Andrew Stanton

Name	Andrew Stanton
Image
Caption	Stanton in 2026
Birth Name	Andrew Ayers Stanton
Birth Date	1965-12-3
Birth Place	Rockport, Massachusetts, U.S.
Alma Mater	California Institute of the Arts (BFA)
Employer	Pixar Animation Studios (1990–present)
Years Active	1981–present
Spouse	Julie Stanton (1989 – now)
Awards	Academy Award for Best Animated Feature Finding Nemo (2003) WALL-E (2008)
Children	2

Early and personal life

Stanton was born in Rockport, Massachusetts. His father, Ron Stanton, was the founder of a company that worked on radars for the United States Department of Defense. His mother, Gloria Stanton, pursued an acting career before becoming a homemaker. Both of Stanton's parents were natives of nearby Wellesley.

Stanton acted in high school and directed sketch comedy shot on Super 8 film. He portrayed Barnaby Tucker in a 1980 high school production of Hello, Dolly!, which later became a source of inspiration for WALL-E. Stanton studied for a year at the University of Hartford before transferring to the character animation program at the California Institute of the Arts. He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts from CalArts in 1987.

In 1989, Stanton married his high school sweetheart Julie, two weeks after she graduated from Georgetown University. The couple subsequently settled in Los Angeles, where they raised two children, Ben and Audrey. Stanton is a Christian.

Stanton revealed in 2012 that he was diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder when he was in the middle of writing John Carter.

Stanton is an Arsenal F.C. fan, and included a scene mimicking their famous offside trap among other Arsenal references in John Carter.

Career

Stanton began his career in animation in the late 1980s. He worked as an animator for Kroyer Films, and one of his early gigs involved animating sperm for a sex-ed film with Martin Short called The Making of Me, originally produced for Disney's Wonders of Life pavilion. Stanton was one of several CalArts graduates hired by John Kricfalusi to work on Mighty Mouse: The New Adventures at Ralph Bakshi's studio.

After being rejected by Disney three times, Stanton was hired by Pixar's animation group in 1990 as its second animator (John Lasseter being the first) and ninth employee. Back then Pixar was not yet an animation studio, and their animation group was dedicated to making television commercials as a step towards their goal of making the first computer-animated feature.

Stanton, Lasseter and Pete Docter drafted the original treatment for Toy Story, which bore little resemblance with the eventually finished film. After production of the film was shut down in late November 1993 following a disastrous test screening, Stanton retreated into a windowless office and extensively reworked the script with help from Joss Whedon. The resulting screenplay was nominated at the Academy Awards for Best Original Screenplay, the first nomination in that category for an animated film. Following his work on Toy Story, Stanton would go on to direct Finding Nemo, WALL-E, and Finding Dory for Pixar.

In an interview with World Magazines Megan Basham, Stanton explained his singular vision for WALL-E:

Stanton was credited as a narrative guru on Ralph Breaks the Internet, helping director and former classmate Rich Moore construct the story following Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar Animation Studios former chief creative officer Lasseter's step down. He co-wrote Toy Story 4, which was released on June 21, 2019. Initially, when he pitched the idea to director Josh Cooley, Cooley was concerned feeling like Toy Story 3 was the perfect ending. Stanton reportedly told Cooley "Toy Story 3 was a good ending--but it's not the ending." He explained that it was not the ending of Woody's story but rather the ending of Woody's time with Andy. Stanton reportedly started writing Toy Story 4 in secret while the third film was still in production.

He has expressed interest in directing more live action films, stating that he wants to return "because it's quicker and it's a little bit more of the opposite... It's the antithesis of animation. Animation you get to control everything, and it's awesome in that sense. But there's no spontaneity, and it takes a long time! And so there's high risk for the complete opposite reasons of live-action."

In 2020, it was announced that Stanton was in talks to direct and write Chairman Spaceman for Searchlight Pictures and Simon Kinberg's production label, Genre Films. The film is based on The New Yorker short story of the same name by Thomas Pierce. The film would mark Stanton's third venture into the science fiction genre, following WALL-E and John Carter. Stanton has been quoted many times saying that science fiction is his favorite genre. Films like Star Wars, Blade Runner, Aliens, as well as Edgar Rice Burroughs' novel, Princess of Mars, helped shape his interest in the genre. The same year, Stanton was attached to direct Revolver, a romantic comedy starring Maya Hawke and Ethan Hawke from a screenplay by Kate Trefry. In 2022, it was announced that Stanton would direct In the Blink of an Eye (2026) for Searchlight Pictures from a screenplay by Colby Day.

In 2024, Docter announced that Stanton would write and direct the fifth main installment of the Toy Story series, Toy Story 5, which is scheduled for release on June 19, 2026.

Filmography

Films

Short films

TV episodes and specials

Video games

Theme parks

Other credits

Collaborations (Acting)

Andrew Stanton has cast certain actors and crew members in more than one of the films he has directed.

Award and nominations

Academy Awards

Preservation

Two of Stanton's short films, A Story and Somewhere in the Arctic..., were preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2012.

References

• JOHN CARTER director Andrew Stanton talks Pixar, Marketing & Critics, YouTube, March 12, 2012, June 15, 2024
• Second-Act Twist, Friend, Tad, October 10, 2011, The New Yorker, December 31, 2020
• Best Animated Feature Film Acceptance Speech, Oscar.com, January 17, 2018, February 26, 2009
• Alumni - CalArts School of Film/Video, California Institute of the Arts, December 31, 2020
• Moring, Mark, The Little Robot That Could, May 5, 2017, Christianity Today, June 24, 2008
• Director Andrew Stanton looks back on 'John Carter's' rocky path, Keegan, Rebecca, September 8, 2012, Los Angeles Times, March 13, 2022
• Writers on Writing with Andrew Stanton, July 30, 2019, Writers Guild Foundation, December 31, 2020
• Wired, Q&A: Toon Titan John Kricfalusi Hails Mighty Mouse Rebirth, Scott, Thill, January 5, 2010, June 16, 2022
• Pixar's Andrew Stanton, Animating From Life, NPR, July 10, 2008, December 31, 2020
• To Infinity and Beyond!: The Story of Pixar Animation Studios, Karen, Paik, 3 November 2015, Chronicle Books, Google Books
• dead, May 11, 2011, Movies & TV Dept., The New York Times, 2011, Toy Story (1995), March 12, 2009
• Shamsian, Jacob, The director of 'Finding Nemo' says he made the movie because he was bothered by a scene in 'The Lion King', 2020-12-13, Insider
• Ralph Breaks the Internet - Press Kit, Walt Disney Studios Media File, November 18, 2018
• Toy Story 4 Was Secretly Being Written Before Toy Story 3 Released, Spencer, Perry, June 18, 2019, December 7, 2019, Comingsoon.net
• Finding Dory Director Wants to Focus on Live-Action Movies Next, Screen Rant, 11 June 2016
• Anthony, D'Alessandro, Andrew Stanton In Early Talks To Direct 'Chairman Spaceman' For Searchlight & Simon Kinberg's Genre Films, May 19, 2020, Deadline Hollywood, Penske Media Corporation, September 12, 2020
• Patrick, Hipes, Maya And Ethan Hawke To Star As Father And Daughter In 'Revolver'; Andrew Stanton Directing – AFM, October 30, 2020, Deadline Hollywood, Penske Media Corporation, February 5, 2023
• Jeremy, Kay, Andrew Stanton to direct Maya and Ethan Hawke in AFM sales title 'Revolver', October 30, 2020, Screen Daily, Media Business Insight, February 5, 2023
• Kit, Borys, Andrew Stanton to Direct Epic Sci-Fi Drama 'In the Blink of an Eye' for Searchlight (Exclusive), The Hollywood Reporter, Penske Media Corporation, October 7, 2022, February 5, 2023
• Hermanns, Grant, June 8, 2024, Toy Story 5 Director Seemingly Revealed By Pixar Exec, June 8, 2024, Screen Rant, en-US
• McPherson, Chris, June 9, 2024, Pixar Legend Tapped to Direct 'Toy Story 5', June 14, 2024, Collider, en
• Sundance Sets 2026 Lineup With Charli XCX, Olivia Wilde, Salman Rushdie and Courtney Love Films, The Hollywood Reporter, Chris, Gardner, 10 December 2025, 10 December 2025
• Simon, Ben, Pixar Short Films Collection: Volume 2, Animated Views, February 26, 2017, December 27, 2012
• Gaur, Ryan, 2023-07-06, Conversation with Team Behind New Pixar Series 'Win or Lose' , , Carrie Hobson, Michael Yates, David Lally, 2023-07-07, Skwigly Animation Magazine
• Shanfeld, Ethan, 'Inside Out' Spinoff Series 'Dream Productions' and Pixar's 'Win or Lose' Set Disney+ Release Dates and Unveil New Footage, variety.com, September 24, 2024, September 24, 2024
• Finding Nemo: Escape to the Big Blue Review (3DS), Martin, Watts, April 15, 2013, Nintendo Life, March 26, 2021
• Second-Act Twist, The New Yorker, 10 October 2011
• Strike, Joe, 'Zootopia:' Disney's Latest and Greatest Animal Kingdom, Animated World Network, September 13, 2020, March 4, 2016
• Buzz Lightyear Documentary 'Beyond Infinity' Now on Disney+, July 2, 2022, Pixar Post, June 10, 2022, T.J. Wolsos
• Preserved Projects, Academy Film Archive

Bibliography

• Price, David, 2008, The Pixar Touch: The Making of a Company, New York, Alfred A. Knopf

External links

• A Day in the Life of Andrew Stanton – The New York Times
• "The clues to a great story" (TED2012)