Mention Pixar to most cine-lovers and chances are they’ll smile at the name, before gazing into the distance to reminisce over the first time they saw Toy Story, Finding Nemo and Wall-E.

Their newest wonder, Up, hits Stateside in May, but us Brits sadly have to chew our fingernails until October for it to float over here.

If you’re dying to learn about what will surely become one of the movies of the year, then look no further.

totalfilm.com got a chance to sit down with director Pete “Monsters Inc” Docter and producer Jonas Rivera, and we asked them to tell us how to make a film the Pixar way...

1. Base it on your director's personality.

Pete Docter: “The idea came from my need to get away occasionally. By the end of the day, I’ve usually had too many meetings with too many people and I just need space.  So I had this visual of a floating house that seemed very poetic, visual and evocative of that.”

Jonas Rivera: “Many great animators are sort of recluses. They don’t like going up in front of people, and often the only way they can get their ideas out was to animate.”