Don Iwerks
American entertainment industry executive (1929–2026)
Donald Warren Iwerks ( EYE-wurks; July 24, 1929 – July 9, 2026) was an American Disney executive and co-founder of Iwerks Entertainment along with former Disney executive Stan Kinsey. He was the son of the animator Ub Iwerks and father of Oscar-nominated documentary film producer Leslie Iwerks.2
From Wikipedia’s article on Don Iwerks (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.
Born Jul 24, 1929, died Jul 9, 2026.1
Companies
- SimEx-IwerksFounder15
Career
Occupation: artist, technician.5
- Date not recordedWorked at The Walt Disney Company3
- Date not recordedFounded SimEx-Iwerks4
In 1950, Iwerks joined the Disney company in the machine shop as a technician.
In 1954, Iwerks worked as a camera technician for the film 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, starring Kirk Douglas and Peter Lorre. He spent the next 30 years driving film innovations for the Disney company. Notable contributions include the first 360 film techniques, 360-degree camera, and first Circle-Vision 360° film, America the Beautiful, and developing the process for creating seamless live action shots with animated backgrounds.
In 1985, after nearly 35 years at Disney, Iwerks left to form his own company called Iwerks Entertainment. Iwerks became a leading developer of special films, special venues, and virtual reality theaters throughout the world.
In 2019, Iwerks published a book titled Walt Disney's Ultimate Inventor about father Ub Iwerks, his career, and his relationship with Walt Disney.
From Wikipedia’s article on Don Iwerks (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.
Personal life
Awards
Links
Sources
The numbers on this page point here. Each one links to the record it came from.
- 1WikidataDon Iwerks on Wikidata
- 2WikipediaDon Iwerks on Wikipedia
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- 8Wikidataplace of death, as reported
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- 11Wikidatanumber of children, as reported
- 12WikidataDon Iwerks: award, on Wikidata
- 13Wikidataaward, as reported
- 14WikidataDon Iwerks: IMDb, on Wikidata
- 15WikidataSimEx-Iwerks, Founder