John Lasseter facts for kids

Quick facts for kids John Lasseter
Lasseter in 2011
Born	John Alan Lasseter (1957-01-12) January 12, 1957 (age 68) Hollywood, California, U.S.
Alma mater	California Institute of the Arts (BFA)
Occupation	Film director producer screenwriter animator voice actor
Years active	1978–present
Employer	Walt Disney Animation Studios (1979–1983, 2006–2018) Lucasfilm (1983–1986) Pixar Animation Studios (1986–2018) Skydance Animation (2019–present)
Spouse(s)	Nancy Lasseter ​ (m. 1988)​
Children	5
Awards	Academy Award (1989, 1996) Golden Globe Award (2007) Inkpot Award (2009) Emmy Award (2010-2011)
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John Alan Lasseter (born January 12, 1957) is an American film director, producer, and animator. He is known for his amazing work in computer animation. Since 2019, he has been the head of animation at Skydance Animation.

Before that, he was the main creative officer for Pixar Animation Studios and Walt Disney Animation Studios. He also helped design attractions for Walt Disney Imagineering. Lasseter has directed many popular films like Toy Story (1995), A Bug's Life (1998), Cars (2006), and Cars 2 (2011). He also helped produce many other successful animated movies.

His films have earned over $19 billion, making him one of the most successful filmmakers ever. Five animated movies he produced have earned over $1 billion. These include Toy Story 3 (2010), Frozen (2013), Zootopia (2016), Finding Dory (2016), and Incredibles 2 (2018). He has won two Academy Awards for his work.

John Lasseter: Animation Genius

Early Life and Dreams

John Alan Lasseter was born in Hollywood, California, on January 12, 1957. His mother was an art teacher, and his father worked at a car dealership. John has a twin sister named Johanna.

Growing up in Whittier, California, John loved cartoons. He would rush home from school to watch Chuck Jones cartoons. He read a book called The Art of Animation and realized he wanted to make animated films. Seeing Disney's The Sword in the Stone made him sure of his dream.

John learned about a new animation program at the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts). In 1975, he became the second student in this program. He learned from famous Disney animators. His classmates included future directors like Tim Burton and Brad Bird. While at CalArts, he made two short films, Lady and the Lamp and Nitemare. Both won student Academy Awards. During summer breaks, he worked at Disneyland as a Jungle Cruise skipper. This helped him learn about comedy and timing.

Starting His Career at Disney

After graduating in 1979, Lasseter got a job as an animator at Walt Disney Animation Studios. He was one of only about 45 people kept on permanently from 10,000 portfolios. He worked on a project called Musicana, which later led to Fantasia 2000.

Lasseter felt Disney was repeating itself after 101 Dalmatians. He saw early computer animation and realized its potential. He saw the film Tron (1982), which used computer-generated imagery (CGI). Lasseter thought computers could create amazing 3D backgrounds for animated characters. This would add a new level of depth to films.

He and a colleague, Glen Keane, wanted to make a film using computer-generated backgrounds. They tried a short test film based on Where the Wild Things Are. However, Disney executives were not ready for this new technology. Lasseter's project was canceled, and he was let go from Disney in 1984.

Joining Lucasfilm and Pixar

Lasseter in 2002

After leaving Disney, Lasseter met Edwin Catmull and Alvy Ray Smith from Lucasfilm Computer Graphics Group. He joined them in December 1983 to work on a short film. This film, The Adventures of André & Wally B., showed that character animation could be done with computers. Lasseter taught the computer scientists about animation and art.

In October 1984, Lasseter joined Lucasfilm full-time. He worked on special effects for Young Sherlock Holmes. He created the first fully computer-generated realistic animated character for this film. This was a knight made of stained glass.

In 1986, Steve Jobs bought the Lucasfilm Computer Graphics Group. It became Pixar, with Lasseter as a founding employee. Over the next 10 years, Pixar grew into a major animation studio. Lasseter oversaw all of Pixar's films as an executive producer. He directed Toy Story (1995), the first-ever computer-animated feature film. He also directed A Bug's Life (1998), Toy Story 2 (1999), Cars (2006), and Cars 2 (2011).

Lasseter with Apple CDO Jony Ive at Macworld/iWorld in 2008

Lasseter has won two Academy Awards. One was for Best Animated Short Film (Tin Toy). The other was a Special Achievement Award for Toy Story. He was also nominated for other awards, including for Monsters, Inc. and Cars. In 2008, he received the Winsor McCay Award for his lifetime achievements in animation.

Return to Disney Studios

Lasseter with George Lucas at the Venice Film Festival in 2009

In 2006, Disney bought Pixar. Lasseter became the chief creative officer for both Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios. He also advised Walt Disney Imagineering on theme park attractions. He oversaw all Disney Animation films as an executive producer.

Lasseter decided that Disney Animation would start making animated shorts again. These shorts would help train new talent and test new animation ideas. In 2007, he and Ed Catmull also took control of Disneytoon Studios. They managed three animation studios for Disney: Pixar, Disney Animation, and Disneytoon.

Lasseter is a big fan and friend of Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki. He helped bring many of Miyazaki's films to the United States. He oversaw their English translations and dubbing. For example, the character Totoro from Miyazaki's My Neighbor Totoro appears as a toy in Toy Story 3.

In 2011, Lasseter received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Skydance Animation

On January 9, 2019, Lasseter became the head of Skydance Animation. This is a new animation division of Skydance Media. In this role, he produces all feature films and executive produces all series for Skydance Animation.

Life Outside of Work

John Lasseter with his wife Nancy Lasseter at the 2006 Annie Awards red carpet at the Alex Theatre in Glendale, California

John Lasseter lives in Glen Ellen, California, with his wife, Nancy. They met at a computer graphics conference in 1985 and married in 1988. They have five sons.

The Lasseters own the Lasseter Family Winery in Glen Ellen. Their property has a small railway called the Justi Creek Railway. It is about 2 miles long and includes a train station. Lasseter also has a collection of over 1,000 Hawaiian shirts and wears one every day. He also collects classic cars, like a 1952 Jaguar XK120.

Lasseter's favorite film is Walt Disney's Dumbo (1941). His influences include Walt Disney, Chuck Jones, and Hayao Miyazaki.

Filmography

John Lasseter has worked on many films and shorts. Here are some of the most well-known ones:

Films

Shorts

TV Specials and Series

Images for kids

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  Lasseter in 2011

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  John Lasseter's signature

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  A robot for kids

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  Lasseter in 2002

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  Lasseter with Apple CDO Jony Ive in 2008

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  Lasseter with George Lucas in 2009

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  John Lasseter with his wife Nancy Lasseter in 2006

See also

• A113
• List of Pixar films
• List of Pixar shorts
• List of celebrities who own wineries and vineyards