What Is Andrew Stanton Doing On Upcoming Pixar Projects?

Growing up glued to DVD menus, I fell in love with directors who could make me laugh and cry in the same scene. Andrew Stanton is the guy behind two of Pixar's most iconic outings: 'Finding Nemo' and 'WALL·E', and he later returned to the aquatic world to direct 'Finding Dory'. 'Finding Nemo' is the warm, funny, heartfelt road movie through the ocean that made a lot of us terrified of dentist tanks and oddly fond of clownfish. Then Stanton shifted gears with 'WALL·E', a mostly wordless sci‑fi love story that showed off his knack for visual storytelling and emotional restraint. Years later he circled back with 'Finding Dory', which revisits characters and themes from the first film while offering a more mature, memory-centered story. Beyond those three, he’s had a hand in many Pixar projects as a writer or producer, and even took a stab at live-action with 'John Carter'. If you want a mini-marathon, I’d pair 'Finding Nemo' with 'WALL·E' to appreciate his range—heartful comedy to contemplative sci‑fi—and then finish with 'Finding Dory' for a comforting encore.

I still get a little giddy thinking about the way early Pixar films changed the way stories were told on screen, and one name that keeps popping up for me is Andrew Stanton. He started working at Pixar in 1990, joining when the company was still relatively small and very focused on pioneering computer animation and narrative techniques. From that moment he became one of the studio’s core storytellers — a guy who blended visual imagination with heartfelt characters and who later directed and co-wrote some of the studio’s biggest hits. When I say he joined in 1990, I mean he came on board as part of that crucial early wave of creatives who were shaping how animated features could work emotionally and structurally. Stanton was hired as a story artist/animator and quickly became deeply involved in the craft of storytelling at Pixar. You can see the imprint of that early involvement across a lot of their classic projects: he contributed to the story development on films like 'Toy Story' (which released in 1995) and 'A Bug's Life', and later he took the director’s chair for 'Finding Nemo' (2003) and 'WALL-E' (2008). Knowing he was there from 1990 helps make sense of how consistent Pixar’s narrative voice felt across those formative years — many of the storytelling tools and emotional beats that define their films grew out of teams that included people like him. I’m the sort of person who re-watches commentary tracks and interviews, so I’ve seen how his role evolved. In the early ’90s he was very much in the trenches helping shape the stories, sequences, and characters, and by the 2000s he was leading entire projects as a director and writer. That progression from story artist to director is part of what fascinates me: you can trace how his instincts for pacing, character-driven plot, and imaginative worldbuilding matured over time. He’s also one of those creators whose fingerprints you can spot in the little human details — the way relationships are framed, the rhythm of jokes landing alongside genuine emotional stakes. If you’re curious and want to dig deeper, a fun way to experience this is to watch some of those early films back to back while keeping the 1990 start date in mind. It’s like watching a studio and a storyteller grow together. I still find that knowing when someone like Stanton joined gives a different color to rewatching 'Toy Story' or 'Finding Nemo' — you catch more of those early-storyroom sparks. Honestly, it makes me want to queue up a Pixar marathon and pay closer attention to the storyboards and commentary next time.

There’s a certain almost-obsessive joy that comes through in how Andrew Stanton treats storyboarding — he treats it like breathing. Watching interviews and talks from him over the years, and trying to steal tricks for my own tiny projects, I’ve come to see his approach as equal parts ruthless problem-solving and playful exploration. He starts with the question that haunts every great story: what does the character want, and why should anyone care? That’s the heartbeat. From there he uses visuals to answer everything — not just the plot, but the emotional truth. He’s famous for the mantra that the story has to 'make me care', and that belief drives how he uses storyboards: every sketch, even the scribblest thumbnail, must show desire, obstacle, and stakes in clear, readable poses. I’ve sketched along with some of his lessons, post-it walls covered like a cheap Pixar shrine, and the process always feels the same: break the idea down into cards, rearrange the beats like a jigsaw, and then thumbnail quickly to find the staging and acting that carry emotion. Stanton loves the sculpting aspect — you keep hacking until the scene both surprises and convinces you. He foregrounds the visual choices: silhouette clarity, camera staging, timing, and the rhythm of cuts. In scenes like those in 'Finding Nemo' or the largely silent sequences of 'WALL-E', he leans into pure visual storytelling — no lines needed if the staging and animation tell the internal life of the characters. That’s why he’s so obsessed with poses that read instantly; if the audience can’t read the acting in a glance, the scene’s already fighting an uphill battle. What I appreciate most is how collaborative and iterative his approach is. Storyboarding for Stanton isn’t a one-man epiphany; it’s a workshop. He embraces heavy iteration: story reels, notes from peers, brutal pruning of anything that doesn’t serve the emotional core. He’s a big fan of what Pixar calls 'plussing' — not tearing things down, but building them up better — and he encourages radical changes until the scene sings. Practically, that means moving beats around on index cards, creating animatics from rough boards to test timing and pacing, and being unafraid to throw out beloved jokes or lines that dilute the main want. He also thinks like a director while storyboarding: lens choices, staging, and cut points are decided early to ensure the animation has a physical logic and emotional propulsion. On the small-project level, I stole one simple Stanton trick and it changed my work: write the scene’s want in one sentence and test every panel against it. If a drawing doesn’t push toward that want, it gets cut or rewritten. That single constraint turns storyboarding from doodling into targeted design. His process is part engineer, part poet — meticulous about structure, but obsessed with the moment that makes you feel. If you’re storyboarding yourself, try his mix: be relentless with cards and timing, be generous in collaboration, and don’t be afraid of silence or constraint; sometimes less visual noise reveals the heart in ways dialogue never could.

Sometimes a whole movie feels like the slow unfolding of one stubborn idea, and that's how I see how Andrew Stanton built 'Finding Nemo'. He carried the emotional anchor—a father's obsessive search for his lost son—through constant rewriting. Early on, Stanton sketched the characters and the journey in rough storyboards, then ran them as story reels with the team. The beats shifted a lot; Marlin's paranoia and Dory's upbeat amnesia didn’t arrive fully formed but were refined by repeatedly playing the scenes out in sequence. I was struck reading about how he and his collaborators treated the screenplay as something you can draw, test, and rework. They did research trips to aquariums and watched scuba footage to get authentic movement and lighting, but the script’s heart stayed personal: parent-child fear and courage. Practically, Stanton spun ideas with storyboard artists, reshaped scenes after internal screenings, and let the visuals drive many rewrites—so the screenplay emerged from a loop of drawing, watching, laughing, and cutting until the emotional throughline was unmistakable.

Andrew James Greig is one of those creators who flies under the radar but always delivers something intriguing. While I haven't stumbled across any official announcements about his upcoming projects, I've noticed he tends to work in bursts—disappearing for a while and then resurfacing with something unexpected. His past work, like that eerie short film he did a few years back, had this raw, indie vibe that stuck with me. If I had to guess, he might be brewing something in the experimental or horror-adjacent space, given his track record. Sometimes, indie creators like him drop teasers on niche platforms or Patreon before going public. I’d keep an eye on his socials or smaller film forums—those are usually where the whispers start. Until then, I’m rewatching his older stuff and picking apart the details. There’s always something new to notice in his visual storytelling.

I get oddly sentimental whenever I think about how much of an impact Andrew Stanton's films have had — they feel like milestones from my childhood through my adult years. From the way I first watched 'Finding Nemo' sprawled on the living room rug to later marathoning 'WALL-E' on a gloomy weekend, I've followed the trail of trophies his movies have picked up. Broadly speaking, films Stanton has written and directed have been major prize magnets: they’ve won Academy Awards, swept categories at animation-focused ceremonies like the Annie Awards, and picked up recognition from institutions such as BAFTA and various critics’ groups. Those wins reflect both popular and industry praise — storytelling plus technical excellence. If I break it down without getting lost in the weeds, the clearest highlights are the Academy Awards. Two of the films most closely associated with Stanton — 'Finding Nemo' and 'WALL-E' — earned the Academy’s highest recognition in animation, with both films being celebrated in Oscar circles. Beyond the Oscars, Stanton’s projects have racked up numerous Annie Awards (those are the animation industry’s own prizes), recognizing directing, writing, character design, and storytelling. Studios and guilds have also acknowledged his work: screenwriting and directing guild nominations and wins have shown up over the years, reflecting how his movies tend to be strong on narrative and character as well as visuals. What I find neat is how his films also cross over into wider award conversations. 'WALL-E' in particular gathered attention from critics’ groups and film academies for its technical achievements and emotional resonance, landing nominations and wins across sound, score, and visual categories at various ceremonies. 'Finding Nemo' similarly found its way into award seasons, not just as an animated standout but as an example of mainstream storytelling that resonated with adults and kids alike. So when people ask what awards Stanton has “won for his films,” I tend to answer: a bunch — the big film-world ones (like Oscars), the animation-specific ones (like Annies), and a scatter of BAFTAs and guild recognitions that underline both the craft and the heart behind his movies. Honestly, hearing those acceptance clips and seeing the little statuettes felt like validation for what I always thought — that these movies manage to be clever, emotionally grounded, and technically dazzling. If you want exact year-by-year breakdowns, there are good databases online that list all nominations and wins per film, but from a fan standpoint the takeaway is simple: Stanton’s films have been consistently honored across the major awards that matter to both animators and mainstream cinema lovers, and that feels really deserved to me.

Man, I've been keeping an eye on Dawn Andrews' work ever since she blew my mind in 'Midnight Echoes' last year! From what I've gathered through industry whispers and her social media teases, she's currently deep into production for a fantasy series adaptation called 'Veil of Starlight'. The set photos leaked last month showed her in these gorgeous elven robes—total costume design goals. What's really exciting is how she hinted at collaborating with the same director from 'Whisper Lane', which was peak atmospheric storytelling. Between her livestream Q&As and podcast appearances, it sounds like she's also voicing a character in an indie game project, though details are still under wraps. The way she balances big studios with passion projects is so inspiring—can't wait to see what magic she conjures next!

When I first dug into interviews and behind-the-scenes stuff about 'WALL·E', what struck me was how many different threads Andrew Stanton wove together. He wasn’t just inspired by one thing — he took environmental worries (images of trash-choked landscapes and the idea of humanity outsourcing everything), classic science-fiction cinema, and the emotional power of silent storytelling, and stitched them into a tiny robot’s life. Stanton loved the idea of telling a big story with almost no dialogue, which leans on old silent comedies and visual storytelling traditions. He’s talked about loving films like '2001: A Space Odyssey' for their patience and scope, and also admiring the gritty cityscapes of 'Blade Runner' — both helped shape the look and rhythm of his world. On top of that, he wanted to make a love story between two machines that feels immediate and human, and he borrowed from animated shorts, physical comedy, and even the romantic energy in the music he chose (like the use of songs from 'Hello, Dolly!'). For me that mix is what makes 'WALL·E' so powerful: it’s sci-fi, it’s a romance, and it’s an environmental fable that trusts images to carry emotion. It still gets me thinking about what we throw away, and how small acts and tiny characters can tell huge stories.

Man, I still grin whenever Crush drops that mellow surfer drawl — that warm, lazy cadence is Andrew Stanton's most famous bit of voice work. He voiced the sea turtle Crush in 'Finding Nemo' (and came back to reprise him in 'Finding Dory'), and that role is what almost everyone thinks of first when you ask what characters he performed. Beyond Crush, Stanton is the kind of creator who likes to jump into the recording booth for scratch vocals, improv takes, and small cameos; so he shows up credited as "additional voices" or in tiny parts across several Pixar projects, even if those bits are more like flavor than starring roles. I geek out about the behind-the-scenes stuff, and one thing that always sticks with me is how directors like Stanton will record temp lines to help shape a scene during editing. That means his voice pops up in the roughs and sometimes makes it into the final cut. If you watch commentaries or special features for 'Finding Nemo' you can hear him talking about the process — it's part of why Crush feels so lived-in: the director who wrote the turtle has that casual inflection because he literally spoke it into existence while shaping the story. If you want a full checklist of every single cameo or small credit (because studios often list "additional voices" en masse), the best move is a quick look at his filmography on a reliable database like IMDb or his official credits on studio pages. But to sum up plainly: the big, named voice people know him for is Crush from 'Finding Nemo' and 'Finding Dory', and beyond that he pops up now and then in smaller, often uncredited or "additional voices" capacities across Pixar films — the kind of background seasoning that only die-hard fans usually track down. For me, hearing him as Crush still hits like meeting an old friend at the cinema.

Whenever I'm hunting down interviews with filmmakers I adore, Andrew Stanton is one I always want more of—he's full of those little storytelling nuggets. The first place I check is YouTube: Pixar's official channel and Disney's channels often post clips and panel excerpts where Stanton talks about movies like 'Finding Nemo', 'WALL-E', and 'Finding Dory'. Beyond the studio channels, major outlets like 'The New Yorker', 'Vanity Fair', and 'The Wall Street Journal' sometimes publish video interviews or feature conversations that get uploaded to YouTube or embedded on their sites. I also like searching for festival recordings—Tribeca, Annecy, and SXSW panels frequently land on Vimeo or YouTube and those Q&As tend to be longer and more revealing than short promo pieces. If you prefer audio, I grab episodes from podcast platforms. Film and storytelling podcasts often host him or reference interviews—search Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or your favorite app for 'Andrew Stanton interview' and filter for long-form episodes. For deep-dive extras, don't forget streaming service bonus content: Disney+ sometimes includes behind-the-scenes featurettes or director commentaries tied to their Pixar releases, which are gold if you're into technique and process. I've also found archival interviews on news websites (NPR and the BBC have done filmmaker segments) and on trade sites like Variety and The Hollywood Reporter where audio or video is embedded alongside a write-up. Practical tips from my binge sessions: use keyword combos—'Andrew Stanton interview', 'Andrew Stanton Q&A', 'Andrew Stanton panel', or 'Andrew Stanton director commentary'—and then filter by length to find the long conversations. Turn on captions if the audio is soft; sometimes festival uploads have clearer sound in the comments. If you're building a playlist, follow Pixar-related channels and film festival channels so you get notified when new panels or archival uploads show up. I keep a small folder of my favorite clips and revisit them when I need inspiration—Stanton's storytelling instincts always spark something new in my own notes.