John Lasseter shares magic of making animation

John Lasseter, the chief creative officer at Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios, shares some secrets for making successful animated films with fans and students in a lecture at the Communication University of China in Beijing on Oct 30, 2014. [Photo/China.org.cn]

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John Lasseter, the chief creative officer at Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios, toured Beijing and Shanghai and shared some secrets for making successful animated films with fans and students in a lecture last week.

"When you are at school, don't get yourself so seduced by the high technology, and miss out on the basic fundamentals," Lasseter said while presenting in an auditorium at the Communication University of China in Beijing on Thursday. "Drawing, design, animation principles, and film grammar. These are actually the most important things to learn while you are at school. Because in your career, the technology you use will change many times over."

"Remember, it's never the technology that entertains people, it's what you do with technology that entertains people," he advised the hundreds of students and fans in attendance.

Lasseter told them that a successful animated film should pay most attention to three aspects: the story, the characters and the world. He elaborated his points by screening several clips from blockbusters like "Toy Story," "Cars," "The Incredibles," "Frozen" and behind-the-scene footages from the Pixar archives, as well as his earliest works such as "Nightmare," "The Adventures of André and Wally B," and "Luxo Jr."