Dory’s Story with Co-Director Angus MacLane & Story Supervisor Max Brace #FindingDoryEvent

Dory’s Story

By Erin

*I was invited on a press trip as a guest of Disney & PIXAR to share with you about the Finding Dory movie. All opinions are my own.*

Max Brace (Story Supervisor) and Angus MacLane (Co-Director) present at the Finding Dory Long Lead press day at the Monterey Bay Aquarium in Monterey, CA. Photo by Marc Flores. ©2016 Disney•Pixar. All Rights Reserved.

Max Brace (Story Supervisor) and Angus MacLane (Co-Director) present at the Finding Dory Long Lead press day at the Monterey Bay Aquarium in Monterey, CA. Photo by Marc Flores. ©2016 Disney•Pixar.

Back in March I was a part of a magical trip to Monterey Bay to discover how Dory’s story came to be. Story is king at Pixar Animation Studios. Whether a film revisits old friends or introduces us to some new ones, it all starts with a story that needs to be told. We had the pleasure to learn all about how Dory was developed and taken from script to storyboards to screen with Co-Director Angus MacLane and Story Supervisor Max Brace. Finding Dory, swims in theaters everywhere June 17th, 2016.

Angus MacLane, Director of Toy Toons short film Small Fry, is photographed on October 18, 2011 at Pixar Animation Studios in Emeryville, Calif. (Photo by Deborah Coleman / Pixar)

Angus MacLane at Pixar Animation Studios in Emeryville, Calif. (Photo by Deborah Coleman / Pixar).

Animator and Co-Director Angus MacLane joined Pixar Animation Studios as an animator in June 1997 whose work includes such beloved films such as Toy Story 2, Monsters Inc., The Incredibles, WALL*E, and Toy Story 3.

Max Brace is photographed on February 16, 2016 at Pixar Animation Studios in Emeryville, Calif. (Photo by Deborah Coleman / Pixar)

Max Brace at Pixar Animation Studios in Emeryville, Calif. (Photo by Deborah Coleman / Pixar)

Max Brace joined Pixar Animation Studios in July of 1996 straight out of college as a story artist on the feature film A Bugs Life. As a story supervisor, Brace leads the story team and helps directors realize their vision for the story. In addition, he casts story artists for specific sequences, reviews artists’ work, both individually and with the director, and guides the artists to understand and execute the director’s vision.

FINDING DORY – Lighting Exploration Concept Art by Visual Consultant Sharon Calahan. ©2016 Disney•Pixar. All Rights Reserved.

FINDING DORY – Lighting Exploration Concept Art by Visual Consultant Sharon Calahan. ©2016 Disney•Pixar

What is a Storyboard?

Basically it is a group of rough sketches on paper used to indicate an idea. Storyboards are very tiny and not too detailed. It is just enough information for the other animators, artists, actors, and writers to get a feel for the direction they want the story to go in.  This process is gone through many times until it is perfect. After completion, the storyboard goes to the directors where they will walk through the scene together and discuss any corrections or improvements that need to be made. The storyboards are reviewed by the “Brain Trust” and studio every 4 months. These storyboards create the overall blueprint for the final film. For Finding Dory, 103,639 storyboards were generated to get Dory’s Story just right.

FINDING DORY – MLI Overview Painting (Concept Art) by Artist Tim Evatt. ©2016 Disney•Pixar. All Rights Reserved.

FINDING DORY – MLI Overview Painting (Concept Art) by Artist Tim Evatt. ©2016 Disney•Pixar.

It’s all about finding the story and the process of creating the story through sequencing when it comes to animation.  The story process starts with brainstorming. It was decided that they wanted part of the story to take place at the Marine Life Institute. Brace shared with us an experience he had at an aquarium with his son that ended up being inspiration for some of the scenes for Finding Dory. Seeing the touch tank with all of the kids touching, poking and prodding the poor creatures, got him to thinking, “What would it be like if Dory got stuck in the touch tank?”  The humor and horror of being in an aquarium touch pool was just too good to ignore. Hank and Dory end up in some hairy, yet funny situations that the animators created for the touch pool scene based on reality and humor. After organizing their ideas, they are handed off to the writer to write the scene. The team worked hard on the touch pool idea and went on to research and photograph the idea, then moved on to make, improve, and  create the perfect scene for the movie. It was a bit of a challenge to keep the main focus on Dory, but 240 sequences later it was accomplished.

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What’s Good Now at Seasons 52| #Seasons52 @Seasons52

What’s Good Now at Seasons 52

By Erin

*I was invited to come and try some of the new spring items at Seasons 52. All thoughts and opinions remain my own.*

Seasons 52 is a fresh grill and wine bar that offers a seasonal menu inspired by the fresh appeal of a farmer’s market and what’s good now, and boy do they have a lot of good stuff right now!  Seasons 52 is not only freshness driven, but also has a focus on healthy eating, with many entrees under 500 calories.  They accomplish this by their combination of lean meats, low starch contents, and sensible portions. The freshness of the ingredients is evident in all of their dishes, and we tasted many yummy goodies during our visit.

Seasons 52 Store Front

The entrance to Seasons 52, located at South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa. A very beautiful location.

Seasons-52-inside-Costa-Mesa

Inside is just as gorgeous! So welcoming, warm and cozy.

Seasons-52-Costa-Mesa-Drinks

My friend and I started the evening with a couple of refreshing drinks. I chose the one on the left here, the Hawaiian Pineapple Cosmopolitan made of New Amsterdam Pineapple Vodka & Patrón Citrónge and she chose the Mango Jalapeno Crush; consisting of Prairie Organic Gin, Mango, Housemade Lemonade, Fresh Jalapeño, Cilantro & Cucumber.

California-Golden-Beets-Seasons-52

Seasons 52 has a special section on the menu titled, “Chef’s Suggestions” which has the chef’s top recommendations of “What’s good now,” and is chalk full of seasonally inspired items featuring ingredients at their peak of freshness. The first item on this menu that caught my eye was the Warm California Golden Beets Salad; made up of Laura Chenel goat cheese, toasted pistachios and micro basil. It was so fresh and delicious. I love beets and this dish was amazing paired with the goat cheese and pistachios, making for a delightful flavor combination.

Lobster-Fresh-Mozzarella-Flatbread

Another delicious option in the “Chef’s Suggestions” for appetizers is this Lobster & Fresh Mozzarella Flatbread. Chunks of delicious lobster, roasted sweet peppers, slivered scallion, and lobster sour cream create one mouth-watering and scrumptious treat.

Ahi Tuna Tartare

A regular item on the appetizer menu is this delectable number and one of my favorites, the Ahi Tuna Tartare.  Layered with wasabi-avocado mousse, tropical salsa, Hawaiian sea salt crisps. The mix of the ahi tuna with the wasabi-avocado is exquisite. I would enjoy having this with any meal, at any time, any day.

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Wokcano: Asian Restaurant and Lounge| #Wokcano @Wokcano

Wokcano: Asian Restaurant and Lounge

By Erin

If you love sushi or an amazing happy hour (or both like I do), then you will want to make sure to get to this place ASAP! Wokcano is a contemporary Asian Restaurant and Lounge, featuring fresh sushi and creative maki rolls as well as modern riffs on traditional fare, Wokcano offers guests a broad and savory tasting tour of popular Asian cuisines. The design elements at all locations reflect a chic and relaxing atmosphere. Wether you are solo dinning at the sushi bar or have a large group at a communal table to happy hour drinks in the lounge, offering a host of Asian-inspired cocktail selections and an inclusive yet reasonably-priced wine and sake list, Wokcano makes for the perfect atmosphere. Locations include Huntington Beach (the one we went to), Long Beach, Santa Monica, West Hollywood, Downtown Los Angeles, Burbank, Valencia, Topanga  Canyon and Santa Ana.

Wokcan-Asian-Restaurant-Bar

Wokcano has a very welcoming environment.

Wokcano-Drinks-Happy-Hour

Of course we had to start with a couple of drinks that were recommended to us….

Wokcano-Wontons-Huntington-Beach

Followed by some goodies off of the happy hour menu, like these Crab Wontons ($4 during Happy Hour). These were very tasty. Crispy on the outside, and very warm and fresh on the inside.

Honey-Walnut-Shrimp-Happy-Hour-Wokcano

One of my favorites! We also had to try the Honey Walnut Shrimp ($6 during Happy Hour), it was delicious! I easily could have filled up on these alone.

Wokcano-Sushi-Happy-Hour

Another happy hour option is the Yellowtail Sashimi with Citrus Ponzu ($10 during Happy Hour). So fresh and tasty, the jalapenos were a nice touch to this one!

Crispy-Rice-Spicy-Tuna

The Spicy Tuna on Crispy Rice was another happy hour hit ( $7 during happy hour).

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