Pixar’s next animated short Lava will have it’s world premiere at Hiroshima International Animation Festival in Japan. Pixar released a new image from the animated short film in advance of the film festival. Woven together into a musical love story, Lava tells the tale of a volcano, Uku, who is looking for love among the ocean waters surrounding the Hawaiian islands.
That’s Uku in the image above. He looks wise, lovable, and powerful. Perfect for a volcano. We’re also told that some new animation techniques are allowing for very realistic animation of plants and animals in the film. Hard to tell from the preview image.
Director James Murphy recently spoke about the inspiration for the animated short. He was honeymooning in Hawaii some twenty years ago and was so taken with Hawaiian culture that he learned to play the ukulele. Later, he wrote the song that would be the basis for Lava’s story.
Lava will debut in front of Pixar’s upcoming feature, Inside Out, on June 19, 2015. The song James composed will be performed by Hawaiian recording artists Kuana Torres Kahele and Napua Greig.
Previously: First Details on Pixar’s next animated short released.