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Short Circuit Interview with Larry Wu & Heather Russell at Walt Disney Animation Studios
Mar 17, 2026
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0:04
My name is Heather M. Roberts Russell
0:06
and I am the director of Maddie in the
0:08
Test.
0:09
>> I'm Larry Woo and I am the director of
0:11
Life Drama.
0:12
>> Love it. Uh we got to see both of your
0:14
shorts earlier today and I loved both of
0:16
them. Could you talk about the personal
0:19
journey that each of you went through
0:20
the process of creating these because
0:23
you started at some point and I'm sure
0:24
there was expectations and maybe beliefs
0:27
of like oh this is how it's going to go
0:28
and this is what I'm going to be like
0:30
and then you get to the end of this
0:31
journey and I'm sure completely
0:33
different ball game but uh what was it
0:35
like?
0:36
>> I go okay um for me I um had been
0:40
working on this idea for about a year
0:42
and a half before I finally decided to
0:44
submit it. Um, I had tested it out with
0:46
a couple of folks here in the studio,
0:48
just gotten their feedback, um, to try
0:50
to put my best foot forward. Um, I
0:53
wasn't planning to submit in this round
0:55
where I got picked. Um, but things just
0:58
were really stressful and I had some
1:01
stuff going on in my personal life and I
1:02
was like, I need a creative outlet. I'm
1:03
going to finish this and submit it and
1:05
I'll get some feedback and I'll learn
1:07
and I'll grow and I'll feel like I had a
1:09
creative moment. Um, and to my like
1:12
really genuine shock, I was selected to
1:16
direct. Um, and it was such an awesome
1:19
experience to be able to do this. The
1:21
journey for me was candidly like being
1:25
humble enough to know what I didn't know
1:27
because there was a lot that I didn't
1:29
know about the way that animation works.
1:32
Um, so to be curious and and be willing
1:35
to learn, but also to build my
1:36
self-confidence because I'm literally
1:39
working with the best tal most talented
1:41
artists in the world and they're taking
1:45
direction for me. Um, so I took that
1:47
very seriously. Uh, it was an emotional
1:50
journey because I had to find that
1:52
confidence and I will be honest and say
1:54
it wavered through the process. Um, but
1:57
when I had moments like with Mark Ken
1:59
where he deferred to me in meetings and
2:03
kind of gave me the floor, that helped
2:05
build my confidence. And at the end of
2:06
the day, everyone here just wants us to
2:08
be successful. They just want to make
2:10
really good content. And I think that's
2:13
where it all came together.
2:16
>> For me, my journey on this project
2:18
started out really quick. So I I had two
2:21
weeks I gave myself two weeks uh before
2:24
the submission deadline to like just
2:25
come up with something new.
2:27
>> Wow.
2:27
>> I have all these ideas from before but
2:30
something new like new take just draw
2:33
from my own life experience uh write
2:35
about what I know. It's not a biography
2:38
but I wanted to capture the you know it
2:41
correctly. So I just kind of okay what
2:43
what do I know? And so I'm an artist. I
2:45
grew up drawing went to art school and
2:47
all that. Um once once I got selected
2:51
then it kind of calmed down a bit and
2:54
then I was able to work with a couple
2:57
people on developing it into like a real
2:59
thing now. And um
3:03
uh like Heather, it was it was a
3:06
journey. Uh lots of ups and downs much
3:08
like the short the story in the short
3:11
and but it was all it was all great.
3:14
Like I knew there would be challenges. I
3:16
I I know like every step of how it how
3:20
it works. But as I as I entered each
3:23
step, it was surprising how um how how
3:27
gracious and awesome everybody that came
3:30
was. And I realized, yeah, this
3:32
building, like Heather said again, just
3:34
once they once they believe in
3:36
something, they're going to do all their
3:38
give give it their all to make you
3:40
succeed.
3:41
>> And it it felt really humbling. And uh
3:45
and was there a moment as you're going
3:47
through this process where you're like,
3:48
"Oh yeah, we got this
3:50
>> there that
3:53
sort of later." Okay.
3:55
>> Like at the end uh well midway through,
3:59
but it was the second half where I
4:02
realized, oh, everything's falling into
4:05
place. It took a while to get here. Uh
4:08
it it requires some tool development. uh
4:11
like I mentioned before like but I had
4:13
it luckily some features helped
4:15
developed it so we could use a tool set
4:18
and then about in the second half yeah
4:20
everything fell in place and we just had
4:22
to like finish it off
4:24
>> and that was a very
4:25
>> good feeling to be a position to be in
4:30
and you came from a different background
4:31
so was there a moment along the way
4:32
where you're suddenly like oh yeah we
4:34
got you know like this is going to work
4:36
>> yeah I think for me it was probably when
4:39
we hit Um, it was somewhere between
4:41
animation and and lighting for me in the
4:44
like process of making this film.
4:46
Animation because I understand character
4:48
performance cuz I've directed theater in
4:50
my past. Um, and working with that team
4:53
like Mallerie Walters who was our um,
4:55
kind of CG lead um, was so great at like
4:58
those like little nuance moments. Um,
5:01
but I was able to see the things she was
5:03
seeing. So that felt very comforting to
5:06
me. And then lighting is a department I
5:08
used to support. So I had the knowledge
5:10
of betting having been in a lot of like
5:12
lighting reviews. So I I also felt very
5:15
confident in giving feedback cuz I knew
5:17
exactly what I wanted from a lighting
5:19
standpoint. So those were the two
5:20
moments for me where it's like okay
5:22
we're doing this like it's going to
5:24
happen.
5:24
>> I love it. So I've picked up through the
5:26
day with all of the shorts actually a a
5:29
theme of truth and honesty and
5:32
vulnerability that's kind of running
5:33
through all of these things. And I'm
5:36
curious,
5:38
was that something that was conscious or
5:40
is this something that comes from your
5:41
heart or your gut or whatever? Like how
5:43
did that come into you as storytellers
5:46
as you were making these shorts?
5:48
>> That's a really question.
5:51
I think for me it was very conscious
5:53
because the vulnerability that I saw in
5:56
my niece Ameilia when she was talking
5:58
about dyslexia and what that felt like
6:00
for her. You you you can't create this
6:04
story without that vulnerability and we
6:07
talked about it on the short even um
6:10
like what our own vulnerabilities were
6:12
and how we felt related to the character
6:14
Maddie and what she was struggling with.
6:16
It was like a conversation we had of
6:18
like what's your what's the thing that
6:20
you struggled with and how did you work
6:22
through it? Um so yeah it was very
6:23
conscious for us because that's that's
6:25
the story.
6:27
>> Yeah same here. Uh I think the I
6:30
mentioned that it takes a short time but
6:31
it was like
6:33
writing about something I I know about
6:36
experimenting with all these things but
6:38
the thing that tied it all together was
6:40
I was also at a stage in my life where
6:42
priorities were shifting
6:44
>> and what is important now versus and you
6:47
know stuff like that. So once I once I
6:50
once I put that of myself in there then
6:52
it all came together and I had my scene
6:55
and story. So I guess in that sense it's
6:58
very conscious.
6:59
>> Totally see it. Um what is one thing you
7:01
hope that viewers will take away from
7:03
each of your films
7:07
that
7:09
um I think it's that message like you
7:13
can
7:15
you can work hard uh and be very
7:18
successful or not but there's always
7:20
going to be challenges. opportunities
7:21
always come. But at the very end,
7:26
for me, the the joy of passing on that
7:28
knowledge, whether it's to your own
7:29
kids, like in the short, but also to
7:31
like people in the building, uh if
7:34
you're a mentor, mentees, if you teach
7:36
the students, just just making sure that
7:39
it profitates to the next generations
7:42
and beyond.
7:43
And for me, it's anyone who experiences
7:47
a neurodiversity to feel seen and for
7:50
anyone who doesn't to be able to see.
7:54
>> Absolutely. And then last question, what
7:57
would you say to somebody who's maybe
7:59
much younger but maybe is just deciding
8:01
to change in their life or something
8:03
that are like, hey, I want to do
8:05
something special like this. Do you have
8:07
any words of advice for maybe they want
8:09
to be a storyteller like you guys or do
8:10
something else big in life? But uh what
8:12
would you say to those people?
8:16
>> Oh, there we go. 15 seconds each.
8:18
>> I would say uh it will take some effort
8:23
and time. So don't don't give up. Give
8:26
yourself room.
8:28
>> Study what's already been done. Study
8:30
stories that you like, that you enjoy.
8:33
Think about how they're told and find a
8:36
way to tell your own version of that.
8:37
>> Love it. Thank you both so much.
8:39
>> Thank you.