Pixar has come out with another animated film called “Soul.” The movie stars a hopeful jazz pianist, Joe Gardner, who by day is a middle school band teacher.

Gardner’s passion does not lie within teaching but instead lies within music. He, unfortunately, has been endlessly rejected which is what leads him to become a band teacher. Gardner is offered a permanent position at M.S. 70 as the band teacher and even though the job comes with security, medical insurance, and more benefits,  he still is not satisfied.

Lamont (Curley) Baker is introduced into the movie as a former student of Gardner, and he offers Gardner the chance to perform with one of his idols: Dorothea Williams. Gardner jumps at this chance and has a stellar audition but is then derailed from his dream as he is transported to the Great Beyond, and the You Seminar.

The You Seminar concept is interesting as Pixar explains that this is where souls go before they are assigned a body and transported through the portal to Earth. Jerry, the summation of all quantized fields of the universe, instructs Gardner and the new souls on their objective in the You Seminar.

Gardner then becomes a mentor and is asked to assist in guiding the new souls to find their passion so that they can gain their Earth pass. He is matched with ‘Soul 22’ who despite having notable people as mentors such as Carl Jung, Mother Teresa, Copernicus, Muhammad Ali, and Marie Antoniette has not yet earned their Earth pass. But regardless, Gardner is persistent in helping Soul 22 find their passion so that he can take their Earth pass and return to Earth. On his journey to getting back to Earth, he learns more about himself and the others in his life. This movie is a fantastic watch for all despite its complex theme.

Pixar does an excellent job of simplifying it and keeping the movie lighthearted. This film exemplifies that it is never too late to start following your dream and that despite others’ discouragement you should always persevere.