The Top 10 Pixar Movies

Inside Out is a 2015 American 3D computer-animated comedy-drama adventure film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The film was directed by Pete Docter and co-directed by Ronnie del Carmen, with a screenplay written by Docter, Meg LeFauve and Josh Cooley, adapted from a story by Docter and del Carmen. The film is set in the mind of a young girl named Riley Andersen (Kaitlyn Dias), where five personified emotions—Joy (Amy Poehler), Sadness (Phyllis Smith), Anger (Lewis Black), Fear (Bill Hader) and Disgust (Mindy Kaling)—try to lead her through life as her parents (Diane Lane and Kyle MacLachlan) move from Minnesota to San Francisco, and she has to adjust to her new surroundings.

Docter first began developing Inside Out in 2009, after noticing changes in his daughter's personality as she grew older. The film's producers consulted numerous psychologists including Dacher Keltner from the University of California, Berkeley, who helped revise the story by emphasizing the neuropsychological findings that human emotions affect interpersonal relationships and can be significantly moderated by them.

After premiering at the 68th Cannes Film Festival in May 2015, Inside Out was released in North America on June 19, 2015, accompanied by the short film Lava. Critics praised the film's concept, screenplay, subject matter, Michael Giacchino's musical score and the vocal performances, particularly of Poehler, Smith, and Richard Kind. The film grossed $90.4 million in its first weekend, making it the highest opening for an original title at the time. It accumulated over $857 million in worldwide box office revenue.[5] The film received several awards, including a BAFTA Award, Golden Globe Award, Critics' Choice Award, Annie Award, Satellite Award, and Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. In 2016, the film was named as the 41st best film of the 21st century, from a poll of 177 film critics from around the world.

Up is a 2009 American 3D computer-animated comedy-drama adventure film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. Directed by Pete Docter, the film centers on an elderly widower named Carl Fredricksen (Ed Asner) and an earnest young "Wilderness Explorer" (a fictional youth group similar to the Boy Scouts) named Russell (Jordan Nagai). By tying thousands of balloons to his home, 78-year-old Carl sets out to fulfill his dream to see the wilds of South America and complete a promise made to his late wife, Ellie. The film was co-directed by Bob Peterson, with music composed by Michael Giacchino.

Docter began working on the story in 2004, which was based on fantasies of escaping from life when it becomes too irritating. He and eleven other Pixar artists spent three days in Venezuela gathering research and inspiration. The designs of the characters were caricatured and stylized considerably, and animators were challenged with creating realistic cloth. The floating house is attached by a varying number between 10,000 and 20,000 balloons in the film's sequences. Up was Pixar's first film to be presented in Disney Digital 3-D.

Up was released on May 29, 2009, and opened the 2009 Cannes Film Festival, becoming the first animated and 3D film to do so. The film became a great financial success, accumulating over $735 million in its theatrical release. Up received universal acclaim, with most reviewers commending the humor and heart of the film. Edward Asner was praised for his portrayal of Carl, and a montage of Carl and his wife Ellie aging together was widely lauded. The film received five Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, making it the second animated film in history to receive such a nomination, following Beauty and the Beast (1991).

WALL-E (stylized with an interpunct as WALL·E) is a 2008 American computer-animated dystopian comic science fiction comedy film directed and co-written by Andrew Stanton, produced by Jim Morris, and co-written by Jim Reardon. It stars the voices of Ben Burtt, Elissa Knight, Jeff Garlin, Fred Willard, John Ratzenberger, Kathy Najimy, Sigourney Weaver and the MacInTalk system. It was produced by Pixar Animation Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures, and was the overall ninth feature film produced by the company.

After directing Finding Nemo, Stanton felt Pixar had created believable simulations of underwater physics and was willing to direct a film set largely in space. WALL-E has minimal dialogue in its early sequences; many of the characters do not have voices, but instead communicate with body language and robotic sounds designed by Ben Burtt. The film criticizes consumerism, corporatism, nostalgia, waste management, human environmental impact and concerns, obesity, and global catastrophic risk. It is also Pixar's first animated film with segments featuring live-action characters. Following Pixar tradition, WALL-E was paired with a short film titled Presto for its theatrical release.

WALL-E was released in the United States and Canada on June 27, 2008, by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. It was an instant blockbuster, grossing $533.3 million worldwide over a $180 million budget, receiving overwhelming acclaim from critics and winning the 2008 Golden Globe Award for Best Animated Feature Film, the 2009 Hugo Award for Best Long Form Dramatic Presentation, the final Nebula Award for Best Script, the Saturn Award for Best Animated Film and the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature with five nominations. The film also topped Time's "Best Movies of the Decade".

Ratatouille is a 2007 American computer-animated comedy film produced by Pixar and released by Buena Vista Pictures Distribution. It is the eighth film produced by Pixar and was co-written and directed by Brad Bird, who took over from Jan Pinkava in 2005. The title refers to a French dish, "ratatouille", which is served at the end of the film and is also a play on words about the species of the main character. The film stars the voices of Patton Oswalt as Remy, an anthropomorphic rat who is interested in cooking; Lou Romano as Linguini, a young garbage boy who befriends Remy; Ian Holm as Skinner, the head chef of Auguste Gusteau's restaurant; Janeane Garofalo as Colette, a rôtisseur at Gusteau's restaurant; Peter O'Toole as Anton Ego, a restaurant critic; Brian Dennehy as Django, Remy's father and leader of his clan; Peter Sohn as Emile, Remy's older brother; and Brad Garrett as Auguste Gusteau, a recently deceased chef. The plot follows Remy, who dreams of becoming a chef and tries to achieve his goal by forming an alliance with a Parisian restaurant's garbage boy.

Development of Ratatouille began in 2000 when Pinkava wrote the original concepts of the film. In 2005, Bird was approached to direct the film and revise the story. Bird and some of the film's crew members also visited Paris for inspiration. To create the food animation used in the film, the crew consulted chefs from both France and the United States. Bird also interned at Thomas Keller's French Laundry restaurant, where Keller developed the confit byaldi, a dish used in the film.

Ratatouille premiered on June 22, 2007, at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles, California, with its general release June 29, 2007, in the United States. The film grossed US$620.7 million at the box office and received universal acclaim. The film later won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, among other honors.

Cars is a 2006 American computer-animated comedy-adventure film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. Directed and co-written by John Lasseter, it is Pixar's final independently-produced motion picture before its purchase by Disney. Set in a world populated entirely by anthropomorphic cars and other vehicles, the film stars the voices of Owen Wilson, Paul Newman (in his final acting role), Bonnie Hunt, Larry the Cable Guy, Tony Shalhoub, Cheech Marin, Michael Wallis, George Carlin, Paul Dooley, Jenifer Lewis, Guido Quaroni, Michael Keaton, Katherine Helmond and John Ratzenberger. Race car drivers Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Mario Andretti, Michael Schumacher and car enthusiast Jay Leno (as "Jay Limo") voice themselves.

Cars premiered on May 26, 2006 at Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina, and was theatrically released on June 9, 2006 to mostly positive reviews from critics. It was nominated for two Academy Awards including Best Animated Feature, and won the Golden Globe Award for Best Animated Feature Film. The film was released on DVD on November 7, 2006 and on Blu-ray in 2007. The film was accompanied by the short One Man Band for its theatrical and home media releases. Merchandise based on the film (including scale models of several of the cars) broke records for retail sales of merchandise based on a Disney/Pixar film, bringing an estimated $10 billion for 5 years after the film's release.[3] The film was dedicated to Joe Ranft, who was killed in a car accident during the film's production.

A sequel, titled Cars 2, was released on June 24, 2011, and a spin-off film titled Planes, produced by Disney Toon Studios, was released on August 9, 2013, which was followed by its own sequel, Planes: Fire & Rescue, released on July 18, 2014. A series of short animated films titled Cars Toons debuted in 2008 on Disney Channel and Disney XD. A third film in the franchise, Cars 3, is scheduled for release on June 16, 2017.

The Incredibles is a 2004 American computer-animated superhero film written and directed by Brad Bird, produced by Pixar Animation Studios, and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The film follows a family of superheroes who is forced to hide their powers and live a quiet suburban life. Mr. Incredible's desire to help people draws the entire family into a battle with his longtime enemy Syndrome, who was once his fan and now plots to wipe out every single superhuman being on Earth with his killer robot.

Bird, who was Pixar's first outside director, developed the film as an extension of 1960s comic books and spy films from his boyhood and personal family life. He pitched the film to Pixar after the box office disappointment of his first feature, The Iron Giant (1999), and carried over much of its staff to develop The Incredibles. The animation team was tasked with animating an all-human cast, which required creating new technology to animate detailed human anatomy, clothing and realistic skin and hair. Michael Giacchino composed the film's orchestral score.

The film premiered on October 27, 2004, at the BFI London Film Festival and had its general release in the United States on November 5, 2004. The film performed well at the box office, grossing $633 million worldwide during its original theatrical run. The Incredibles was met with high critical acclaim, garnering high marks from professional critics, and provoking commentary on its themes. The film received the 2004 Annie Award for Best Animated Feature, along with two Academy Awards. It became the first entirely animated film to win the prestigious Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation.

A sequel, The Incredibles 2, is scheduled for release on June 15, 2018.

Finding Nemo is a 2003 American computer-animated comedy-drama adventure film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. Written and directed by Andrew Stanton with co-direction by Lee Unkrich, the film stars the voices of Albert Brooks, Ellen DeGeneres, Alexander Gould, and Willem Dafoe. It tells the story of the overprotective Ocellaris clownfish named Marlin who, along with a regal blue tang named Dory, searches for his abducted son Nemo all the way to Sydney Harbour. Along the way, Marlin learns to take risks and comes to terms with Nemo taking care of himself.

Finding Nemo was released on May 30, 2003, and has received universal critical acclaim since. The film won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, and was nominated in three more categories, including Best Original Screenplay. Finding Nemo became the highest-grossing animated film at the time and was the second highest-grossing film of 2003, earning a total of $871 million worldwide by the end of its initial theatrical run.

The film is the best-selling DVD title of all time, with over 40 million copies sold as of 2006, and was the highest-grossing G-rated film of all time before Pixar's own Toy Story 3 overtook it. The film was re-released in 3D in 2012. In 2008, the American Film Institute named it the 10th greatest animated film ever made as part of their 10 Top 10 lists. A sequel, Finding Dory, was released on June 17, 2016 in the United States.

Monsters, Inc. is a 2001 American computer-animated comedy film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. Featuring the voices of John Goodman, Billy Crystal, Steve Buscemi, James Coburn, and Jennifer Tilly, the film was directed by Pete Docter as his directorial debut, co-directed by Lee Unkrich and David Silverman, and executive produced by John Lasseter and Andrew Stanton. The film centers on two monsters employed at the titular corporation Monsters, Inc.; top scarer James P. "Sulley" Sullivan (John Goodman) and his one-eyed partner and best friend Mike Wazowski (Billy Crystal). Monsters, Inc. employees generate their city's power by targeting and scaring children, but they are themselves afraid that the children may contaminate them; when one child enters Monstropolis, Mike and Sulley must return her.

Docter began developing the film in 1996, and wrote the story with Jill Culton, Jeff Pidgeon, and Ralph Eggleston. Fellow Pixar director Andrew Stanton wrote the screenplay with screenwriter Daniel Gerson. The characters went through many incarnations over the film's five-year production process. The technical team and animators found new ways to render fur and cloth realistically for the film. Randy Newman, who composed the music for Pixar's three prior films, returned to compose its fourth.

Monsters, Inc. was praised by critics and proved to be a major box office success from its release on November 2, 2001, generating over $577 million worldwide. Monsters, Inc. saw a 3D re-release in theaters on December 19, 2012. 12 years later, a prequel, Monsters University, directed by Dan Scanlon, was released on June 21, 2013.

A Bug's Life is a 1998 American computer-animated comedy adventure film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. Directed by John Lasseter and Andrew Stanton, the film involves a misfit ant named Flik that is looking for "tough warriors" to save his colony from greedy grasshoppers, only to recruit a group of bugs that turn out to be an inept circus troupe. Randy Newman composed the music for the film, which stars the voices of Dave Foley, Kevin Spacey, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Hayden Panettiere, Phyllis Diller, Richard Kind, David Hyde Pierce, Joe Ranft, Denis Leary, John Ratzenberger, Jonathan Harris, Madeline Kahn, Bonnie Hunt, Mike McShane and Brad Garrett.

The film is inspired by Aesop's fable The Ant and the Grasshopper. Production began shortly after the release of Toy Story in 1995. The screenplay was penned by Stanton and comedy writers Donald McEnery and Bob Shaw. The ants in the film were redesigned to be more appealing, and Pixar's animation unit employed new technical innovations in computer animation. During production, the filmmakers became embroiled in a public feud with DreamWorks Animation due to their similar film Antz, which was released the same year.

The film was released to theaters on November 25, 1998, and was a box office success, surpassing competition, and grossing $363 million in receipts. It received positive reviews from film critics, who commended the storyline and animation, while others criticized it by comparing it to Antz. The film has been released multiple times on home video.

Toy Story is a 1995 American computer-animated buddy comedy adventure film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It was directed by John Lasseter in his directorial debut, Toy Story was the first feature-length computer-animated film and the first theatrical film produced by Pixar.

Taking place in a world where anthropomorphic toys pretend to be lifeless whenever humans are present, the film's plot focuses on the relationship between Woody, an old-fashioned pullstring cowboy doll (voiced by Tom Hanks), and Buzz Lightyear, an astronaut action figure (voiced by Tim Allen), as they evolve from rivals competing for the affections of Andy, their owner, to friends who work together to be reunited with Andy as his family prepares to move to a new home. The screenplay was written by Joss Whedon, Andrew Stanton, Joel Cohen and Alec Sokolow, based on a story by Lasseter, Pete Docter, Stanton and Joe Ranft. The film features music by Randy Newman, and was executive-produced by Steve Jobs and Edwin Catmull.

Pixar, which produced short animated films to promote their computers, was approached by Disney to produce a computer-animated feature after the success of their short film Tin Toy (1988), which is told from a small toy's perspective. Lasseter, Stanton and Docter wrote early story treatments which were thrown out by Disney, who pushed for a more edgy film. After disastrous story reels, production was halted and the script was re-written, better reflecting the tone and theme Pixar desired: that "toys deeply want children to play with them, and that this desire drives their hopes, fears, and actions". The studio, then consisting of a relatively small number of employees, produced the film under minor financial constraints.

Released in theaters on November 22, 1995, Toy Story was the highest-grossing film on its opening weekend and earned over $373 million worldwide. The film was widely acclaimed by critics, who praised the animation's technical innovation, the wit and thematic sophistication of the screenplay, and the performances of Hanks and Allen. It is now considered by many critics to be one of the best animated films ever made.[10] The film received three Academy Award nominations, including Best Original Screenplay, Best Original Score, and Best Original Song for "You've Got a Friend in Me", as well as winning a Special Achievement Academy Award. It was inducted into the National Film Registry as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" in 2005, its first year of eligibility.

In addition to home media releases and theatrical re-releases, Toy Story-inspired material has run the gamut from toys, video games, theme park attractions, spin-offs, merchandise, and two sequels—Toy Story 2 (1999) and Toy Story 3 (2010)—both of which also garnered massive commercial success and critical acclaim, with a third sequel, Toy Story 4, slated for a 2019 release.