Jump to content

Barry Cook

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Barry Cook
Born(1958-08-12)August 12, 1958(age 65)
Nashville, Tennessee,U.S.
Occupations
  • Film director
  • writer
  • effects animator
Years active1982–present
Known forMulan
Arthur Christmas
Walking with Dinosaurs

Barry Cook(born August 12, 1958) is an American film director who has worked in the animated film industry since the 1980s. Cook andTony BancroftdirectedMulan(1998), for which they won the 1998Annie Award for Best Animated Feature.[1]Cook was also the co-director forArthur Christmas(2011), directed bySarah Smith.Cook also directedWalking with Dinosaurs(2013) withNeil Nightingale.

Background[edit]

Cook was born inNashville, Tennesseeon August 12, 1958. He made his first film when he was ten years old.[2]Cook interned as an assistant animator beginning in December 1978 at the animation studioHanna-Barbera,where he contributed as an assistant animator on "The New Fred and Barney Show" and many others. He also contributed to the pilot episode of the 1981 TV seriesThe Smurfs.[3]In 1981,Disneyhired Cook as an effects animator forTron(1982). Cook subsequently animated or supervised effects for various films includingThe Little Mermaid(1989),Beauty and the Beast(1991), andAladdin(1992).[2]He became the supervisor for the special-effects animation department at Disney. In 1992, he directed the animated short filmOff His Rockers,which was about a child and hisrocking horse.Peter Schneider,then president of feature animation, saw potential in Cook's film and supported its production.Off His Rockersdrew the attention of directorRandal Kleiser,who requested for the short to open his feature filmHoney, I Blew Up the Kidin 1992.[4]In 1993, Cook directed another animated short,Trail Mix-Up,which featured the cartoon characterRoger Rabbit.[5]His directing experience withOff His RockersandTrail Mix-Upled him to the opportunity to directMulanwith Bancroft.[6]

Following a five-month sabbatical break after directingMulan,Cook began developing ideas for his second animated feature, and arrived at an idea he developed years earlier titledThe Ghost & His Gift,adapted fromOscar Wilde'sThe Canterville Ghost.[7]In 2000, Cook pitched his idea toMichael EisnerandThomas Schumacherwho agreed the idea showed potential, although Eisner deterred about the simplicity while Schumacher felt the project was "too human" and more appropriate for alive actionfilm.[7][8]Following the pitch, Cook began reconstructing the idea, and added seven folk art characters into the story.[8]During another pitch for the revised film, Cook proposed producing the film with 70 percent computer animation and 30 percent traditional animation, in whichMy Peopleswasgreen-lightedwith a budget of $45 million.[8]The project underwent a series of titles such asAngel and Her No Good Sister,Elgin's People,andOnce in a Blue Moonbefore settling onA Few Good Ghosts,and included a voice cast ofDolly Parton,Lily Tomlin,Hal Holbrook,andCharles Durning.[8]On November 14, 2003,David Staintonannounced that production onA Few Good Ghostswas halted,[9]and Disney announced the closure of theFeature Animation Floridastudio on January 12, 2004.[10]Following the closure, Cook was not offered a renewed contract with the Burbank-located animation studio, and worked consecutively withIDT Entertainment(now known as Starz Media),Animation Lab,andLaikaon a series of undeveloped animation projects.[7][11][12]

In February 2009, Cook signed withAardman Animations,[7]and the following April, he was announced to co-directArthur ChristmasalongsideSarah Smith.[13]Because Smith previously worked in live-action television, Cook described his involvement as "help[ing] along with the animation, from designing the film and its characters to all of the storyboarding process."[7]In March 2010, Cook signed withAnimal Logicto serve as co-director onWalking with Dinosaurs,intrigued with the idea of using computer animation against live-action backgrounds.[14]Inspired by the original BBC documentary series, the movie was conceived as a silent movie with no dialogue,[14]but following the screening of a rough cut,20th Century Foxexecutives requested a celebrity voice cast, believing it would connect audiences to the characters.[15]In 2011, Cook wrote the screenplay for The Jesus Film Project andStudio 4°C's short film,My Last Day.[16]

In July 2016, it was announced that Cook was in negotiations to directMean Margaretfor Astro-Nomical Entertainment.[17]

Filmography[edit]

Year Title Credits
1982 Tron Effects Animator
Heidi's Song Assistant Animator
1985 The Black Cauldron Effects Animator
My Science Project
1986 Captain EO(Short)
1988 Oliver & Company
1989 The Little Mermaid
1990 Roller Coaster Rabbit(Short)
The Rescuers Down Under
1991 Beauty and the Beast Visual Effects Supervisor: Florida
1992 Off His Rockers(Short) Director / Story Development Artist
Aladdin Visual Effects Supervisor: Florida
1993 Trail Mix-Up(Short) Director / Story
Aladdin(Video Game) Animation Director
1998 Mulan Director withTony Bancroft
2011 My Last Day(Short) Director / Producer
Arthur Christmas Co-director withSarah Smith
2013 Walking with Dinosaurs Director withNeil Nightingale
2018 Blinker Writer / Director
2019 Sideshow
Legion
2021 Chosen Witness

References[edit]

  1. ^"Annie Awards:: 26th Annie Awards".annieawards.org.ASIFA-Hollywood.RetrievedDecember 13,2013.
  2. ^abHeater, Heidi (January 23, 2008)."'Mulan' director to speak at Asbury ".asbury.edu.Asbury University.RetrievedDecember 13,2013.
  3. ^Zahed, Ramin (December 15, 2013)."Pachyrhinos' Stirring Saga".Animation Magazine.RetrievedDecember 16,2013.
  4. ^Hinman, Catherine (July 15, 1992)."How The Disney Film Short 'Off His Rockers' Made It To The Big Screen: A Little Project That 'Blew Up'".The Orlando Sentinel.
  5. ^Boyar, Jay (March 19, 1993)."'Aladdin' Deserves Best Picture Anyway ".The Orlando Sentinel.
  6. ^Abbott, Jim (June 17, 1998)."The Making Of 'Mulan'".The Orlando Sentinel.
  7. ^abcdeArmstrong, Josh (July 30, 2012)."Director Barry Cook remembers thePeoplesof Walt Disney Feature Animation Florida ".Animated Views.RetrievedJuly 5,2015.
  8. ^abcdHill, Jim (February 21, 2011)."Why Walt Disney Feature Animation opted NOT to make" My Peoples "".Jim Hill Media.RetrievedJuly 5,2015.
  9. ^Eller, Claudia (November 15, 2003)."Disney Decides It Doesn't Want 'A Few Good Ghosts'".Los Angeles Times.RetrievedJuly 5,2015.
  10. ^Pack, Todd (January 13, 2004)."Disney Animation Unit Fades Away In Orlando".The Orlando Sentinel.RetrievedJuly 5,2015.
  11. ^DeMott, Rick (September 18, 2007)."Toon Vets Gobble Up Animation Lab's Wild Bunch Feature".RetrievedJuly 5,2015.
  12. ^Zahed, Ramed (December 22, 2008)."Laika Lets Go 65, Nixes Jack and Ben".Animation Magazine.RetrievedJuly 5,2015.
  13. ^McNary, Dave (April 27, 2009)."Aardman begins work on toon duo"(Press release).Variety.RetrievedJuly 5,2015.
  14. ^abZahed, Ramin (December 15, 2013)."Pachyrhinos' Stirring Saga".Animation Magazine.RetrievedJuly 5,2015.
  15. ^McClintock, Pamela (January 15, 2014)."T-Wreck: Why Fox's 'Walking With Dinosaurs' Went Extinct".The Hollywood Reporter.RetrievedJuly 5,2015.
  16. ^"Studio 4°C Animates Campus Crusade for Christ's Jesus Short".Anime News Network.April 15, 2011.RetrievedMarch 10,2016.
  17. ^Galuppo, Mia (July 26, 2016)."Astro-Nomical Entertainment Launches, Developing 'Mean Margaret' Movie".The Hollywood Reporter.RetrievedSeptember 25,2018.

External links[edit]

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Barry_Cook&oldid=1228545496"