Finding Nemo

This fifth feature film by Pixar pushed the medium of computer animation forward with its cast of distinct sea creatures. The task of animating fish was a big leap of courage for the animators who at this point were comfortable already with bipedal toys, bugs, and monsters; so for inspiration, much of the staff went scuba diving and looked to numerous Disney classics, especially Pinocchio and The Little Mermaid, as points of reference. Yet animating the water was a different story: somewhere between 800 to 1,200 water splashes had to be created, and other rendering techniques had to be invented. These techniques included a new shading system called “transblurrency” which blurred objects based on their distance from the camera and the manipulation of light based on the murkiness of the water.

​As another fun piece of trivia, Dory was originally going to be a male fish until one of the writers suddenly had Ellen DeGeneres in mind for the part, then changed the script with her personality written in. Luckily, Ellen said yes to the role! However, the heart of Finding Nemo doesn’t mean the movie isn’t riddled with logic issues; the offensive treatment of Dory’s short-term memory loss is also quite distasteful. But still, Pixar’s treatment of the technology in using it to push the story forward led to one of their most influential films, one that perfectly captures the magic of exploring the ocean.

G
Comedy/Fantasy
1 hr. 40 min.

Watch it for FUN.
Watch it to feel HAPPY and SAD.