10 Things You May Not Know About Toy Story 3

1. The Toys Go To…Taiwan?

In 2004, when tensions between Disney and Pixar were high, Michael Eisner gave the go-ahead to begin production of Toy Story 3 at a new Disney studio, Circle 7 Animation. The script began with a malfunctioning Buzz. The other toys shipped him to Taiwan, where he was built, hoping he would be fixed there. While searching on the Internet, they realized that Buzz Lightyear toys were malfunctioning all around the world, and there was actually a massive recall. Fearing Buzz’s destruction, Woody, Rex, Slinky, Mr. Potato Head, Hamm, Jessie, and Bullseye set out on a quest to rescue Buzz.

2. Friends Once Again

Thankfully, Disney and Pixar reached an agreement in January 2006 that placed Pixar chiefs Edwin Catmull and John Lasseter in charge of all Disney Animation. This led to the cancellation of the first Toy Story 3 script, with production being transferred to Pixar. A new script was written in due time, and film production began.

3. It Was a Nice Try

During the initial development stages of the film, the production team hoped they could repurpose some of the models from the first Toy Story film. Unfortunately, even though they could open the files, error messages prevented them from actually editing them. Consequently, they needed to recreate all the models from scratch.

4. Talk About Getting Your Hands Dirty!

In order to animate the junkyard scene at the end of the film, the technical team spent nearly two years developing new simulation software so that all of the chaos and disorder could be realistically rendered.

5. A Special Invitation

The usual studio practice for approaching an actor for a film is to send them a script for consideration. In this case, however, Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, and John Ratzenberger were invited to watch a test reel specially prepared with moving storyboards, prerecorded voices, sound effects, and music. The actors were invited to a theater for a screening, and upon its completion, they all signed on.

6. Totoro

Daisuke Tsutsumi, the film’s art director, is married to the niece of Hayao Miyazaki. Miyazaki wrote and directed the classic anime My Neighbor Totoro. Totoro makes a cameo appearance as one of the toys in Bonnie’s room.

7. Pixar Cameos

Flik and Mr. Ray also make cameos in Toy Story 3. You can spot them in Sunnyside Daycare when the toys first arrive.

8. That’s Quite an Honor!

Toy Story 3 was the first animated film to earn over $1 billion and win both the Academy Awards for Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song.

9. Now That’s Product Placement

You can find plenty of hidden references to other Pixar films. One can be found on Buzz Lightyear’s batteries. You’ll see that they are labeled BnL, the name of the mega-corporation in WALL-E.

10. Disney Around the World

In the scene in Andy’s room, look at the world map on the wall and see if you can see the three Post-It Notes. They are placed in the locations of three Disney resorts: Disneyland, Walt Disney World, and Hong Kong Disneyland.