Comments on: What I want to do when I grow up.

By: Carlos Pita

Carlos Pita — Tue, 11 Jul 2006 00:00:00 +0000

Wow. This is the best damn article that I've read in a long time.

It's truly inspiring.

I can feel the energy myself. Great things are yet to come.

By: David C

David C — Thu, 06 Jul 2006 00:00:00 +0000

Disney's biggest problem was with the story. Here is how they all seem to go:
Parent dies at the begininng.
Child has to struggle with out the parent or only one parent.
Child over comes.
All is well.

Same old tired storyline.

By: Ken Kearney

Ken Kearney — Fri, 16 Jun 2006 00:00:00 +0000

Great Blog!

By: Mike Milo

Mike Milo — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 00:00:00 +0000

I have to agree with Aliki! Reading this gets me so excited I could pop! It all sounds wonderful. I also agree that much of what Ed Catmull is doing seems to be the same way that you Fred are leading us all as well. To allow artists the freedom to express themselves unencumbered is revolutionary and ground-breaking and it has obviously been a successful business model for you and for Pixar. That one quote by Michael Eisner really has me wondering how could such a Hollywood icon be so wrong and misguided to believe that the techniques that Walt Disney had pioneered and made him a household name were suddenly boring and that audiences had lost their taste for hand-drawn films? Couldn’t he see that it was the story that was dated and boring and not the medium itself? Seems extremly short sighted to me. For a visionary, that’s pretty sad. Anyway, thanks for sharing this article Fred and thanks for being your own “visionary”! It’s little people like us that get to live our dreams based on that thinking.

By: Aliki

Aliki — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 00:00:00 +0000

Oh yes..there even used to be “the Michael screening” when animatics, or even the film would all be in place, and then we would have to screen it to Michael Eisner, and HE WOULD GIVE CREATIVE NOTES!!!! The lamest one was after Treasure Planet was done, and it was such a beautiful, heartfelt story of this James Dean like angst-ridden teen, Michael decided that he looked to sad throughout the picture, and we had to add smiles in..so we went through the whole film, erasing mouths and turnig them into SMILES! When I watch it, I cringe at this…THEN he also said that we needed to add a “Disney celebration at the end” so after the film had wrapped..we had to go back in and take out the ending, and add a silly celebration, including the age old “and then the characters have babies, and they look like the mom, except for one little rascal that looks like dad” yikes…

By: Mike Milo

Mike Milo — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 00:00:00 +0000

Wow! I can’t believe that. It’s really too bad. Disney really had “the stuff” in the late 80’s and for some reason they derailed themselves. It’s wonderful to see that the train has not only been put back on the track but that they got a new engine! Now if they can restore it to it’s original lustre, the train might just come back! What I’d like to see is a “Gravy Train” for animation personally. But that’s me…

By: Aliki

Aliki — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 00:00:00 +0000

Let’s hope!

By: John Sanford

John Sanford — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 00:00:00 +0000

I directed the most Executive-noted to death movie ever made at Disney: Home on the Range. I rejoice at Ed and John’s arrival!!!
Trust me guys, this is going to be great!!!!
Aliki, I have stories from HoTR that make that are in the same vein.
Hey… are the Aliki that I know?
If you are, Hi!!!!

By: Mike Milo

Mike Milo — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 00:00:00 +0000

Man that’s terrible John. I actually liked HoTR for the most part but I imagine it would have been better if they let you do your stuff. Ding Dong the Wicked Witch is Dead!

By: Jun

Jun — Mon, 12 Jun 2006 00:00:00 +0000

Having experienced the 5 levels of micromanaging execs at Disney myself, what can I say but ….it’s about time!