Exclusive: Elemental Animators Discuss the Making of Ember’s Fire

One of the biggest stories from this year’s new releases is about how Elemental, the latest film from Pixar, went from having a shaky debut at the box office to becoming a word-of-mouth smash hit. There are many theories and opinions about why an original film from the country’s best-respected animation house succeeded, but the simplest seems to apply here: Because it’s good. Reviewing the film out of Cannes, our critic Jason Gorber called filmmaker Peter Sohn’s Elemental a worthy, satisfying tale of star-crossed lovers. But mostly, he heaped love on its impressive animation. He wrote that there was “some absolutely sublime animation at play as well, using the dynamics of flame and water in ways that—for anyone familiar with the challenges of bringing this stuff to life using the tools of polygonal manipulation—feels like magic.”

To celebrate the digital release of Elemental, Paste has an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the making of some of this “sublime animation,” where innovative techniques and increased collaboration between Pixar’s teams helped create visuals—especially fire—that looks unlike any that’s ever graced the screen. We love to get technical, and these animators get into the details.

Take a look: