RESEARCH

Creativity, Inc.
Ed Catmull on how creativity is facilitated at Pixar

The article summarizes the core p. 224) To this end it is essential to

thoughts and principles of the book take risks and make mistakes (ibid.,
Creativity, Inc. by Ed Catmull on the p. 23, p. 108 ff.). If creative professionals
question of how permanent, profes- are to dare to do this on a permanent
sional creativity at the highest level basis, the basic prerequisites are, inter
becomes possible. alia, that they know that new ideas
are valued and that they will not be
The book Creativity, Inc.: Overcoming condemned for making mistakes. Cor-
the unseen forces that stand in the way respondingly, mistakes are regarded
of true inspiration (Catmull, 2014, Ill. 1) as a natural and necessary step in the
is more than the usual retrospect of creative process. This is expressed in
a highly successful businessman. Ed sentences such as “Fail early and fail
Catmull (Ill. 2), one of the 3 founders fast” or “be wrong as fast as you can”
of Pixar and president of Disney Ani- (ibid., p. 109, quoting Andrew Stan-
mation, concisely summarizes the life ton). The aim is not to avoid mistakes
philosophy behind his creative work but to profit from them as quickly as
with the aid of episodes from the his- possible. Catmull even reverses the
tory of his company. For someone from common connotation “Failure is bad”
the US-American area he also speaks (ibid., p. 108) to the following extent:
uncharacteristically openly about cri- “If you aren’t experiencing failure, then
ses and failures and what they mean in you are making a far worse mistake:
terms of developing projects. You are being driven by the desire to
The subtitle of the book, which has so avoid it. And, for leaders especially, this
far only been published in English, is strategy – trying to avoid failure by share them with others.” (ibid., p. 318)
also Catmull’s goal: to overcome the outthinking it – dooms you to fail.” In addition to the benefit gained
unseen forces that stand in the way of (ibid., p. 109) through mutual enrichment and the
true inspiration. The following article advantage of being able to recognize
is a summary of core thoughts and “Share your ideas” problems at an early stage, it is the
guiding principles on the question of In its early phases Pixar quickly found expression and principle of a working
how permanent, professional creative its own way of dealing with ideas and atmosphere that fosters creativity, for
output at the highest level becomes knowledge. In a world in which most security, self-confidence and openness
possible. firms had a culture of strict confiden- are prerequisites for creative action.
tiality (ibid., p. 24 f.) Pixar published its Insecurity, fear, and trying not to give
most recent developments and results anything away, on the other hand,
Pixar’s corporate as early as possible. The benefit gained inhibit creativity (ibid., p. 315 f.).
philosophy through transparency and suggestions
from peers was much greater than the “Trust in people”
“Take risks, and errors are good” costs of the inspiration another firm During a phase when the company
“Creativity demands that we travel might have drawn from the results. was growing and the pressure of time
new paths that lead us who-knows- Internally, too, sharing ideas in their and resources was increasing, Pixar
where. That requires us to step up to early, far from perfected, state with introduced an “oversight group” with
the boundary of what we know and others became a basic principle: “Don’t the aim of speeding up processes and
what we don’t know.” (Catmull, 2014, wait for things to be perfect before you working towards greater financial

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advantage (ibid., p. 202). It quickly be- difference to the quality in the detail
came clear that this not only provoked of the animation (ibid., p. 195 ff.).
resistance and paralyzed creativity, but
ultimately it also incurred extra costs. “Story is king”
Correspondingly, the creative principle Pixar’s goal is clearly formulated: the
of personal responsibility, which had end product, the film, is the goal, and
been developing up until that point, this must be of the highest possible
now became more apparent as the quality and sophistication. The guiding
corporate principle: the aim was to principle here is: “Story is king” (ibid.,
give space for development back to the p. 66 ff.). That means that neither
artists and control back to the editors. technological possibilities nor tech-
“Trust the process” (ibid., p. 66 ff.) and nological limitations nor, for instance,
above all “trust in people” (ibid., p. 79) merchandising considerations should
became the core principles of manage- be allowed to fundamentally influence
ment. Implementing these ideas not the story in itself. All departments and
only significantly increased work mo- people and their actions are subordi-
tivation but also the output. The basic nate to the greater goal: producing a
principle here was: “You don’t have to great story.
ask permission to take responsibility.”
(ibid., p. 51) Quality as a whole and in detail
The implicit quality criteria of a good
“Recapture your ‘beginner’s mind’ and story at Pixar include involving the
be open to everything” viewer in such a way that s/he can
With every experience and all the drafts. This is not about presenting empathize with the dilemma in which
knowledge gained with it, people perfection or colleagues negotiating the main character finds him/herself
construct inner models of the world. their status, rather about seeing images (ibid., p. 72). In order to achieve this,
This influences and constrains their in context and getting feedback. It is the “line of tension”, each individual
approach to new subjects and defines a type of master class that allows you story beat, each “emotional punch” is
their professional actions. Whereas to see yourself and your own work in polished with fervor.
this is (also) definitely helpful in many broader contexts. It is about openness
professions, a stagnant world view and above all about an appraisal of the Reworking, reworking and
in creative production obstructs the work, for all participants can be sure reworking again
view of what is new and significant. It is of their colleagues’ applause. What “Early on, all of our movies suck” (ibid.,
therefore also important to constantly comes out of this is that the day starts p. 90), as Catmull puts it. This has the
reflect on and challenge one’s own ex- energetically with good will and team great advantage that neither the indi-
isting world views and concepts (“pre- spirit (ibid., p. 192 ff.). vidual nor the team have to pretend
conceptions”), and to foster openness they have the perfect product from the
and curiosity: you should recapture Research trips start. The film is always steered “from
your “beginner’s mind” (ibid., p. 222) Research trips are carried out when suck – to not-suck” (ibid., p. 90), which
and be open to everything. the creative team is looking for inspira- can only be achieved through forceful
tion for an authentic framework for a and tireless revision.
current film. They also help challenge
The principles of preconceived notions and clichés. For
“Creativity is more like a
production and work Monsters University, a film set in the
leading training institute for nightmare marathon than a sprint”
Over the years specific principles and monsters, for example, directors, pro-
working processes have endured at ducers and writers made excursions Braintrust
Pixar. to the campuses of MIT, Princeton, Every few months the storytelling
Harvard, UC Berkeley and Stanford. of every current film project is dis-
Dailies Observing and participating on loca- cussed right from its early stages in
The working day in the animation tion, the creative team discovered the “braintrust”. This is a group of
department usually starts with the details about everyday life at elite experienced, engaged colleagues who
“dailies”, the presentation of working universities, and this is what makes a specifically identify problem areas

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(for example, with the basic concept, To make this possible on a permanent • “Likewise, if someone disagrees with
the story beats, etc.) and propose basis, the working atmosphere, vari- you, there is a reason. Our first job is
solutions. In these rounds of reflec- ous possibilities for continual training, to understand the reasoning behind
tions participants are expected to be and opportunities are specifically ad- their conclusions.”
prepared to provide honest (“candor”, dressed in order to ensure that staff • “It is not the manager’s job to pre-
ibid., p. 104) but always constructive have a healthy and fulfilled life despite vent risks. It is the manager’s job to
feedback (“language of good notes”, doing intensive, time-consuming and make it safe to take them.”
ibid., p. 104). The focus is on the film energy-consuming work in a media • “The desire for everything to run
and not any personal agenda (ibid., production company. In addition to smoothly is a false goal – it leads to
p. 85 ff.). The people selected for this various sports on the company site and measuring people by the mistakes
feedback process have to be profes- continual training courses in percep- they make rather than by their abil-
sionals who have themselves been tion or yoga, a “personal project day”, ity to solve problems.”
involved in similar creative processes. for example, was introduced in the Ed Catmull’s book offers more than
Above all, though, they must be peo- Tools Department: 2 days every month just exciting, anecdotal insights into
ple who “(a) make you think smarter everyone is allowed to do whatever in- the production world of major anima-
and (b) put lots of solutions on the terests them at the time using Pixar’s tion films. He formulates thoughts
table in a short amount of time” (ibid., resources (ibid., p. 280 f.). These kinds and principles that describe how we
p. 105). of investment pay off in the long run can permanently enable success-
(ibid., p. 78). ful creativity at management level
Investing in staff and working through positive staff appraisal, cour-
atmosphere age, and also intelligent reflection. A
Pixar’s wares are creative products that Thoughts on management book that can be wholeheartedly
are constantly among the highest rank- recommended to anyone working in
ing successful films and achieve mil- At the end of the book Ed Catmull children’s media.
lions in revenue. Monsters University, summarizes his guidelines for the man- Dr. Maya Götz (IZI)
Pixar’s fourteenth film, has, by 2013, agement of creative cultures at Pixar in
already earned more than 740 million 33 points (ibid., pp. 315-319), e.g.:
US dollars (ibid., p. 276). • “Always try to hire people who are
To achieve this, purposely only the smarter than you. Always take a
best creative professionals are selected, chance on better, even if it seems
teams are carefully put together, and like a potential threat.”
people are supported in their devel- • “There are many valid reasons why
opment right across the different life people aren’t candid with one an- reference
phases through mentoring programs, other in a work environment. Your
Catmull, Ed (2014). Creativity, Inc.: Overcoming the
through fostering new ideas (ibid., job is to search for those reasons and unseen forces that stand in the way of true inspiration.
p. 131 ff.) or through trainee programs. then address them.” New York: Random House.

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