Saturday, March 13, would have been the 50th birthday of accomplished story artist Joe Ranft. Ranft worked on Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King among other DIsney features, and all of the Pixar films up to Cars in 2006. He also occasionally left the drawing board for the microphone, providing voices for characters like Heimlich the caterpillar in A Bug’s Life and Wheezy the squeaky toy penguin from Toy Story 2. Tragically, Joe Ranft lost his life in a car accident five years ago. The above video – a story reel, appropriately enough – was created by Disney director John Musker and originally shown at the memorial service for Joe Ranft. If you can watch all the way through and not end up with a lump in your throat, you’re made of sterner stuff than I am.
Tags: behind the scenes, disney, pixar, story artists
