Daniel Scanlon (born June 21, 1976) is an American filmmaker, storyboard artist, and animator. He is best known for directing the

Pixar Pixar (), doing business as Pixar Animation Studios, is an American animation studio based in Emeryville, California, known for its critically and commercially successful computer-animated feature films. Pixar is a subsidiary of Walt Disney ...

animated films ''

Monsters University ''Monsters University'' is a 2013 American animated Coming-of-age film, coming-of-age comedy film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. A prequel to ''Monsters, Inc.'' (2001), it was directed by Dan Scanlon (in his fea ...

'' (2013) and '' Onward'' (2020), with the latter nominating him for the

Academy Award for Best Animated Feature The Academy Award for Best Animated Feature is an Academy Awards, Academy Award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) for the best animation, animated feature film. An animated feature is defined by the a ...

Early life

Scanlon grew up in Clawson,

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

. When he was one year old and his brother three years old, their father died, and when they were teenagers, a relative gave them a brief audio recording of their father. Scanlon has said that these experiences helped inspire the story of '' Onward.'' He graduated with a BFA from the

Columbus College of Art and Design Columbus College of Art & Design (CCAD) is a Private college, private art school in Columbus, Ohio. It was founded in 1879 as the Columbus Art School and is one of the oldest private art and design colleges in the United States. Located in dow ...

in 1998.

Career

Scanlon was an animator for ''The Indescribable Nth'' and '' Joseph: King of Dreams''. He served as a storyboard artist for '' The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea'' and '' 101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure''. Scanlon joined Pixar in 2001, where he was a story artist for ''

Cars A car, or an automobile, is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of cars state that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people rather than cargo. There are around one billio ...

'' and ''

Toy Story 3 ''Toy Story 3'' is a 2010 American animated comedy-drama film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. The third installment in the Toy Story (franchise), ''Toy Story'' series, it was directed by Lee Unkrich, the editor ...

''. He co-directed the short film ''

Mater and the Ghostlight ''Mater and the Ghostlight'' is a 2006 American animated short film released as a special feature on the DVD of Pixar's film ''Cars'', which was released in the United States and Canada on November 7, 2006. The short, set in the ''Cars'' world, te ...

''. He illustrated part one of ''Unmentionables'', a comic book written by his wife, Michele Scanlon, and wrote and directed the live-action feature film ''Tracy''. ''Tracy'' was Scanlon's first feature film as a writer/director. He also served as a member of the senior creative team on ''

Brave Brave(s) or The Brave(s) may refer to: Common meanings *Brave, an adjective for one who possesses courage * Braves (Native Americans), a Euro-American stereotype for Native American warriors Film and television * ''Brave'' (1994 film), a concept ...

'' and '' Inside Out''. Scanlon directed the prequel film of ''

Monsters, Inc. ''Monsters, Inc.'' (also known as ''Monsters, Incorporated'') is a 2001 American animated comedy film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. Featuring the voices of John Goodman, Billy Crystal, Steve Buscemi, James Cobu ...

'', ''

'', released in 2013, to positive reviews and commercial success. He subsequently directed the fantasy-road trip film '' Onward'' (2020), featuring the voices of

Tom Holland Thomas Stanley Holland (born 1 June 1996) is an English actor. The recipient of numerous accolades, including a BAFTA Award, he featured on the ''Forbes'' 30 Under 30 Europe list of 2019. Some publications have called him one of the most ...

Chris Pratt Christopher Michael Pratt (born June 21, 1979) is an American actor. His films as a leading actor have grossed over $14.1billion worldwide, making him the fifth-highest-grossing film star of all time. Pratt was named by ''Time'' as one of t ...

Julia Louis-Dreyfus Julia Scarlett Elizabeth Louis-Dreyfus ( ; born January 13, 1961) is an American actress and comedian. She has gained acclaim for starring in a string of successful comedy series as well as several comedy films. She has received List of awards ...

and

Octavia Spencer Octavia Lenora Spencer (born May 25, 1970) is an American actress. She is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and a Golden Globe Award, in addition to nominations for two Primetime Emmy ...

. It was nominated for an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

for Best Animated Feature, but lost to another Pixar film ''

Soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...

''. In February 2021, Scanlon stated that he and

Kori Rae Kori Rae is a film producer for Pixar. She produced several '' Mater's Tall Tales'' shorts and the feature films ''Monsters University'' and '' Onward''. Personal life Rae is married to Darla K. Anderson, also a Pixar producer, who produced ''M ...

would develop another original Pixar feature film. In November 2024, Scanlon stated he was leaving Pixar, but would not be against working with the company in a consultancy role in the future.

Filmography

Feature films

Independent Films

Short films and series

Other Credits

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Scanlon, Dan 1976 births Animators from Michigan American male screenwriters American storyboard artists American animated film directors Artists from San Francisco Columbus College of Art and Design alumni Film directors from San Francisco Film directors from Michigan Living people Pixar people Screenwriters from California Screenwriters from Michigan Walt Disney Animation Studios people