Presto (film)
| Presto | |
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| Directed by | Doug Sweetland |
| Produced by | Richard Hollander |
| Written by | Doug Sweetland |
| Story by | Ted Mathot Valerie Lapointe Justin Wright |
| Starring | Doug Sweetland |
| Music by | Scot Stafford |
| Edited by | Katherine Ringgold |
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Production
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| Distributed by | Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures |
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Release date
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Running time
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5:17 |
| Country | United States |
Presto is a 2008 American Pixar computer-animated short film shown in theaters before their feature-length film WALL-E. The short is about a magician trying to perform a show with his uncooperative rabbit and is a gag-filled homage to classic cartoons such as Tom and Jerry and Looney Tunes. Presto was directed by veteran Pixar animator Doug Sweetland, in his directorial debut.
The original idea for the short was a magician who incorporated a rabbit into his act who suffered from stage fright. This was considered to be too long and complicated, and the idea was reworked. To design the theater featured in Presto, the filmmakers visited several opera houses and theaters for set design ideas. Problems arose when trying to animate the theater's audience of 2,500 patrons; this was deemed too expensive, and was solved by showing the back of the audience.
Reaction to the short was positive, and reviewers of WALL-E's home media release considered it to be an enjoyable special feature. Presto was nominated for an Annie Award and Academy Award. It was included in the Animation Show of Shows in 2008.
Vaudeville-era magician Presto DiGiotagione is famous for a hat trick wherein he pulls his rabbit Alec Azam out of his top hat. A hungry and irritated Alec is locked in a cage, unable to reach his carrot. After Presto returns from eating a meal, he begins practicing his act with Alec, revealing that his top hat is magically connected to a wizard's hat kept backstage with Alec, so that when Presto reaches into the top hat, his hand appears out of the wizard's hat, allowing him to grab Alec and pull him out of the top hat. He intends to feed Alec the carrot, but realizes that he is late for the show and rushes off to the stage without doing so, much to Alec's chagrin. Presto tries to start the performance, but Alec becomes reluctant to cooperate until he is given the carrot. Presto then spends the rest of the show trying to catch Alec through the opening between his top hat and the wizard's hat.
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