John Alan Lasseter (born January 12, 1957) is an Academy Award-winning American animator and the chief creative officer at Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios. He is also currently the Principal Creative Advisor for Walt Disney Imagineering. Widely considered an innovative genius, he has been hailed as the "current Walt Disney."
Academy Award for special achievement for Toy Story (1995), 1995.
Educated at California Institute of the Arts in Valencia.
Introduces the DVD release of Hayao Miyazaki's Tenkû no shiro Rapyuta (1986) (Castle in the Sky), one of his favorite films.
Ranked #1 in Premiere's 2004 annual Power 100 list with Pixar CEO Steve Jobs. They had ranked #23 in 2003 and #31 in 2002.
He won his first award at the age of five when he won $15.00 from the Model Grocery Market in Whittier, California, for a crayon drawing of the Headless Horseman.
While attending California Institute of the Arts, he produced two animated films, both winners of the Student Academy Award for Animation, Lady and the Lamp in 1979 and Nitemare in 1980.
In 2004, he was honored by the Art Directors Guild with its prestigious "Outstanding Contribution To Cinematic Imagery" award, and received an honorary degree from the American Film Institute.
He was a member of the Computer Division of Lucasfilm Ltd. (which was later sold and became Pixar), where he designed and animated the computer-generated Stained Glass Knight character in the Steven Spielberg (I)-produced film Young Sherlock Holmes (1985).
Ranked #3 on Premiere's 2005 Power 50 List with Pixar founder Steve Jobs. They had ranked #1 in 2004.
Member of the Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (Short Films and Feature Animation Branch) [2005-]
Has 5 sons.
Is a big fan of Hayao Miyazaki, who is a close personal friend
Vice President of Pixar.
Ranked #1 on Premiere's 2006 "Power 50" list with Pixar/Disney executive Steve Jobs. They had ranked #3 in 2005 and #1 in 2004.
