The Art of Rio 1 & 2

A long time ago, I remember watching Pixar’s Toy Story in the theater and I was blown away by the CG animation and storytelling. Over the years, many animation houses were looking to do the same and one is Blue Sky Studios (Epic, Ice Age). The CG animated film Rio was a 2011 hit and surpassed the $400 million mark in box-office receipts, so obviously there is a sequel with Rio 2 arriving into US multiplexes on April 11, 2014. Along the way, Titan Books has just released: The Art of Rio – Featuring a Carnival of Art from Rio and Rio 2.

The wonderful hardbound art book is divided into 2 big chapters. The first chapter features the various characters from the 2 films and on how they were designed and modeled.

There’s also a great “bird” section as the Blue Sky team discusses the different colors and birds used in the films.

The second chapter is what I like the most since I love traveling and architecture designs, is the locations.

The locations chapter features the colorful designs, concept drawings, CG models, and artwork of Rio de Janeiro, the Amazon, Moose Lake Village and various other locales from the films. Film/TV author/writer/geek Tara Bennett interviews the Blue Sky team about the two films grabbing insightful tidbits and commentary you won’t find on a Wiki page.

I admit the first Rio had just an average plot, but it was family-friendly with visual color and fun characters to root for. So now, just by watching the Rio 2 trailer on YouTube, the sequel looks to up the ante in story and CG. I can’t wait to watch it. Animated Rio and Blue Sky Studio fans will probably pick this art book up, but if you’re an animation buff, CG artist or just a creative person then this Art of Rio will make a neat reference book for ideas and inspiration.