and his desire to be abducted.
“It was very easy for us to connect with this movie and with Elio,” Shi and Sharafian agree. “Because we’ve definitely been in his shoes before.” Sharafian worked with Molina on “Coco” while Shi worked with him on “Turning Red” where he was associate executive producer.
One of the film’s biggest laughs, and one of its most clever moments, derives from when Elio gets cloned — the clone turns out to be much tidier and far more well-mannered than the real Elio. The clone scenes proved to be one of many highlights for both filmmakers.
“The clone element was always there except I think we kind of added like a young sci-fi horror spin (to it),” said Shi, adding that it’s a fun scare and “a gateway for a lot of young people to check out the movies we’re paying homage to.”
True to Pixar’s form, there are many hidden morsels in “Elio.” Audiences should also stay put through the end credits (there’s a surprise there) and be prepared to go Easter egg hunting, a tradition in Pixar films.
But are there any Bay Area Easter eggs to be found?
“I will say there are a lot of Easter eggs in the movie, enough that there is a spreadsheet,” Sharifian said. “A lot of them we don’t even know about.”
But as for sussing out the Bay Area ones, Sharifian offers some non-spoiler free advice: “You should watch it again.”
Yes, the truth is out there.
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