Pixar

This weekend "Monsters University, " the newest Pixar marvel, is unleashed in theaters nationwide. It's an unlikely follow-up to "Monsters Inc." that might as well be called "Mike and Sulley: The College Years." The fun, inventive, often laugh-out-loud prequel is set during a time when Mike (Billy Crystal) and Sulley (John Goodman) weren't best pals but in fact mortal enemies.

We got to chat with the film's director, Dan Scanlon, who previously co-directed the wonderful "Cars" short "Mater and the Ghost Light" and worked in the story department on "Cars" and "Toy Story 3." Scanlon got to Pixar in 2001, right when "Monsters Inc." came out, so this project is a culmination of everything he's accomplished at the animation studio.

Here, Scanlon discusses his history with "Monsters, " the experience he's had at Pixar, and whether or not he'd direct a scary movie for the studio.

You got to Pixar there in 2001 when the first "Monsters Inc." was coming out. Can you talk about what it was like going from the story department to co-directing a short film to helming this feature?

Right when I got there I got to go to the wrap party for "Monsters Inc., " which was so amazing, being with all the people who worked on the original film. I think "Monsters, " right off the bat, had a special place in my heart for that reason. I worked in the story [department] on "Cars" for about four or five years and on story for "Toy Story 3." In between that, I co-directed "Mater and the Ghost Light, " which was a short on the "Cars" DVD, with John [Lasseter]. That was a really great learning experience and John is a great teacher. And then I made my own live-action feature called "Tracy" pretty much on the weekends during "Cars" and "Toy Story 3, " just to see what it was like to write and direct something on my own scale. I think that that was a big part of what made John and everyone else think that I could take this on. It was like, "Well this is a very low budget thing but at least he can kind of do the job."