JOHN LASSETER {telling a great story} HISTORY OF ANIMATION SHORT BIOGRAPHY OF JOHN LASSETER AND PIXAR ANIMATION STUDIO “People pay to see a movie that is entertaining” – JOHN LASSETER Saturday, As a child, Lasseter watched cartoons until he was in high school. John Lasseter's mother was an art teacher and he was surrounded by the arts. Before high school it had never occurred to him that people actually got paid to make cartoons. He started writing letters to Disney Studios saying he wanted to be an animator. Disney Studios replied, “Get a great art education.” After high school he enrolled in the Character Animation Program at the California Institute of Arts' film school, where he was taught by retired artists who had worked during the birth of Disney Studios. These artists not only taught the skills necessary to become a successful animator, but also passed on their wisdom and experience working in Disney Studios with Walt Disney. A key trait that Lasseter took from Walt Disney was his ability to create animated films that appealed to everyone, not just children. After graduation he found himself working as a middleman with Disney Studios before playing an active role in the story process. With a strong passion for creation, Lasseter quickly found himself at odds with current producers and directors. “We were so enthusiastic and were constantly making suggestions. It was all constructive, but the people running the animation seemed to resent us.” – INTERVIEW WITH JOHN LASSETER VIA CNN MONEY Lasseter's first real exposure to the potential of computers used in special effects was with the TRON project, a live action film created by Disney Studios....... middle of paper... ...and in 42-48 different languages. Good voice acting is important for storytelling. Pixar “marries” the voice to a character. The voice created by the character must be very believable to the character. Pixar believes that children are extremely intelligent and does not downplay the content. The goal is to aim high with the story through intelligent storytelling. Brave is a period film with a strong female protagonist who challenges tradition and social norms. While children may have enjoyed the film, Brave has strong themes that adults can appreciate. REFERENCE WORKS Cavalier, Stephen. The world history of animation. Berkley and Los Angeles, California:University of California Press, 2011. Print.Lasseter, John, perf. The history of Pixar. Dir. Leslie Iwerks and Writ. Leslie Iwerks. Leslie Iwerks Productions, Film. December 20th 2013. .