Creative problem-solver lands job at Pixar

Caroline Collins loves solving puzzles.

Every morning, the 2017 Carolina graduate opens The New York Times games app to solve the full crossword puzzle, then the mini crossword puzzle, and then she works her way through the other games.

Collins’ love of puzzles is also a big reason why she has found success working in animation for the past six years. Collins is a senior production coordinator at Pixar Animation Studios.

In that role, she partners with creative teams, helping with everything from scheduling and budgeting to managing databases and troubleshooting issues that arise on a project.

“It’s like the art of creative problem-solving,” Collins said. “I’m not an artist. I’m not a technician, but you could put a puzzle in front of me, and I could probably figure it out for you.”

The fact that the work is in animation makes the job even more special.

“I figured out in college that I really wanted to go into animation,” Collins said. “That was really where my passion was.”

Carolina calling

The first college Collins attended wasn’t a good fit. After a particularly rough day, she watched “The Little Mermaid.” Uninspired by a particular scene, Collins rewrote the scene as she thought it should unfold. As the movie’s credits rolled and she saw the names of the people who made the movie, she decided then that’s what she wanted to do for her career.

Collins transferred to Carolina because it had everything she wanted: strong academics, sports teams and school pride.

She studied dramatic art and music and made a home for herself within the theater community. During her first semester, she starred in the production of “Failure: A Love Story” at Kenan Theatre Company. She later produced two shows. To gain technical experience for a class, she operated the trap door in PlayMakers Repertory Company’s production of “Sweeney Todd.”

Carolina’s school spirit did not disappoint. Collins still cherishes how she felt when the men’s basketball team won the 2017 national championship during her final semester.

“I was looking for something that matched the classic college experience I saw in TV and film,” Collins remembered. “That was it. That was the day.”

An animated career

After graduating, Collins left for California, boldly proclaiming that she would get a job at Walt Disney Animation Studios.

She did, just six weeks later.

Collins started as a production department secretary at the now-defunct Disneytoon Studios and quickly advanced her career before landing at Pixar, where she has been for three years.

Collins worked on several movies and TV shows, including “Monsters at Work.” This spring, she begins work on “Toy Story 5.” She’s most proud of her work on the new movie “Elio,” about a young space fanatic with an active imagination.

As the senior production coordinator in the editorial department, Collins supported the editors and directors, taking notes of edits and ensuring they were incorporated and generally solving any problems — or puzzles — that came up. You won’t hear Collins’ voice in “Elio,” but she voiced the main character’s lines for the writers and editors as they worked through the script.

When “Elio” is released this summer, Collins plans to fly to North Carolina to watch the film with her family. They plan to see the film twice: once in a theater and a second time in a private screening, where Collins will stand near the stage and recite the lines.

“I’ve memorized this entire movie. I’ve seen it so many times,” Collins said. “This one is going to be special to me forever.”