Shortly before world premiering Monsters University at CinemaCon, I was able to speak with director Dan Scanlon and producer Kori Rae on the red carpet.  We talked about the way the story changed during development, how many versions of the film they went through, how John Lasseter kept reminding them that it was “college fun," and more.  In addition, they also showed they have a sense of humor, because I may have started the interview off by asking whether it was tough to get Halle Berry and Billy Bob Thornton back for the sequel to Monsters Ball

Finally, while I had to miss the screening of Monsters University due to my interview schedule, I spoke to a number of people that saw it and they all said it was great and is exactly what they expect from a Pixar movie.  Hit the jump to watch the interview.  Monsters University hits theaters June 21st.

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Director Dan Scanlon and Producer Kori Rae:

  • :05 Was it tough to get Halle Berry and Billy Bob Thornton back for the sequel to Monsters Ball?
  • :35 How many different versions of the film did they go through? Says they just keep going until it’s great.
  • 1:05 Did they have a completely different storyline at the beginning of development? They say the heart pretty much stayed the same but the mechanics to get to it changed.  The big question was whether it was Sully’s story or Mike’s story.
  • 1:52 What was one of the big notes they got on the film? Says John Lasseter kept reminding them that it was “college fun.”
  • 2:20 Talk about showing the full film for the first time to an outside audience.

 

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Image via Pixar