Apple and PIXAR co-founder Steve Jobs was a high tech visionary whose creativity was known worldwide, including in Amherst, Massachusetts. Hampshire College filmmaker media professor Chris Perry says Jobs left a lasting impression on him. Perry came to the region from PIXAR where he worked as a technical director on "A Bugs Life" and "Finding Nemo". He was also a graphics software engineer on "Toy Story 2. He says Steve Jobs had a very hands off approach to running Pixar, and Perry uses this model when he teaches. "The lesson that I took as I try to work with my students here is that you get a bunch of good people in the room and try to find the best ideas wherever their sources may come from. And I don't know how much it reflects Steve's personal take on solving problems, but he saw that was working in PIXAR world and did what he could to allow that to keep happening."
Even as some industry analysts are worried about the future of PIXAR without Jobs, Perry says he's more concerned about the future of Apple and its innovative product design. "A lot of the courses I teach are heavily involved with design and I sort of feel like I'm trying to channel Jobs constantly when trying to ask about a design: why are people are coming to this product, what is it they're trying to accomplish with this product, how could i make it as easy to use as possible?"
Jobs was a model of someone who took a non-traditional route and ended up succeeding. Perry says he sees some of this in his own students, many who are often driven by their passion to create and not necessarily a teacher's syllabus.