Disney and Pixar have dropped the first-look trailer for one of their big 2020 releases, Soul. The film is directed by Oscar-winner Pete Docter and will land in the summer. Kemp Power co-directs. Watch the Soul teaser trailer below.
DIsney
According to Docter, the idea for the story is 23 years in the making. “It started with my son—he’s 23 now—but the instant he was born, he already had a personality,” says Docter. “Where did that come from? I thought your personality developed through your interaction with the world. And yet, it was pretty clear that we’re all born with a very unique, specific sense of who we are.”
Soul introduces Joe Gardner, voiced by Jamie Foxx, a middle-school band teacher whose true passion is playing jazz. “I think Joe is having that crisis that all artists have,” says Powers. “He’s increasingly feeling like his lifelong dream of being a jazz musician is not going to pan out and he’s asking himself ‘Why am I here? What am I meant to be doing?’ Joe personifies those questions.”
Related: First look at upcoming Disney and Pixar film Soul
The film is set in New York City—inviting filmmakers to capture everything they love about the city of dreams. “I was born and raised in New York,” says Powers. “This is the first time Pixar has gone to my hometown and I’ve been so impressed by the amount of energy that goes into making sure that everything is right. When the character’s in Queens, it looks like he’s in Queens. When he’s in Manhattan, it looks like he’s in Manhattan. It’s pretty incredible.”
Musician Jon Batiste is writing original jazz music for the film, and Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross from Nine Inch Nails, are creating an original score that will drift between the real and soul worlds.
The teaser trailer offers a taste of what’s in store for moviegoers. “I grew up with Peanuts cartoons and the Vince Guaraldi music,” says Docter. “I feel like it’s coursing through my veins and this is our version of that. Jon Batiste is a fantastic musician—he’s a historian yet is able to push the music forward, bringing all these different influences to the work. I sincerely hope that the jazz music in ‘Soul’ will inspire a whole new generation.”
The voice cast also includes Phylicia Rashad, Ahmir Questlove Thompson, and Daveed Diggs.
Watch the Soul teaser trailer below.
