Bonnie Arnold

Last updated

Bonnie Arnold
Bonnie Arnold 2018.jpg
Arnold in 2018
NationalityAmerican
Alma mater University of Georgia
Boston University
Occupation(s)Film producer
Media executive
Years active1984–present
Notable work Toy Story
Tarzan
Over the Hedge
The Last Station
How to Train Your Dragon series
Children1

Bonnie Arnold is an American film producer and executive who has worked at Walt Disney Animation Studios, Pixar Animation Studios and DreamWorks Animation. Arnold was born in Atlanta, Georgia, and rose to prominence in Hollywood during the initial wave of computer-animation.

Contents

Life and career

Arnold has a B.S. in journalism from the University of Georgia and a M.S. in journalism from Boston University. Her interest in journalism led her to her first professional assignment as unit publicist for American Playhouse's debut production, King of America . [1] Arnold's first job on a Hollywood feature was as production coordinator for Neil Simon's The Slugger's Wife , a 1984 film shot in Atlanta and produced by Ray Stark, who was responsible for many of Simon and Barbra Streisand's movie hits. "I got a real sense of filmmaking the Hollywood way," Arnold recalls. [2] From there, she freelanced in film production in Atlanta and met producer David Picker, who invited her to work at Columbia Pictures in Los Angeles. While working on the Tony Scott movie Revenge at Columbia, Arnold met Kevin Costner and ended up joining the Dances with Wolves production as associate producer. In 1992, Arnold was recruited by Peter Schneider and John Lasseter to work on Toy Story for Disney. [3] When Toy Story became a box office smash, she produced Tarzan , overseeing a crew of 1,100 and a $130 million budget—four and a third times that of Toy Story. In 2001, after she finished Tarzan, Jeffrey Katzenberg invited Arnold to produce Over the Hedge at DreamWorks Animation. [4]

Arnold continued to work on the How to Train Your Dragon franchise, for which she has received a Golden Globe Award and two Academy Award nominations.

After DreamWorks saw a series of financially disappointing films, DreamWorks Animation named Arnold co-president of feature animation in early 2015. Along with Mireille Soria, she was tasked with overseeing creative development and production of DWA's theatrical releases. [5] In 2016, Soria stepped down from her role as co-president to return to producing, leaving Arnold the sole president of feature animation. [6]

To date, Arnold's films have grossed over $2.2 billion at the box office. She serves on the Dean's advisory board of Boston University's School of Communications and on the Board of Counselors at USC's Annenberg School of Communications, as well as being a mentor for the Peter Stark Producing Program at USC. In addition, she is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the British Academy of Film and Television Arts. [7]

Personal life

Arnold resides in Santa Monica with her husband and daughter. Her favorite hobbies include playing tennis and reading anything by Mississippi writer Eudora Welty. She credits her interest in family movies to her mother, a teacher and avid film buff who often took her and her brother to watch movies at a theater where her uncle worked as a projectionist. [8] [9]

Filmography

YearTitleRoleNotes
1990 Dances with Wolves Associate Producer
1991 The Addams Family
1995 Toy Story Producer
1999 Tarzan
2006 Over the Hedge
2009 The Last Station
2010 How to Train Your Dragon
2014 How to Train Your Dragon 2
2019 How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World [10]
2024 The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie [11]

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References

  1. "Producers & Directors". Archived from the original on April 18, 2012. Retrieved April 18, 2007.
  2. "Whistling While She Works". Archived from the original on February 8, 2007. Retrieved April 18, 2007.
  3. "Our People: Bonnie Arnold". Archived from the original on October 20, 2014. Retrieved October 20, 2014.
  4. "Our People: Bonnie Arnold". Archived from the original on October 20, 2014. Retrieved October 20, 2014.
  5. Graser, Marc (January 4, 2015). "DreamWorks Animation Names Bonnie Arnold, Mireille Soria Co-Presidents of Feature Animation". Variety. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
  6. "Breaking: Mireille Soria Out As Dreamworks Animation's Co-President". Cartoon Brew. December 22, 2016. Retrieved June 22, 2017.
  7. "Bonnie Arnold | USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism". annenberg.usc.edu. Archived from the original on October 22, 2018.
  8. Bonnie Arnold: How I Made It
  9. "Bonnie Arnold | USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism". annenberg.usc.edu. Archived from the original on October 22, 2018.
  10. DreamWorks Animation (September 2, 2014). "Highest Grossing Animated Film of the Year Continues to Breathe Fire Into Global Box Office Third Chapter of Epic Story Lands on June 9, 2017". DreamWorks Animation. Archived from the original on October 21, 2014. Retrieved October 20, 2014.
  11. Debruge, Peter (June 12, 2024). "'The Day the Earth Blew Up' Review: Daffy Duck and Porky Pig Save the World in Side-Splitting Looney Tunes Movie". Variety. Retrieved June 12, 2024.