Adrian Molina & Matthew Aldrich: Cracking the Story of Pixar’s ‘Coco’ | ANIMATIONWorld
AnimationWorld Magazine — December 19, 2017
Adrian Molina & Matthew Aldrich: Cracking the Story of Pixar’s ‘Coco’
A Day of the Dead-themed musical extravaganza directed by Lee Unkrich (Toy Story 3) alongside writer and co-director Adrian Molina (story artist, Monsters University, Toy Story 3) and producer Darla K. Anderson (Monsters Inc., Toy Story 3), Coco is Pixar’s 19th animated feature.
The multi-generational story about the power of family relationships introduces Miguel (voiced by Anthony Gonzalez), who lives in a lively Mexican village but comes from a family of shoemakers that may be the town’s only music-hating household. For generations, the Riveras have banned music because they believe they’ve been cursed by it; as their family history goes, Miguel’s great-great-grandfather abandoned his wife decades earlier to follow his own dreams of performing, leaving Imelda (Miguel’s great-great-grandmother) to take control as the matriarch of the now-thriving Rivera line and declare music dead to the family forever.
But Miguel harbors a secret desire to seize his musical moment, inspired by his favorite singer of all time, the late Ernesto de la Cruz (Benjamin Bratt). It’s only after Miguel discovers an amazing link between himself and De la Cruz that he takes action to emulate the famous singer and, in doing so, accidentally enters the Land of the Dead.
Leading this year’s Annie Award nominations with 13 nods, and shortlisted for an Oscar nomination, Coco has dazzled critics and audiences alike, racking up $450.7 million to date at the global box office. The CG-animated feature has also received two Golden Globe nominations, one each for Best Animated Film and Best Original Song in a Motion Picture.
Co-writer Matthew Aldrich joined the project in 2012, flying to Emeryville to hear an early version of the story and to brainstorm ideas. “So much about the project appealed to me,” he says, “the world, the themes, the team behind it. Like most people I admire Pixar’s films deeply, so just being invited to the campus felt like a win. As I went home to work out my take, I found myself identifying with the material on a personal level: my own family tree contains its share of gaps and mysteries, and I know how it feels to crave answers and connection.”
