Brenda Chapman Left Pixar

[UmbrellaFish]

There's a reason Ratatouille is my favorite PIXAR film, because if you examine it closely, it's a Disney film in disguise.

Do you mind elaborating on that?

[PatrickvD]

There's a reason Ratatouille is my favorite PIXAR film, because if you examine it closely, it's a Disney film in disguise.

Do you mind elaborating on that?

Remy's story arc, being different and trying to figure out where he belongs is a theme that Disney pretty much invented. Thematically, it can stand right alongside Disney's classics and most importantly, their 90s films.

People usually look at Ratatouille and think: 'a rat that cooks, that's so Pixar' because of the contrarian nature of the premise. But underneath the themes are very Disney.

[Sotiris]

Brenda Chapman, who won an Oscar in February for Pixar’s “Brave,” in recent weeks has returned to DreamWorks Animation.

“I left in part because I felt like I was being asked to do the same story over and over,” said Ms. Chapman, who co-directed “The Prince of Egypt” for the studio in 1998, but later moved to Pixar. “I look at the movies DreamWorks is doing now, and I see the exact opposite happening.”

She was pushed out of Pixar after clashing with that studio’s chief creative officer, John Lasseter. Although she could have joined another studio, she said she chose to return to Glendale in part because of Mr. Damaschke, who started at DreamWorks Animation in 1995 as a production assistant on “The Prince of Egypt.”

“As Jeffrey has gained experience and age, and DreamWorks has grown, he has stepped back and allowed other people to run creative,” Ms. Chapman said. “At Pixar, it’s all John’s show.” She added of DreamWorks Animation, “you can butt heads here and not be punished for it, unlike at another place I could name.”

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/16/busin ... works.html

[Warm Regards]

Brenda Chapman, who won an Oscar in February for Pixar’s “Brave,” in recent weeks has returned to DreamWorks Animation.

“I left in part because I felt like I was being asked to do the same story over and over,” said Ms. Chapman, who co-directed “The Prince of Egypt” for the studio in 1998, but later moved to Pixar. “I look at the movies DreamWorks is doing now, and I see the exact opposite happening.”

She was pushed out of Pixar after clashing with that studio’s chief creative officer, John Lasseter. Although she could have joined another studio, she said she chose to return to Glendale in part because of Mr. Damaschke, who started at DreamWorks Animation in 1995 as a production assistant on “The Prince of Egypt.”

“As Jeffrey has gained experience and age, and DreamWorks has grown, he has stepped back and allowed other people to run creative,” Ms. Chapman said. “At Pixar, it’s all John’s show.” She added of DreamWorks Animation, “you can butt heads here and not be punished for it, unlike at another place I could name.”

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/16/busin ... works.html

Yikes, that doesn't bode well for John. Well, I'm glad Ms. Chapman is saying this and has moved on. People should know that Pixar is not all sunshine and roses, you know?

[Sotiris]

People should know that Pixar is not all sunshine and roses, you know?

I think this proves what we long suspected; John Lasseter micromanages both Pixar and WDAS. He doesn't seem to trust the artists he employs, their ideas or their creative instincts. It either his way or the highway. Most recently, he didn't let Rich Moore shoot the real world portion of Wreck-It Ralph in live-action which would have created an interesting aesthetic approach between the real world and the animated game world.

[DisneyAnimation88]

There is an old adage that there are two sides to every story.

People should know that Pixar is not all sunshine and roses, you know?

No film studio is, they all have their fair share of politics and in-fighting. Some are just better at keeping that part hidden from public view than others.

[UmbrellaFish]

People should know that Pixar is not all sunshine and roses, you know?

I think this proves what we long suspected; John Lasseter micromanages both Pixar and WDAS. He doesn't seem to trust the artists he employs, their ideas or their creative instincts. It either his way or the highway. Most recently, he didn't let Rich Moore shoot the real world portion of Wreck-It Ralph in live-action which would have created an interesting aesthetic approach between the real world and the animated game world.

I didn't know Moore wanted to do that?!? That was one of my minor quibbles with the movie when I saw it-- it would have made the video game world so much more distinct. The concept is actually a better fit for "Ralph" than it was for "Wall-E," in my opinion.

[Sotiris]

That was one of my minor quibbles with the movie when I saw it-- it would have made the video game world so much more distinct. The concept is actually a better fit for "Ralph" than it was for "Wall-E," in my opinion.

I fully agree.

[PatrickvD]

People should know that Pixar is not all sunshine and roses, you know?

I think this proves what we long suspected; John Lasseter micromanages both Pixar and WDAS. He doesn't seem to trust the artists he employs, their ideas or their creative instincts. It either his way or the highway. Most recently, he didn't let Rich Moore shoot the real world portion of Wreck-It Ralph in live-action which would have created an interesting aesthetic approach between the real world and the animated game world.

The Oscar would have been Ralph's, no contest.

And yeah, his micromanagement is pissing me off. Somewhere along the line he started believing what people were saying about him. That he was some sort of God. He's no longer grounded in reality and Cars 2 is the perfect example of it. Remember when the reviews he came in, he started back-paddling with "yeah well, Toy Story received mixed reviews as well at first"....

Bull. Shit.

[Tristy]

I think this proves what we long suspected; John Lasseter micromanages both Pixar and WDAS. He doesn't seem to trust the artists he employs, their ideas or their creative instincts. It either his way or the highway. Most recently, he didn't let Rich Moore shoot the real world portion of Wreck-It Ralph in live-action which would have created an interesting aesthetic approach between the real world and the animated game world.

The Oscar would have been Ralph's, no contest.

And yeah, his micromanagement is pissing me off. Somewhere along the line he started believing what people were saying about him. That he was some sort of God. He's no longer grounded in reality and Cars 2 is the perfect example of it. Remember when the reviews he came in, he started back-paddling with "yeah well, Toy Story received mixed reviews as well at first"....

Bull. Shit.

Woah! That sounds like George Lucas's defense of his Star Wars prequels! Holy crap!

[estefan]

Although I do think George Lucas did hear some of the criticisms towards the Star Wars prequels and took them to heart. There's a reason Jar-Jar Binks, who was all over The Phantom Menace, but then became a minor character in Attack of the Clones and has maybe two seconds of screentime in Revenge of the Sith. I still feel Revenge of the Sith was Lucas's attempt to fix some of the complaints he received on the prequels and it's a large reason why its reception is so much more positive than the previous two prequels.

But I'm getting off-topic here. I do think Lasseter should give a bit more freedom to his directors. While, yes, the WDAS-produced films have greatly improved, his treatment of folks like Chapman is no different from how (ironically) Disney executives, including Katzenberg, treated Toy Story when that film was in production. To quote Thomas Schumacher, "It's no longer their movie."

[Jules]

Well, Lasseter will hopefully relinquish his chief creative officing duties at some point and we'll get some new blood to fill in the void.

Hope I don't have to wait half a century before that happens, though.

[Sotiris]

Q: You didn't get to see Brave through completion. What happened on that film for you?

Brenda Chapman: When Disney bought Pixar, they bumped a lot of the films, mine included, to accommodate Pixar sequels. So, my release date was Toy Story 3's release date. There was just a long time to mess around with the movie and within that time I started having creative differences with John Lasseter regarding how some of the characters were portrayed.

Q: And they ended up bringing in a male director to replace you. Was that significant?

Brenda Chapman: I feel it was, yeah. [laughs] But at the same time at Pixar I was the only female director they had.

Q: I'm wondering how difficult it has been for you to speak out about this whole thing while you're working in the film industry.

Brenda Chapman: You know, I've been in the industry for a long time and I've just sort of had it. [laughs] And especially after the issues I had on Brave, I just can't be quiet any longer. The thing is, after I was taken off Brave, nearly every animation studio called me up offering me a job. So, I knew that my status in the industry was still pretty good, just maybe not at Disney anymore. So, if I have to take on the big guns, I'll take on the big guns.

Q: What do people say when movies with strong female leads do well in the box office? What is the explanation for why they aren't more of them?

Brenda Chapman: I just think the studios are run by men and so they have a skewed perspective on what they think the public wants to see. They're seeing it from one point of view. It always boggles my mind. If you look at most of the titles of the animated films done...Rapunzel was called Tangled because they didn't want to put a female name because they were afraid it wouldn't sell.

Q: What was the original name for Brave?

Brenda Chapman: It was The Bear Queen's Daughter. The Bear and the Bow was also tried but they were afraid 'bow' would be misconstrued as a bow on the head.

Q: So, that turned into Brave. Little boys can relate to 'brave'.

Brenda Chapman: Yes. [laughs]

Source: http://www.cbc.ca/player/Radio/The+Curr ... 390060643/

[FlyingPiggy]

They thought "bow" in Bear and the Bow would be taken as a hair bow? Rich.

And I'm so glad a big name is confirming John's dictatorial management style.

[Sotiris]

He's no longer grounded in reality and Cars 2 is the perfect example of it. Remember when the reviews he came in, he started back-paddling with "yeah well, Toy Story received mixed reviews as well at first".... Bull. Shit.

To be fair, what did you expect him to say? Admit the film was bad? First of all, he doesn't believe that and second, that would generate a lot of bad publicity. Especially when at the time he was trying to promote the film overseas.

They thought "bow" in Bear and the Bow would be taken as a hair bow? Rich.

Because what follows more naturally when you think of a bear? A hunting tool? No, a hair bow!

[FlyingPiggy]

They thought "bow" in Bear and the Bow would be taken as a hair bow? Rich.

Because what follows more naturally when you think of a bear? A hunting tool? No, a hair bow!

They're so paranoid The Bear and the Bow is such an awesome title, arguably a little too cool for what Brave turned out to be.

I can't wait to see the films Brenda works on at Dreamworks.

[estefan]

I think The Bear and the Bow is certainly a better title than The Bear Queen's Daughter, which honestly doesn't quite snap for me.

[universALLove]

I think The Bear and the Bow is certainly a better title than The Bear Queen's Daughter, which honestly doesn't quite snap for me.

Agreed, although The Bear and the Bow is too similar to The Princess and the Frog. Personally I'm happy with the title Brave, I think it's the best of the three followed by The Bear and The Bow and then The Bear Queen's Daughter which just plain sucks!

[Atlantica]

Does The Bear Queen's Daughter win the award for most descriptive Disney title ever??

Out of the three choices, I do think Brave is the most punchy.

[disneyboy20022]

Brenda Chapman: It was The Bear Queen's Daughter. The Bear and the Bow was also tried but they were afraid 'bow' would be misconstrued as a bow on the head.

Q: So, that turned into Brave. Little boys can relate to 'brave'.

Brenda Chapman: Yes. [laughs]

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This is the expression I had on my face





I think the reasoning to ex out The Bear and the Bow was silly. But Brave suits it fine.

I'd like to believe this was Mr. Lasseter's face when he heard Brenda Chapman speak out about him micro managing the company and all