If you’ve grown up watching Pixar, you’ve seen them go from the plastic-looking toys in Toy Story to the “is that a real photo?” look of Finding Dory. But their newest project, Gatto, is doing something completely different.I’ve been tracking Pixar’s tech for years, and after seeing the footage leaked from the Annecy Animation Festival, it’s clear: Pixar is over “perfection.” They’re moving toward a style that feels more like art and less like a computer simulation.
My Take: Why I’m Hyped for This “Messy” Look
As a fan who grew up on hyper-realistic Pixar movies, I’ll be honest—sometimes the perfect look gets a bit boring. Seeing the first clips of Gatto was a total vibe shift. Instead of everything being perfectly smooth, it looks “painterly,” with visible brushstrokes and textures. It feels like Pixar is finally taking notes from movies like Into the Spider-Verse and Puss in Boots: The Last Wish—proving that “looking like art” is way cooler than “looking real.”
What exactly is “Painterly” Animation?
Directed by Enrico Casarosa (who did Luca), Gatto is set to drop on March 5, 2027.Don’t mistake the “hand-drawn” look for low quality. Pixar isn’t “getting worse” at graphics; they’re actually using higher-level tech to make 3D models look like 2D paintings. This is called NPR (Non-Photorealistic Rendering). Basically, they’ve upgraded their famous RenderMan software so that light hits a character’s face like a paintbrush would, rather than a camera lens.
The Plot: A Black Cat with “Main Character” Problems
The story follows Nero, a black cat living in Venice, Italy. If you know anything about Venice, it’s basically 90% water—and Nero is terrified of swimming. To make things worse, the locals are super superstitious and think black cats are bad luck.Nero is a music-lover who gets caught up in the “seedy underworld” of Venice’s cat society. He ends up in debt to a feline mob boss, but his life changes when he’s “adopted against his will” by a street musician named Maya. The movie is about their unexpected friendship and Nero finding his purpose in a city that’s literally built to be his nightmare.
The 3 Stages of Pixar’s Glow-Up
- The Plastic Era (Toy Story): Back when computers could only handle smooth, shiny surfaces.
- The Realism Era (The Good Dinosaur): When Pixar mastered “fake” water, hair, and light to look exactly like a photo.
- The Art Era (Luca & Gatto): Where we are now. Pixar is using all that power to make movies that feel like “living storybooks.”
Conclusion: A New Golden Age?
By moving away from “perfect” computer graphics, Pixar is basically saying that “vibes” and emotional texture matter more than looking like a high-res photo. They aren’t taking a risk; they’re evolving because they know we’ve seen it all before.
Gatto represents the end of the “Old Pixar” and the birth of a studio that values the artist’s hand just as much as a powerful processor. If the hype from the Annecy Festival is any sign, the future of Pixar isn’t just going to look “real”—it’s going to look like a masterpiece. This could be the start of a whole new golden age where every frame of a movie feels like a unique piece of art you’d actually want to hang on your wall.
Frequently Asked Questions
When is Pixar’s Gatto being released?
Originally slated for June, Disney recently moved the premiere up to March 5, 2027. As noted by Screen Rant, this shift avoids a direct box-office collision with Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse.
Is Gatto a sequel to Luca?
No. While both films are directed by Enrico Casarosa, produced by Andrea Warren, and set in Italy, Gatto is a standalone original feature. However, it does share the “watercolor” DNA of Luca, pushed to a much more ambitious technical level.
What does “painterly animation” actually mean?
Painterly animation refers to a style where the film frames look like traditional art—such as oil paintings or watercolors—rather than clean, computer-generated models. In Gatto, this is achieved by layering 2D hand-painted textures over 3D environments, giving the city of Venice a tactile, “lived-in” feeling.
Is Pixar done with photorealistic movies?
Not necessarily. While Gatto represents a major stylistic experiment, Pixar likely views its aesthetic choices on a film-by-film basis. Studios often use “test” films to build new tools in RenderMan (like the new NPR shaders) which can then be used to add artistic flair to even their more realistic-looking projects in the future.
Who is the main character in Gatto?
The story follows Nero, a black cat who hates water and loves music. He navigates the superstitious alleys of Venice alongside a street musician named Maya, eventually finding himself entangled with the city’s “seedy cat society.”
