Thomas Jordan says he learned Taylor Swift’s “Toy Story” song in February, helped keep it secret by making a decoy version of the film, and says the VFX team is fully human-made with no AI used.
At SXSW London on Friday, Thomas Jordan didn’t sound like a man revealing a tidy production detail. He sounded like someone finally able to unclench.
For months, the “Toy Story 5” VFX supervisor has been keeping a secret that would eventually land with Taylor Swift’s music. Jordan told the panel that he’d known about Swift’s song for the animated film since February, long before the world heard it.
The song is titled “I Knew It. I Knew You. ” and Swift’s “Toy Story” tune was released on Friday before the movie hits theaters on June 19. Jordan said it all started when Swift. described as a huge fan of “Toy Story” like many of those around the production. saw an early version of the film. She requested to watch it before it was finished. wrote the song. and then asked the team if they wanted it.
“We had to keep it a secret ever since then,” Jordan said, explaining that in February she asked to use the track and the response was a clear “Uh, yes! Yes we do.”
That secrecy shaped the way the movie was shown to others inside Pixar/Disney who weren’t in on the agreement. Jordan said “there was a very small group” on the “Toy Story 5” team that knew the song existed. To prevent accidental exposure. the production had to “create a decoy version of the film” that didn’t include the track—so press and Pixar/Disney staff who weren’t privy to the information could still review the movie.
Jordan added that “the crew that made ‘Toy Story 5’ did not know about this secret until last week.”
The fifth installment continues the story with Buzz Lightyear. Woody. and Jessie—voiced by Tim Allen. Tom Hanks. and Joan Cusack—picking up a few years after the fourth film. with Greta Lee voicing the character introduced earlier in the franchise. This time. the familiar toys are up against the existential threat technology has posed to playtime. represented by smart device Lilypad.
During the same panel, Jordan walked attendees through the VFX process, sharing behind-the-scenes detail and never-before-seen footage. He described how the team animated 50 Buzz Lightyears, along with a horse named Daffodil and the tight curls of new human character Blaze.
Jordan also addressed how the animation was made. He asserted that all of the animation in the film was 100% human-made and that AI was not involved. He said. “We are an artist-driven studio. and we are also founded in technology. ” adding that the team stays current by either developing its own animations or learning what others are doing.
“We find AI fascinating, we’re learning about it and we have done experiments with it,” Jordan said. “But so far, nothing lives up to the standards and expectations that we have for the quality of our work.”
So when the song finally arrived on Friday—tucked into a film that won’t land until June 19—it wasn’t just a release moment. It was the end of a long production sprint to keep one piece of music from leaking early, even from the people building the movie itself.
Toy Story 5 Thomas Jordan Taylor Swift I Knew It I Knew You SXSW London Pixar Disney VFX AI animation