Pixar Launches First Original CGI Cartoon "Win Or Lose"

Pixar’s upcoming animated television series, Win or Lose, will be released on the Disney+ streaming service on December 6, 2024. Set to be Pixar's first long-form original animated series, the eight-episode series was created and directed by Michael Yates and Carrie Hobson; executive produced by Pete Docter, David Lally, and Lindsay Collins; and scored by composer Ramin Djawadi.

The series follows the Pickles, a middle-school co-ed softball team, during the week leading up to the championship game. Each 20-minute episode follows a different character on the team and shows their perspective on similar events. The series will show the teachers' and coaches' perspectives as well. What's more, each episode will have its own special visual style. The show looks to be an interesting addition to the Pixar canon.

The Development of Pixar’s Win or Lose

Pixar's first long-form animated TV series, "Win or Lose," is set to premiere this December.Photo byMax CortezonUnsplash

Pixar began developing the animated series in November 2019, soon after the launch of Disney+. During Disney's Investor Day in December 2020, the studio officially announced the new series with its creators, Yates and Hopson, jumping on board. According to the creators, the series is inspired by their conversations about different reactions to similar events that occurred while they were working on 2019's Toy Story 4.

These conversations gave them the ideas to develop a series around one particular event, with each episode showing how various characters reacted to that event. According to Docter, the series is a comedy that focuses on love and rivalry. Ultimately, the show portrays the challenges people face and win against in their everyday lives.

One reason that Pixar decided to create a television series was that they wanted to experiment with longer storytelling centered around different characters' perspective. Considering that most of their library of animated works was either short-form or long-form films or adaptations of existing properties, the longer runtime of Win or Lose gave them more creative freedom they could use to explore. Alongside its format, television offered more freedom to try things that they wouldn’t be able to do in a feature film. Ultimately, Win or Lose will be the first episodic television series that Yates and Hobson have worked on.

The Series' Animation

Gini Crus Santos and Mark C. Harris will supervise the show's animation, while Lucas Frago Pacheco, Stefan Schumaker, and Kevin Andrus are the directing animators. Brandon Kern, Brendan Beesley, and Tom Zach, who lead the show's animation team, will guide the unique styles used in each episode. Overall, the artists behind this series' animation have much experience working on feature films; surprisingly, more animators worked on this television series than any of Pixar's feature films.

The series will employ visual metaphors to distinguish each character's point-of-view; certain characters will have multiple metaphors assigned to them. For example, one character’s story may be drawn in the style of dioramas, while another may be stylized like traditional anime to visualize their perspective. As a whole, the series uses 2D animation, as the producers thought the style would work best for the story. The production team and animators also worked together to ensure that each character and their different visual perspectives aligned on screen.

Pixar's Promotion of Win or Lose

Pixar's promotion of the animated series began during Disney+ Day on November 12, 2021. That day, they revealed the series' concept art; the fans praised their first look at certain characters and the show's art style. During 2022's D23 Expo, Yates and Hobson promoted the series with another look into the show's development. On June 16, 2023, Pixar followed these up with never-before-seen footage during the Annecy International Animation Film Festival; the footage came from the series' first episode, "Vanessa: The Cool Mom." Finally, on August 9, 2024, Pixar revealed the series' official trailer.

Final Thoughts

As Pixar's first animated TV series, Win or Lose presents an exciting step forward for the animation giant. Likewise, the series' blend of longform storytelling, multiple perspectives, and distinct animation styles for each character's perspective could provide a unique experience for Pixar fans. Win or lose, fans will see how the series turns out when it premieres in December.

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Article originally written by David G.