Oscar-winning filmmakers, Pete Docter and Jennifer Lee, will be succeeding John Lasseter as the new chief creative officers at Pixar and Disney Animation respectively. The former was the director for both ‘Up’ and ‘Inside Out’, while the latter directed the most recent princess sensation, ‘Frozen’.
Disney announced that the two “will have creative oversight of all films and associated projects of their respective studios” and will be reporting directly to Walt Disney Studios chairman Alan Horn. Meanwhile, Horn has had nothing but compliments for his two new creative leads:
“Jennifer Lee and Pete Docter are two of the most gifted filmmakers and storytellers I’ve ever had the pleasure to work with. Pete, the genius creative force behind Up, Inside Out and Monsters, Inc., has been an integral part of Pixar almost since the beginning and is a huge part of its industry-leading success.
Jenn, in bringing her bold vision to the boundary-breaking Frozen, has helped infuse Disney Animation with a new and exciting perspective. Each of them embodies the unique spirit, culture and values of these renowned animation studios, and I couldn’t be more thrilled to have them to lead us into the future.”
Lasseter stepped down from his position last November after being accused of misconduct. He later acknowledged the “missteps” he committed that have left some employees feeling “disrespected or uncomfortable.”
With the new appointments of Docter and Lee, here’s to hoping that Pixar takes a grand new direction – both on the screen and behind it.
