CosmoCaixa delves into the science and technology behind Pixar films

The Deputy Director General of the "la Caixa" Foundation, Elisa Durán; the Director of the CosmoCaixa Science Museum, Valentí Farràs, and the Exhibition Production and Installation Manager of the Museum of Science in Boston, Peter Garland, presented "The Science of Pixar", an exhibition created by the Museum of Science in Boston and Pixar Animation Studios that is now coming to the CosmoCaixa Science Museum in what is its first stop in Spain and the second in Europe, after passing through the Experimentarium in Copenhagen.

The exhibition offers a unique look at the creation process of the films in the Pixar universe. In the exhibition, which can be seen in Barcelona until 3 September, visitors can learn STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) concepts through entertaining interactive elements.  

Art and creativity are inseparable from science and technology in computer animated films. This is the third collaboration between the "la Caixa" Foundation and Pixar Studios. In 2015, Pixar. 25 years of animation was an in-depth review of the work of this pioneering company in computer animation over its 25-year history. This was followed by Pixar. Building characters (which has toured five CaixaForum venues since 2020) focused on the visual design process of Pixar's characters that allows them to fit in with the rest of the elements of the film and the plot to be conveyed as well as possible. Now, The Science of Pixar reveals, through its eight areas, the steps in the technical process used by Pixar's artists and computer scientists.   

The aim of the new exhibition is to discover, layer by layer, in an attractive way for all audiences, the scientific, computer and mathematical concepts behind our favourite Pixar characters. The exhibition is therefore organised into eight areas, each of which explains in depth a specific step in Pixar's technical process: modelling, which creates the 3D characters; rigging, which develops the virtual bones, muscles and joints; surface and set design; animation, which brings the story to life; simulation, which provides automated movements; lighting, which achieves greater emotional impact; and rendering, which converts 3D scenes into two-dimensional images.