Monsters University Blu-ray: Excl. Interview with Pixar Animators Carolina and Ramiro Lopez Dau

There is no better way to celebrate a family frinedly halloween than watching Monsters University. Today, Tuesday Oct. 29, the sucessfull prequel from Disney/Pixar is available in Blu-ray/DVD and Desde Hollywood talked about it with two Hispanic animators that worked on the characters: Carolina Lopez Dau and Ramiro Lopez Dau, siblings born in Argentina and raised in Spain.

Desde Hollywood: Planet 51 was crucial for you both being in Pixar. Right?

Carolina Lopez Dau: Exactly, Ramiro and I worked on Planet 51 and what we did there served as a portfolio to get in Pixar. Ramiro was hired first and one year later I started doing mass and character animation. They are the extras in the movie, the students on the background for example. A dream come true.

Pixar has more competition now. What keeps setting it apart from other animation studios?

Carolina L.D.: There is so much dedication to the story. They look at it from a thousand different angles to make sure that it has a heart, it is coherent, strong, and above all, original. The director has to be prepared to make changes and discard things. I have learned a lot been there.

Is it easer to work on a sequel/prequel, or you always start from scratch?

Carolina L.D.: Here we already knew a bit about Mike and Sully. But the world was redesigned using real life universities as references and creating buildings for the “monster world”. All the art, illumination, and character design for many creatures is brand new. We started from zero.

Bonus features allow people to appreciate your work. What are the highlights in this package?

Ramiro Lopez Dau: Actually, the bonus material is what inspired us to be in Pixar. That is when, like you correctly stated, you can really see how a movie is made. Thanks to that we learned how the studio works and its culture. With [the Blu-ray/DVD of] Monsters University you will see how the characters were designed, how the story evolved, deleted scenes and more. It is an insightful look at Pixar.

What was the new technological advance that you used in Monsters University?

Ramiro L.D. : At Pixar we use an internal software named ‘Presto’, the evolution of a previous one called ‘Marionette’. This is what we animators use to bring movies to an acceptable level. Because it is made at the studio, it is personalized with the necessary tools to bring these characters to life.

Some people think that animated movies like this one are made by the computer. Is that frustrating?

Ramiro L.D. : We are always trying to fight that notion. The computer is another tool, like a pencil. In a movie like this there are 300 or 500 people working on it. Monsters University took like 5 or 6 years from beginning to end. We animators work an entire week to produce 3 seconds. You need an artist behind the computer to reach the quality you see onscreen in a Pixar movie.

What would you like to see in a third installment?

Ramiro L.D. : I don’t really know. This is a prequel so maybe seeing them in the future, in the real world perhaps. That would be a good option to explore.

– Escucha esta entrevista en Español a los animadores de Pixar Carolina y Ramiro Lopez Dau:

“Ever since college-bound Mike Wazowski (Billy Crystal) was a little monster, he dreamed of becoming a Scarer – and he knows better than anyone that the best Scarers come from Monsters University (MU). But during his first semester at MU, Mike’s plans are derailed when he crosses paths with hotshot, James P. Sullivan, “Sulley” (John Goodman), a natural-born Scarer. The pair’s out of control competitive spirit gets them both kicked out of the University’s elite Scare Program. With their dreams temporarily dashed, they realize they will have to work together, along with an odd bunch of misfit monsters, if they ever hope to make things right.

Pull an all-nighter with hours of exclusive bonus extras, including an inside look at the world of monsters and the animated theatrical short film The Blue Umbrella. Monsters University opens the door to huge laughs on Disney Blu-ray.”