'The Science Behind Pixar' Exhibit To Open At Boston Museum Of Science
BOSTON (CBS) -- "The Science Behind Pixar" exhibit at the Boston Museum of Science delves into what really goes on behind the scenes to make 20 years of captivating characters and crowd-pleasing movies.
In that time, Pixar has released 15 movies including their first release, "Toy Story," and other popular titles such as "Finding Nemo," "The Incredibles," and "Up." The company's latest animated film is "Inside Out."
Thomas Porter, senior vice president of production at Pixar, says the pace of technology is constantly pushing them ahead.
"If you just look at the computing power that Pixar had, I worked on 'Toy Story' and if you compared the computers we had on 'Toy Story' to all the computers we have today, it's a difference of 3,600 times more powerful," he said.
Porter says the ability to mimic real life continues to improve.
"If you look at the humans in 'Toy Story' compared to the humans in 'Inside Out,' you can see a difference," he told WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Karen Twomey. "We've gotten better."
The eight-section exhibit has more than 40 interactive elements and features the science, technology, engineering, and math concepts used by artists and computer scientists who work on Pixar films, according to the Boston Museum of Science website.
When asked if he worries about the company running out of ideas for movies, Porter said "The directors we have at Pixar, and the production designers, are just pushing all boundaries."
"That's been the whole history of the place from 'Toy Story' on up," he continued. "With each of these films, it's a new set of challenges. With 'Inside Out,' you go to that film and you see the joy and the other emotions have sort of sparkles...they are not rigid surfaces. So, there is a lot of sophisticated effects and lighting that has gone into that."
Just because the company has advanced technology, Porter says do not think this means Pixar can just churn out movies easily.
"They commonly take four, five, six years to produce," he said.
The exhibit opens on Sunday.
WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Karen Twomey reports: