Lee Unkrich

Lee Edward Unkrich (born August 8, 1967) is an American director, film editor, screenwriter, and animator. He was a longtime member of the creative team at Pixar, where he started in 1994 as a film editor. He later began directing, first as co-director of Toy Story 2.

After co-directing Toy Story 2, Monsters, Inc. and Finding Nemo, Unkrich made his solo directorial debut with Toy Story 3 in 2010, and most recently directed Coco in 2017, both of which won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.

After working at the studio for twenty-five years, Unkrich left Pixar in February 2019 to spend time with his family.

Life and career
Unkrich was raised in Chagrin Falls, Ohio. He spent his youth acting at The Cleveland Play House. Unkrich graduated from the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts in 1990.

Unkrich was Vice-President of Editorial and Layout at Pixar. Before joining Pixar in 1994, Unkrich worked for several years in television as an editor and director. He is the 2011 recipient of the University of Southern California's Mary Pickford Distinguished Alumni Award recognizing alumni contributions to the cinematic arts.

On January 18, 2019, Unkrich announced he is leaving Pixar and the film industry to spend time with his family.

Personal life
Unkrich is married to Laura Century and they have three children: Hannah, Alice, and Max.

His mother is from a Jewish family and his father converted to Judaism.

Filmography

 * Prison Stories: Women on the Inside (1991) (TV) (production assistant)
 * Silk Stalkings (1991) (TV Series) (assistant editor, editor, director)
 * Renegade (1993) (TV series) (assistant editor)
 * Betrayed by Love (1994) (TV) (assistant editor)
 * Separated by Murder (1995) (TV) (editor)
 * Toy Story (1995) (editor)
 * A Bug's Life (1998) (editor)
 * Toy Story 2 (1999) (co-director, editor, additional story material)
 * Monsters, Inc. (2001) (co-director, additional editor)
 * Finding Nemo (2003) (co-director, supervising editor)
 * Cars (2006) (additional editor)
 * Ratatouille (2007) (additional editor)
 * Toy Story 3 (2010) (director, story, additional voice) (BAFTA) (Academy Award)
 * Monsters University (2013) (executive producer)
 * The Good Dinosaur (2015) (executive producer)
 * Coco (2017) (director, story) (BAFTA) (Academy Award)
 * Toy Story 4 (2019) (story, executive producer)