| Luxo Jr. | |
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Poster for Luxo Jr. |
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| Directed by | John Lasseter |
| Produced by | John Lasseter Bill Reeves |
| Written by | John Lasseter |
| Music by | Chick Corea |
| Distributed by | Pixar Animation Studios (SIGGRAPH) Buena Vista Distribution (with Toy Story 2) |
| Release date(s) | August 17, 1986 (SIGGRAPH) November 24, 1999 (with Toy Story 2) |
| Running time | 2 min 12 sec (Original Version) 2 min 18 sec (Toy Story 2 Version) |
| Country | United States |
Luxo Jr. is the first film produced in 1986 by Pixar Animation Studios, following its establishment as an independent film studio. It is a computer-animated short film (two and a half minutes, including credits), demonstrating the kind of things the newly-established company was capable of producing. It was the first Pixar short to release within a Pixar film.
It is the source of the small hopping desk lamp included in Pixar's corporate logo. In a subsequent re-release after Pixar became popular, a pretext was added to the film reading, "In 1986 Pixar produced its first film. This is why we have a hopping lamp in our logo."[1]
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The only characters are two Anglepoise desk lamps, one large and one small, inspired by a Luxo brand task-light on John Lasseter's desk (hence the title). Luxo Jr. (small) and a bigger lamp are playing with a small inflated rubber ball, chasing it and trying to balance on it, as Luxo (large) reacts to these antics. The ball eventually deflates due to Luxo Jr. jumping on it; Luxo Jr. is admonished by Luxo, who then finds Luxo Jr. playing with an even larger ball, as Luxo just wonders.[2]
On the technical level, the film demonstrates the use of shadow maps to simulate the shifting light and shadow given by the animated lamps.[3] The lights and the color surfaces of all the objects are calculated, each using a RenderMan surface shader, not surface textures.[3] The articulation of "limbs" is carefully coordinated, and power cords trail believably behind the moving lamps.[3] On the cinematic level, it demonstrates a simple and entertaining story, including effectively expressive individual characters.[4] The music that plays during the short is Chick Corea's song "The Game Maker" by his Akoustic Band.
It was Pixar's first animation after Ed Catmull and John Lasseter left ILM's computer division. Lasseter's aim was to finish the short film for SIGGRAPH, an annual computer technology exhibition attended by thousands of industry professionals. Catmull and Lasseter worked around the clock, and Lasseter even took a sleeping bag into work and slept under his desk,[5] ready to work early the next morning. The commitment paid off, and it was finished in time to be shown at SIGGRAPH. Before Luxo Jr. finished playing at SIGGRAPH, the crowd had already risen in applause.[6]
"Luxo Jr. sent shock waves through the entire industry – to all corners of computer and traditional animation. At that time, most traditional artists were afraid of the computer. They did not realize that the computer was merely a different tool in the artist's kit but instead perceived it as a type of automation that might endanger their jobs. Luckily, this attitude changed dramatically in the early '80s with the use of personal computers in the home. The release of our Luxo Jr. ... reinforced this opinion turnaround within the professional community.” –Edwin Catmull, Computer Animation: A Whole New World, 1998.
In 1986, Luxo Jr. received an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Short Film. It was the first CGI film nominated for an Academy Award.[1] Spinoffs of the short called "Surprise", "Light & Heavy", "Up and Down", and "Front and Back" have appeared on Sesame Street, which are now available on the Pixar Short Films Collection – Volume 1 though the original narrative track is not included.
Luxo Jr., without the cord, now serves as the mascot for Pixar Animation Studios, appearing in its production logo before and after every feature film (except for Toy Story, where he only appears after the film). He hops in from the right, stops next to the "I" in "PIXAR", and jumps on it until he has completely squashed it down, as he did to the rubber ball in the short. He then looks around and angles his "head" toward the camera; at this point, all the light typically fades to black except for his head, which goes out with a click after a moment. Occasionally, the head fades in time with the light, but this is exceptional.
Three variations of this sequence were created for the films Cars, WALL-E, and Cars 2 in three ways. For Cars, the message "Celebrating 20 Years" appeared as the background faded out, with Luxo Jr.'s head used as the zero. Pixar was founded in 1986; this film, released in 2006, marked their 20th anniversary. In a teaser trailer for WALL-E, his bulb burns out after he has squashed the "I" down. WALL-E rolls in from the right, changes the bulb to an energy-efficient fluorescent bulb, and pats Luxo Jr. on the head before going back the way he came. However, he trips over the "R" in PIXAR as he goes, so he stops and positions his body to take its place, after which Luxo Jr. looks at the camera. WALL-E slightly peeks out, and the lights go out normally. This is also shown after the end credits of the film, also concluding with a "BnL" jingle and logo. On the Logo Reveal for Cars 2, when Luxo Jr. looks up, he shoots a laser out of his light, and then disappears.
A new variant of the sequence, optimized for 3-D projection, was first played with the 3D version of Up. The same animation as the regular logo plays as normal. However, the camera pans to the right while zooming out from the "P" in the PIXAR letters; therefore Luxo Jr is seen approaching from the centre when he's first seen.
Another Cars variation was created for the 2011 film Cars 2, with the message "Celebrating 25 Years" appearing as the background faded out. The C appeared in the same position as Luxo Jr.'s head, which subsequently faded away to leave only the text, again celebrating Pixar's anniversary.
| Preceded by The Adventures of André and Wally B. |
Pixar Animation Studios short films 1986 |
Succeeded by Red's Dream |
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