"Cars 2" Marks Pixar's 25th Anniversary

The release of “Cars 2,” Pixar Animation Studio’s 12th full-length animated feature, coincides with the 25th anniversary of the celebrated studio. With 12 incredible films and a wide variety of innovative and imaginative shorts and commercials over the course of 25 years, Pixar had an enviable and unmatched track record at the box office, revolutionized the way movies are made and entertained audiences all over the world.

“I just can’t believe it’s been 25 years and we’ve completed our 12th movie,” says Oscar-winning fillmaker John Lasseter, the creative leader of Pixar since its inception and chief creative officer Walt Disney Studios.

“It’s kind of neat — ‘Cars’ came out on the 20th anniversary, and ‘Cars 2’ is coming out on the 25th. But I’m very, very proud of Pixar — very proud of all our films and all the characters,” adds Lasseter. “What means the most to me are the people — all the families, all the moviegoers that we’ve entertained. That is why we do what we do, pure and simple. It’s about making the highest-quality films. Not just animated films, but films that truly, deeply entertain audiences of all ages, of all genders, of all nationalities. That’s what we set out to do. We just make movies, the kind of movies we like to watch.”

Pixar has come a long way since its 1986 beginning, when Steve Jobs purchased the computer-graphics division of Lucasfilm Ltd. for $10 million and the new studio was christened “Pixar.” Under the guidance of Ed Catmull, John Lasseter and an incredibly talented group of storytellers, animators and technical geniuses, the studio continues to raise the bar for great filmmaking.

The studio's roster of full-length animation features have redefined the genre, and have remained everyone's all-time favorites: “Toy Story” (1995), “A Bug's Life” (1998), “Toy Story 2” (1999), “Monster's Inc.” (2001), “Finding Nemo” (2003), “The Incredibles” (2004), “Cars” (2006), “Ratatouille” (2007), “WALL-E” (2008), “Up” (2009) and “Toy Story 3” (2010). Six of these films have won the coveted Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.

The global love affair with Pixar films continues, and “Cars 2” represents one of Pixar’s proudest achievements to date. In the film, star racecar Lightning McQueen (voice of Owen Wilson) and the incomparable tow truck Mater (voice of Larry the Cable Guy) take their friendship to exciting new places when they head overseas to compete in the first-ever World Grand Prix to determine the world’s fastest car.

John Lasseter returns to the driver’s seat as director of this latest “Cars” adventure. The film is co-directed by Brad Lewis (producer of Oscar®-winning “Ratatouille”), who spearheaded the intense research and initial story development until Lasseter was able to slip back into the director’s chair.

“Cars 2” is presented where available in Disney Digital 3D™ and IMAX 3D and uses the latest technical advances to maximum advantage in giving audiences a front-row seat (as well as a car’s eye view) for all the racing action, and stunning global settings. Pixar’s phenomenal technical team also takes the medium to exciting new heights, utilizing state-of-the-art tools for modeling, lighting, shading and rendering.

Opening soon across the Philippines, “Cars 2” is distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures International through Columbia Pictures.