Director of Pixar’s Up & Monsters, Inc. and
Creator of MUTTS Speak at the Charles M. Schulz Museum
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 14 ● 3–5pm

October 26, 2009—Santa Rosa, CA.

Pixar’s Pete Docter, director of Up and Monsters, Inc. and cartoonist Patrick McDonnell, creator of MUTTS will speak at the Charles M. Schulz Museum on Saturday, November 14 at 3 p.m. The duo will discuss how cartoonists create characters for comic strips and animated movies. After the presentation, both will be available to speak with visitors and sign autographs. This program is included with the price of Museum admission.

About the Presenters
Pete Docter began working for Pixar in 1990 and is currently one of the key people in the development of Pixar films. He made his directorial debut with Monsters, Inc., and recently directed Up.  Docter has received four Academy Award nominations, including Best Animated Feature for Monsters, Inc.

Patrick McDonnell first published the comic strip MUTTS in 1994, and it now appears in over 700 newspapers and 20 countries. MUTTS has been described by Peanuts creator Charles Schulz as "one of the best comic strips of all time." McDonnell has received numerous awards for his strip, including the National Cartoonists Society's highest honor, The Reuben, for Cartoonist of the Year.

The Character Panel Discussion is part of the Schulz Museum’s educational programming for The Language of Lines: How Cartoonists Create Characters exhibition. This exhibition is the second in a trilogy exploring the foundations of cartooning by taking a look at iconic characters, cartoon heroes and villains, and dynamic duos. The exhibition runs through November 30, 2009.

About the Charles M. Schulz Museum & Research Center
The Charles M. Schulz Museum opened in August 2002 to fulfill its mission of preserving, displaying, and interpreting the art of Charles M. Schulz. The Museum carries out this mission through changing exhibitions and programming that build an understanding of cartoonists and cartoon art; illustrate the scope of Schulz’s multi-faceted career; communicate the stories, inspirations and influences of Charles Schulz; and celebrate the life of Charles Schulz and the Peanuts characters.

[Note: If you would like any of the images in this release at a higher resolution to print in a publication, contact Gina Huntsinger at gina@schulzmuseum.org.]