SOUL: Jamie Foxx, Tina Fey and More Talk Disney & Pixar Film at Press Conference

Desde Hollywood was invited to attend the global press conference for the anticipated Disney & Pixar movie SOUL.

The event featured actors Tina Fey (voice of “22”), Phylicia Rashad (voice of “Libba Gardner”), Angela Bassett (voice of “Dorothea Williams”), and Jamie Foxx (voice of “Joe Gardner”), plus filmmakers Pete Docter (Director/Story & Screenplay by), Kemp Powers (Co-Director/Story & Screenplay by) and Dana Murray (Producer).

Learn more about the animated film reading some highlights of the conversation below.

SOUL will be available on December 25, exclusively on Disney+.

Dana Murray on putting together a dream team:

“Not only did we get to have the dream cast, we have a dream consultant team. Our Head of Diversity and Inclusion here, Britta Wilson, was a great partner to me in building who those outer consultants were gonna be: Dr. Johnnetta Cole, we brought in Daveed Diggs, we were lucky enough to get to hang out with Ryan Coogler [and] have him look at the film, Bradford Young, Questlove….we brought together the Black employees at Pixar and created a trust as well.”

Powers on portraying an authentic African American experience:

“I was like, okay, so you know what you’re getting into. You know my politics. You know that I’m gonna be pushing for a lot of Black stuff. Because I can’t help myself. I think our culture is amazing. And a lot of people, particularly in Hollywood, will tell you that, in order to appeal to a wide audience, you want to get away from that. And I feel the opposite. I feel like there is universality by going for hyper specificity.”

Director Pete Docter on working with Foxx:

“So, you’re just solid for three, four hours. Jamie never stopped. He just has energy to burn. He was as energetic at the end as he was at the beginning. He’s incredible and amazing. And I think, one thing that I was expecting, but for whatever reason, it surprised me. We had a lot of scenes where he talks about-Joe talks about the power of music and the importance of music. And I could-my hair stood on end when I hear Jamie talk about it. Because I know he feels that. He believes it so fully. And it was just so truthful and authentic.”

Foxx on Soul and a difficult year:

“You know, 2020 has been bittersweet for me. I’m living now in a situation where my family has been affected by someone we love very dearly, my sister, who has transitioned. The one thing about my sister though, she always lived every moment, every single moment to the tilt. She’s Down’s Syndrome…She became the ambassador for Down’s syndrome, she was the ambassador for 11 years. And so…when you look at this film, it is exactly what I am now going through, the bittersweet of losing someone but gaining a, sort of vision of joy of all the things that she taught us while she was living. It’s, in a beautiful, strange way, it’s exemplified here in this film. […] You know, I have a phrase, that I use: The world has been here many billions-millions of years. So, 70, 80, 100 years is what? It’s a blink of an eye. So, I say to everybody, don’t waste your blink. Live your life.”

Fey on reflecting back on Soul‘s themes:

“I think the film does a really interesting thing, where they go a step beyond just saying, ‘you’ve gotta find your passion in life.’ They also bring up the idea that an all-consuming passion can kind of overtake your life, and that…being present is as important as achieving. Especially coming out in 2020, it’s a year when we’re all taking stock of what it means to have had a good year, what it means to have been successful in your life. And it often now means taking small joys where you can find them., and being present with the people that you love.”

Bassett on what people could take away from Soul:

“I hope they take away their own special brand of uniqueness that they arrived with–you know, their personality, their quirks, their gifts, their talents…And that’s an important asset to the world, and to the community, and to the family that’s around you. I think…this talks about being focused on your dreams, but maybe sometimes too much focus, or hearing negative chatter from outside can derail you and take you to a dark vortex or space. […] But I hope they just take away positiveness. That especially you’re unique and that you’re destined for this journey. So, live it with gusto, live it with pride, live it with spark and vitality.”

SOUL will be available on December 25, exclusively on Disney+.

Pixar Animation Studios’ all-new feature film “Soul” introduces Joe Gardner (voice of Jamie Foxx) – a middle-school band teacher who gets the chance of a lifetime to play at the best jazz club in town. But one small misstep takes him from the streets of New York City to The Great Before – a fantastical place where new souls get their personalities, quirks and interests before they go to Earth. Determined to return to his life, Joe teams up with a precocious soul, 22 (voice of Tina Fey), who has never understood the appeal of the human experience. As Joe desperately tries to show 22 what’s great about living, he may just discover the answers to some of life’s most important questions.