Creating the Pixar Phenomenon

Screenwriter/genius Andrew Stanton on family films and fish

by Jennifer M. Wood | Published February 3, 2007

Andrew Stanton directs Ellen DeGeneres on Finding Nemo.

Writing the words that will come out of a flesh and blood actor’s mouth is one thing. But writing dialogue for a wooden cowboy, a renegade ant, a child-scaring monster and a kidnapped clownfish is a completely different story—and writing process. With Finding Nemo still drawing families to theaters in droves more than a month after its release, the film’s writer-director Andrew Stanton talked with MM about what it takes to succeed in the family entertainment game.

Jennifer Wood (MM): As one of Pixar’s first employees, did you ever imagine then that the company would be where it is now?

Andrew Stanton (AS): Not in a million years. And it just keeps getting better. It’s really scary.

MM: Can you talk a little bit about how you conceive your story ideas—and what the writing process is? Pixar writing credits are often shared amongst many people; how does the writing process generally work?

AS: The writing process at Pixar is very messy, very collaborative and very labor-intensive. Our films are discovered in the “rewriting.” All of our films are original stories and have often started from simple group discussions between a core group of us at Pixar. Usually I’m the one who will take all the random thoughts of those meetings and turn them into a script. That could take three months or it could take a year, depending on how difficult it is to figure out the story. Then we will rewrite and rewrite scenes forever (for years), until we’re satisfied. It’s different on many of the films; that’s why there are lots of credits for the writing.

Some are more contractual (i.e. we hired somebody to do a draft, didn’t like it, but kept a few things), but most are people we asked to help us out because they bring something to the table that we can’t ourselves. For Finding Nemo, Bob Peterson and Dave Reynolds are also credited in writing on the film, and we worked together on most of the rewrites. Bob is a Pixar employee and has been working in our story department for years. I asked him to a write on Nemo because I enjoy writing with a partner to bounce ideas off of. Also, he makes me funnier in the room. Bob says he’s the “rubber chicken beneath my wings.” Structure and drama/emotion are more my strengths.

Dave Reynolds has been our secret weapon on all of our films. He’s based in LA, but is an absolute comedy dynamo. We will always be calling and faxing him in the middle of the night with last-minute requests. He thinks very fast on his feet. So in Nemo’s case it was quite collaborative, but every one of our films is a different writing experience.

MM: How do you think writing for a younger age group is different than writing for a general PG—or R—audience? What are the issues you discuss ahead of time?

AS: We never talk about who we’re writing for. Never plan for it. I think the minute you try to second guess who your audience will be (especially children), you will sabotage your writing. For as much as these blockbuster movies may be seen as a product from the outside, we at Pixar do not look at it that way within our walls. It is a piece of art that must be pure in its execution. We simply write for ourselves, and write what we’d like to see. It just happens that our tastes are very family-friendly. Sounds dorky, but it’s true. I’m often told by parents, “Oh, our kids love your movies, and we actually like them, too,” and I always respond, “Good, because I wrote them for you—not the kids.”

MM: What is the true test of whether or not a joke works for a younger audience? How do you go about ‘testing’ your material?

AS: No testing—just our gut. There’s a core creative group of us who have been together from the beginning (sort of like a Monty Python troupe), and if we like it, then the joke stays. And the true test is easy: either people laugh or they don’t.

MM: Do you think that this balance between being kid and adult-friendly is only achieved through the writing, or are there other aspects (i.e. character voices, action, etc.) that assist in making these true “general audience” movies?

AS: I believe the balance is always at risk, and every element of the film can either strengthen things or tip it over. But you most definitely want to sense the balance early in the writing so that you’re working off a strong foundation. You want to execute ideas that will promote more creativity from every artist that will work on the film.

MM: What were the basic steps involved in getting Nemo—and any Pixar film—completed after the initial idea is established?

AS: People struggling in Hollywood are going to hate this answer, because how we do things up here is not the norm. We think of an idea and then make it—that’s it. No script submissions, no review boards, no market testing, blah, blah, blah... Our story development to film production ratio is one-to-one. We come up with an idea, and then commit to making it.

I believe we can do this because John Lasseter and Steve Jobs have consciously created a “director-based” studio. Much like the old studio system, where Selznick, Thalberg or Zanuck would get an idea, slowly nurture it and then cast the appropriate artists to it, we do sort of the same thing. We have a pool of directors whom we encourage to come up with ideas themselves that they are passionate about and then support them in seeing their vision realized. Many of us are also writer-directors, which makes the process all the more streamlined (but it’s not a requirement).

MM: How did the idea for Finding Nemo come about? And how long was the process, from conception to screen?

AS: Nemo was an idea I had been forming since as far back as Toy Story. John Lasseter and I are very close, and have been through movie hell together, so when I told him I had an underwater fish story and I wanted to direct it he didn’t even bat an eye. He just said “Go for it.” John’s sort of like our coach, barking and clapping from the sidelines.

MM: Writers and directors are often asked about the casting process, and whether or not they can “visualize” their characters—and who will play them—throughout the process. Obviously, the visual representation of your characters is of key importance in the writing process—but what about the voices? Do you, in the process of writing, have an idea of who you would like to “play” these characters—are you putting a voice with the character?

AS: You always have a list of names in your head when you’re writing. It helps you find a voice for your characters. Sometimes that list is even actors who are no longer living. Heck, you’ll hang upside-down and chant if it’ll help find your scene. But usually you keep several options in your head, because you never know who you’ll be able to get. It’s not that much pressure, because, as I said before, we rewrite incessantly. Once you cast an actor you have plenty of opportunity to adapt your writing to their strengths.

The only time I ever broke that list rule was with Dory in Finding Nemo. She was originally conceived as a male character (typical male-thinking on my part) named Gill (later to be Willem Dafoe’s character) that would befriend Marlin and guide him through the ocean. But I was getting nowhere with it. Then one evening, at home, I was pounding the laptop, and my wife was watching “The Ellen Show” (yes, it was that long ago), and I overheard Ellen DeGeneres change the subject five times in one sentence, and a light bulb went off. The way she spoke was perfect for this character.

I changed the character to a female, renamed her Dory and from then on could not get Ellen’s voice out of my head. So I took a huge risk and wrote the character with only her voice in mind. I sent her the script, called her up and simply said, “Hi Ellen, I’ve written this part for you, and I’m screwed if you don’t take the part.” She replied, “Well, then I better take it.” So, she saved my butt. I don’t recommend this method of writing. Too risky.

MM: How far ahead of time do you begin working with your actors, and what sort of input to do you like—and expect from them?

AS: We work with the actors years in advance. That sounds like a lot, but we only meet with them about every four to five months for two to four hours at a time. So, we worked with people like Tom Hanks, Billy Crystal and Ellen DeGeneres for over four years, but only a total of two weeks when you add up all the hours. Every actor we work with, we’re hoping for a certain amount of improvisation and looseness. We always come to them with strong ideas and specific lines, but we also know that much of our best stuff is found by accident, or on the fly, so we encourage experimentation.

MM: At the end of the day, when the film is up on screens all across America, what do you hope audiences take away from your work? I think it would be accurate that going to a Pixar movie has become more than just “going to the movies”—it’s really become a highly-anticipated family event. Was this part of what you had always hoped to achieve?

AS: The biggest compliment would be that it made them want to go to the movies again, or even better, it made them want to make movies. For me, my most favorite movies did that to me. It was like an infection—you almost felt physically compelled to immediately create after seeing such a great movie. If I ever heard that from an audience member it would be the be-all end-all for me.

MM: What’s up next for you and the Pixar team?

AS: Next up is a movie written and directed by Brad Bird (of Iron Giant fame), called The Incredibles. It’s about a family of superheroes forced to come out of hiding to save the world—and it truly is incredible. After that, John Lasseter is back in the director’s chair, making a film called Cars. I’m taking a long-needed break for a while. It’s been non-stop filmmaking since Toy Story for me, and finally Pixar is well-oiled enough to afford my absence for a couple of months.

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Comment by Entertaining Lady on 7/31/09 at 12:20 pm: Pixar movies are awesome. I’m so glad Disney bought them. UP is one of the best movies I’ve ever seen.
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Comment by cherub on 8/27/09 at 8:16 pm: family entertainment game.