Joe Ranft, Pixar Animation Studios' head of story for more than a decade and a cornerstone of the company's creative team, died Tuesday when the car he was riding in plunged into the ocean after running off the road in Mendocino County, Calif. He was 45.

I cannot begin to tell you how sad I am. Toy Story to this day remains one of my favorite movies of all time. Not just because it was the first fully computer generated movies to make it big, but because the story behind it was as beautiful as it could be. A parent could take both their children and their parents to see it and there was something in it for every one of them.

Pixar’s strength lied in their storytelling and Joe was a major player for them. He will be missed.

Found out from Doug TenNapel