By Teresa Cerojano
MANILA, Philippines (AP) --The Filipino-American co-director of the box-office hit "Inside Out" says it's a dream come true for him to be sharing with Filipinos the animated film he helped create.
"It's kind of a surreal experience because I just watched movies here growing up," said Ronnie del Carmen, a former advertising art director who migrated to the U.S. in 1989 at age 29. He said he loved movies but never expected to be doing films.
He joined Pixar in 2000, and before that worked as story board artist for "Batman: The Animated Series" and for DreamWorks as a story supervisor.
"It's an amazing experience because I'm not just coming home, there's a movie I helped make that's opening here," he said. "It's a dream come true."
He and director Peter Docter spoke to journalists Friday in Manila, the last leg of their Asian tour to promote "Inside Out." The movie that opens in the Philippines on Aug. 19 has earned $630 million at the box office so far.
The two directors, who also collaborated on "Up" with Del Carmen as story supervisor, said they drew from some of their childhood experiences as well as their children's for the movie they also co-wrote.
Docter said it was a challenge to create characters to illustrate the emotions and gaggle of voices in the mind of 11-year-old Riley, who moves with her family from the Minnesota of her childhood to a run-down town house in San Francisco.
Sadness begins creeping in Riley's core memories, where bubbly Joy earlier reigned supreme. Anger, Fear and Disgust complete the five emotions in the "headquarters" of her mind.
Docter said they had to consult psychologists and had to pare to five what some experts claim to be as many as 27 emotions. They also had to find the right look for each emotion to remind filmgoers that the characters are the personification of feelings and are not little people.
"I think it's simultaneously the most sort of realistic film we've ever done and completely fantasy at the same time," Docter said. They used San Francisco and Minnesota as settings aside from Riley's mind.
He said it was a real challenge "because we decided to set it not in the brain but in the mind, so it's not blood vessels … its consciousness, personality, so we talk about these very abstract things." They also used moving as a metaphor for growing up, he added.
Del Carmen said in the end it's a movie about family, not just Riley and her emotions.
Mike Pierantozzi joins Movers+Shakers as exec creative director
Creative agency Movers+Shakers has appointed Mike Pierantozzi as executive creative director. In this new role, he will help guide the creative direction of Movers+Shakersโ socially-native campaigns. Pierantozzi will report to co-founder and chief creative officer Geoffrey Goldberg.
With nearly two decades of experience as a copywriter, creative director, and multi-platform storyteller, Pierantozzi brings a wealth of knowledge from his work with major brands including Kraft, Unilever, IBM, and Walmart. He has led the creation of award-winning campaigns for agencies like Red Tettemer, Ogilvy, The Brooklyn Brothers, TAXI, Saatchi & Saatchi, and most recently, Vayner, where he spearheaded culturally iconic work for Planters including โDeath of Mr. Peanut.โ He led the National Down Syndrome Society and Luvs account, whose โFirst Kid. Second Kidโ campaign was awarded by the Effies, ADC, Clios and LIAs.
Outside of the office, Pierantozzi practices what he teaches brands. Heโs gone viral multiple times on his own TikTok account, featuring comedic interactions with his son and a trombone. Heโs accumulated 15K followers on TikTok.
โMike brings a rare and awesome combination of deep social and platform experience, a keen eye for excellent storytelling, and a humble and kind approach to leadership,โ said Goldberg. โMikeโs got a knack for turning brand stories into cultural movements, making him the perfect fit for Movers+Shakers. Heโs got the kind of bold vision and attention to culture that fits perfectly with our mission to push creative boundaries and drive industry firsts. Plus, as a creator himself he has the innate ability to make people stop, laugh, and share--which is exactly what weโre about.โ
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