Kirk Wise

Kirk Wise
Born	August 24, 1963 (1963-08-24) San Francisco, California
Occupation	Film Director, Animator, Screenwriter, Producer
Years active	1986 - Present

Kirk Wise (born August 24, 1963) is an American film director, animator and screenwriter best known for his work at Disney. Wise has directed such Disney movies as Atlantis: The Lost Empire, The Hunchback of Notre Dame and Beauty and the Beast. He also directed the English voice version of Hayao Miyazaki's Spirited Away.

Career

Wise graduated from Palo Alto High School and went on to study character animation at California Institute of the Arts. Early in his career, Wise worked as an animator on Disney's Sport Goofy in Soccermania, The Great Mouse Detective and The Brave Little Toaster, as well as Steven Spielberg's Amazing Stories episode "Family Dog". Returning to Walt Disney Feature Animation, he began work on Oliver & Company as an assistant animator, but eventually joined the story department, where he was reunited with former CalArts classmate Gary Trousdale. After working as storyboard artists on The Rescuers Down Under and The Prince and the Pauper, Wise and Trousdale were responsible for helming the celebrated Beauty and the Beast (1991), the first animated feature to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture.

Filmography

• Waking Sleeping Beauty (2009): Himself / Caricaturist
• Oceans (2009): Executive Producer (Disneynature)
• Open Season (2006): Special Thanks
• Spirited Away (2002): Director (U.S. production)
• Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001) Director / Story
• The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996): Director
• The Lion King (1994): Additional Story Material
• Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey (1993): Executive Producer
• Beauty and the Beast (1991): Director
• The Prince and the Pauper (1990): Storyboard Artist
• The Rescuers Down Under (1990): Storyboard Artist
• Cranium Command (1989): Voice of Hypothalamus / Opening Sequence Director
• Oliver & Company (1988): Animating Assistant / Story
• The Brave Little Toaster (1987): Animation Director (development)
• Sport Goofy in Soccermania (1987): Animator
• The Great Mouse Detective (1986): Assistant Animator

External links

• Kirk Wise at the Internet Movie Database
• Kirk Wise at Filmbug