Watch the First Clip For 'Lava'

Pixar's next theatrical short film, Lava, is a musical love story inspired by the beauty of tropical islands and the explosive allure of ocean volcanoes. The film stars a volcano named Uku, who sings about his dream. Watch the new clip below:

The director of Lava, James Ford Murphy, wrote a Hawaiian-inspired song for the ukulele. “I thought that if I could marry the rich imagery and with the power and emotion of music, then I could really make something cool," says Murphy (Yahoo! Movies) The ukulele song is sung by Hawaiian entertainer Kuana Torres Kahele. Kuana describes Uku as a "lonely volcano searching millions and millions of years for his one true love." His message to people who want to see the Lava is "Bring a tissue. You're going to need it for the first two or three minutes."

"I thought it would be so cool to fall in love with a place who’s also a character," James Murphy said in an interview (LATimes). "I wanted to make Uku appealing and likable but also look like he’s been carved out of lava flows. This whole story has been an exercise in contrast. Volcanoes are so destructive, but they're so creative. They’re so powerful in their eruptions but they’re so peaceful." He and his producer, Andrea Warren, attempted to achieve the feeling of the scale live-action filmmakers attain from a helicopter shot, but within the 3-D universe of animation.

Lava, will play in theaters in front of Pixar's next movie, Inside Out, on June 19th of next year.

'Toy Story That Time Forgot' Sky Broadband Commercial

Sky Broadband just released a new commercial which also serves as a promotion for Pixar's upcoming Holiday TV Special, Toy Story That Time Forgot. The advertisement was directed by Mark Walsh (director of Partysaurus Rex). Watch it below:

We get to met some of the new characters in the Toy Story universe. The Cleric is the leader and spiritual adviser for the Battlesaur toys. 

"Appease the WeeFee!"

IGN describes Reptillus Maximus as a nice version of 'Beauty and the Beast's' Gaston. He's got skills, he's handsome, he's charming and witty, and he seems to have a crush on Trixie.

"Our story teller torments us."

Ray-gon is a scientist and the smartest of the group. His job is to give each Battlesaur the best gear.

"Ray-gon, repeat the ritual!"

And lastly we met Angel Kitty, the most adorable Christmas ornament ever.

"Joy has no limit when we look to the sky."

Here is the official synopsis for television special: During a post-Christmas play date, the Toy Story gang find themselves in uncharted territory when the coolest set of action figures ever turn out to be dangerously delusional. It's all up to Trixie, the triceratops, if the gang hopes to return to Bonnie's room in this 'Toy Story That Time Forgot.' The short film is directed by Steve Purcell (co-director of Brave) and produced by Galyn Susman (producer on Toy Story of TERROR!).

Toy Story That Time Forgot premieres this December 2nd on ABC!

A Peek at 'Inside Out'

Rejoice, Pixar fans! Disney Movies Anywhere has released a behind-the scenes look at Pixar's next feature film, Inside Out (you need an account to see it). At the beginning of this season DMA launched the "Pixar Summer Movies To Go!" event, in which each week a new Pixar film is highlighted along with movie discounts, bonus features, and fun facts about each movie. Monsters University marks the end of this event, and in the MU exclusive video director Pete Docter and producer Jonas Rivera show us some of the characters and animation tests of Inside Out.

The emotions roasting marshmallows over Anger's head.

To start things off, Pete Docter said the idea behind Inside Out was "What can animation do that we haven't tried yet?" Emotions living inside someone's head is definitely a new venture for an animated film. The picture below is the first time we've seen a completely rendered image of Riley, the 11 year-old girl who has the five emotions living in her "headquarters." In the clip we get to see Riley give us her happy smile.

Some new character poses for the emotions were showcased:

Anger (Voiced by Lewis Black).

Fear (Voiced by Bill Hader).

Sadness (Voiced by Phyllis Smith).

Disgust (Voiced  by Mindy Kaling).

Joy (Voiced by Amy Poehler).

Pete Docter described the emotions as their version of the seven dwarfs. "They're really pushed caricatures and have strong personalities." The artists referred to old Hollywood cartoons for the squash and stretch principle of animation, a technique they aimed for when animating the characters from Inside Out.

Pete Docter presenting an animation test -
Joy is throwing a marshmallow at Anger.

In closing, Pete Docter said that they wanted to show us the entire movie right now, but Jonas declared that they only had time to show the viewers one little shot, and that we would have to wait until next year to see the whole film.

"Okay, back to work!"

Inside Out hits theaters on June 19th, 2015.

'The Good Dinosaur' Has Been "Dismantled and Re-imagined"

The Good Dinosaur has gone through a series of ups and downs in its production. It was originally directed by Bob Peterson (Co-directer of Up), and last year he was replaced by members of the Pixar BrainTrust: John Lasseter (Pixar's Chief Creative Officer), Lee Unkrich (Director of Toy Story 3), and Mark Andrews (Director of Brave). Peter Sohn has always been the co-director for The Good Dinosaur, and he is still working on the movie. Bob Peterson remained positive about him leaving the film and announced that he is on to future projects.

Less than a month later, The Good Dinosaur was pushed back from its original release date. It was going to come out last May, and now it will arrive in theaters on November 25th, 2015. Pixar's President Ed Catmull had this to say about the release date change: "Nobody ever remembers the fact that you slipped a film, but they will remember a bad film. Our conclusion was that we were going to give the film some more time."

The official logo for The Good Dinosaur

Collider recently interviewed John Lithgow and threw in a couple questions about The Good Dinosaur. (John voices one of the characters in the film). Here's what he said:

“I recorded the entire role in Good Dinosaur.  They have now dismantled it and completely re-imagined it, and it is a fantastic new story.  So I’m gonna record again on it within the next month.  Don’t worry.  It’s coming and it’s gonna be better than I ever imagined.”

How much has the movie been re-imagined? One wonders if it will be drastically different from the original question that drove the story of the film: What if the cataclysmic asteroid that forever changed life on Earth actually missed the planet completely and giant dinosaurs never became extinct? The Good Dinosaur's original synopsis pronounced that The Good Dinosaur was about an 70-foot-tall teenage Apatosaurus named Arlo. After a traumatic event rattles Arlo’s tranquil community, he sets out on a quest to restore peace, gaining an unlikely companion along the way—a young human boy named Spot.

The Good Dinosaur concept art featuring Arlo and Spot

John Lithgow went on to say that he was still the voice of Poppa Dinosaur (Arlo's father) and that Frannie McDormand as sill playing Momma Dinosaur. Does this mean that some of the other voice actors have been replaced or changed? At D23 2013 it was announced that Lucas Neff would be the voice of Arlo, and his siblings are going to be played by Bill Hader, Neil Patrick Harris, and Judy Greer.

The Good Dinosaur presentation at D23 last year

This is not the first time there have been director changes or production troubles at Pixar; all this is part of the creative process of the film until it arrives on the big screen. An example of this is when A Bug's Life was completed in the Fall of 1998, and Toy Story 2 was examined by John Lasseter and other directors. It was decided that it needed to be completely re-written. Pixar turned the production of Toy Story 2 upside-down and got the film done in less than a year. This story illustrates one of the great traits of Pixar, the artists there will always choose to do what's best for the story of the film, even if that means completely re-doing, delaying, or working overtime on the movie.

The Good Dinosaur will arrive in theaters next year on November 25th. This is the first time Pixar will have released two movies in the same year, the first one being Inside Out (June 19th, 2015).

'Toy Story of TERROR!' is Now Available on Blu-ray!

Toy Story of TERROR! is now ready to buy on Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital HD! In the latest installment of the Toy Story franchise, the toys are on a road trip which takes an unexpected turn when they have to spend the night at the SleepWell Motel. All goes well until several of the toys mysteriously disappear. Can Woody, Buzz, and Jessie solve the mystery before they experience the same fate?

"You know, we have a little saying around here.
At the SleepWell Motel, your gonna sleep well."

There are several fantastic Bonus Features on the Blu-ray as well which include:

• Toy Story of TERROR! Audio Commentary
• Team of Specialists with director Angus MacLane (Watch Angus talk about the new characters in this video, and check out this clip in which a live iguana was brought to Pixar to be observed)
• 3 Deleted Scenes, with Editor Introductions:
• Pencil Topper Trilogy (Watch part of the deleted scene here)
• Travel Brochures
• Road Trip Roulette
• Vintage Toy Commercials, with director Introductions:
• Old Timer
• Combat Carl (Watch Combat Carl teach kids how to properly cough)
• Transitron
• Toy Story Toons Shorts, with Audio Commentaries:
• Hawaiian Vacation
• Small Fry
• Partysaurus Rex
• D23 Teaser

Here is the trailer for the Toy Story of TERROR! Blu-ray release:

This is not the last we've seen of the beloved Toy Story characters! They will return this Holiday season for an all-new television special: Toy Story That Time Forgot. The synopsis for the film reads: During a post-Christmas play date, the 'Toy Story' gang find themselves in uncharted territory when the coolest set of action figures ever turn out to be dangerously delusional. It’s all up to Trixie, the triceratops, if the gang hopes to return to Bonnie’s room in this ‘Toy Story That Time Forgot.’

Check out this post for more Toy Story That Time Forgot news!

Toy Story That Time Forgot will air on ABC this December 2nd at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

'Toy Story of TERROR!' Bonus Feature Clips

Pixar's Halloween television special from last year, Toy Story of TERROR!, will be available to purchase on Blu-ray and Digital HD on August 19th! Its list of bonus features include:

• Toy Story of TERROR! Audio Commentary
• Team of Specialists with Director Angus MacLane
• 3 Deleted Scenes, with Editor Introductions:
• Pencil Topper Trilogy
• Travel Brochures
• Road Trip Roulette
• Vintage Toy Commercials, with Director Introductions:
• Old Timer
• Combat Carl
• Transitron
• Toy Story Toons Shorts, with Audio Commentaries:
• Hawaiian Vacation
• Small Fry
• Partysaurus Rex
• D23 Teaser

Here is a clip from the Team of Specialists bonus feature:

And here is a snippet from Combat Carl's Vintage Toy Commercial, in which Carl teaches kids how to properly cough:

The next Toy Story TV special from Pixar is called Toy Story That Time Forgot, and it will air on ABC this December 2nd. Here's the official synopsis for the film: During a post-Christmas play date, the 'Toy Story' gang find themselves in uncharted territory when the coolest set of action figures ever turn out to be dangerously delusional. It’s all up to Trixie, the triceratops, if the gang hopes to return to Bonnie’s room in this ‘Toy Story That Time Forgot.’

"Combat Carl never gives up. Combat Carl finds a way."

Check out this post for more information and images from Toy Story That Time Forgot. And make sure to pre-order Toy Story of TERROR!

'Radiator Springs 500 1/2' is Free to Watch on Disney.com!

Have you seen Pixar's latest Cars Toon, The Radiator Springs 500 1/2 yet? If not, you can now view it for free on Disney.com! In the latest installment of the Tales From Radiator Springs series, a gang of Baja Racers interrupt a celebration of Stanley, the founder of Radiator Springs, to challenge Lightning McQueen to a race. While McQueen and the Baja pros see who’s the fastest, Mater leads the rest of the gang through a leisurely Founders Day tour of Stanley’s original frontier route.

"The Radiator Springs Historical Society is proud to
honor the spirit of Stanley, our town's founder!"

The Radiator Springs 500 1/2  is the last film to be made by Pixar Canada, Pixar's subsidiary studio located in Vancouver, Canada. Sadly, Pixar Canada closed in October 2013 in order "to refocus operations and  resources under the one roof.” (Pixar's main studio in Emeryville, CA) Pixar Canada's other films include Air Mater, Small Fry, Time Travel Mater, Partysaurus Rex, and three Tales from Radiator Springs.

Watch the entirety of Radiator Springs 500 1/2 for free here.

'Radiator Springs 500 1/2' Will Air on the Disney Channel Tonight

In case you missed Pixar's latest Cars Toon when it premiered on Disney Movies Anywhere last May, you can catch Radiator Springs 500 1/2 tonight on the Disney Channel at 7:55 P.M. (Eastern Standard Time). Here's a clip that was just released by Pixar's YouTube channel from the short film.

The official synopsis reads: A 'leisurely drive' planned in honor of Radiator Springs’ town founder, Stanley, turns precarious as Baja pros descend on the town and challenge Lightning McQueen to an off-road race. Meanwhile, the townsfolk, led by a Stanley-costumed Mater, enjoy the planned 'leisurely drive' to retrace Stanley’s original frontier route. Thinking they’re on the same course, a wrong turn sends McQueen and the Baja pros on a treacherously wild bid for survival. The misunderstanding leaves the racing professionals in awe of the 'legend' of Stanley: the Original Off-Road Racer. "RS 500 1/2" is directed by Rob Gibbs, who was a story artist for several other Cars Toons and movies including Toy Story 2 and Monsters Inc.

Watch it tonight on the Disney Channel!

The next Cars Toon from the Tales from Radiator Springs series is called To Protect and Serve (@ThePixarTimes). It will be out sometime later this year.