Alex Woo reveals childhood shows that inspired ‘In Your Dreams’

Netflix’s latest animated feature, In Your Dreams, follows siblings Stevie and Elliot diving into a dream world on a mission, and director Alex Woo took the inspiration from his childhood favorite films.

Woo makes his directorial debut with the upcoming movie, building on years of experience as a story artist for Pixar hits like Cars 2 and Incredibles 2.

“When I was 6 or 7 years old, I woke up one morning and my mom had her bags packed,” Woo told Variety, recalling the personal story that inspired the film. “She was at the front door… she had to gently explain to me and my brother that she was going away to figure out things for our family.”

Woo left Pixar in 2016 with the idea for In Your Dreams, eager to tackle the dream world in animation, a space usually reserved for live-action like Inception.

In the film, Stevie (voiced by Jolie Hoang-Rappaport) and Elliot (Elias Janssen) navigate the dream world as they deal with their parents’ marital strain—Mom (Cristin Milioti) wants to move for work, Dad (Simu Liu) wants to stay.

The visuals are a mix of whimsical and personal touches. Polly’s Pizzeria draws from Woo’s childhood visits to Chuck E. Cheese, while a floating river of ball pit balls and animated beavers nods to Disney’s It’s a Small World ride.

Working with production designer Steve Pilcher, Woo ensured that even the wildest dream sequences were rooted in real-world memories.

In Your Dreams is now streaming on Netflix.

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