Catmull hired Lasseter as an"Interface Designer" because he wasn't
officially allowed to hire an animator.
Catmull, like many people at the time, was in awe of Star
Wars, for its detailed special effects.
Lasseter and Catmull's oversight of both the Disney Animation
and Pixar studios did not mean that the two studios were merging,
Catmull and company knew their time with LucasFilm was short
and began figuring out a way they could strike out on their own.
This event was attended by over 42,000 people,
and speakers included President of Pixar Ed Catmull, founder and CEO of Dell Michael Dell,
and Amit Singh of Google.
Even if it meant leaving Schure and New York Institute of Technology,
the place that had given him his start, Catmull had to take his dream job.
When Catmull and Alvy Ray Smith were looking for investors,
they knew the most valuable asset they had was this Pixar Image Computer, so they named the company after it.