Pixar wanted “Elio” to be one of their most grounded and fantastical movies ever

So many Pixar movies are beloved because while the animation might bring you to another world, the story is often grounded in real-life.

“The Pixar movies I grew up with had one foot in reality and another foot in the fantastical,” said director Madeline Sharafian, adding that her new movie “Elio” wanted to emulate that for many reasons.

“Elio” was originally announced in 2022 as a new movie with a concept and story by “Coco” director Adrian Molina, but eventually was given to Sharafian and “Turning Red” director Domee Shi to complete. Both Sharafian and Shi wanted to build on Molina’s original idea of asking what if everything we knew about aliens was true by wrapping it in a very human story about belonging and community.

Sharafian continued, “By having one foot in reality, I think we’re all able to step into our own experiences and emotions better as directors and as audiences. I think we really wanted to provide that space within Elio’s story.”

Elio’s story is already a grounded one, taking place in a present-day version of the United States where a boy interested in outer space and aliens, who recently lost his parents, is given to his aunt to be taken care of. That aunt, named Olga, also happens to work in a division of the United States Air Force that seeks to identify and thwart alien threats…in outer space.

“We were particular at wanting to make Elio this real young boy, full of heart and full of things he’s scared of,” said Shi, adding that “No matter if he’s on Earth or a spacecraft, he’s always going to be Elio.”

By the time you follow Elio on his out-of-this-world adventure in space for the remainder of the movie, Sharafian and Shi knew that keeping one foot on Earth would only make the story more relatable and believable–even for themselves.

“I think we often tell stories and want to make movies because we’re a lot like Elio. We’re all trying to find connection through curiosity and creativity in our own way,” said Shi.

We’ll have more stories on the making of Pixar’s “Elio” soon. The movie hits theaters on June 20, 2025.

Our thanks to Madeline Sharafian and Domee Shi for contributing to this story!

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