Canadian Oscar-winning filmmaker draws from childhood for Elio, a tale about lonely boy's search for life in the universe
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Domee Shi may have signed on to co-direct the new Pixar Animation Studios movie, Elio, about halfway through its lengthy production schedule, but it didn't take her long to identify with the film's protagonist.
Shi, who currently lives in California but spent most of her life in Toronto, co-directed the animated film with Madeline Sharafian after original director Adrian Molina amicably left the production to work on Pixar's Coco 2. (Shi, Sharafian and Molina are all credited as co-directors.)
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CBC
2 days ago
- CBC
Did 'bean mouth' really kill Pixar's Elio at the box office?
Social Sharing Why did Pixar's Elio put up the worst numbers in the studio's history in its opening weekend? The reasons professionals give for the sci-fi family movie's paltry $35 million US global box-office earning vary. But if you ask the internet, there's a far simpler issue at play. "Nobody wants the bean mouth style of character design," wrote one reader when commenting on a post-mortem of Elio 's bombing by the website Cartoon Brew. "It feels lazy, overused, and unoriginal." "The 3D CalArts 'bean mouth' style also just put a lot of people off," read a post on a Reddit thread about Elio 's failure. "Doesn't matter how good the story is, many people hate that animation style." The bean-mouth criticism is an opinion about Elio that's echoed across virtually every platform that allows comments: a one-to-one connection between character design and the audience's decision to stay home. More than that, it's become synonymous with an almost vitriolic hatred for a particular and supposedly ubiquitous art style. Animation journalist John Maher calls it a "pejorative and insult" that far outstrips the style's reach and misunderstands its origin. "It is a reflexive internet criticism," said Maher, the news director for Publishers Weekly. "People found a term that was snappy and catchy and easy to use. And so they hung onto it." Where bean mouth began The terms "CalArts style," "bean mouth" and "thin-line animation," all have different origins and meanings, but they all generally refer to a drawing technique exemplified by thin line-work, simplified features and bean-shaped mouths and heads. When it comes to how the "CalArts style" name came to be — Maher and others often point to Ren & Stimpy creator John Kricfalusi. Starting in the early 2000s, Kricfalusi wrote blog posts criticizing a particular style of art and derivative mentality he believed came out of the California Institute of the Arts — an influential arts and animation school founded by Walt Disney and his brother, Roy, in 1961. His criticisms were pointedly about the style championed by Disney, then copied to diminishing returns — including in movies like Treasure Planet and The Iron Giant. Though the animation in those movies looks nothing like what most people today think of as the CalArts style, the name stuck. And as many graduates of the school became associated with shows and movies that shared a similar bean-mouth design — including Elio, which has a pair of CalArts alumni listed as directors — the two names came to describe a common gripe. "That phrase has become a shorthand for a more fair criticism. Which frankly is: 'Animation as innovation rather than animation as imitation,' " Maher said. "But to call it all CalArts is just so silly and reductive and inaccurate — just fundamentally inaccurate." When asked if CalArts teaches the style, or even observes it in common use among students, Maija Burnett, the school's director of the Character Animation Program, says that's not the case. "Luckily, I can definitely dispel that," she said. "The results of the work from our program is extremely diverse. And so I do not think it typifies what comes from our programs at all." She also says it's unlikely that Pixar chose that animation style because it's cheaper, noting that the studio does most of its animation in-house, developed over years through huge teams, so they wouldn't need to default to any particular style an outside studio would find easier to work with. It's hard to say how pervasive the style is among Pixar movies. Typically only Luca, Turning Red and Elio have received the "bean-mouth" criticism. But Burnett says what people are likely identifying is an intentional technique studios employ. "Often, we can kind of tell like, 'Oh, yeah that seems like it's coming from Sony,' " she said, noting it's natural that Pixar would have a recognizable style because it's important to them both as a brand and as a studio. She says there's also likely a reason certain elements of the style are more widely used today. TV series, for example, often rely on animation techniques that work with contemporary technologies — such as the 1920s "rubber-hose" style of Felix the Cat, the "flash" animation of the early 2000s seen in Canada's 6teen, or the simplified "limited animation" style of Hanna-Barbera, the studio behind The Flintstones that essentially birthed a movement of low-budget animation in the '60s and '70s. As animation techniques progress, Burnett says they'll likely change again to fall in line with new technologies. She also notes that every art form and industry has eras where the output shares similar characteristics: from cubist paintings, to art deco architecture, to postmodern literature. The idea that the bean-mouth style is somehow more pervasive today might be related to nostalgia, she says, noting that the CalArts style was first identified around the time that social media became popular, making it one of the first animation trends to be subject to wider internet scrutiny. Finding like minds to discuss the art you grew up with gives people something to bond over, she says, and so does being able to name and shame the style that seemingly replaced it. Other issues plaguing Elio But box-office analyst Paul Dergarabedian says the look of animated movies is rarely the most important factor in ticket sales, making it unlikely that's what sank Elio. "To me, that's a non-starter," he said, pointing to the Oscar-winning film Flow — animated with the free, open-source software Blender — as an example of how story trumps animation techniques. "That, to me, is like grasping at straws to find a reason that the movie didn't do it." The more likely culprits, he says, include the movie's minimal marketing, its PG rating and a lack of franchise tie-ins. And the more competitive landscape for original stories makes the market for animated movies vastly more challenging than when Pixar's Monsters Inc. or the first three Toy Story movies premiered. Maher agrees, and says the idea that fans suddenly abandoned Pixar over an animation technique is more depressing than believable. "That has nothing to do with thinking that it's like, a lesser work of art because of the shape of the character's mouth. Give me a break," he said. "If that's really what we are condemning art for at this point — we don't like the style so we're not even going to bother to understand the substance — we're in trouble."
Edmonton Journal
7 days ago
- Edmonton Journal
Canadian Oscar-winning filmmaker draws from childhood for Elio, a tale about lonely boy's search for life in the universe
Article content Domee Shi may have signed on to co-direct the new Pixar Animation Studios movie, Elio, about halfway through its lengthy production schedule, but it didn't take her long to identify with the film's protagonist. Shi, who currently lives in California but spent most of her life in Toronto, co-directed the animated film with Madeline Sharafian after original director Adrian Molina amicably left the production to work on Pixar's Coco 2. (Shi, Sharafian and Molina are all credited as co-directors.)
Toronto Sun
22-06-2025
- Toronto Sun
‘How to Train Your Dragon' tops the U.S. box office as ‘Elio' marks a new low for Pixar
This image released by Universal Pictures shows Mason Thames, as Hiccup, riding Night Fury dragon, Toothless in a scene from "How to Train Your Dragon.", (Universal Pictures via AP) AP Reviews and recommendations are unbiased and products are independently selected. Postmedia may earn an affiliate commission from purchases made through links on this page. NEW YORK (AP) — Neither Pixar nor zombies were enough to topple 'How to Train Your Dragon' from the No. 1 slot at North American box offices over the weekend. The Universal Pictures live-action remake remained the top film, bringing in $37 million in ticket sales in its second weekend, despite the sizeable new releases of 'Elio' and '28 Years Later.' , according to studio estimates Sunday. 'How To Train Your Dragon' has rapidly amassed $358.2 million worldwide. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Six years after its last entry, the Dean DeBlois-directed 'How To Train Your Dragon' has proven a potent revival of the DreamWorks Animation franchise. A sequel is already in the works for the $150 million production, which remakes the 2010 animated tale about a Viking boy and his dragon. Pixar's 'Elio' had a particularly tough weekend. The Walt Disney Co. animation studio has often launched some of its biggest titles in June, including 'Cars,' 'WALL-E' and 'Toy Story 4.' But 'Elio,' a science fiction adventure about a boy who dreams of meeting aliens, notched a modest $21 million, the lowest opening ever for Pixar. 'This is a weak opening for a new Pixar movie,' said David A. Gross, who runs the movie consulting firm FranchiseRe. 'These would be solid numbers for another original animation film, but this is Pixar, and by Pixar's remarkable standard, the opening is well below average.' Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'Elio,' originally set for release in early 2024, had a bumpy road to the screen. Adrian Molina — co-director of 'Coco' _ was replaced mid-production by Domee Shi ('Turning Red') and Madeline Sharafian. Back at Disney's D23 conference in 2022, America Ferrera appeared to announce her role as Elio's mother, but the character doesn't even exist in the revamped film. Disney and Pixar spent at least $150 million making 'Elio,' which didn't fare any better internationally than it did in North America, bringing in just $14 million from 43 territories. Pixar stumbled coming out of the pandemic before stabilizing performance with 2023's 'Elemental' ($496.4 million worldwide) and 2024's 'Inside Out 2' ($1.7 billion), which was the company's biggest box office hit. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'Elemental' was Pixar's previously lowest earning film, launching with $29.6 million. It rallied in later weeks to collect nearly half a billion dollars at the box office. The company's first movie, 'Toy Story,' opened with $29.1 million in 1995, or $60 when adjusted for inflation. It remains to be seen whether 'Elio's' decent reviews and 'A' from CinemaScore audiences can lead it to repeat 'Elemental's' trajectory. With most schools on summer break, the competition for family audiences was stiff. Disney's own 'Lilo & Stitch,' another live-action remake, continued to pull in young moviegoers. It grossed $9.7 million in its fifth weekend, bringing its global tally to $910.3 million. '28 Years Later' signaled the return of another, far gorier franchise. Director Danny Boyle reunited with screenwriter Alex Garland to resume their pandemic apocalypse thriller 25 years after '28 Days Later' and 18 years after its sequel, '28 Weeks Later.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The Sony Pictures release opened with $30 million. That was good enough to give Boyle, the filmmaker of 'Slumdog Millionaire' and 'Trainspotting,' the biggest opening weekend of his career. The film, which cost $60 million to make, jumps ahead nearly three decades from the outbreak of the so-called rage virus for a coming-of-age story about a 12-year-old (Alfie Williams) venturing out of his family's protected village. Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Jodie Comer and Ralph Fiennes co-star. Reviews have been good (90% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) for '28 Years Later,' though audience reaction (a 'B' CinemaScore) is mixed. Boyle has more plans for the zombie franchise, which will next see the release of '28 Years Later: The Bone Temple' next year from director Nia DaCosta. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. '28 Years Later' added another $30 million in 59 overseas markets. After its strong start last weekend with $12 million, A24's 'Materialists' held well with $5.8 million in its second weekend. The romantic drama by writer-director Celine Song and starring Dakota Johnson, Pedro Pascal and Chris Evans has collected $24 million so far. RECOMMENDED VIDEO Next weekend should also be a competitive one in movie theatres, with both 'F1,' from Apple and Warner Bros., and Universal's 'Megan 2.0' launching in cinemas. Top 10 movies by domestic box office With final domestic figures being released Monday, this list factors in the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theatres, according to Comscore: 1. 'How to Train Your Dragon,' $37 million. 2. '28 Years Later,' $30 million. 3. 'Elio,' $21 million. 4. 'Lilo & Stitch,' $9.7 million. 5. 'Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning,' $6.6 million. 6. 'Materialists,' $5.8 million. 7. 'Ballerina,' $4.5 million. 8. 'Karate Kid: Legends,' $2.4 million. 9. 'Final Destination: Bloodlines,' $1.9 million. 10. 'Kuberaa,' $1.7 million. Sports Toronto & GTA Sunshine Girls Columnists Editorial Cartoons
