The guy has proven he is a genius. Make it happen, Emeryville!
I would certainly love to see Doug direct a Pixar film in the future. He’s my favorite of all the Pixar animators, and did such an outstanding job with Presto (which has become my absolute favorite Pixar short film).
I agree, or at least co-direct. This guy has been in it since Toy Story, and has done some fantastic work with Pixar, the least of which is Presto, which was absolutely outstanding.
Hopefully he’ll become as well known as Lasseter, Bird, and Stanton within the Pixar community soon. He deserves more attention than he gets.
Yeah, I don’t want to lose this guy to a different studio because he can’t get a shot. And we need new blood coming up in the ranks with Stanton and Bird, looking to focus on potentially live-action and non-G-rated films for the next few years.
Gary Rydstrom directed Lifted, and he’ll have a chance to direct a movie set to release for 2011.
Earliest year for Sweetland to have a movie out would be 2013. I hope he’s got a film coming up, I’d love to see what he can do for a feature-length film. Not saying it will be an instant success (see: Jan Pinkava having problems on Ratatouille), but still would like to see him try.
Interview with Sweetland (courtesy of Pixar Planet’s blog): pixarplanet.com/blog/spline-doct … -sweetland
If Ralph Eggleston is still at Pixar, it’d be nice if he directed a movie, too. For the Birds is still my favorite short, and he’s been at Pixar for 16 years.
Never know what will happen in the future! But, I agree, Presto was amazing. He did a great job using classic humor that you’d find in Chuck Jones and Tex Avery cartoons in the good old days, and bringing it to computer animation. Classic.
Hate to bump, but I haven’t heard too much about Sweetland lately. He was accepted into the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences back in July, and that’s the last anyone has heard about him. Maybe he’s up to something… Monsters, Inc. 2, perhaps? I really would love to see him become one of the bigger names in Pixar.
You may get your wish, but not at Pixar. Apparently Mr. Sweetland no longer works there.
Doug will make his feature-directing debut for Sony Pictures Animation:
I’m looking forward to his debut, but… dammit. I was really hoping he’d direct at Pixar. Those guys are getting stretched thin, especially with folks like Stanton and Bird going off and doing live-action projects right now and Lasseter running the entire Disney studio.
Wow! That’s great that he’s going to be directing, I can’t say I’m a big fan of the story he’s directing, but, hey, never judge a book/movie by its cover.
Seeing as how all of Sony’s films have gone through numerous directors (up to 6 - including several ex-Pixar employees), I doubt this will last. Sony has only had ONE animation hit - Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, and it was a fluke. That said, if it happens, I doubt it would be Sweetland’s fault. Sony doesn’t have a very good reputation in this business.
I’m rooting for Doug. Maybe, if his movie is successful, he’ll direct a film at Pixar! 