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    Pixar Animation Studios Reviews

    Updated September 20, 2017
    113 reviews

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    4.0
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    Pixar Animation Studios President, Pixar and Disney Animation Studios Ed Catmull
    Ed Catmull
    83 Ratings

    113 Employee Reviews

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    Pros

    • Very cool atmosphere, great people, fun (in 17 reviews)

    • Amazing people, beautiful campus, and you get the prestige of working at Pixar (in 6 reviews)

    Cons

    • Long hours, low pay, and stressful at times (in 12 reviews)

    • Low pay in all positions accept executives, and top production staff (i (in 9 reviews)

    More Pros and Cons

    1. "Department Manager"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee

      I have been working at Pixar Animation Studios full-time

      Pros

      Collaborative work environment, Highly skilled co-workers, Work on inspiring content, Great benefits

      Cons

      Located in the very expensive Bay Area, Salaries don' reflect rising living expenses, For newer employees there is higher attrition due to competitive salaries in the area

    2. "Great place for only a couple of years"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      Former Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Former Employee - Anonymous Employee
      No opinion of CEO

      I worked at Pixar Animation Studios full-time

      Pros

      Beautiful campus and really kind people. Great benefits.

      Cons

      No clear career path and almost no upward mobility. Salary does not reflect how much it costs to live in the bay area.

      Advice to Management

      make employees feel like you're invested in them.

      3. Join the Pixar Animation Studios team
      See Our Latest Jobs

    3. "Awesome People/No room for growth"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Former Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Former Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Recommends
      Neutral Outlook
      Approves of CEO

      I worked at Pixar Animation Studios full-time (More than 8 years)

      Pros

      The people and the cafe. Awesome campus with lots of fun activities.

      Cons

      No room for growth. Too much micro-managing in some areas. Some employees exude a very snobbish attitude because they make movies. They're just cartoons people; get over yourself.

      Advice to Management

      Salaries need to be evaluated next to the ridiculously high cost of living in CA. Micro-Managers need to be weeded out.

    4. Helpful (2)

      "Living the Dream"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Recommends
      Positive Outlook
      Approves of CEO

      I have been working at Pixar Animation Studios full-time (More than 3 years)

      Pros

      For many landing a job at Pixar is a lifelong dream, I was no different. I was just one of the lucky ones that it happened to and it has not disappointed. The people and culture here make everyday essentially a great day, I keep waiting for the excitement to wear off but it does not, and I have heard from many others who have been here much longer than my 3 years here that it never goes away. I feel like we are spoiled with parties, gifts, screenings, benefits and just simply by the environment we are surrounded in. There always seems to be a phenomenal amount of support from all departments and everyone is always open to hearing new ideas. Truly one of the best places to work at.

      Cons

      Although there is a great amount of support I feel like there is not a lot of potential for growth/movement within the company (in a short amount of time). Pixar has longevity and with that there is less movement with its employees in terms of new roles and moving up in rank. It is not at the fault of the leadership or the company, it is just because people never want to leave here and therefore room to move into other roles does not come up as often as one may want.

      Advice to Management

      Possibly due to the lack of upward movement having the annual merit increases be more than they already are. I think this would make up for the lack of promotions and upward movement.

    5. Helpful (3)

      "A great dead end job"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Former Employee - Technical Director in Emeryville, CA
      Former Employee - Technical Director in Emeryville, CA
      Approves of CEO

      I worked at Pixar Animation Studios full-time (More than 5 years)

      Pros

      Amazing people, beautiful campus, and you get the prestige of working at Pixar.

      Cons

      The pay is generally below average and there is little to no chance of getting a raise once you're hired. They over hire so most employees are under utilized and bored. In such a large company you'll be put into a highly specialized position with little interaction with other departments. So there is no way to have variety in your day. In short, it's a dead end job where you're talents are wasted.

      Advice to Management

      They know all this.

    6. Helpful (3)

      "assistant"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Former Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Former Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Recommends
      Positive Outlook
      Approves of CEO

      I worked at Pixar Animation Studios full-time (More than a year)

      Pros

      One of the best things that ever happened to me. Generous supportive company. Wonderful coworkers.

      Cons

      working anywhere else will disappoint you later.

    7. "Technical Director"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Recommends
      Neutral Outlook
      Approves of CEO

      Pros

      Fantastic work environment, coworkers, and projects

      Cons

      Challenging for film to make profit

      Advice to Management

      Checkin regularly to evaluate employee satisfaction

    8. Helpful (1)

      "Awesome people, Management needs much improvement"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Recommends
      Neutral Outlook
      Approves of CEO

      I have been working at Pixar Animation Studios full-time (More than 8 years)

      Pros

      The people are awesome. Also there are a lot of opportunities for creative art projects with fellow employees. Cafe is great.

      Cons

      Management consists of very awkward individuals with poor social skills. Little to no room to advance

      Advice to Management

      HR needs to pay close attention to what employees say about their managers, and take them seriously. There seems to be a lot of paranoia around the studio about the direction of the company becoming too corporate.

    9. Helpful (1)

      "Dream job, with some challenges"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Animator in Emeryville, CA
      Current Employee - Animator in Emeryville, CA
      Recommends
      Positive Outlook
      Approves of CEO

      I have been working at Pixar Animation Studios full-time (More than 10 years)

      Pros

      Amazing culture, wonderful people, and exciting projects that create impact and tug on your heart strings.

      Cons

      Cost of living in the Bay Area is a challenge for most employees, especially since compensation is less than one might get at other Studios or in the Tech sector.

      Advice to Management

      more opportunities are needed for those who plateau in terms of career advancement, too few positions available towards the top and a lack of developing internal talent for the long run.

    10. "Overall a very good company."

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Former Employee - Production in Emeryville, CA
      Former Employee - Production in Emeryville, CA
      Recommends
      Positive Outlook
      Approves of CEO

      I worked at Pixar Animation Studios full-time (More than 10 years)

      Pros

      Excellent track record. Premiere creative talent. A beautiful Studio. Lunch speakers, excellent gym, swimming pool, basketball court. Good cafe, nice employees. Steady employment.

      Cons

      Studio leadership seems at odds with itself. The politics and motivations are difficult to figure out. Crew morale can suffer as a result.

      Advice to Management

      Not at this time.

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