Talent Interview Guide

Jamie Foxx
 “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon”
Interview by: Jimmy Fallon
Network: NBC (including NBC Affiliates)
Timeslot: Weeknights 11:35 EST
Location: 30 Rockefeller Plz Studio 6B, New York City, NY 10112-0015
About The Tonight Show:
"The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" made its debut from
Studio 6B in Rockefeller Center on Feb. 17, 2014. Emmy Award- and
Grammy Award-winning comedian Jimmy Fallon brings a
high-tempo energy to the storied NBC franchise with his
welcoming interview style, love of audience participation, spot-on
impersonations and innovative sketches .

For almost 60 years, "The Tonight Show" has been an American

television institution home to big-name celebrity guests and top
musical and comedic talent. Taking a cue from predecessors,
including hosts Johnny Carson and Jay Leno, Fallon carries on the
tradition audiences know and love.

Known for his huge online presence, Fallon also brings along many popular segments, celeb
sketches and musical parodies that fans have grown to love on "Late Night," including
Hashtags, Thank You Notes and Slow Jam the News. The critically praised Grammy-winning
group The Roots serves as "The Tonight Show" house band.

From Universal Television and Broadway Video, "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" is
executive produced by Lorne Michaels. It tapes before a live studio audience.

About Jimmy:
Emmy Award and Grammy Award winner Jimmy Fallon brought NBC's "The Tonight Show"
back to its New York origins when he launched "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon"
from Rockefeller Center. Fallon puts his own stamp on the storied NBC late-night franchise
with his unique comedic wit, on-point pop culture awareness, welcoming style and
impeccable taste in music with the award-winning house band, The Roots.

Fallon began his TV career with "Saturday Night Live" in 1998, where he quickly became an
audience favorite. Known for his spot-on impressions, hilarious sketches and his stint with
Tina Fey as co-anchor of "Weekend Update," Fallon spent six successful years on the show. In
March 2009, he returned to NBC and took over the "Late Night" legacy with "Late Night with
Jimmy Fallon," a show that consistently garnered attention for its viral videos, celebrity games
and A-list guests.

Since the show's 2009 debut, Fallon and the "Late Night" team have earned much acclaim,
including three consecutive Emmy nominations for outstanding variety series (2011-13). "Late
Night" received a nomination for best talk show at the 2013 Critics' Choice Television Awards,
having won the category in 2012. In 2013, Fallon was honored with his second consecutive
People's Choice Award for favorite late-night talk show host and received a nomination in the
same category for the 2014 event. Fallon and the "Late Night" writing team received an
Emmy nomination for outstanding writing for a variety, music or comedy series in 2011. He
won an Emmy in 2010 for the show's website in the interactive media category and received
the Webby Person of the Year Award in 2009. Fallon has also been recognized with several
nominations at the Teen Choice Awards throughout his career.

In May 2011, Fallon and the writers of "Late Night" released the New York Times best-seller
"Thank You Notes," based on the popular show segment in which he addresses more than 150
subjects in need of his undying gratitude. "Thank You Notes 2," published in May 2012, hit the
No. 1 spot on the New York Times best-seller list in its first week on sale. On June 12, 2012,
Warner Bros. Records released "Blow Your Pants Off," a musical comedy album featuring
Fallon's collaborations with Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen, Dave Matthews, Justin
Timberlake and more. The album debuted at No. 1 on Billboard's comedy album chart and
won the 2013 Grammy for best comedy album.

Additionally, Fallon returned to his "Saturday Night Live" roots when he hosted both the 2013
and 2011 Christmas episodes of the legendary sketch comedy show to widespread critical
praise. His first "SNL" hosting effort earned him a 2012 Emmy Award for outstanding guest
actor in a comedy series. He also received rave reviews for his stint hosting the 2010
Primetime Emmy Awards. Most notably, he opened the show with a star-studded
performance of Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run."

Fallon and his wife, Nancy, live in New York with their daughters, Winnie Rose and Frances
Cole, and the family's female golden retriever, Gary Frick.
 “Good Morning America”
Interview by: Robin Roberts and Michael Strahan
Network: ABC
Timeslot: Monday - Friday 7 a.m. – 9 a.m.
Location: 1500 W 44th St,
New York, NY 10036

About Good Morning America

Good Morning America has run every weekday morning since 1975. Filmed live from Time
Square, the show lasts two hours and covers a wide variety of topics in news and culture,
including national and global news, weather, special interest stories, pop culture, viral
content, entertainment and lifestyle. Since 2012, Good Morning America has been the
most-watched morning television program, followed by Today on NBC.

About Robin Roberts:

Robin Roberts is one of the primary anchors on Good Morning
America. Originally from Mississippi, Roberts grew up playing
basketball and tennis. Upon graduating from Southeastern Louisiana
University with a degree in communications, she began reporting for
ESPN in 1990. Roberts moved to ABC in 2005 to host Good Morning
America. There, with co-anchor George Stephano- poulos, she
propelled the show to become the most-watched morning program
in the US. In 2012, Roberts was inducted into the Women’s Basketball
Hall of Fame.

About Michael Strahan:

Michael Strahan is a former NFL player and current co-host of Good
Morning America. Born in Houston, TX, Strahan began his football
career playing for Texas Southern University. He was then drafted to
the New York Giants in 1993, where he played as a defensive end.
Following his retirement from football in 2008, Strahan joined Fox
NFL, hosting pre-game shows on Sundays and Thursdays. Strahan
made a guest appearance on Live! with Regis and Kelly to fill in for
Regis Philbin. When Philbin left the show in 2012, Strahan joined as a
full-time host and the show became Live! with Kelly and Michael,
causing a surge in ratings. In 2016, Strahan left to become a full-time
co-anchor on Good Morning America.
 “Entertainment Tonight”
Interview by: Kevin Frazier
Network: Viacom CBS
Timeslot: Monday - Saturday 7 p.m., Sunday 6 p.m.
Location: Stage 4 at CBS Studio Center
4024 Radford Avenue
Studio City, California 91604
About Entertainment Tonight
Entertainment Tonight (ET) follows a local newscast-style format that primarily covers the
latest on movies, music and television releases and projects. Beginning in the early 1980’s, ET
has covered stories throughout the entertainment industry, exclusive set visits, first looks at
upcoming film and television projects and one-on-one interviews with actors, musicians and
other entertainment personalities and newsmakers. Previous anchors include Jerry Deaton,
Michael Egizi, Deane Ogden, Dan Beyer, Eric Allaman and Joel Beckerman.

Entertainment Tonight entered its 40th season on September 14, 2020. After winning the first
ever Daytime Emmy Award for the new category of “Outstanding Entertainment News
Program” in 2014, ET won a second consecutive Emmy Award in this category in 2015, a third
in 2017, a fourth in 2018 and a fifth in 2020.

About Kevin Frazier:

As host of five-time Emmy Award-winning show ENTERTAINMENT
TONIGHT, Kevin Frazier continues to impact the entertainment
industry as a multi-faceted journalist, producer and entrepreneur. He
has interviewed Hollywood’s biggest stars from Oprah Winfrey to Brad
Pitt to Will Smith and Beyoncé. Frazier joined ET as co-host in
September 2014, coinciding with the beginning of the 34th season.

In addition to his position on ET, where he has won four Emmy Awards,
Frazier has kept busy hosting numerous shows and events. Frazier has
also hosted Emmy-nominated Game Changers With Kevin Frazier,
which spotlights professional athletes who use their public image to
make positive changes in the lives of fans in need. In 2012 and 2013, he
co-hosted Clash of the Commercials on CBS. Frazier also served as
lead anchor for College Football on FX and Fox Sports Net and hosted the launch of
SportsNet for Time Warner Cable. He has served as co-host of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day
Parade on CBS since 2011.

Prior to hosting ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT, Frazier served as the co-host and managing
editor of ET's sister show, THE INSIDER. He originally joined THE INSIDER in March 2011, after
spending seven years as a correspondent and weekend host for ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT.
Frazier’s professionalism, charisma and demeanor have made him a sought-after journalist to
cover high-profile and historical events.

In 2008, Frazier founded HipHollywood.com, the premiere online web site for the latest urban
entertainment news. The site is a content partner for ETonline and TV One, offering breaking
news, up-to-the moment pop culture information, and exclusive photos and interviews with
today’s top stars in music, sports, television and film. HipHollywood.com is the only urban
media outlet providing broadcast quality content for television distribution. Additionally, he
launched Kevin Frazier Productions (KFP) to focus on in-depth reporting and video
production for a variety of corporate and entertainment clients. In 2018, ENTERTAINMENT
TONIGHT WEEKEND began airing HipHollywood.com branded segments.

Frazier began his broadcasting career as a local sports reporter. Prior to joining
ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHTin 2004, he served as host of ESPN’s SportsCenter, NBA Shoot
Around and NBA Fastbreak and worked at the FX Network as co-host of The FX Sports Show.
He has also served as a sideline reporter for the NFL on Fox telecasts as well as host of the
pre-game shows for NFL on Fox, NHL on Fox and College Football Saturday.

Frazier is an active member of the Los Angeles civic community and frequently participates
in events and speaking engagements for charitable organizations. He is a member of the
National Association of Black Journalists.

ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT is a multi-platform entertainment news brand, with a

cross-screen portfolio that includes the #1 entertainment newsmagazine on television with
nearly 4 million viewers daily, the 24/7 streaming network ET Live, and a top entertainment
news network online, delivering more than 150 million video views per month. ETonline.com
averages 20 million monthly unique visitors in the U.S. per comScore, while ET’s social
audience reaches more than 70 million U.S. users monthly.

Produced and distributed by CBS Television Distribution, ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT is

hosted by Kevin Frazier with Nischelle Turner, Lauren Zima, Rachel Smith and Matt Cohen as
correspondents. Erin Johnson serves as Executive Producer with Whitney Wallace and Leslie
Kawaguchi as Co-Executive Producers.
 “The Ellen Degeneres Show”
Interview by: Ellen DeGeneres
Interview Time: 3:00 p.m. ET
Show: The Ellen DeGeneres Show
Location: 3000 W Alameda Ave, Burbank, CA 91523

About “The Ellen Degeneres Show”

The Ellen DeGeneres Show is a daytime talk show that began in 2003. Filming out of the
Burbank Studios in Los Angeles, The Ellen DeGeneres Show has been host to the biggest
celebrities from many different industries. Combining elements of comedy and variety
shows, The Ellen DeGeneres Show is known for its unique comedic style anchored by the
titular host, Ellen.

The show has won 61 Daytime Emmy Awards including 15 in the first three seasons and 17
People’s Choice Awards. The Ellen DeGeneres Show was the first talk show in history to win
the Emmy for “Outstanding Talk Show” within its first three seasons. In addition to the
tremendous critical response, the show has consistently achieved strong ratings and
commercial success, averaging 4.2 million viewers per episode.

About Ellen Degeneres

DeGeneres began her career as a stand up comedian,
working shows at comedy clubs and small shops. In the
early 1980’s she began to tour nationally and won a
competition hosted by the Showtime network which
named her the funniest person in America. This led to
bigger opportunities including performing on The
Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson in 1986.

DeGeneres is most famous for her daytime talk show

The Ellen Degeneres Show, often shortened and stylized
as ellen. The show was a massive success critically and
commercially, earning 15 Emmy awards in the first three
seasons and strong ratings. The show has continued to
air for the past 17 years and continues airing to this day.
Recently DeGeneres has starred in Disney’s Finding Dory and has hosted a spin-off from her
talk show titled, Ellen’s Game of Games. In Finding Dory DeGeneres starred as the titular
forgetful fish in the sequel to the animated classic Finding Nemo.
 Interview Q&As
Please be prepared to answer the following questions accordingly.
Q. What’s the film about?
A. Soul is about life. It tries to answer that question, what is it that makes
you...YOU? It takes place in New York and follows Joe, my character, who’s a
middle school band teacher trying to make it in the NYC Jazz scene. He goes
on this incredible journey of learning what it means to live life and seize every
moment you have by trying to reunite his body and soul after an accident.
(Please make sure not to give too much of the film away!).
Q. Is this film just for kids?
A. It’s a film for everyone, not just for kids and not just for adults. A lot of the
themes in Soul I think hit home for adults, like chasing your dreams versus
making money, not feeling like you’re enough, anxiety and even the meaning
of life! But these are truths for everyone, no matter what age. It’s still a classic
Pixar movie with lots of fun and humor that kids will love, and it’s overall
beautifully animated. But I do believe, adults will get something more out of
this movie then they might have gotten out of other animated movies. (You
don’t have to say all of this, just as long as you talk about how adults will get
meaning out of it too).
Q. Where did the idea for Soul come from?
A. It all started with Pete Docter, the director of Soul, and Kemp Powers, the
co-director. Pete was thinking to himself “Is living out your dreams really the
key to life?” And that question became the basis for creating the whole film
and creating Joe Gardner. Kemp drew inspiration from his own life as a
previous musician and music critic himself to create Joe and his journey.
Q. Where will watchers have access to Soul?
A. Available for immediate watch on Disney+. Promote the platform.
Q. What studio created Soul?
A. Soul is a Pixar animated film released by Walt Disney Pictures.
Q. What kind of music is in Soul?
A. Soul primarily is about and consists of Jazz music, but also features other
genres such as hip-hop and R&B. (Feel free to use some of the Jazz facts to
have a conversation about the genre’s impact)
Q. Who else is featured in this film?
A. This film features a wonderful cast including accomplished actors like Tina
Fey, comedians like Donnell Rawlings and of course, musicians such as
Questlove and Daveed Diggs.
 Production Information For Soul
Note: Soul premiered on Disney+, The Walt Disney Company’s video streaming
service.
U.S. Premiere Date: December 25, 2020
Director: Pete Docter
Co-Director: Kemp Powers
Producer: Dana Murray, p.g.a.
Executive Producers: Dan Scanlon, Kiri Hart
Associate Producer: Michael Warch
Story & Screenplay: Pete Docter, Mike Jones and Kemp Powers
Composers: Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross
Original Jazz Compositions & Arrangements: Jon Batiste

Voice Cast:
Jamie Foxx as Joe Gardner
Tina Fey as 22
Graham Norton as Moonwind
Rachel House as Terry
Alice Braga as a Counselor
Richard Ayoade as a Counselor
Phylicia Rashad as Libba Gardner
Donnell Rawlings as Dez
Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson as Curley
Angela Bassett as Dorthea Williams
Daveed Diggs as Paul
Wes Studi as a Counselor
Fortune Feimster as a Counselor
Zenobia Shroff as a Counselor
June Squibb as Gerol

Social Media:
@DisneyPlus
@PixarSoul
#DisneyPlus
#PixarSoul
 Soul Production Bios
Pete Docter - Pete Docter is the Oscar®-winning director of "Monsters, Inc.," "Up,"
and "Inside Out," and Chief Creative Officer at Pixar Animation Studios. He is
currently directing Pixar's feature film "Soul" with producer Dana Murray, which is set
to release June 19, 2020.

Starting at Pixar in 1990 as the studio's third animator, Docter collaborated and
helped develop the story and characters for "Toy Story," Pixar's first full-length
animated feature film, for which he also was the supervising animator. He served as
a storyboard artist on "A Bug's Life," and wrote initial story treatments for both "Toy
Story 2" and "WALL.E." Aside from directing his three films, Docter also executive
produced "Monsters University" and the Academy Award®-winning "Brave."

Docter's interest in animation began at the age of eight when he created his first
flipbook. He studied character animation at California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) in
Valencia, California, where he produced a variety of short films, one of which won a
Student Academy Award®. Those films have since been shown in animation festivals
worldwide and are featured on the "Pixar Short Films Collection Volume 2." Upon
joining Pixar, he animated and directed several commercials, and has been
nominated for eight Academy Awards® including Best Animated Feature-winners
"Up" and "Inside Out'' and nominee "Monsters, Inc.," and Best Original Screenplay for
"Up," "Inside Out" and "WALL.E." In 2007, "Up" also was nominated for a Best Picture
Oscar by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Kemp Powers - Kemp Powers is an American film co-director, screenwriter, and

playwright who co-directed the 2020 Disney/Pixar film, Soul with Pete Docter as his
directorial debut.

After writing the 2012 short film, This Day Today, he scripted the 2013 play One Night
in Miami. In 2017, Powers was brought onboard to write several scripts for Star Trek:
Discovery season one episodes. In 2018, he co-wrote the script for Pixar's Soul, with
Pete Docter and Mike Jones, as well as co-directing the film with Docter, making his
directorial debut. On July 9, 2019, it was announced that actress Regina King would
be directing a film adaptation of Powers' play One Night in Miami. On December 16,
2020, Powers hosted the first three episodes of the podcast Soul Stories, which was
released as a Spotify exclusive. In the episodes, Powers interviewed several people
who worked on the film mainly about their mentors and careers, as well as some
behind-the-scenes stories behind the making of the film. An alumnus of Howard
University, Powers is the first African-American co-director in Pixar history.

Jon Batiste - Keyboardist, bandleader, singer, composer, and educator Jon Batiste is
an adventurous, eclectic jazz-based musician. Since 2015, he has been the
bandleader and musical director for CBS' The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and
toured the globe with his own group. The nephew of New Orleans musical greats
Lionel Batiste and Harold Battiste, he issued his debut album at 17, Times in New
Orleans, which was celebrated for its timeless take on Crescent City jazz, funk, pop,
and R&B. Though heralded as a brilliant pianist and organist, his use of the melodica
-- which has graced albums by artists ranging from Stevie Wonder and Harry
Connick, Jr. to Trombone Shorty -- has become a visible signature of his abilities.
Batiste has busked on street corners, held music clinics worldwide, and managed to
draw multitudes to his wide-open, accessible brand of rhythmic swing on virtually
any keyboard instrument he chooses, in any genre. He has also scored films
including Spike Lee's Red Hook Summer and toured with artists ranging from Prince
to Lenny Kravitz. In 2018, he earned his first Grammy nomination for his rootsy take
on "Saint James Infirmary," from his expansive album Hollywood Africans.
 Soul Character List
Joe Gardner (Jamie Foxx) - A middle-school band teacher, Joe Gardner’s life hasn’t
quite gone the way he’s expected. While teaching is a noble profession, his true
passion is playing jazz, and he’s good. Joe believes he was born to play professionally,
and though he’s 46 years old, he feels his opportunity to land a high-profile gig could
come any day. Joe has an encyclopedic knowledge of jazz history, and even if his
passion for music may have hampered his social life over the years, it hasn’t
hampered his confidence. He lives alone, immersing himself in what he loves best:
music. That is, until a single unexpected step sends him to the cosmic realms where
he finds the “You Seminar” and is forced to think again about what his life is all
about.

22 (Tina Fey) - 22 is a precocious soul who has spent hundreds of years at The You
Seminar, where new souls must meet several requirements before going to Earth.
Like every soul before her, 22 has been through the Personality Pavilions, which
explains her endearing sarcasm, quick wit and occasional moodiness. She’s met
every requirement to go to Earth—except one. But no matter how many visits she
makes to the Hall of Everything, no matter how many esteemed luminaries have
mentored her, she can’t find the spark she needs to fulfill her requirements and
make her way to Earth. That’s fine with 22; the truth is—she’s not interested in life on
Earth at all. Can Joe convince her otherwise?

Dorthea Williams (Angela Bassett) - Dorothea Williams is a world-renowned jazz

legend who’s earned her place among the greats. Confident, strong and poised, she
is also truly talented when it comes to her saxophone playing. Dorothea exudes pure
confidence on stage and suffers no fools when it comes to jazz or life. Her band is her
family, and joining that family is an honor she’s willing to extend to very few. It’s not
easy to impress Dorothea, but it’s worth trying.

Libba Gardner (Phylicia Rashad) - Libba Gardner is Joe’s mother, his biggest fan,
and his kind-hearted truth-teller. She is a proud businesswoman who’s owned a
successful tailor shop in Queens for decades. Her late husband, Joe’s father, was a
struggling musician, so Libba was the primary breadwinner for the family. She knows
that life as a musician can be brutal, so she encourages Joe to have a backup plan,
which he interprets as a lack of support. But no matter how pragmatic Libba can be,
above all, she loves Joe and wants him to be happy.
Moonwind (Graham Norton) -Moonwind is the product of a midlife awakening,
which led his former self to change his name and his day job to seek a happier life.
Moonwind is now a devoted sign twirler on a Manhattan street corner—an activity
that brings him joy, putting him into the zone, which allows him to mentally and
spiritually journey to a mystical place called The Astral Plane (near The Great Before),
where he rescues lost souls from their uninspiring, stressful lives.

The Counselors (Alice Braga And Richard Ayoade) - The Counselors at The Great
Before—there are a number of them—are all known as Jerry. Cheery, optimistic and
(mostly) all-knowing, the ubiquitous Counselors run The You Seminar very much like
camp counselors, wrangling dozens of new human souls, awarding them unique
personalities and helping them find their spark and graduate to Earth. Each Jerry is a
unique expression of the universe itself—employing patience, good cheer and
passive-aggressive tendencies in different measures. But all maintain boundless
enthusiasm for their metaphysical charges.

Terry (Rachel House) - Terry is a peculiar extension of the team of The Great Before,
charged with the singular duty of keeping track of the entrants to The Great Beyond.
Each Jerry does their best to tolerate Terry, whose obsession with The Count can be
burdensome—especially when it’s off. So, when Joe Gardner takes a detour to The
Great Before, Terry is determined to make things right.

Curley (Ahmir-Khalib Thompson A.K.A. Questlove) - Curley is one of Joe Gardner’s

former students who nurtured his own passion for music into adulthood, landing a
coveted spot in Dorothea Williams’ jazz quartet. The accomplished drummer never
forgot his favorite teacher-slash-jazz pianist, so when an opportunity for a piano
player arises, Curley gets Joe the audition of a lifetime.
 Facts About Soul’s Production
Building the Jazz Performances
Jazz is such an important aspect of “Soul” that filmmakers wanted to ensure
that all of the performances are authentic. The effort involved several departments
and hundreds of hours of work to pull it off in a way that would win the approval of
jazz musicians.
Extensive reference footage was taken, using multiple camera angles,
including close-ups of the musician’s hands playing piano keys and the saxophone,
as well as the bass and drums. “For each of those shots—several were thousands of
frames long—we delivered a lot of coverage to editorial,” says director of
photography Matt Aspbury.
Adds producer Dana Murray, “The authenticity we were able to achieve with
Joe on piano and Dorothea on saxophone was one of the highlights of the whole
show. You get lost in the performances, lost in the music—which, in many ways, is
the whole point.”

Creating “The Set”

New York City- Filmmakers sought to set “Soul” in a recognizable city to
ground that part of the film. “As soon as we landed on jazz, we started to explore
New York City,” says Docter. “Though jazz didn’t originate there, New York is the jazz
capital of America. It is a center of culture, full of immigrants and influences from
around the world. It’s a rich and vibrant place to feature a film.”
According to co-director Kemp Powers, the Big Apple’s connection to jazz was
powerful. “Jazz is a uniquely American art form, and New York City has one of the
strongest histories of jazz—some of the most famous musicians are known for their
performances in New York City.
“But it’s not just about the music,” continues Powers, who grew up in the city.
“It’s about the dynamism of that world. ‘Soul’ is a story about the meaning of life and
the connections we make with each other. In New York, people are literally bumping
up against one another. Diversity is visually evident on every single street. There’s
really no place quite like it.”

The Barbershop- “There’s no more culturally authentic place in the Black

community than the barbershop,” says co-director Kemp Powers. “In many ways, it’s
the town center—particularly for Black men. “It’s a place where these men—from all
walks of life—come together.”
 Filmmakers visited several barbershops to capture the look and feel of this
symbolic locale, taking away several observations. “Barber Shops tend to be very
narrow since space in New York is at a premium,” says sets art director Paul Abadilla.
“We also observed one thing that distinguishes barbers from hair stylists: when they
work, their clients face away from the mirror—toward the waiting customers, which
encourages conversation and heightens that sense of community.”

The Half Note- Research is an important part of Pixar’s films, taking

filmmakers to places ranging from landfills to Scotland. “Soul” called for some of
their best research to date. “We visited a number of jazz clubs,” says production
designer Steve Pilcher. The Half Note is pretty true to scale of the typical size of a jazz
club. We didn’t want to break the tradition and history and the richness of the clubs.
The atmosphere is authentic, but contemporary. It was a pleasure and honor to
create portraits of Jazz Greats to place on the walls of the club.”

The Great Before- While filmmakers were able to tap into the real-life big
city when it came to the New York City scenes in “Soul,” The Great Before had to be
created from scratch. “Worlds like this are super fun to put together, but super
challenging, too, because they could be anything,” says director Pete Docter. “It was
very important that it was a reflection of the main character and the story we were
telling about him. Joe believes he was born to be a musician, so this world was
designed to amplify his belief system: souls are given personalities and interests.”
 Facts about Jazz
● Jazz is rooted in African American culture and history. Having continuously
faced racism and discrimination, African Americans during the 1920s were
able to express themselves through Jazz. The manner in which the music is
played takes techniques and sounds from traditional African music and
spiritual music.
● Though Jazz had been around for a while, the genre saw its peak in the 1920s
with the Harlem Renaissance and Jazz Age.
● Jazz grew and thrived in the neighborhoods of Manhattan, such as Harlem
and West Village, where much of Soul is set.
● Harlem Renaissance poet Langston Hughes had a fondness for Jazz and
demonstrated this in his writing.
● Going to listen to Jazz became a popular pastime during the 20s. In New York,
Carnegie Hall was the place to be to listen to bands play. However, Jazz thrived
in Prohibition-era speakeasies.
● Early pioneers of Jazz music include Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Ella
Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday and Louis Armstrong.
● Jazz is the most hybrid form of music because it is free-spirited and
spontaneous. Majority of Jazz is improvised.
● Typical jazz instruments include drums, guitar, piano, saxophone, trumpet,
clarinet, trombone and the double bass.
● Soul jazz is a form of Jazz that was briefly popular in the 1950s. This genre is a
combination of blues, soul, and gospel music, which resulted in new
sub-genres like bebop, cool jazz and hard bop.
● Due to the expressive nature of jazz music, it led to the birth of many different
types of dances, such as the Charleston, Lindy Hop, Shimmy and Jive.
● April is National Jazz month in the US and April 30th is officially recognized by
the United Nations as International Jazz Day.
 Quick Tips!
1. Be prepared.
2. Be positive.
3. Act natural, don’t think too hard. Just be yourself.
4. Listen carefully. Only answer what is being asked.
5. Keep your answers short and to the point. Say the important points
first.
6. To lessen the sounds of “um” and “like,” think in your head and only
answer when ready. These make you sound unprepared.
7. Do not discuss any other interview you’ve done or other stories in the
works. It might give them more information than necessary.
8. Stay on message. Try not to stray away from the point that you are
trying to get across.
9. If there is a question being asked that you weren’t prepared for, stay
calm. Take a beat before saying anything. If it’s something you don’t
want to answer, try your best to avoid answering it, but in a positive way.
10. Remember, interviews will be watched, read and/or listened to by
audience members. Even if you have a good relationship with the host,
this conversation will not be just between you two. Other people will
see it, so be careful with what you say.