Toy Storage! Packaging for Pixar's Toy Stars

Back in 2009,  Jody and I had the great honor of being asked by Pixar and Disney Consumer Products to help create special packaging for the new Toy Story Definitive toy line, the most film-accurate replicas of the characters ever produced.  At the time, Jody had just designed the Pixar Play Parade for Disney's California Adventure, and "Toy Story 3" was still in production.

Some of the characters, like Woody, Jessie and Buzz, already had packaging seen in the animated films, but there were side panels and box backs not visible on screen, that needed to be fleshed out. Other toys, such as the Pizza Planet Aliens and a mysterious new character named Lots-O-Huggin' Bear, required all new packaging from scratch. 

Jody and I based all our digital illustrations on rough pencil concepts by Pixar merch designer Ben Butcher.  Some of the packaging, such as this shipping crate for Rex - complete with volcano, went through a zillion variations before everyone was happy.  

John Lasseter talks about Rex - and his packaging!

RC, the remote controlled race car, is supposed to be a toy from the 1980s, so his packaging reflects the graphic style and "awesome features" of the period. 

John and RC!

Our favorite was this "barn" for Hamm, the talking piggy bank.  In the Toy Story world, Hamm is a much older toy, so his packaging was even more "vintage" looking.

Every box has a "Try Me" button incorporated into its design, and getting this feature in the correct spot, without having the actual toy in front of us, was a challenge.

The series, except for Hamm, has been out for some time now.  We think all the "definitive" toys, made by Thinkway,  turned out super amazing, and it was a exciting for us to contribute something cool and lasting to the Toy Story milieu!