Need a pro’s pro? Better call Saul

After trying more than once to get into the Disney animators program and then being accepted in 1994, Five Towns native Saul Blinkoff wrested his portfolio away from Bill Matthews, then the company’s manager of artist development.

“I asked him when he needed this and he said ‘not for two weeks’ and I said in two weeks what I could draw will be better than this,” said Blinkoff, 43, who was born in Philadelphia. His family moved to Woodmere in 1981. He attended the Number Six School in the Lawrence School District, then Woodmere Middle School and graduated from Hewlett High School in 1990.

Blinkoff’s Rudy Ruettiger-like drive, has propelled him through a career that includes working on the hit Disney films “Pocahontas,” “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” “Mulan” and “Tarzan.” Ruettiger was the talent- and size-challenged student who fulfilled his dream of playing in a football game for Notre Dame.  

“He never gave up and you should never give up on your dream,” Blinkoff says in the many appearances he makes throughout the world to motivate people of all ages to succeed.

In 2000, Blinkoff made his directorial debut with MTV’s “Spy Groove.” Returning to Disney, his work has included directing “Winnie the Pooh: Springtime with Roo”  and “Kronk’s Ne Groove” and consulting on “Tinkerbell,” “Fox and the Hound II,” Brother Bear II,” Cinderella III” and “Dumbo II.”

“Saul is a fantastic talent,” John Cline, an executive producer at Suite Spot LLC wrote on LinkedIn, the networking website. He called Blinkoff’s work: “meticulous” with an “attention to detail and inspired performances — he’s a true pro.”

Remembering his Five Towns days, Blinkoff, who lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Marion (née Goldenberg, another Hewlett High grad, 1992), and their four children, said Bette Jo Greenberg, a teacher at the Number Six School, introduced him to art after he was tossed out of class for misbehaving. He also remembers his private art teacher Eileen Droben. “She taught me that drawing is about seeing, developing an eye,” Blinkoff said. Marjorie Kashman, the faculty advisor to the Hewlett High newspaper Spectrum, also encouraged Blinkoff, when he was the art editor and assistant photo editor.   

At 11, Blinkoff saw Steven Spielberg’s “E.T. the Extra Terrestrial” and began making movies with his twin sister, Reena, older brother Jason and friends. He watched  “The Little Mermaid” a few years later and saw his twin passions — filmmaking and animation — blended together.  

On thing stood in his way: being a strange weirdo. Someone told him that he couldn’t go to Hollywood because it’s full of strange weirdos. He found out there was a Disney studio in Florida. His mother took him to learn how to become an animator. He credits his parents, Lynn and Aron Lantz, for being tremendously supportive of his dream.

“Knowing who the top people in field is important,” Blinkoff said, to understand the industry. “You should never give up. I worked harder than anyone. I was at a zoo and did 50 drawings in two hours.”

He has also directed commercials for ESPN, Dunkin’ Donuts, Mercedes Benz and EA Sports. He was a director on the Disney show “Doc McStuffins,” and is now directing a Netflix kids show, “Llama Llama Red Pajama,” based on Anne Dewdney’s books. 

“I never met a person with as much energy and enthusiasm for a project as Saul,” Frank Montagna, an art director at Walt Disney Television Animation wrote on LinkedIn. “He is always fun to work with because he has a keen eye for detail and really knows how to bring a story to life.”