Biografia
Janet Healy began her career in live-action films, collaborating with directors such as Stanley Kramer, Hal Ashby, and Sam Peckinpah. She worked alongside Steven Spielberg on Close Encounters of the Third Kind and 1941, acting as Associate Producer on the latter.
She later joined George Lucas' visual effects company, Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), as Co-Head of Production. At ILM, Janet produced some of the most innovative visual effects of the time, including the Academy Award®-winning effects for Terminator 2: Judgment Day and Jurassic Park. She played a key role in guiding the industry's shift from traditional photo-chemical and in-camera techniques to the digital 2D and 3D methods now standard in visual effects. During her tenure at ILM, she also served as Visual Effects Producer on Ghostbusters II, Joe Versus the Volcano, and Willow.
In 1995, she joined Walt Disney Feature Animation as Head of Digital Production, overseeing CG work on Tarzan, Dinosaur, and Mulan. She then moved to DreamWorks Animation, where she was Head of Production for several years and produced Shark Tale.
In 2008, Janet partnered with Chris Meledandri at Illumination Entertainment and Universal Pictures. Together, they produced Despicable Me, The Lorax, Despicable Me 2, The Minions, The Secret Life of Pets, Sing, Despicable Me 3, The Grinch, The Secret Life of Pets 2, Sing 2, and Minions: The Rise of Gru.
Janet is a member of the New Media Council of the Producers Guild of America and a founding member of the Visual Effects Society, where she has served on both the Board of Directors and the Executive Board. In 2014, she received the Visual Effects Society's highest honor, The Founder's Award, recognizing her industry contributions. She is also a member of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. As of 2022, films produced by Janet have grossed over $8 billion worldwide.
In 2015, she was honored as a Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters by the French Ministry of Culture and is also a Dame of Saint-Émilion, France.
