My interview with animation director JP Vine

What does it take to direct an animated movie?

What goes into directing an animated movie?

Will a creative life take you in the exact direction you planned?

When you watch the above roughly 35-minute video interview I originally made for my middle school art students, you’ll learn from JP Vine’s animation career journey and storytelling tips, but I’ve also written out my takeaways below if you’d like to get a personal perspective and background on our friendship.

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Dreams can come true if you’re willing to take risks

After years of working in animation as a story artist, Jean Phillipe Vine got his opportunity to direct the film Ron’s Gone Wrong, a success in theaters last year and on Disney+.

The story is set in a world where every kid can get a personal robot friend called a B-bot that goes everywhere with them, except Barney, who finds one that’s slightly defective. It’s a lovely and humorous story about what makes true friendship in our digital age.

I met JP through a friend who worked at Pixar and invited me to get-togethers where we would draw with other artists at bars, essentially what’s commonly called Drink and Draw events.

This was about ten years ago and mainly for story artists at Pixar, but I felt honored to be included—even though I didn’t have experience working in animation.

They would meet several times a month in the evening after work, and everyone would draw something based on a theme or prompt