To infinity and beyond!
RT's Laura Rutkowski pays a visit to London's Mundo Pixar Experience
Jack Barnes / Radio Times
- Laura Rutkowski
Ever wanted to play with Andy’s toys from Toy Story, join Mike and Sulley on the Monsters, Inc Scare Floor, or pose with Lightning McQueen from Cars? Now you can, at London’s Mundo Pixar Experience, an exhibition that has already been to Brazil, Mexico, Spain and Belgium, and features more than 25 character sculptures from Pixar’s enchanting worlds, spread across 14 sets re-created from its movies.
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This year sees the animation studio celebrate its 40th anniversary. “No one knew how iconic Pixar would be,” says creative director of franchise Jay Ward, who has seen people become emotional in the immersive environment. Swinging my feet from a giant chair, I feel like a kid again. It’s pure Pixar magic.
Jack Barnes / Radio Times
Sunnyside up
The Sunnyside Daycare room from Toy Story 3 was specially built for the London show. “Some of the drawings on the wall have been done by the kids of people working on the exhibition,” explains Jay Ward, Pixar’s creative director of franchise.
A real Buzz
“You can say Buzz Lightyear or Woody the Sheriff anywhere around the world and people know them,” says Jay Ward. “Visiting them in Andy’s room, as Laura is doing here, is one of people’s favourites. It’s that delight of feeling like a child again — and you’re the scale of a toy. You can’t reach the doorknob.”
Jack Barnes / Radio Times
Scary monsters and super creeps
Monsters, Inc was the first film Jay Ward worked on, as a production assistant in the art department. “I love Mike and Sulley,” says Ward, whose name was given to one of the scarers — Pete “Claws” Ward. “Initially, it was [human girl] Boo in front of her door, but now you can actually open her door, and another one, and look inside.”
All revved up
“Little kids get freaked out about Lightning McQueen. I love that people lose it in a good way,” says Ward, who was creative director of the Cars franchise. “We also have Mater [a tow truck]. He’s so big that he had to come in first and have the room built around him.”
Jack Barnes / Radio Times
The magic of Mexico
In some rooms, smells are used to evoke emotions. For Coco, it’s a floral scent, which is “calming and relaxing when you go to the Land of the Dead,” says Ward. “In Mexico City, we didn’t have a Coco room; that film is a love letter to Mexico, so we added two rooms with lots of detail, like the beautiful ofrenda [home altar].”
Jack Barnes / Radio Times
Up, up and away!
“We start the exhibition with Up — you’re off on an adventure,” explains Ward. “You go inside the house, meet Carl [above] and fly away; outside the windows the clouds are moving. Everything in the room is in the film, even the jar of coins Carl and his wife Ellie saved for their trip. You can sit in their chairs.”
Jack Barnes / Radio Times
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Mundo Pixar Experience is now open in London’s Wembley Park. Tickets are available at MundoPixar.com
Authors
Laura Rutkowski
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