‘Lightyear’ Director Angus MacLane On Using An “Echo” Of ‘Toy Story’s Buzz Lightyear As Inspiration
deadline.comAfter working on multiple Toy Story films and shorts, director Angus MacLane began to wonder about the inspiration for the character of Buzz Lightyear.
Since Buzz, the toy, is based on Andy’s favorite movie, why not make that movie? Lightyear tells the story of Buzz Lightyear, the space ranger, as he spends years trying to return home after being marooned on an unknown planet.
When he finally figures it out, he encounters an army of ruthless robots commanded by Zurg. The challenge for MacLane was to create a film that an existing character would be based on, without telling the same story. DEADLINE: When you’re making this film, how do you take Buzz Lightyear, the character from the film Lightyear, and differentiate him from Buzz Lightyear, the toy? ANGUS MACLANE: Well, Buzz has a different story function in Toy Story than he does in Lightyear, in the sense that as a side character, he’s allowed to be the sidekick.
He’s much more the comic relief and the depth of his emotion doesn’t have to be quite as deep in that film. In Toy Story, Buzz is a character who’s absolutely convinced he’s a space ranger that eventually accepts that he’s a toy and finds value in that.
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