FILMS
3:51 PM PDT 06/26/2020
by
Mike Barnes
He started at Disney and also worked on ‘Toy Story’, ‘The Nightmare Before Christmas’ and ‘The Little Mermaid’.
Kelly Asbury, the respected entertainer who directed films like Spirit: The Indomitable Steed, Shrek 2 and Gnomeo and Juliet, has died. He was 60 years old.
Asbury died Friday at her Encino home after a long battle with cancer, Rep. Nancy Newhouse Porter confirmed to Hollywood reporter. “This was one of the most admired and loved people in the industry,” he said.
Most recently, Asbury directed the animated film STX. Uglydolls (2019), a musical starring Kelly Clarkson, Nick Jonas, Janelle Monáe, Blake Shelton, and Pitbull.
A three-time CalArts alumnus and three-time Annie Award nominee who began his career at Walt Disney Feature Animation in 1983, Asbury was guided by legendary Warner Bros. animator Chuck Jones: he was a “beacon of tranquility at all times,” said. THRCarolyn Giardina last year, and worked as a story artist alongside John Lasseter on Toy Story (nineteen ninety five)
In his nearly four decades in business, the Beaumont, Texas native has also contributed to other notable animated features such as The little Mermaid (1989) Beauty and the Beast (1991) by Tim Burton The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) James and the Giant Peach (nineteen ninety six) The prince of egypt (1998) Chickens race (2000) Shrek (2001) Ralph breaks (2012) Frozen (2013) and Sherlock Gnomes (2019)
In addition to the Oscar nominees Wild Stallion (2002) and Shrek 2 (2004), both for DreamWorks Animation, directed or co-directed by Asbury Gnomeo and Juliet (2011) and Smurfs: the lost people (2017)
“Contrary to what strangers think, doing animation can be, well, exhausting, and it’s always in some phase of production,” he said in a July interview with Cartoon Brew. Still, I can honestly say that one of the emotional risks I discovered as an artist and / or director of any animated project is the inevitability of bringing everything about it to my heart. I think, particularly for a director, such a connection to the project is an inescapable work requirement. “
Survivors include his wife, Jacquie; stepchildren Andrew and Connor; sister Gwen; and niece Leslie.
