Glenn McQueen
Glenn John McQueen (December 24, 1960 β October 29, 2002) was a Canadian supervisor of digital animation and supervising character animator at Pixar and PDI.
Glenn McQueen | |
---|---|
Born | Glenn John McQueen December 24, 1960 Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
Died | October 29, 2002 41) Berkeley, California, U.S. | (aged
Nationality | Canadian |
Alma mater | Sheridan College |
Occupation | animator |
Employer | PDI (1991β1994) Pixar Animation Studios (1994β2002) |
Spouse(s) | Terry McQueen |
Children | Katie |
Personal life
McQueen graduated from Sheridan College in 1985. He was sent by Sheridan on a scholarship to the New York Institute of Technology Computer Graphics Lab, where he worked as head of the 3-D production department, which made film effects, TV commercials and scientific visuals.
In 1994 he moved to Pixar Animation Studios (partly due to his interest in Toy Story and his respect for John Lasseter), where he supervised the animation on Pixar's early successes, including Toy Story, A Bug's Life, Toy Story 2 and Monsters, Inc..[1][2]
McQueen also served as a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Hollywood. He and his wife, Terry, had a daughter.[2]
Death
In December 2001, McQueen was diagnosed with melanoma, while he was working at Pixar. On October 29, 2002, he died of complications brought by the disease in Berkeley, California, at the age of 41. His death occurred during the production of Finding Nemo, which is dedicated to him. His former colleagues also paid homage by naming the main character and Piston Cup Champion in the film Cars "Lightning McQueen".[3][4][5]
Legacy
McQueen has admirers all over the world for his work, and has been hailed as one of the best animators in the field. Pixar co-founder John Lasseter called McQueen "a great animator, a great friend and a fantastic family man" and "the heart and soul of our animation department", and also said that "Glenn is not gone from us. Heβs still alive in all of us."[3]
Pixar Animation Studios had plans underway to open a new studio in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, which would be named the Glenn McQueen Pixar Animation Center to honor McQueen. It was planned to be around 20,000 square feet (1,900 m2) and be located in the downtown area of Vancouver. The studio focused on producing short films and TV episodes based on Pixar characters.[6] Job qualifications were released in 2009[7] and the studio opened in spring 2010, producing many shorts including Small Fry (2011) and Partysaurus Rex (2012).
In October 2013, the studio was closed down in order to re-focus Pixar's efforts at its main headquarters.[8]
Filmography
Director
- 1991: The Last Halloween
- 1991: "Slide Show"
Animator
- 1992: Sleepwalkers
- 1995: Toy Story
Supervising animator
- 1998: A Bug's Life
- 1999: Toy Story 2
- 2001: Monsters, Inc.
Character animator
- 1994: Angels in the Outfield
References
- Plume, Kenneth (2000-02-10). "Interview with Glenn McQueen". IGN. Retrieved 2012-11-08.
- Obituary, latimes.com, November 19, 2002; accessed September 1, 2015.
- Rizvi, Samad. "Remembering Glenn McQueen, 1960-2002". Pixar Times. Retrieved 2012-11-08.
- Nusair, David. "5 Things You Didn't Know About the Cars Series". About.com. Retrieved 2012-11-08.
- "Cars Easter Egg - Tribute to Dead Animator". husband and wife team of David and Annette Wolf. Retrieved 2012-11-08.
- Marke Andrews (2009-05-08). "Pixar to open Vancouver studio". Archived from the original on 2010-04-20. Retrieved 2012-11-08.
- Mike Valiquette (2009-11-15). "Jobby: Production Manager, Layout Artist, Pixar Vancouver!". Retrieved 2012-11-08.
- "Pixar Canada shuts its doors in Vancouver". The Province. October 8, 2013. Retrieved June 20, 2014.