Directing at Disney with Exhibition Co-Curators Pete Docter and Don Peri

Please note: This event takes place at ILM Premier Theater at 1 Letterman Dr, San Francisco, CA 94129.

Even casual fans of cinema can recognize the names of some of the industry’s biggest directors, such as George Lucas and Steven Spielberg. However, the directors of some of the most beloved Disney films of all time are not considered household names. In our upcoming special exhibition, Directing at Disney: The Original Directors of Walt’s Animated Films—co-curated by Chief Creative Officer of Pixar Animation Studios Pete Docter and Disney historian Don Peri—visitors will get an in-depth look into the lesser-known directors of classic animated films, such as Snow White and Seven Dwarfs (1937), Pinocchio (1940), Peter Pan (1953), and One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961). Join us for an exclusive talk as the co-curators delve into the process of writing the book that inspired the special exhibition and expand on the legacy and lasting impact of the directors who are featured.

Full special exhibition details to come.

Tickets for Directing at Disney with Exhibition Co-Curators Pete Docter and Don Peri will be available as follows:

• Walt’s Circle Donors: Purchase tickets beginning Tuesday, August 27 at noon by emailing membership@wdfmuseum.org.
• Founding, Supporter, and Friend-level members: Purchase tickets beginning Wednesday, August 28 at noon by emailing membership@wdfmuseum.org.
• All member levels: Purchase tickets online beginning Thursday, August 29 at noon PT via the Member Portal.
• Public (non-members): Remaining tickets available online beginning Friday, August 30 at noon PT via the public ticketing site.

Upgrade your membership to receive priority access to purchase tickets. Membership dues and Walt's Circle donations may be paid as monthly installments or as a one-time annual payment. For more information, please email the Membership Department at membership@wdfmuseum.org.

Pete Docter is the Oscar®-winning director of Monsters, Inc. (2001), Up (2009), Inside Out (2015), and Soul (2020), and Chief Creative Officer at Pixar Animation Studios. Most recently, he served as the Executive Producer for Pixar’s original feature film Elemental (2023) and on the studio’s latest feature Inside Out 2, which released in theaters on June 14, 2024.

Starting at Pixar in 1990 as the studio’s third animator, Docter collaborated and helped develop the story and characters for Toy Story (1995), Pixar’s first full-length animated feature film, for which he also was a supervising animator. He served as a storyboard artist on A Bug’s Life (1998) and wrote initial story treatments for both Toy Story 2 (1999) and WALL•E (2008). Aside from directing his four films, Docter also executive produced Monsters University (2013) and the Academy Award®-winning Brave (2012).

Docter’s interest in animation began at the age of eight when he created his first flipbook. He studied character animation at California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) in Valencia, California, where he produced a variety of short films, one of which won a Student Academy Award®. Those films have since been shown in animation festivals worldwide and are featured on Pixar Short Films Collection Volume 2. Upon joining Pixar, he animated and directed several commercials, and has been nominated for nine Academy Awards® including Best Animated Feature winners Up, Inside Out, and Soul; Best Animated Feature nominee Monsters, Inc.; and Best Original Screenplay nominees Up, Inside Out, and WALL•E. In 2010, Up also was nominated for a Best Picture Oscar by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Don Peri is a Disney historian and the author of Working with Walt and Working with Disney, as well as the coauthor of Walt Disney's First Lady of Imagineering: Harriet Burns. He has consulted for The Walt Disney Family Foundation and lectured on Disney history at many venues including Walt Disney Animation Studios, Pixar Animation Studios, The Walt Disney Company Consumer Products Division, Disneyland (for Cast Members), and The Walt Disney Family Museum. He also appeared in the documentary Walt: The Man Behind the Myth. Peri lives in Davis, California, with his wife and the memories of their dog, Indi.