Disney Animation, Pixar Name New Presidents

In the biggest change since the 2006 merger, Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar Animation Studios have new faces in their top-level leadership role.

Andrew Millstein is now president of Disney Animation and Jim Morris is president of Pixar, Deadline reports. They both report to Ed Catmull, who has held the president position in both studios for nearly a decade.

Millstein has served at Disney as Executive Vice President and General Manager, having been with the studio since 1997. Morris’s resume includes being president of Lucas Digital, producer of Wall-E, and General Manager and Executive Vice President of Production at Pixar.

Said Catmull:

Andrew’s leadership has been a major factor in the renaissance of Walt Disney Animation, and we’re excited to see what wonderful films and technological advancements continue to emerge from that group under his leadership. I’m continually impressed by Jim’s business and creative acumen. He truly understands film production inside and out, and his management of Pixar allows its culture to continually grow, explore new areas and technology, and advance new ways of storytelling.

In Catmull’s 2014 book Creativity, Inc., he stresses the importance of passing the baton to wise leadership, as well as one of his biggest fears in the early days of Pixar being its sustainability beyond him and John Lasseter.

What do you think about this transition of leadership? Are you excited for the direction of Disney and Pixar?