In the year 2003, Disney Pixar gave us a movie that touched hearts all across the globe and went on to become one of the ten greatest animated movies of all time. If you know where P. Sherman lives, you know what I am talking about. Finding Nemo! The story revolves around an overprotective clown fish (Marlin) and his son (Nemo), who get taken away by divers. His father decides to leave the sanctuary of their coral reef home to rescue him, putting aside his fear of the deep, dark ocean, accompanied by Dory, a memory-addled blue tang fish. In the process, Marlin learns to enjoy the little things in life.

But, like Marlin’s journey, it was not a smooth sailing for the creators of the film. Three years of intense research went into the making of this masterpiece of digital animation. The design team went through various processes, from creating drawings to computer models to life-size 3D models, to get the look of the characters just right. Andrew Staton (writer/director) and John Lasseter (executive producer) insisted the entire crew gain scuba diving certification in order to completely grasp the concept of what underwater life is all about.

But the animators faced a roadblock early on. Since fish are not very emotive creatures, they encountered difficulties while creating the characters’ facial features. To overcome this hurdle, they observed the facial movements of dogs and used that as an inspiration.

Now, 13 years later, the creators are all set to release a sequel on popular demand. To be released in June 2016, this movie revolves around one of the most memorable characters, Dory, who’s voiced by Ellen de Generes. In the sequel, Dory will embark on a forgetful adventure through the sea to reunite with her family. The story is set six months after Finding Nemo. Here’s hoping this’ll be another treat to the eyes. Till then, in the words of Dory, “Just keep swimming!”