Joe Ranft
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| Joe Ranft | |
|---|---|
| Born | Joseph Henry Ranft March 13, 1960 Pasadena, California, U.S. |
| Died | August 16, 2005 (aged 45) Mendocino County, California, U.S. |
| Occupation | Magician, Voice Actor, Screenwriter, Storyboard Artst, Animator, Director |
| Years active | 1982–2005 |
| Spouse(s) | Sue Barry (?-2005; his death) |
Joseph Henry "Joe" Ranft (March 13, 1960 – August 16, 2005) was an American magician, animator, storyboard artist, and voice actor who worked for Pixar and Disney. His brother Jerome Ranft is a sculptor who also worked on several Pixar movies.
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[edit] Early life
Born in Pasadena, California, but raised in Whittier, California, Ranft spent much of his youth practicing magic tricks and playing the accordion. At 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. After two years, Ranft's student film Good Humor caught the attention of Disney animation executives, who offered him a job.
[edit] Career
During his first five years with Disney, Ranft worked on a number of television projects that never got made. Later in his Disney career, he was bumped up into the Feature Animation department, where he was mentored by Eric Larson. Ranft later said of training under the Disney legend: “He always reminds me of just the fundamental things that I tend to forget. You know it 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?’” [1] Around this time, he studied under and began performing with the improvisational group, The Groundlings. He stayed with Disney throughout the 1980s, doing story work on animated features including The Lion King and Beauty and the Beast.
Ranft reunited with John Lasseter, whom he had previously met at California Institute of the Arts during the late 70's, when he joined Pixar in 1992. He worked on story development for all of Pixar's feature film releases, most recently as Head of Story on Cars.
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.
In the DVD of Cars Ranft can be seen in an interview about the movie.
He voiced the following Pixar characters:
- Toy Story - Lenny the Binoculars
- A Bug's Life - Heimlich the Caterpillar
- Toy Story 2 - Wheezy the Penguin (speaking voice only, singing voice provided by Robert Goulet)
- Joe Ranft did the same voice of this character in the beginning of Buzz Lightyear of Star Command: The Adventure Begins
- Monsters, Inc. - additional voices (including Peter "Claws" Ward)
- Finding Nemo - Jacques the Shrimp and Bill, Tad's father
- The Incredibles - additional voices
- Cars - Red, the fire truck, and Peterbilt
He was also given lead story credit on 1987's The Brave Little Toaster and voiced Elmo St. Peters, the appliance salesman.
His favorite writers were Kurt Vonnegut, Hunter S. Thompson, and Tom Wolfe.
[edit] Death
On August 16, 2005 Ranft was riding as a passenger in his 2004 Honda Element when the driver lost control and crashed through the guard rail while heading northbound on Highway 1. The car plunged 130 feet into the mouth of the Navarro River in Mendocino County, California.[2] Both Ranft and the driver, Elegba Earl, were killed in the fall. Another passenger in the car survived by escaping through the sun roof, and was hospitalized with moderate injuries.
Ranft is survived by his wife of 20 years, Susan, and their children, Jordan and Sophia. He died during production of Cars, which he co-directed. The film and tie-in game are dedicated to his memory, as is Tim Burton's Corpse Bride, which Ranft executive produced. He is remembered by Henry Selick as "the story giant of our generation."[3]
In Henry Selick's Coraline, the moving truck that moves Coraline into her new apartment is emblazoned with the logo for "Ranft Moving, Inc.", named in honor of the late animator. The movers themselves are modeled after Joe and Jerome, and Jerome Ranft voices one of the movers.
[edit] Selected filmography
- The Brave Little Toaster (1987)
- Oliver & Company (1988)
- The Little Mermaid (1989)
- The Rescuers Down Under (1990)
- Beauty and the Beast (1991)
- The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
- The Lion King (1994)
- Toy Story (1995)
- James and the Giant Peach (film) (1996)
- A Bug's Life (1998)
- Toy Story 2 (1999)
- Fantasia 2000 (1999)
- Buzz Lightyear of Star Command: The Adventure Begins (2000)
- Monsters, Inc. (2001)
- Monkeybone (2001)
- Finding Nemo (2003)
- The Incredibles (2004)
- Tim Burton's Corpse Bride (2005)
- Cars (2006)
[edit] References
- ^ "Eric Larson, Disney Family Album: Part Three". http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-EMZrbS7N_k.
- ^ Scott Weinberg (2005-08-19). "Pixar's Joe Ranft Falls to a Tragic Death". Rotten Tomatoes. http://uk.rottentomatoes.com/m/who_framed_roger_rabbit/news/1645631/pixars_joe_ranft_falls_to_a_tragic_death. Retrieved 2008-06-26.
- ^ "Pixar's Ranft dies in crash by Sheigh Crabtree". http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/search/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1001017138.
[edit] External links
- Joe Ranft at the Internet Movie Database
- Pixar Artist's Corner with Joe
- Michael Sragow (Nov. 23, 1999) "Toy" Story Man. Salon.
- Peter Hartlaub (Sep. 17, 2003) The secret of Pixar's magic can be found at CalArts.... San Francisco Chronicle.
- Hollywood Reporter Obituary
- 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
- Joe Ranft at Find a Grave
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