Basic
Information:
~ Address
Pixar
Animation Studios
1200 Park Avenue
Emeryville, California 94608
Map
~ Telephone
510.752.3000
~ Facsimile
510.752.3151
~ Web Site
www.pixar.com
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~ Mission
Statement
"Pixar's
objective is to combine proprietary technology and world class creative
talent to develop computer animated feature films with memorable
characters and heartwarming stories that appeal to audiences of all
ages." |
Profile:
Pixar is considered to be a fair tale animation studio, which makes
sense considering the nature of the stories they tell. Founded
in 1986 by Steve Jobs, Ed Catmull, and John Lasseter, they immediately
began to progress. The studio's Corporate Overview
states that they developed "technical, creative, and production
capabilities to create a new generation of animated feature films,
merchandise and other related products" to be distributed
globally. This combination not
only shows signs of media synergy, vertical integration, and
globalization, but has also proved to be
quite lucrative. We can see this in the number of awards Randy
Newman won for his original song "You've Got a Friend in Me," from the
1995 film Toy Story.
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Pixar has developed most of
the software commonly used across the
industry. Some of these include Marionette, Ringmaster, and best
of all, Renderman.
This is a soft ware system for "high quality photo-realistic synthesis." The program
has been used
in over one hundred films where it creates life-like images that would
otherwise be impossible to recreate. Try to image the villain in Spiderman 2
(Doc Oc) with his extra appendages depicted as nothing more than cartoon like
arms extending from
his back. It would appear almost comicalto the audience.
The movie wouldn't be taken
seriously, and neither
would the people who made it. Renderman makes the unbelievable believable, thus making the movies successful.
This
pattern can be seen in almost all current day fiction films. Our
expectations for realistic falsehoods have greatly risen.
Renderman is able to meet those expectations and in some cases, far
surpass them.
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Financial
Data:
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Assessment
Pixar is a
relatively new company that has experienced immense financial
success in its initial ventures. Many people are wondering
exactly how long they will be able to continue this streak of hit
movies. Speculation is greatly increasing as Pixar is soon to
break away from Disney.
If they can avoid being crushed by
Disney's conglomeration, this move has potential to thrust Pixar into a
new realm of achievement. Thus far, their financial growth has
been steady and the potential is there for them to continue to do so.
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History:
It all essentially began
in 1986
when Steve Jobs purchased the the graphics division of Lucasfilm Ltd.
for $10 million. At that time, "Ed Catmull was named co-founder
and chief technical officer at Pixar." From 1986-1989,
many of their original short films premiered at Siggraph, most of which
received awards for "Best Animated Short Film." In 1990,
the growing company made five new commercials. These included the
California Lottery's "Dancing Cards," and Lifesavers Gummies playing in
a park. Their commercial production tripled in 1991,
and more importantly, a deal was made with Walt Disney Studios
to
"develop, produce, and distribute three featured-length animated
films." 1992, 1993,
and 1994
yielded a total of 29 commercials. These were highlighted by the
Scientific and engineering Academy Award for their work with Renderman.
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1995
was an enormous year for Pixar Animation Studios. They finally
went
public, offering 6.9 million shares at $22 a piece. However, most
notable of this year was the release of Toy Story, the "first
fully
computer animated featured film." It went on to bring in $362
million
in box office receipts world wide, making it the highest grossing film
of 1995. Not only does this show the vast market for computer
animated
films, but it shows signs of globalization as well. A number of
awards
were brought home in 1996,
assuring Pixar that they were finished making commercials.
After the immense success of Toy Story, Disney was forced to sweeten
the deal for Pixar. In 1997,
they agree to make five featured films together. The first of
which was A Bugs Life
in 1998.
Only one week after international release, it reached the number one
spot in six international markets. The following year (1999) Toy Story 2
was released accompanied by a flood of records and
awards.
Pixar, needing room to continue growing, made a move to its current
location in 2000.
Ed Catmull was named Pixar's President in 2001,
and yet another full lengthed film was released. Monsters Inc.
had the
largest opening of any film in the history of Walt Disney
Studios. The
next year was again filled with records and nominations as "Monsters
Inc. became the number one selling DVD and video of 2002."
The next two years saw the release of two more featured films, Finding
Nemo (2003)
and The
Incredibles (2004).
Finding Nemo became "the 8th highest grossing film of all time," and
goes on to top the all time DVD sales.
After 71 commercials, 9 short films, 6
full lengthed films,
and countless awards, Pixar is looking forward to walking on their
own. Ever since 1991, Pixar has been partnered with Disney.
This
worked for both
companies
until the surprise success of "Toy
Story" in 1995 had Pixar demanding
more from Michael Eisner. Since that time the relationship has
been
anything but pleasant.
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Jobs is quoted in an Arik
Johnson
article saying "The truth is that there has been little creative
collaboration with
Disney for years... You can compare the creative quality of
Pixar's last three films, for example, with the creative quality of
Disney's last three animated films and gauge each company's creative
abilities for yourself." And he is absolutely right. In the
same
article, Eisner said "What Pixar has that we don't have is John
Lasseter... He has that quirky sense of humor and understanding. John
is unique." The talks of extending their partnership sopped
recently
when Jobs abruptly ended negotiations. After the 5th movie of
their
agreement is finished, Pixar is out from under Disney's wing, and
Disney is without their fatted calf. Coincidentally, Eisner was
recently voted out of his position at Walt Disney Studios.
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Officers:
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Chairman
and Chief Executive Officer
In 1976, Steve Jobs co-founded
Apple Computers Co. in his garage. Ten years later, he co-founded
Pixar Animation Studios. Since that time he has helped create six
full length animated films which are rated among some of the most
popular of
all time. He grew up in Silicon Valley
California, where he still lives today with his wife and
children. 2003 salary: $530,000.
President
Dr. Ed Catmull attended the University of Utah where he earned his
Ph.D. in computer science, along with a bachelor of science degree in
both physics and computer science. His first major job in the
film industry was vice president of the computer division with
Lucasfilm, Ltd. There he worked with everything from computer
graphics to digital audio. He co-founded Pixar with Jobs, and is
honored as being at the top of his field. 2003 salary:
$530,000 plus a $120,000 bonus.
Executive
Vice President; Creative
Also a founder of Pixar, John Lasseter has
too many accomplishments to list. Like Dr. Catmull,
John started as an employee at Lucasfilm, Ltd. Since the
development of Pixar, he has overseen or directed all of their full
length productions. He has an honorary degree from the American
Film Institute, which keeps his man
Oscars and other awards company on his shelf. 2003 salary: $2.8
million.
Executive
Vice President; Production
Prior to joining the Pixar team in 1997,
Sarah McArthur had a very successful career with Disney. She was
an associate producer for Beauty and the Beast, and went on to
executively produce the Lion King for Disney's Feature Animation
Division. Her B.A. degree in theater was received from the
University of California, Santa Barbra. 2003 salary: $450,000
plus a $100,000 bonus.
Executive
Vice President & Chief Financial Officer
Simon Bax graduated from Gonville and Caius College at the University
of Cambridge in England. Since that time he has immersed himself
in finance management. Before coming to work for Pixar, he was
employed by Fox as their chief financial officer. There his
responsibilities ranged from finance and information technology to the
strategic planning as to the production and distribution of all films
produced by the studio.
Executive
Vice President and General Counsel
Prior to beginning her career in law, Lois
Scali was an accomplished songwriter and recording artist. She
was a partner at a major L.A. law firm before she came to work for
Pixar. Now she directs the company's entertainment practice along
with the their intellectual property transaction practice. She
received a B.A. in Romance Languages from Brooklyn College before going
on to the University of California at Los Angeles. 2003 salary:
$350,000 plus a $200,000 bonus.
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Plans:
As a partnership with
Disney
expires within the next year, Pixar has many plans for the
future. Studios such as "Warner
Bros., Fox, and Sony have all expressed interests in talking to
Pixar" about a possible collaboration. Because Pixar is a
shoot-off of Lucasfilm Ltd., Fox is considered a possible favorite for
the job. Some even "consider Paramount a dark horse in the running.
Imagine the synergy it could have between Pixar and
Paramount/Viacom's Nickelodeon property." Despite all the
possibilities, it
looks as if they are going to fly solo at least for while.
Pixar's next featured animated film, Cars, is set to be released June 9,
2006. John Lasseter who directed Toy Story, A Bug's Life, and Toy
Story 2 is set to direct his fourth film. After being the
executive producer for Monsters
Inc., Finding
Nemo, and The
Incredibles, John is looking forward to sitting in the directors chair, where he
feels
most comfortable. Cars is a said to be a "high-octane adventure
comedy
featuring a wide assortment of cars as characters who get their kicks
on Route 66." |
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Key
Competitors:
After having made movies such as Shrek, Shrek 2, Shark Tale, and A.I, DreamWorks is a
major competitor with Pixar. Although Pixar seems to currently
have them beat in the digital animation, DreamWorks is planning on
releasing Shrek 3 in 2006 and Shrek 4 in 2008.
Blue Sky
became a unit of Fox Studios in 1997. Although they have only
been around a short while, their featured films, Ice Age and Robots,
are getting alot of attention.
Although they are currently in a partnership, Disney Studios
could also be viewed as a competitor. As they re-release such
classic films as Dumbo and Bambi, they soak up some of the excess home
video market.
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Recent
News:
"Now
that Walt Disney’s
controversial CEO Michael Eisner is set to
depart, making way for Disney President Robert Iger to step into the
company's leadership role, analysts expect the media giant to reopen
talks on a distribution deal with Pixar Animation Studios."
Assuming that Eisner was the catalyst preventing Pixar from making a
deal, we could see more of Disney presenting Pixar Films.
It has become apparent through the rapid actions of their board of
directors that Disney is in need of Pixar. This gives Pixar a
whole lot of leverage in bargaining.
Pixar's The
Incredibles was released on DVD March 15th, 2005. "In
addition to the film, the two disc set contains a variety of extras,
including deleted scenes, making-of features, a collection of movie
outtakes, film makers commentary, an animated feature called 'Jack-Jack
Attack' and 'Boundin' a Pixar short nominated for an
Oscar." The DVD is projected to do very well in sales.
Disney released plans to make a Toy
Story 3 without Pixar. Under their current agreement, "Disney
has a right to make sequels to all the Pixar movies. Still, Disney's
decision to exercise that right is controversial." Many feel as
if they will be unable to uphold the standard of quality Pixar has
instilled. |
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Relevant
Links:
Masterpiece
Factory
"With so many films reeking of disappointment, how
do the animation titans Pixar make great movie after great movie?"
A
Studio Tour
"The first thing I
see when I walk through Pixar's front door are two
life-size replicas of the stars of the 2001 hit Monsters, Inc."
Job Openings @ Pixar
"If you don't
have a resume ready, our simple Resume Builder will help in a few short
steps."
Pixar Fan Listing
"Welcome
to the one and only approved fanlisting dedicated to Pixar Animation
Studios"
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