Composer
JAMES NEWTON HOWARD

Directors
DON HALL
CARLOS LÓPEZ ESTRADA

MODERATED BY JON BURLINGAME (Variety)

Screening Link available upon Registration

YouTube Live Stream Q&A:
WEDNESDAY, MAY 26, 2021, 1:00PM PT

Walt Disney Animation Studios’ Raya and the Last Dragon travels to the fantasy world of Kumandra, where humans and dragons lived together long ago in harmony. But when an evil force threatened the land, the dragons sacrificed themselves to save humanity. Now, 500 years later, that same evil has returned and it’s up to a lone warrior, Raya, to track down the legendary last dragon to restore the fractured land and its divided people. However, along her journey, she’ll learn that it’ll take more than a dragon to save the world—it’s going to take trust and teamwork as well.

PG | 113min

James Newton Howard is one of the film industry’s most versatile and honored composers, with a career spanning over 30 years and encompassing more than 140 film and television projects. He is an eight-time Oscar® nominee, and Emmy® and GRAMMY® winner. Howard has also been honored with ASCAP’s prestigious Henry Mancini Award for Lifetime Achievement and the BMI ICON Award. 

In 1985 he was offered his first film, Head Office, and he quickly knew he had found his calling. He has since created the scores for a broad range of films, recently including Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, The Nutcracker and the Four Realms, Red Sparrow, Roman J. Israel, Esq., Detroit, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, all four installments of The Hunger Games franchise, Concussion, Nightcrawler, and Maleficent. His long list of credits also includes Snow White and the Huntsman, The Bourne Legacy, Salt, Water for Elephants, Batman Begins, Collateral, Snow Falling on Cedars, Outbreak, The Village, Hidalgo, Peter Pan, Wyatt Earp, Lady in the Water, The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable, Freedomland, Dinosaur, Treasure Planet, Signs, Falling Down, Primal Fear, Waterworld, The Devil’s Advocate, Dave, and Pretty Woman, among many others. In 2017 Howard completed his first live concert tour, 3 Decades of Music for Hollywood, visiting 15 European cities, with the premiere being held at the Royal Albert Hall. His upcoming film projects include Disney’s Jungle Cruise and the third installment of the Fantastic Beasts franchise.

Don Hall began his career at Walt Disney Animation Studios in June 1995 as a story apprentice on Tarzan. He served as a story artist on several development projects and productions, including The Emperor’s New Groove and Chicken Little, before becoming head of story for Meet the Robinsons and The Princess and the Frog. Hall made his directorial debut for Disney Animation’s 2011 Winnie the Pooh and went on to direct Big Hero 6, which won an Academy Award® for best-animated feature film. He then served as co-director on Moana. He is the creator of the upcoming Disney Animation/Disney Plus animated series, Baymax, and is currently directing his next as-yet-unannounced feature film for Disney Animation.

 Hall graduated with a BFA in drawing and painting from the University of Iowa and a BFA in character animation from the California Institute of the Arts. After graduating from CalArts, he returned to the campus as an instructor in advanced story development. Hall is a native of Glenwood, Iowa, and currently resides in Pasadena with his wife and two children.

Carlos López Estrada joined Walt Disney Animation Studios in late spring 2019. He is a member of the Studios’ story trust, and, in addition to directing Raya and the Last Dragon, is currently directing his next unannounced feature film with the Studio. His debut film, Blindspotting, premiered on opening night at Sundance 2018 and subsequently sold to Lionsgate for a theatrical release. The film was produced by Snoot Entertainment and starred Daveed Diggs. López Estrada was selected for Variety’s “10 Directors to Watch” 2018 list and was nominated by the Directors Guild of America (DGA) for the outstanding directorial achievement of a first-time feature film director for 2018. His second film, Summertime, premiered on the opening night of Sundance 2020. On the TV side, López Estrada directed an episode of FX’s Legion and has an original piece in development at UCP.

López Estrada is also a prolific music video/commercial director and a founding partner of the multi-disciplined production studio Little Ugly. He’s won a Latin GRAMMY® for an animated video he directed for artists Jesse & Joy, which established him as the youngest director to win a Latin GRAMMY to date. He’s worked with musicians such as Billie Eilish, Father John Misty, Thundercat and Flying Lotus, Carly Rae Jepsen, Capital Cities, Clipping, and Passion Pit. López Estrada lives in Los Angeles, Calif., with his dog Cous and a large family of plants.

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FREE for current SCL members (click HERE to check membership status).

Attendees will be emailed a Screening Link upon Registration and a Q&A YouTube Live Stream link on Wednesday, May 26, 10 minutes before Q&A start.

Attendees can ask questions on YouTube chat, and the SCL Host will pass them on to the Moderator. The SCL Member Code of Conduct applies to online Q&As.

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