How Pixar makes us cry with music - Jemina


Pixar movies do a good job at breaking my heart again and again. The best example is the opening scene of Up. The scene is less then 5 minutes long but it really hits the spot without any dialogue or anything. It could easily be a stand alone short animation because it tells the whole story of their love and their lives, though it would be pretty depressing to just leave it there when Ellie dies.


After todays lesson about sound in films, I looked at the scene differently and tried to understand what makes it so heart wrenching. In the background of the montage we hear a really simple piano song that will be used as the Ellie song during the film. In the montage we associate that music with the love they shared and most importantly the inspiring effect Ellie had on Carl. So even though the scene is sad and Carl is left to continue without Ellie, during the film they use the song in sad scenes, but in a way that shows Ellie still having a strong positive impact in Carls life. So it works as a contrast with the video to bring out more complex emotions then just feeling sad. 

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