Pixar’s Donald Brooks Says Human Creativity Is Still The Industry’s Greatest Technology As ‘Toy Story 5’ Tackles Modern Tech

When audiences head to theaters for Toy Story 5 on June 19, they’ll see Woody, Buzz Lightyear, Jessie, and a new generation of toys navigating a world increasingly shaped by technology.

Helping bring those characters to life is Donald Brooks, a Philadelphia and New Castle, DE native whose own journey to Pixar reflects the power of creativity, persistence, and continuous learning.

Brooks joined Pixar as an intern in 2021 after earning a BFA in Animation from the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD). Today, he’s an animator on Toy Story 5, contributing to one of the most anticipated animated films of the year.

“My contribution to Toy Story 5 was as an animator,” Brooks told AFROTECH Culture. “I animated characters such as Woody, Jessie, Buzz, and Lilypad. I shape their performances and how they express on screen.”

While the film explores the growing role technology plays in everyday life, Brooks says the heart of animation—and storytelling itself—will always belong to people.

The Difference Between Aspiring Artists And Professionals

For Brooks, the transition from student animator to Pixar professional wasn’t marked by a single breakthrough moment. Instead, it came from developing a mindset centered on constant growth.

“I think having a heart of learning is one of the key things too,” Brooks told AFROTECH Culture. “Going from each one to learning something new, you learn something different. Even when you think you’ve got it, you’re still learning something new. And so having a heart of learning is definitely the key difference [between] someone who’s aspiring and someone who’s professional.”

That philosophy became especially important when obstacles appeared during his college years. Rather than allowing setbacks to slow his progress, Brooks sought opportunities to learn wherever he could find them.

“There was a time when I was in school, I wasn’t able to get my sign-up for classes,” he said. “So to do that, keep learning outside of class, watching YouTube videos on different things, or downloading reels and just framing by and studying what animators are doing to achieve certain results.”

His message to aspiring creatives is simple: never stop investing in your craft.

“Having that hunger and that drive is super important because even when things may become a roadblock to reaching your destination, finding ways to keep learning is super important,” Brooks said.

Studying The Greats And Finding His Own Voice

At SCAD, Brooks immersed himself in animation, spending years working on student films while studying how professional animators created memorable performances.

“I was on I think four or five student films over two years,” he said. “So I did a lot of work to do things and to keep learning and learning outside of the classroom as well, which is really important.”

One of his most valuable exercises involved analyzing animation frame by frame.

“I would go in and study frame by frame different animators’ work and just seeing how they’re getting the organic quality or how are they getting these certain expressions that make me feel something,” Brooks explained.

But technical mastery alone isn’t enough. Brooks believes authenticity and individuality are often what separate great artists from the crowd.

“I always tell current students to keep doing that and working on what kind of storytelling that they want as well too, and whatever projects that they’re creating, to always inject the story and also a bit of their own personality into what they’re doing,” he said.

One example came from a project inspired by his own interests.

“An example for me is I animated a character going down a water slide because I love water parks,” Brooks said. “That’s something that I’m really proud of to this day.”

Why Representation In Animation Matters

As a Black animator working at one of the world’s most influential animation studios, Brooks understands the importance of visibility.

“It’s super important because, again, someone like me or some of the other Black animators is someone’s inspiration in this space, someone’s doing it,” Brooks told AFROTECH Culture.

Growing up, he actively searched for people who looked like him in the industry.

“When I was in high school and college, I would look up who’s in these spaces and who’s currently doing it. That was an inspiration for me to see that there’s somebody doing it. I can do this too. It’s not impossible for me. It’s not beyond my reach.”

Brooks hopes his story sends a similar message to the next generation of artists.

“Everyone starts somewhere,” he said. “I’m from Philly and Delaware. And Delaware’s the smallest state. So it’s like anything’s possible.”

The Human Element Technology Can’t Replace

As conversations about artificial intelligence and creative technology continue to reshape the entertainment industry, Brooks believes technology should be viewed as a tool—not a replacement for human imagination.

“Technology always develops tools and things to further the craft,” he said. “But at the end result, it’s always a human ingenuity, always human creativity that is at the forefront that’s creating something that’s groundbreaking and new at every single point.”

According to Brooks, the emotional moments audiences connect with most often stem from lived experiences that only people truly understand.

“I’m always reminded of when we’re cold, and we’re laying in bed, we snuggle up, and we know that it’s like, ‘Ooh, that feels good,'” Brooks said. “Only a human can produce that kind of result and make others feel like, ‘Oh yeah, we do do that,’ that kind of realization.”

That pursuit of authenticity influences every frame of animation.

“As animators, we tweak things down to the frame and we go over things constantly and creating new ways of movement, new ways that’s intentional in everything that we do,” Brooks said. “We move fingertips and everything. We tweak a pose and a mouth and we’re like, ‘Oh, we can make it a little bit more interesting, a little bit more excited in the face or something like that.'”

“I think animators and humans, there’s no replacing that kind of magic.”

‘Toy Story 5’ Explores Technology Without Judgment

Brooks’ perspective mirrors one of the central themes behind Toy Story 5 itself.

Co-director Kenna Harris told AFROTECH Culture that the creative team intentionally approached technology as a nuanced part of modern life rather than something inherently positive or negative.

“We started developing this movie with a lot of emotions around tech in our own lives,” Harris said. “Our crew is made up of parents who are figuring out the challenges of boundaries with tech with their children. I, meanwhile, am like, ‘Gosh, I wish I was on my phone less.’ It’s this very complex part of our lives right now.”

Rather than turning technology into a villain, Harris said the team wanted to reflect the reality that many families experience every day.

“That’s why it didn’t feel true from the beginning to just paint everything black and white around Lilypad, around our tech usage,” they said. “It starts getting shamey and judgmental, but it also, again, just doesn’t feel like it’s true to what we were going to be dealing with for the rest of our lives.”

Technology, Harris noted, is now deeply embedded in everyday life. The challenge is figuring out how to engage with it in healthy and meaningful ways.

“Tech is embedded in our lifestyles,” they said. “And so what is the most optimistic story we can tell? What’s one that just makes folks feel seen and hopefully empowered? That always ended up being the goal.”

The post Pixar’s Donald Brooks Says Human Creativity Is Still The Industry’s Greatest Technology As ‘Toy Story 5’ Tackles Modern Tech appeared first on AfroTech.

The post Pixar’s Donald Brooks Says Human Creativity Is Still The Industry’s Greatest Technology As ‘Toy Story 5’ Tackles Modern Tech appeared first on AfroTech.