The publicity train for Brave keeps on chugging, which is a good thing for those who cannot wait to find out more about Pixar’s latest animated film. Yesterday, Disney/Pixar released a 2 1/2 minute clip from Brave, which showed us how fierce Merida can be with her bow and her attitude. Today, TIME has published an article going behind the scenes of the film, with pictures of the research process and a storyboard that goes along with the clip unveiled yesterday. Check out the images after the jump!
Crew Visiting Scotland
Director Mark Andrews Directs Swordfighting
Producer Katherine Sarafian
Storyboard Of Merida's Determination
Brenda Chapman (Director of The Prince of Egypt, Story Supervisor on The Lion King) had been working on the idea for years and presented it to Pixar, who then began work on the film in 2008. From that point on, it has been in production for about four years. To perform research, crew members visited Scotland and studied the culture and beautiful landscapes. As we know, Pixar holds nothing back when performing research, as some crew members visited a garbage dump, daycare centers, and a prison for Toy Story 3 research. For the upcoming Monsters University, the crew took to college campuses to create an authentic college atmosphere.
For Brave, as seen above, Pixar employees also studied the art of sword fighting and archery. Want to know how well their in-depth analysis of archery paid off? Go and watch the arrow majestically bend around the bow at the end of the clip released yesterday. Amazing, to say the least.
TIME also has a few more great pictures of the behind-the-scenes process of Brave, which you can view here.
Since ancient times, stories of epic battles and mystical legends have been passed through the generations across the rugged and mysterious Highlands of Scotland. In “Brave,” a new tale joins the lore when the courageous Merida (voice of Kelly Macdonald) confronts tradition, destiny and the fiercest of beasts.
Merida is a skilled archer and impetuous daughter of King Fergus (voice of Billy Connolly) and Queen Elinor (voice of Emma Thompson). Determined to carve her own path in life, Merida defies an age-old custom sacred to the uproarious lords of the land: massive Lord MacGuffin (voice of Kevin McKidd), surly Lord Macintosh (voice of Craig Ferguson) and cantankerous Lord Dingwall (voice of Robbie Coltrane). Merida’s actions inadvertently unleash chaos and fury in the kingdom, and when she turns to an eccentric old Witch (voice of Julie Walters) for help, she is granted an ill-fated wish. The ensuing peril forces Merida to discover the meaning of true bravery in order to undo a beastly curse before it’s too late.
Directed by Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman, and produced by Katherine Sarafian, “Brave” is a grand adventure full of heart, memorable characters and the signature Pixar humor enjoyed by audiences of all ages. The film takes aim at theaters on June 22, 2012, and will be presented in Disney Digital 3D™ in select theaters.
