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Christopher John "Chris" Williams is an American film director, screenwriter, storyboard artist, animator, and voice actor working at Walt Disney Animation Studios. The young filmmaker is perhaps most known for the Oscar nominated 2008 animated feature film Bolt, but he has also worked on several other projects, including but not limited to Mulan, The Emperor's New Groove, and Brother Bear. He also voiced Oaken in the 2013 Disney animated feature film Frozen and its subsequent sequels and co-directed the 2014 Disney animated feature film Big Hero 6.

History[]

Williams was born in Missouri and spent the first 25 years in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, where his father taught psychology courses at the University of Waterloo. After graduating from the animation program at Sheridan College, he was recruited by Disney and moved to Los Angeles.

Williams previously worked in the story department for Mulan, The Emperor's New Groove, Brother Bear, and Bolt, in which he later directed with Byron Howard, both of them replacing Chris Sanders as the original director. Williams co-directed (with Don Hall) the animated film Big Hero 6, inspired by the Marvel Comics of the same name.

He was set to direct the upcoming animated feature film King of the Elves, based on the story by Philip K. Dick, before it was cancelled.

Working on Bolt[]

Chris Williams started working on the feature film Bolt in 2007 with Byron Howard, shortly after that, Chris Sanders had been released and John Lasseter had taken over the project. During the production of Bolt, Chris Williams focused mostly on the story whereas the other director, Byron Howard, was mostly concerned with the design and animation. Both Chris Williams and Byron Howard worked very closely with John Lasseter at the time, and the movie, which marked a milestone in Disney Animation as the first critically acclaimed animated feature from the studio in almost ten years, was released on November 24, 2008.

Feature Film Filmography[]

Year Film Position Company
1998 Mulan Story Walt Disney Animation Studios
2000 The Emperor's New Groove Story/Story Artist
2002 Lilo & Stitch Story Supervisor
2003 Brother Bear Additional Story/Additional Story Material
2005 Chicken Little Story Artist
Kronk's New Groove Characters (Uncredited) Disneytoon Studios
2007 Meet the Robinsons Additional Story Artist Walt Disney Animation Studios
2008 Bolt Director/Screenplay/Additional Voices
2009 G-Force Additional Story
2010 Tangled Additional Story Artist
2012 Wreck-It Ralph
2013 Frozen Story Artist/Voice Actor (Oaken)
2014 Big Hero 6 Director/Creative Leadership: Walt Disney Animation Studios
2016 Zootopia Additional Story Artist
Moana Co-Director/Story
2018 Ralph Breaks the Internet Executive Producer/Additional Story Artist
2019 Frozen II Story Artist/Voice Actor (Oaken)

Animated Shorts Filmography[]

Year Film Position Company
2008 Glago's Guest Writer Walt Disney Animation Studios
2009 Super Rhino Executive Producer
Prep & Landing Based on a Story/Executive Producer
2012 Paperman Special Thanks
2015 Frozen Fever Voice Actor (Oaken)
2017 Gone Fishing Co-Director
Olaf's Frozen Adventure Voice Actor (Oaken)
2018 Cycles Voice Actor (Young Bert)
2020 Once Upon a Snowman Voice Actor (Oaken)

Disney Roles[]

Gallery[]

External Links[]


v - e - d
Walt Disney Animation Studios - Transparent Logo
1920s—1970s
Disney's Nine Old Men: Milt KahlFrank ThomasOllie JohnstonLes ClarkJohn LounsberyMarc DavisWard KimballEric LarsonWolfgang Reitherman

Animators: Bill TytlaArt BabbittLee BlairPreston BlairFred MooreShamus CulhaneCy YoungDon LuskNorman FergusonHal KingJack HannahDick KinneyHal AmbroKen O'BrienJudge WhitakerBill JusticeDon BluthGary GoldmanCharles A. NicholsBlaine GibsonJohn EwingWalt StanchfieldRolly CrumpFred HellmichAmby PaliwodaWilfred JacksonXavier AtencioBen SharpsteenEarl HurdDale OliverEric CleworthDavid HandFred SpencerJulius SvendsenJack BradburyKenneth MuseRudolf IsingHugh HarmanFriz FrelengWalt KellyLeo SalkinJohn DehnerRetta ScottDavid SwiftMel ShawJack CuttingGrant SimmonsArt StevensFrank TashlinWathel RogersTyrus WongJohnny Cannon
Visual Development, Layout, Background Artists and Character Designers: Gustaf TenggrenMary BlairMarjorie RalstonLillian BoundsJoe GrantMel ShawClaude CoatsDon DaGradiJohn HenchEyvind EarleKen O'ConnorThor PutnamAlbert HurterJohn HubleyHerbert RymanDon GriffithBasil DavidovichJack BoydPeter EllenshawRuthie TompsonEarl DuvallRetta DavidsonUb IwerksVance GerryHazel SewellJames BodreroLance NolleyGrace BaileyMaurice NobleDale BarnhartAndy EngmanEustace LycettJohn EmersonJoe Hale
Storyboard Artists and Writers: Bill PeetRalph WrightDick HuemerFloyd NormanYale GraceyTed SearsErdman PennerJoe RinaldiWinston HiblerOtto EnglanderWilliam CottrellBill BergAl BertinoT. HeeHomer BrightmanTed OsbourneLarry ClemmonsHarry ReevesJesse MarshChuck CouchWebb SmithDick Sebast
Directors: Clyde GeronimiHamilton LuskeJack KinneyTed BermanRichard RichGeorge ScribnerRiley ThomsonDick LundyJack KingBurt GillettJames AlgarBill RobertsLarry Lansburgh
Producers: Walt DisneyRon MillerKen AndersonDon DuckwallPerce PearceMargaret J. Winkler

1980s—present
Renaissance Directors: Rob MinkoffRoger AllersGary TrousdaleKirk WiseChris SandersMark DindalJohn Musker

Story Trust Directors: Ron ClementsChris BuckByron HowardDon HallChris WilliamsRich MooreStephen J. AndersonNathan GrenoFawn Veerasunthorn
Producers: Peter Del VechoClark SpencerRoy ConliDorothy McKimDon HahnShane Morris
Chief Creative Officer: Jennifer Lee
Associated Figures: Bob IgerRoy Edward DisneyMichael EisnerJohn LasseterEd CatmullJeffrey KatzenbergBob Chapek
Signature Voice Actors: Jim CummingsAlan TudykKatie LowesJohn DiMaggioMaurice LaMarcheJodi BensonDavid Ogden StiersJesse CortiPaul BriggsRaymond S. PersiPhil JohnstonFrank WelkerBill FarmerBrian Cummings
Signature Musicians: Robert B. Sherman Richard M. Sherman Alan Menken Kristen Anderson-Lopez Robert LopezLin-Manuel MirandaHoward AshmanTim RicePhil CollinsStephen SchwartzMarc ShaimanDanny Troob
Supervising Animators: Glen KeaneAndreas DejaEric GoldbergMark HennJohn PomeroyRandy HaycockDale BaerTony BancroftTom BancroftTony FucileAnthony DeRosaRuss EdmondsRandy HaycockBruce W. SmithDuncan MarjoribanksRuben AquinoNik RanieriRon HusbandRick FarmiloeTom SitoTony AnselmoWill FinnKathy Zielinski
Visual Development & Storyboard Artists: Dean DeBloisClaire KeaneBrittney LeeJin KimShiyoon KimRyan Green

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