Toy Story facts: the making of Pixar’s first landmark film

Toy Story facts start with a first: it was the first entirely computer-animated feature film, and the first feature film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. That combination made its 1995 arrival feel unlike anything audiences had seen before.

How Toy Story first reached theaters

Toy Story premiered at the El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles on November 19, 1995, and was released theatrically in the United States on November 22, 1995. Its opening weekend set a record for the highest-grossing opening weekend, and by the end of its theatrical run it had grossed over 363 million dollars worldwide.

The film finished as the second highest-grossing film of 1995. For a debut feature from Pixar, that box office result gave the film an immediate place in movie history.

What made the production different?

Toy Story was the first animated film for which scratch vocals were recorded first for all reels. That choice shaped the production process from the start, before the animation was locked in.

The crew also expanded sharply during rewrites, growing from 24 people to 110 people. As the project changed, the film’s production scale changed with it.

Woody alone required 723 motion controls. That number shows how much detail went into bringing a single character to life in a fully computer-animated feature.

Which awards did Toy Story earn?

Toy Story received the first animated film nomination for Best Original Screenplay. It also was honored with a non-competitive Special Achievement Academy Award.

Those recognitions placed the film in a category of its own during a time when animated features were still finding new ground at the Academy Awards.

Why does Toy Story keep coming back?

In 2005, Toy Story was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry. That selection placed it among films preserved for their significance.

The film later returned in a three-dimensional re-release in 2009 as part of a double feature with Toy Story 2. More than a decade after its first release, it received a thirtieth anniversary re-release in 2025.

Toy Story also launched a multimedia franchise with four sequels beginning with Toy Story 2. What started as one groundbreaking film became a long-running series built from that first success.

If you want the short version, Toy Story changed animated movies by being first, breaking records, and building a franchise that kept growing from there.

Ready to test what you learned? The quiz is next.