Joe Ranft

Joseph Henry Ranft was born in Pasadena, California on March 13, 1960,[1] and raised in Whittier. As a child, Ranft developed a love for magic, storytelling, film and comedy. At age 15, he became a member of the Magic Castle Junior Group. After graduating from Monte Vista High School, Whittier, in 1978, Ranft began studying in the character animation program at the California Institute of the Arts alongside John Lasseter and Brad Bird.[1] After two years, Ranft's student film Good Humor caught the attention of Disney animation executives, who offered him a job.

In 1980, Ranft joined Disney as a writer and storyboard artist. During his first five years with Disney, Joe worked on a number of television projects[1] that were never produced. Later in his Disney career, he was promoted into the Feature Animation department, where he was mentored by Eric Larson. Ranft later spoke about training under the Disney legend: "He always reminds me of just the fundamental things that I tend to forget. You know, it's like, animation is so complex; 'How many drawings are in there?' and stuff, but Eric always comes back to like; 'What does the audience perceive?'"[2]

Around this time, he studied under and began performing with the improvisational group, The Groundlings.[3] Ranft stayed with Disney throughout the 1980s, writing the story on many animated features, including Oliver & Company, The Lion King and Beauty and the Beast. He also worked on The Brave Little Toaster in 1987 for Hyperion Animation and James and the Giant Peach in 1996 for Allied Filmmakers.[1]

Ranft reunited with Lasseter when he was hired by Pixar in 1991 as their head of story.[1] There he worked on all of their films produced up to 2006; this included Toy Story (for which he received an Academy Award nomination) and A Bug's Life, as the co-story writer and others as story supervisor. His final film was Cars. He also voiced characters in many of the films, including Heimlich the caterpillar in A Bug's Life, Wheezy the penguin in Toy Story 2, and Jacques the shrimp in Finding Nemo.[1]

In the movie Monsters, Inc., Ranft had a monster named after him (J.J. Ranft) as most of the scarers in the film were named for Pixar staff. Ranft used a German accent to voice Heimlich the caterpillar in A Bug's Life and a French accent to voice Jacques the shrimp in Finding Nemo. He was also given lead story credit on The Brave Little Toaster (1987) and voiced Elmo St. Peters, the appliance salesman.

His favorite writers were Kurt Vonnegut, Hunter S. Thompson, and Tom Wolfe. His favorite magicians were John Carney, Daryl, Michael Ammar, Ricky Jay and Jimmy Grippo.[4]

He was posthumously honored in 2006 as a Disney Legend and in 2016 with the Winsor McCay Award, the lifetime achievement award for animators.

On August 16, 2005, Ranft, 45, and his friend Eric Frierson, were passengers in Ranft's 2004 Honda Element, which was being driven by another friend, Elegba Earl. Earl suddenly lost control and crashed through a guard rail while northbound on Highway 1.

The SUV tumbled down a cliff and plunged 130 feet into the mouth of the Navarro River where it meets the Pacific Ocean in Mendocino County, California, killing both Ranft and Earl instantly. Frierson survived by escaping through the sun roof, though he received moderate injuries.[5][6] Ranft, who was 45, died during the production of Cars, which he co-directed and voice acted in. The film and tie-in game are dedicated to his memory, as is Tim Burton's Corpse Bride, on which Ranft was executive producer.[7] Ranft is survived by his wife Sue and their two children, Jordan and Sophia, and his brother Jerome. His remains were cremated.[8]

Henry Selick called him "the story giant of our generation."[6] In honor of Ranft, in Selick's animated film production Coraline, the moving SUV that moves Coraline into her new apartment is emblazoned with a "Ranft Moving, Inc." logo. The movers themselves are modeled after Ranft and his brother Jerome, who voiced one of the movers. Jerome even took up most of Joe’s voice roles following his brother’s death.

The 2010 DVD re-release of Toy Story 2 includes a special feature that focuses on Ranft and his accomplishments. Additionally, the 2020 movie Soul includes his name on a wall of previous mentors to the character 22.

• Joe Ranft at IMDb
• Pixar Artist's Corner with Joe
• Michael Sragow (November 23, 1999) "Toy" Story Man. Salon.
• Peter Hartlaub (September 17, 2003) The secret of Pixar's magic can be found at CalArts.... San Francisco Chronicle.
• Remembrance by Ronnie del Carmen
• Obituary by the former President of the Northern California Disneyana Enthusiasts club, citing comments made at Joe Ranft's memorial
• Disney Legends profile
• Remembrance by James S. Baker
• Remembering Joe Ranft by John Musker, via Pixar Planet.