Inside Out 2 will introduce Anxiety as one of Riley’s new emotions and rather appropriately, Pixar looked at Uncut Gems as a reference.
Inside Out may very well be one of the finest animated films of the last few decades and Pixar is currently busy getting a sequel, Inside Out 2, ready for release in June.
There’s a lot of pressure on Pixar and director Kelsey Mann to match Pete Docter’s brilliant first film, but the trailer looks pretty good. Adding to the hype, Polygon reports that the Safdie brothers’ Uncut Gems was one of the inspirations for Inside Out 2.
Polygon visited Pixar and not only got a good look at the upcoming sequel, but also chatted to many of the people working on it. Inside Out 2 will follow Riley as she enters her teen years and experiences a whole roster of new emotions.
Amy Poehler will once again voice Joy, while Phyllis Smith, Lewis Black, Tony Hale and Liza Lapira will voice other original emotions Sadness, Anger, Fear and Disgust respectively. Joining the voice cast are Maya Hawke, Ayo Edebiri, Adèle Exarchopoulos and Paul Walter Hauser as Anxiety, Envy, Ennui and Embarrassment.
According to Polygon, director of layout photography Adam Habib mentioned Uncut Gems to them, stating that each emotion had their own camera movements and visual language. Habib said Mann took several elements from Uncut Gems to create the effect of Anxiety on Riley.
These included using handheld camera movements, extreme deep and shallow focus, and the use of wide-angle lenses. Of course, Inside Out 2 is animated so the process involved creating the sets digitally and placing a virtual camera into them with the characters.
Considering Uncut Gems is one of the most anxiety-inducing films ever made, at least for this writer, the connection would make sense. The film followed Adam Sandler’s jeweller who makes a high stakes bet that doesn’t quite go to plan.
Inside Out 2 is due to be released on the 14th June in the UK. We look forward to seeing how much of Uncut Gems’ style we can spot in the finished film.
