Pixar's Inside Out 2 is a billion-dollar box office hit that follows a teenage girl named Riley (Kensington Tallman) as she faces new emotions during a weekend at ice hockey camp. Pixar brought in Boston native and former Colby College hockey player Tracy Roberts as an informal consultant on the film to ensure an accurate portrayal of the sport.
Roberts' passion for hockey has been passed down to her over the years like a family heirloom. Her father, Arthur, was also an avid hockey player, whose hockey skills earned him a full scholarship to Boston University. Raised on Beacon Street in Boston while her father attended night school at Boston University, Roberts was already on the ice at age three and began figure skating at age five. Due to financial reasons and injuries sustained as a figure skater, she switched to ice hockey at age eight.
Her interest in sports continued to grow into her teens and 20s. She played for the boys' Junior Vision hockey team at Tabor Academy in Marion, then for the girls' team at Colby College in the late '80s, where she earned a dual degree in economics and fine arts. Former teammate Kay Cowperthwaite remembers Roberts calling her “Tracy Bob” during her playing days. Even at university, While traveling on a long bus to a match overseas, her teammates are passing the time and knitting sweaters to keep warm.
When she's not busy working as a Character Technical Director for Pixar's Model Rigging department, Roberts runs the girls' development ice hockey program at the Bay Area's Oakland Ice Center. Like Riley, hockey has always been a place of comfort for Roberts.
“Whenever I had free time, I'd go to the rink in the morning and skate and shoot pucks and just escape reality,” Roberts told the Globe during a Zoom interview from his loft in Oakland, California, last week.
Roberts was not involved with Inside Out 2 when production on the film began, but word of her hockey background had spread and she was informally approached to join the team as a consultant.
First, the director of the rigging model asked Roberts to speak informally to the team about hockey, giving feedback on the fit of the equipment and how it moved. Eventually, Inside Out 2 director Kelsey Mann contacted her for further advice, giving Roberts the opportunity to comment on the possible plays and energy of the on-screen animated characters while playing hockey.
Roberts also suggested Olympic ice hockey star Kendall Coyne be included on the “Inside Out 2” team. Scofield eventually lent his voice to the film as a hockey announcer, and other contributions included reviews of some of the project's dailies, a practice for animation companies where animators present their work to get feedback.
“I'd log in on Zoom and watch them while I was creating a character for another movie,” Roberts said. “I'd have my coffee in the morning and look at all the hockey papers that had come out the night before to make sure they all connected well.”
“There were a couple of times early on when the girls were holding the stick in the wrong hand,” she added, referring to small details that might be missed by someone unfamiliar with hockey. “It's amazing how they were able to animate these shots and make them look so realistic, even though some of the animators have never played hockey.”
Roberts occasionally I'll be playing pickup games on the Oakland Ice with other animators who have sports backgrounds.
“We would go outside and skate, and the animators would practice what Riley was doing, and I'd be there with the camera filming them,” Roberts said. “I felt so lucky to be able to help out.”
Whether it’s collaborating with others on film productions or helping the next generation discover a love for hockey, Roberts continues to apply the lessons of teamwork he learned from his time on the ice.
“You always have to be there for your players, always be there for your kids, always be there for your teammates on the ice and on your crew,” Roberts said. “I think ultimately that makes for a better product and a winning team.”
Inside Out 2 is now in theaters.
Maria Jose Gutierrez Chavez can be contacted at mariajose.gutierrez@globe.com.
