TheaterEars, the theatrical audio platform that delivers synchronized supplemental audio directly to moviegoers’ phones while enjoying films in theaters, has announced the launch of its Director’s Experience for the record-breaking Disney and Pixar’s Toy Story 5, bringing Oscar-winning director Andrew Stanton’s commentary, synchronized to the film, directly to moviegoers’ phones in theaters.
Starting the weekend of July 3, audiences seeing Toy Story 5 in participating theaters can open the TheaterEars app, sync to the film, and hear director Andrew Stanton’s commentary play in perfect time with the movie on screen, turning a repeat viewing into a behind-the-scenes experience without interrupting the theatrical presentation for anyone else.
The Director’s Experience is available exclusively through the free TheaterEars app, with the Toy Story 5 commentary track accessible to users in participating theaters nationwide. TheaterEars previously launched its Director’s Experience with Phil Lord and Christopher Miller for Project Hail Mary and with Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu. Toy Story 5 marks the program’s first animated title. To take part, moviegoers download the free TheaterEars app, select Toy Story 5 along with their movie theater and showtime, and the app listens for the film’s audio to sync the commentary track to the exact moment on screen, delivered privately through the user’s own headphones.
Stanton has been a major creative force at Pixar Animation Studios since 1990 when he became the second animator and ninth employee to join the company’s elite group of computer animation pioneers. Stanton co-wrote and directed the Academy Award–winning feature films Finding Nemo and WALL•E, as well as Finding Dory. More recently, Stanton co-wrote and was an executive producer on the Academy Award–winning Toy Story 4.
“Toy Story is the franchise that made millions of us fall in love with the movies, so there’s no better film to bring the Director’s Experience into animation for the first time. Sitting in a theater and hearing Andrew Stanton walk through how the film was made, synced right to the screen, is exactly the kind of experience we built this for,” said Dan Mangru, the chief executive officer of TheaterEars.
“Every frame of Toy Story 5 holds a decision the audience never sees. Getting to talk through those choices while people are watching the movie in a theater — that’s a way of sharing the work I’ve never had before, and I think fans are going to love hearing where these moments came from,” said Stanton.
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