Rarely do we recognize the superb artists who create and contribute so much to the characters we love. We admire their work, but we don't know their names ~ they're just one of a very long list of names in the ending credits. Animation isn't commonly considered an "art". But we know better!
Listed below are some of the artists and animators that we fans admire, the ones whose artistic creativity and skill have given us so much pleasure that we think they belong in a Hall of Fame.
PS ~ A special and personal bow to Walt Disney. He won't be listed here because, of course, he wasn't primarily an animator. But many of these talented people owe their fame, directly or indirectly, to the amazing Walt Disney.
Don't see the animator you love best on the list? Then see the bottom of this page for a way to nominate him or her.
Have a message you'd like to leave for any animators that might surf their way here? Great! See the bottom of the page for a way to leave your messages, and there are messages left by others just above that. If you are an animator who's found your way to me, read these. You'll see how much you are loved and appreciated.
Andy Adams - Animator for "I make things move"
Ruben A. Aquino ~ Supervising animator for Ursula, Maurice, Simba (adult), Powhatan, Li Shang, Fa Li
Tex Avery ~ Red Hot Riding Hood and many more
Dale Baer~Supervising Animator for Yzma
Ralph Bakshi ~ Animator/director for Wizards, Lord of the Rings, and more
Joe Barbera ~ The Flintstones, The Jetsons, and many many more
James Baxter ~ Supervising animator for Quasimodo, Belle (California), Ariel, Jasmine, Joanna, Rafiki, Tulio; assistant animator for Moses
Elliot M. Bour ~ Animator for Mulan
Saul Andrew Blinkoff~Animator for Pocahontas, Hugo, Shang & Turk
Don Bluth ~ Animator/producer/director for Titan A.E., The Secret of NIMH, An American Tail, Anastasia, and many others
David Brewster ~ Supervising animator for Ramses (old), the Queen (Prince of Egypt), Miguel
Chris Buck ~ Supervising animator for Percy, Wiggins, Grandmother Willow
David Burgess ~ Supervising animator for the Hyenas, the Archdeacon, Prof. Porter
Tim Burton ~ Animator/director for The Nightmare Before Christmas, The Fox and the Hound
Kittie Caswell ~ Animator for Tarzan, Rugrats
Brian Cosgrove ~ Animator/director Danger Mouse, Duckula, and many more
Marc Davis ~ Animator of Cinderella, Aurora, Maleficent, Cruella DeVil, Tinker Bell, Flower, and others
Andreas Deja ~ Supervising animator for Gaston, Scar, Hercules, King Triton, Jafar, Gurgi, The Mouse Queen, Lilo, and others
Anthony DeRose ~ Animator for Nala (adult), Nakoma, Zeus, Hera, Sprite
Paul Dini ~ Animator for Superman, Supergirl, Catwoman, and many more.
Ken Duncan ~ Supervising animator for Megara, Jane Porter, Thomas
Russ Edmonds ~ Supervising animator for Max, Cody, Phillipe, Sarabi, Phoebus, Kala
Brian Fergusen ~ Supervising animator for The Matchmaker
Bruce Ferriz ~ Supervising animator for young Spirit; animator for Moses and Chel
Friz Freling ~ Animator for Warner Bros., DFE films
Tony Fucile- Supervising animator for Esmeralda, Mufasa
Kosuke Fujishima ~ Oh My Goddess!, You're Under Arrest
Eric Goldberg ~ Supervising animator of Genie, Phil, and the Rhapsody in Blue sequence of Fantasia 2000
Steve Gordon ~ Animator for Buzz Lightyear of Star Command and others
Keiji Gotoh ~ Nadesico, Vandread, Gatekeepers
Matt Groening ~ The Simpsons, Futurama
Mark Hall ~ Animator/designer Danger Mouse, Duckula, and many more
Bill Hanna ~ The Flintstones, The Jetsons, and many many more
Dan Haskett ~ Minerva Mink
Hiroki Hayashi ~ Tenchi Muyo, el Hazard, Thundercats and others
Randy Haycock ~ Supervising animator for Princess Kida, Hercules (Baby and Teen), Clayton; animator for Adult Simba, Pocahontas
Mark Henn ~ Supervising animator for Belle (Florida), Mulan, Fa Zhou, Jasmine, Simba (young); assistant animator for Ariel
Ron Husband ~ Supervising animator for the Warriors (Black Cauldron), Djali, the Elk (Fantasia 2000), Dr. Joshua Sweet
Jakob Jensen ~ Supervising animator for Sinbad; sequence supervising animator for Spirit; animator for Balto, Moses, Tulio
Ollie Johnston ~ Animator for Bambi, Captain Hook, Tinker Bell, Pinocchio, Alice
Chuck Jones ~ Animator for Warner Bros., MGM
Milt Kahl ~ Peter Pan, Prince Phillip, Anita, Roger, Medusa, Shere Khan, Tigger, and many others
Toshihiro Kawamoto ~ Cowboy Bebop, Gundam 0083, Gundam 08th MS Team
Glen Keane ~ Supervising animator for the Beast, Aladdin, Pocahontas, Tarzan, Ariel, Ratigan, the bear (Fox and Hound), Marahute, Cody
Ward Kimball ~ Animator for various Disney characters
Jack Kirby ~ Captain America,Fantastic 4,Silver Surfer, Spiderman and many more
Toshiyuki Kubooka ~ Giant Robo, G-Gundam
Alex Kuperschmidt ~ Animator for the Hyenas, Khan, General Li
Ben Krasnow~ Animator for early Disney films and shorts
Fabio Lignini ~ Supervising animator for Aaron, the Colonel (Spirit); animator for Boris (Balto), Altivo, Cortez
Duncan Marjoribanks ~ Supervising animator for Sebastian, Abu, Ratcliffe
Jon McClenahan ~ Animator for Animaniacs, Minerva Mink
Charles McKimson ~ Animator for Warner Bros.
Robert McKimson ~ Animator for Warner Bros.
Otto Messmer ~ Animator for Felix The Cat
Haruhko Mikimoto ~ Robotech/Macross, Gundam 0080, Gunbuster
Hayao Miyazaki ~ Princess Mononoke, Nausicaa, Kiki's Delivery Service, My Neighbor Totoro, and more
Dominique Monferey ~ Animator for Sabor
Joe Murray ~ Rocko's Modern Life
Tetsuya Nomura ~ concept design artist and more for Final Fantasy VII and Kingdom Hearts (all)
Terri-Lei O'Malley ~ Animator for Digimon
Simon Otto ~ Supervising animator for the Eagle (Spirit); animator for Moses, Altivo, Cortez
Sergio Pablos ~ Animator for Tantor
John Pomeroy ~ Animator for John Smith, Firebird, Milo Thatch
Clinton J. Priest ~ Animator for Danger Mouse, Count Duckula and many more
David Pruiksma ~ Animator for Seahorse servant (Little Mermaid), Bernard, Chip, Mrs. Potts, the Sultan, Flit, Victor, Hugo
Nik Ranieri ~ Supervising animator for Lumiere, Hades; animator for Wilbur, Meeko
John Ripa ~ Animator for Tarzan (baby and young)
Pres Romanillos ~ Supervising animator for Shan Yu, Little Creek and more
Joe Ruby ~ Animator for Blue Falcon, Thundarr, Plasticman, Fangface, Jabberjaws and many more
William Salazar ~ Supervising animator for the three Sidekick Dogs (Balto), young Moses, Tulio, Rain
Leon Searl ~ Animator of Krazy Kat And Ignatz Mouse
Kristoff Serrand ~ Animator for Moses (old), Seti, Altivo
Toby Shelton - animator for Basil of Bakerstreet, Steelbeak, characters from Roger Rabbit and many more
Kenichi Sonada ~ Bubblegum Crisis, Gunsmith Cats
Ken Spears ~ Animator for Blue Falcon, Thundarr, Plasticman, Fangface, Jabberjaws and many more
Michael Show ~ Animator for the Muses
Pat Sullivan ~ Creator/animator of Felix the Cat
Mike Surrey- Supervising animator for Clopin, Timon, Terk; animator for Terkoz
Kazuki Takahashi ~ Animator for Yu-Gi-Oh!
Naoko Takeuchi ~ Animator for Sailor Moon
Barry Temple ~ Animator for Flounder, Cri-Kee
Frank Thomas ~ Animator for Bambi, Captain Hook, Tinker Bell, Pinocchio, Alice
Bruce Timm ~ Animator for Batman, Lois Lane, and others
Yoshihiro Togashi ~ Creator of (I'm) Not Afraid of Wolf!,Wicked Cupid/ Tend e Shou Waru CUPID,Yu Yu Hakusho, Level E, Hunter X Hunter
Akira Toryama ~ Animator for Dragonball, Dragonball Z Dragonball GT, Crono Trigger, Proffeser Slup
Alex Toth ~ Model sheet and storyboard design artist for Space Ghost, Herculoids, Birdman, Jonny Quest, Superfriends, and many more
Kôichi Tsunoda ~ Chief animator for Transformers the Movie
Jhonen Vazquez ~ Animator for Invador Zim
Yu Watase ~ Animator for Fushigi Yuugi
Ted Wolf ~ Animator of ThunderCats
Kathy Zielinski ~ Supervising animator for Frollo, the Fates, Tzekel Kan; assistant animator for Ursula
Messages from appreci ative fans ~
If I had never gotten interested in animation, I would never have begun to develop my drawing skills. I've always been amazed at people's ability to capture life on paper, to draw characters that move, talk and feel just like real people. Ever since I picked up a pen, I've tried to reach that level of skill and I continue to admire the people who already have. Animation has brought so much into my life I can't even begin to thank people who keep doing it. It's inspired me ever since I was a toddler and no matter what people think, it still inspires me today when I'm nearing 20. ~ JessKat
Seeing great animation is what keeps me going and gives me hope for a wonderfully expressive medium. There are no limits to it. If you can draw it, it can happen. I don't know if I will ever get to the point where I can work professionally, but seeing the potential is what drives me on to try, and I think I've enjoyed that just the same. I guess the long and the short of it is "Thanks" :) ~ GoblinQueeen
Ever since I was four years old and I saw Aladdin for the first time, I have loved animation. Throughout my childhood and into my teens, I've continued to be inspired by the magic of the moving line. Now, at fifteen, I'm still floored by the creativity and power of all the animators who bring together the fabulous animated movies I adore, and I want to thank you for being one of the animators that has both entertained and inspired me. ~ Princess Jasmine
Thank you, because of you our favorite characters have color and movement. We now know what they look like, they smile, walk, laugh, sing, jump, fall down leaving a small puff of smoke behind. You have made them come to life and become real. ~ Auburn Red
I would like to say thank you, no, a HUGE thank you(!) to animators for what they do - for giving us so much to look forward to, us true fans. Who knew that moving drawings could bring so much joy? I am always overwhelmed by not only the magic of seeing drawings (or inanimate objects, or computer graphics) come to life, but also by the talent that it takes, and the talent put forth in making it happen. Thank you so much for the inspiration, and for bringing such magic into my life and so many others!! ~ Steph*
Links:
For Pres Romanillos: IslandBoy Studios is Pres' website, where you can see what he's doing now. Also check out Life as a Pickle, which is the blog for Pres' dog, done as cartoons and so cute! And check out Pres' page, More About the Pen behind the Man, on my Shan Yu website. ~ Kat
Don't see your favorites in the Hall of Fame yet? Nominate them by sending an email to animatedlust@gmail.com and putting "Animators Hall of Fame" in the subject line. Be sure to include what they animated (at least a sample), or it won't count! (For animators with a lot of credits, put one or two samples and then something like "and lots more" or whatever.) (Please turn off your cap lock key. All caps makes more work for me, so I often just delete those contributions.)
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