Shawn Krause of Pixar, SMARTFILMS guest: It sounds incredible that young people can make movies with a phone

Shawn Krause, who was the director of the animation teams for Pixar movies such as Up, Cars 2, and Intensamente, is one of the international guests of the ninth edition of SMARTFILMS, the cell phone film festival taking place in Bogotá, led by Yesenia Valencia.

He recalled that he learned about this festival over a year and a half ago thanks to a friend of his wife’s family, which caught his attention. “I’m excited to see it firsthand. I know what it is, but I haven’t experienced it yet. It sounds incredible that many young people can make movies just by using a phone. It’s amazing having a movie studio in your pocket.”

Shawn started as an animator and commercial director before joining Pixar’s first film, Toy Story. At SMARTFILMS he taught a master class on Friday the 29th, where he shared experiences from his nearly 30-year career as an animator.

He is also one of the juries of the GRAN SMARTFILMS, the international category including short films from dozens of countries, where Spain, Paraguay, Mexico, Venezuela, and Colombia became finalists.

“I am delighted to be one of the juries who will see the films. I am also excited to speak and share my story and answer questions because it is important for me to see what a new generation finds important and exciting,” he added.

Krause highlighted that more than the tool for filming, what matters is people’s desire to make films, something that is abundant in SMARTFILMS.

“If you want to be a filmmaker, what matters is to try, make mistakes, fail early and often, and learn and grow. It’s the same as when I started, I used a notepad to practice drawing cartoons. Then you use the tools you have,” he concluded.