Pixar animators have a history of impressive achievements, making characters and textures look more authentic in increasingly complex ways. (That flowing hair! These landscapes!) But how would they portray jazz?
With “Soul” (streaming on Disney +), the challenge was to translate the emotional and improvised qualities of music through a technical process with little room for improvisation. Although much animation over the years has acquired the spirit of jazz, “Soul “fits right next to the piano keys to show, in detail, a musician creating. And Pixar knew that many eyes, especially those of jazz musicians, would be examining his work.
The film follows Joe Gardner (voiced by Jamie Foxx), a school band teacher during the day, a talented but unsuccessful jazz pianist at night (and always). He struggles to get shows, but when he sits down at the piano, he is transported, his stress disappears and his passion arises with every note.
Pixar’s filmmakers, known for their attention to detail – in “Cars”, the engine sounds of each vehicle came from the real engine of the same model – knew that capturing the fundamentals of jazz performance would not be possible without the collaboration of jazz artists .
“We wanted to make sure that if this guy is going to be a jazz musician, he should know the clubs and the story behind it,” said the film’s director, Pete Docter, in a video interview. He and his team visited clubs in New York to gain a better understanding. “We would just go up and talk to the musicians and ask where did you study?” he said. “How did you get here? What other jobs do you have? And I really tried to embody the world of these characters.”
They also consulted with several famous musicians, including Herbie Hancock, jazz drummer Terri Lyne Carrington and Questlove (who also did voice work).
Pixar also brought in keyboardist Jon Batiste, the band’s leader and music director on “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert”. He created the original compositions that Joe presents on the screen. Batiste recorded the song with a band in a New York studio, and Docter captured those sessions with multiple cameras. “We set up, like, 80 GoPros everywhere,” said Docter. They then studied the video to get a more accurate picture of how to animate the scene.
Docter said the animators exaggerated certain movements in Joe’s execution to achieve a visual effect, but “in terms of posture and getting the notes right, that was crucial to making sure it really looked authentic.”
Along with the video, they were able to digitally save the notes that were being played. This digital flow could be programmed in a reverse way in the animation in a way that worked almost like a mechanical piano signaling the animators which key was being played with each note. So, when you see Joe at the piano, he’s playing exactly the notes you’re hearing.
In recording sessions, Docter said, his approach to directing Batiste was similar to the way he directs actors: he avoided reading specific lines or information about the song and instead tried to paint a picture so that Batiste could understand the mood of the scene.
“I could just say, ‘Do you know that feeling when you’re playing and the world just disappears and you wake up and three hours have passed? That’s what we’re looking for, ‘”said Docter. Batiste would make adjustments to his composition during the session to meet the film’s needs. “It was a joy to see him work,” said Docter. “It was like having a private concert.”
Batiste said he felt a connection with Docter when creating these scenes – “Pete is a healer and a philosopher,” he said by email – and that he was happy to see the care with which black music was being treated.
Docter grew up playing music. Two sisters are professional musicians and their parents are music educators. This made it easier to synchronize with the film’s musical passions. And on his team, he said, those who were animating a specific instrument generally had experience playing that instrument or a great appreciation for it.
Joe, in all its complexity, comes to life in three ways: through Foxx’s vocal performance; the character’s design and movement; and Batiste’s compositions and performance. Those close-up photos of Joe’s moving hands reflect the pianist’s lively play style – so much so that Batiste was surprised to see those moments on the screen.
“My hands are the center of my life,” he said. “I was in tears when I saw my essence come to life in Joe. Having that as part of my creative legacy is an honor. “