Travis Knight

Travis Andrew Knight (born September 13, 1973) is an American animator, producer, director, actor, and former rapper who has worked as the lead animator and current CEO for the stop-motion animation studio Laika, and directed the films Kubo and the Two Strings (2016) and Bumblebee (2018). He is the son of the Nike co-founder Phil Knight. Early life Knight was born in Hillsboro, Oregon, a suburb of Portland. He is the son of Phil Knight (co-founder of Nike), and grandson of publisher William W. Knight. He attended Jesuit High School, near Beaverton, Oregon. He is a graduate of Portland State University. Career Music career Knight began his career as a rapper under the name "Chilly Tee". Using a recording studio built in his father's mansion, Knight self-produced a five-song demo album. The demo caught the attention of Bernie Singleton, president of MCA, who passed the demo to producer Hank Shocklee, who liked the demo and agreed to produce Knight's debut album with his production team, The Bomb Squad.