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Daniel Chong

Daniel Chong (born November 19, 1978) is an American animator, storyboard artist, writer, director, and producer of Singaporean-Chinese descent, best known for creating the Cartoon Network animated series We Bare Bears (2015–2019) and directing the upcoming Pixar feature film Hoppers (2026). Born in , to parents who had immigrated from to the , Chong grew up in after his family relocated. His father worked as an engineer and later became a business management professor, while his mother was initially a stay-at-home parent before training as a nurse. Chong developed an early passion for drawing animals, inspired by a childhood animal encyclopedia, despite suffering from allergies to them. He attended the , where he honed his skills in animation. Chong launched his professional career as a at Animation Studios, contributing to films such as Cars 2 (2011) and Inside Out (2015), as well as the Emmy-winning Toy Story of Terror! (2013) television special, for which he received an Annie Award. He also worked on projects outside Pixar, including Bolt (2008) and The Lorax (2012). In 2015, Chong created We Bare Bears for , drawing from his love of animals and urban life; the series, which follows three bear brothers navigating life in , ran for four seasons and received an Emmy nomination. He later directed the spin-off We Baby Bears (2022) and the feature film We Bare Bears: The Movie (2020). Returning to Pixar in late 2019, Chong made his feature directorial debut with , co-written and set for theatrical release on March 6, 2026. The film explores a world where scientists develop technology to "hop" human consciousness into robotic animals, following a young animal lover named Mabel who uncovers mysteries in the animal kingdom; it features voice talents including , , and . Chong's work often incorporates themes of empathy, nature, and human-animal connections, influenced by his multicultural background and lifelong fascination with .

Early life and education

Family and childhood

Daniel Chong was born on November 18, 1978, in , to Singaporean-Chinese immigrant parents who had moved to the in the . His family background rooted him in Singaporean heritage, with his parents instilling Asian cultural values amid their new life in . His father worked as an and later became a business management , while his mother was initially a stay-at-home parent before training as a nurse. After his birth in Fargo, Chong's family relocated to Southern California, where he grew up. He has described his upbringing as a balance between embracing his cultural roots—through family traditions and expectations—and aspiring to assimilate with peers, a dynamic that shaped his perspectives on and . In a 2025 interview, Chong reflected on how his parents raised him with strong Asian principles while encouraging adaptation to American society, highlighting lessons in drawn from their immigrant experiences. Chong developed an early passion for drawing animals, inspired by a childhood animal , despite suffering from allergies to them. These early years provided Chong with formative insights into themes of cultural hybridity and , which he later channeled into storytelling that emphasizes and . His childhood environment, marked by familial ties to , cultivated a creative outlook attuned to outsider narratives and familial bonds.

Education

Daniel Chong attended the (CalArts) in , graduating in 2004 from the School of Film/Video. Renowned for its rigorous animation curriculum, CalArts provided Chong with foundational training in , where students engage with classical and contemporary techniques to develop expressive characters and dynamic storytelling. The program's emphasis on storyboarding and narrative writing significantly shaped his skills, enabling him to create compelling, character-focused narratives that became hallmarks of his professional output. During his studies, Chong participated in creative projects that explored character-driven stories, including student films that experimented with animation styles and interpersonal dynamics among anthropomorphic figures. These early works at CalArts foreshadowed his later success with series like , highlighting his affinity for relatable, ensemble-based tales. Influenced by his Singaporean heritage, Chong selected CalArts for its global reputation in nurturing innovative animators from diverse backgrounds.

Professional career

Early work in animation

Chong began his professional career in animation with an internship at in the early 2000s, shortly after graduating from the (CalArts) character animation program. This opportunity came on the long-running series , which he secured through persistent outreach, including "a lot of phone calls and hassling." The internship provided foundational exposure to animation production workflows and marked his initial foray into the industry. Building on this experience, Chong transitioned to roles at major studios. In 2008, he contributed to ' Bolt, developing visual sequences that supported the film's narrative of adventure and friendship. His work on the project honed his skills in translating story concepts into dynamic panels, a core aspect of in feature . During this formative period, Chong accumulated additional credits in television animation, further refining his expertise in storyboarding and character design through collaborative environments at studios like and . As an Asian-American entering a field with limited , he encountered barriers such as underrepresentation and the need for exceptional persistence to break in; Chong later noted that such experiences informed his perspective on minority challenges in the industry. By the late 2000s, these early roles had established him as a versatile artist poised for greater contributions.

Creation of We Bare Bears

The animated series originated from Daniel Chong's The Three Bare Bears, which he created in 2010 and consisted of ten strips featuring three anthropomorphic bear brothers navigating life in the human world. The , inspired by doodles Chong made for his niece (who influenced the ), ended in 2011 but caught the attention of executives, leading to its adaptation into a full television series that premiered on July 27, 2015, and concluded after four seasons on May 27, 2019. Central to the series are themes of friendship, identity, and immigrant experiences, drawn directly from Chong's background as the son of Singaporean-Chinese immigrants raised in the United States. Chong has described the bears—Grizzly (the optimistic leader), Panda (the anxious artist), and Ice Bear (the stoic multilingual polymath)—as an allegory for the challenges of being a minority in America, emphasizing the "need to fit in and belong" while showcasing virtues like love, tolerance, and diversity amid personal flaws. Their multicultural dynamics, such as Panda's affinity for K-pop and boba, Ice Bear's fluency in Korean and culinary skills, and the group's outsider status in San Francisco, reflect Chong's own encounters with stereotypes and the quest for community. In production, Chong served as the series , , voice , and supervising , guiding over 100 episodes with a collaborative team that incorporated evolving , including in character relationships and experimental formats like musical episodes. The show's creative freedom at allowed integrations of Asian pop culture, such as influences and unsubtitled Korean dialogue, enhancing its emotional depth—exemplified in episodes exploring family bonds and societal navigation. This extended to spin-offs, including the 2020 film We Bare Bears: The Movie, which Chong directed and wrote, depicting the bears' origin as immigrants facing during a road trip to ; and We Baby Bears (2022), a series following the cubs' adventures in search of a home. We Bare Bears garnered significant reception for its heartfelt portrayal of outsider experiences, earning an Annie Award for Best Animated Television Production for Children in 2018 and an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Short Form Animated Program. Its cultural significance lies in advancing Asian-American representation in children's , normalizing elements of Asian culture without exoticizing them and validating minority narratives through relatable, race-agnostic animal protagonists. The series achieved global appeal, particularly in —such as popularity in where Ice Bear's talents resonated—fostering solidarity among Asian-American audiences by mirroring their struggles with identity and belonging.

Work at Pixar

Daniel Chong began his tenure at Pixar Animation Studios as a storyboard artist, contributing to several high-profile projects in the early 2010s, including Cars 2 (2011). He worked on the television special Toy Story of Terror! (2013), where his storyboarding helped shape the narrative of the toy characters' Halloween adventures, earning him an Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement in Storyboarding in an Animated TV/Broadcast Production. Chong also served as a story artist on the feature film Inside Out (2015), assisting in developing the emotional landscapes and character arcs central to the story of a young girl's mind. After leading the creation and production of the Cartoon Network series , Chong returned to Pixar in late 2019, pitching ideas that culminated in his directorial debut. In early 2020, he developed , an original sci-fi animated feature announced in August 2024 and scheduled for theatrical release on March 6, 2026. The film's premise centers on a technology allowing human to "hop" into lifelike robotic s, enabling unprecedented communication with wildlife; it follows protagonist , a college student and enthusiast, as she navigates challenges and uncovers secrets in this hybrid world, exploring themes of coexistence and ecological balance. In 2025, production updates on gained momentum with the release of a on July 16, which showcased the film's vibrant robotic animal designs and adventurous tone. Chong addressed rumors in interviews, debunking claims that had toned down the story's environmental messages, affirming that elements like beavers as "ecosystem engineers" combating habitat threats remained intact to highlight real-world issues. He also discussed broader inspirations, including identity and human-animal connections drawn from his personal experiences with nature and influences like 's consciousness transfer concepts.

Filmography

Films

Chong began his film career as a storyboard artist, contributing visual storytelling to several animated features. His early credits include work on Disney's Bolt (2008), where he helped develop sequences for the adventure-comedy about a TV star dog believing he has superpowers. He continued in this role for Pixar's Cars 2 (2011), assisting in the creation of action-oriented storyboards for the international spy thriller sequel. Additional contributions came on Illumination's Dr. Seuss' The Lorax (2012), focusing on environmental-themed sequences, and Illumination's Despicable Me 2 (2013), as well as Relativity Media's Free Birds (2013), where he storyboarded time-travel elements involving turkeys. Chong's Pixar involvement began with Cars 2 (2011) and continued with Inside Out (2015), providing storyboards for emotional personification scenes in the Academy Award-winning film about a girl's mind. Transitioning to directing and writing, Chong helmed : The Movie (2020), a feature produced by . In this extension of his created series, he directed and co-wrote the story of the bear brothers' cross-country journey to find belonging, emphasizing themes of friendship and immigration through animation. Chong's feature directorial debut with is the upcoming (2026), which he is writing and directing. The comedy-adventure follows , a 19-year-old animal lover at Beaverton University, who transfers her consciousness into a robotic via groundbreaking "hopping" technology to communicate with animals and uncover secrets of their world. Produced by Nicole Paradis Grindle, the film features voices including as , , and . Key 2025 production milestones include the release of the official on July 16, revealing the sci-fi premise and robotic animal designs, alongside a first-look reveal at D23 highlighting and casting announcements. Scheduled for theatrical release on March 6, 2026, marks Chong's shift from television to 's big-screen storytelling.

Television

Chong began his professional career in television animation with an internship at Cartoon Network Studios, providing foundational experience in story development and production processes. He achieved prominence as the creator, writer, director, and executive producer of the Cartoon Network animated series We Bare Bears, which aired from 2015 to 2019 across four seasons and 140 episodes. The show centers on the daily lives and misadventures of three anthropomorphic bear brothers—Grizzly, Panda, and Ice Bear—as they navigate urban life and friendship. Chong personally wrote three episodes, including the pilot, and directed multiple installments, overseeing the series' distinctive visual style inspired by his original webcomic. Chong continued his involvement with the franchise as and on the preschool series , which premiered on [Cartoon Network](/page/Cartoon Network) in 2022 and concluded in 2023. This short-form animated program, consisting of 25 half-hour episodes featuring multiple segments each, depicts the bear brothers' magical adventures as cubs in search of their perfect home, with Chong contributing to story outlines and scripts for several segments. Earlier in his career, Chong served as a storyboard artist on the Pixar Animation Studios television special Toy Story of Terror!, a 2013 Halloween-themed production that integrated his detailed sequential artwork into the narrative structure of the Toy Story universe.

Awards and nominations

Awards

Daniel Chong received the Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement in Storyboarding in an Animated TV/Broadcast Production for his work on the Pixar special Toy Story of Terror! at the 41st Annual Annie Awards ceremony held on February 1, 2014, at Royce Hall in Los Angeles. This accolade recognized Chong's innovative visual sequencing and dynamic panel layouts that enhanced the suspenseful narrative of the Halloween-themed short, marking a pivotal validation of his early career expertise in animation storyboarding during his time at Pixar. The win underscored the impact of his contributions to Pixar's tradition of meticulous visual storytelling, affirming his ability to blend humor and tension through precise artistic direction. In 2017, at the 17th Kidscreen Awards, We Bare Bears won Best Animated Series (Kids) and Best Writing. At the 45th Annie Awards (ceremony on February 3, 2018), We Bare Bears won Outstanding Achievement for Animated Television/Broadcast Production for Children for the episode "Panda's Art," and Outstanding Achievement for Storyboarding in an Animated TV/Broadcast Production for the episode "Panda's Art," credited to storyboard artist Sang Yup Lee. At the 2018 Annecy International Animated Film Festival, We Bare Bears episode "Panda's Art" won the Jury Award for a TV Series. In 2016, Chong's creation We Bare Bears earned the BAFTA Children's Award in the International category at the British Academy Children's Awards ceremony on November 20, 2016, at the Roundhouse in London, hosted by comedian Doc Brown. This honor, shared with producers Manny Hernandez and Carrie Wilksen, celebrated the series' widespread international appeal and its heartfelt portrayal of friendship among the anthropomorphic bear brothers, highlighting its resonance with global young audiences. The award validated Chong's storytelling approach by emphasizing the show's relatable themes of belonging and adventure, which transcended cultural boundaries and solidified his reputation for crafting inclusive, emotionally engaging animated content.

Nominations

Daniel Chong received a nomination for the in 2018 for Outstanding Short Form Animated Program as on the "Hurricane Hal," which aired on . This category featured strong competition from established animated shorts, including (""), ("Freshly Baked: The Robot Chicken Santa Claus Pot Cookie Freakout! Special: Special Edition"), (""), and Teen Titans Go! ("The Chaff"), with ultimately winning the award. The recognition underscored the episode's innovative storytelling and emotional depth in a concise format, competing against and productions known for their satirical and adventurous styles. The series, created by Chong, also earned a nomination at the in 2019 for Outstanding Achievement for Writing in an Animated Television/Broadcast Production for the "Hurricane Hal" episode, credited to writers Mikey Heller, Sang Yup Lee, and Louie Zong. This nomination placed it alongside entries like ("Chapter 1: The Troll Rock") and ("Plumage Plunge"), highlighting the script's clever integration of humor and themes of friendship amid disaster, though ("The Chasing Paper Caper") took the win. At the (2023), We Baby Bears, directed by Chong, was nominated for Best TV/Media – Children for the episode "The Real Crayon." These nominations, while not resulting in wins, significantly boosted the visibility of We Bare Bears and Chong's contributions to children's , drawing attention from industry peers and audiences to the series' relatable character dynamics and cultural representation in a field dominated by major studios like and . By competing in prestigious categories at the Emmys and Annies, they affirmed the show's quality and helped sustain its popularity through multiple seasons, influencing Chong's subsequent projects at .

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