Hollywood Animation Producer Leaves Disney for Divine Calling at BYU

When a BMX accident at 14 ended Kelly Loosli's NFL dreams, it redirected his path toward animation and eventually to co-creating BYU's nationally recognized animation program. In this episode, Kelly shares how a spiritual experience while working on a church film led him to embrace missionary service in Portugal after initially rejecting it. After building a successful career at DreamWorks and Disney, Kelly made the surprising decision to leave Hollywood behind when family tragedy struck. Now 25 years into teaching at BYU, he reveals how his students have taught him that his talents were meant to bless others, not himself. Kelly opens up about his family's fertility struggles, the grace he discovered on his mission that transformed his Old Testament view of God, and why he believes love is the most transformative principle of the gospel. His journey shows that sometimes God closes doors to open better ones, leading us exactly where we need to be.

Follow the Why We Believe Show:

Website:

https://www.whywebelieve.com/

Youtube:

https://www.youtube.com/@WhyWeBelieveShow

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/whywebelievepodcast/

LinkedIn:

https://www.linkedin.com/company/why-we-believe-show/

Follow Nathan Gwilliam:

LinkedIn:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathangwilliam/

Follow Kelly Loosli:

BYU Animation: https://animation.byu.edu/