50 Annie Awards Program

Congratulations
to ASIFA-Hollywood, all the nominees

and award winners
at the
half a century of celebrating artistic excellence

in an increasingly animated world!
CREDITS
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER PRINTER Charles deCosta PATRON MEMBERS
Frank Gladstone Terri Norman, Fineline Printing Harvey Deneroff John Andrews
Michael Libonati Bonnie Arnold
SHOW PRODUCER TROPHY DESIGN Monika Salter Kenny Ash
Annette O’Neil Tom Woodward Patrice Avery
ASIFA-HOLLYWOOD WOULD Bill Beemer
EVENT PRODUCER AWARD TROPHIES LIKE TO GIVE SPECIAL THANKS Debra Blanchard Knight
Gretchen Houser John Billings, Billings Artworks TO ALL OF OUR GENEROUS Ben Breitbart
SUPPORTERS... Dean Burke
PRODUCTION & PROGRAM ASIFA-HOLLYWOOD BOARD Ed Catmull
WRITER OF DIRECTORS CORPORATE MEMBERS Jill Daniels
Mike Mallory Sue Shakespeare, President Apple Worldwide Video Wesley Davis
Jerry Beck, Vice President Bento Box Entertainment Andreas Deja
TALENT SUPERVISOR Brooke Keesling, 2nd Vice Disney Television Animation Luc Desmarchelier
Ned Lott President DreamWorks Animation Huy Dinh
David Derks, 3rd Vice President Illumination Nikko Faber
VIDEO SERVICES Jeanette Jeanenne, Secretary LAIKA LLC Mike Fallows
Ray Gorman, Full Blown Events J.J. Blumenkranz Lucasfilm Animation Stef Fink
Tom Caulfield Netflix Peter Gal
STREAMING Jennifer Cardon Klein Nickelodeon Lala Gavgavian
Troy Witt, Take One Digital Todd Kurosawa Pixar Animation Studios Richard Gehr
Bob Kurtz ShadowMachine Frank Gladstone
EDITORIAL SERVICES Dori Littell-Herrick Skydance Amed Gonzalez
Josh Gladstone Aubry Mintz Sony Pictures Animation Lourri Hammack
Erica Pinto Walt Disney Animation Studios John Harvatine IV
VIDEO GRAPHICS Azarin Sohrabkhani Weta Digital Jeremy Hoffmann
Russell Frazier Charles Solomon Jay Hosfelt
William C. Turner PLATINUM SPONSORS Hyun Huh
ANNOUNCER Danny Young Cartoon Network/Warner Bros. B. Paul Husband
Dina Sherman Animation Gary Jan
ASIFA-HOLLYWOOD STAFF DreamWorks Animation Dave Jesteadt
MEDIA AND PUBLIC RELATIONS MEMBERS Netflix Misty Lee
Gretchen Houser, Houser PR Frank Gladstone, Executive Nickelodeon Joe Letteri
Director Walt Disney Animation Studios/ Ben Liu
PUBLICITY ASSOCIATES/ Jeff Wike, Chief Financial Officer Pixar Animation Becky Luckey
RED CARPET Leslie Ezeh, Associate Director Joseph Marchese
Gil DeGloria Michael Paxton, Annie Awards GOLD SPONSORS Steve Martino
Jane LaBonte Manager Disney TV Animation Ryan McDougal
Julio Morales Gretchen Houser, PR/Media Illumination Entertainment Danny Munso
Paul Pinckard Sara Martin, Social Media Riot Games Jan Pinkava
Ronilyn Reilly Specialist Julia Pistor
Christine Simon SILVER SPONSORS Joe Pontillo
Malissa Strong COUNSEL Pixar Animation Studios Nachiket Pujari
B. Paul Husband Sony Pictures Animation John Ramirez
AWARD BALLOTING AND Arthur Rieman Walt Disney Animation Studios Jessie Schroeder
WEB DEVELOPMENT Kristen Anderson Gregg Schwenk
Clearview Les Klinger BRONZE SPONSORS Matthew Senreich
Andi Greyling, Ahmed Osmanović Epic Games Matthew B.W. Sheehan
ASIFA-HOLLYWOOD’S GKIDS Thomas Smith
GRAPHIC DESIGN ANIMATION EDUCATOR’S FORUM LightBox Expo Paula Spence
Olivia Hernandez, Odez Designs STEERING COMMITTEE ShadowMachine Matthew Tishler
Tom Sito, Chair Skydance Animation Kara Vallow
PROGRAM COVER Monika Salter, Co-Chair The Gotham Group Esdras Varagnolo
Russell Frazier Karen Sullivan, Treasurer William Villarreal
Patrick Despres, Secretary EDUCATIONAL/ Jude S. Walko
PROGRAM BOOK EDITOR Dori Littell-Herrick, Scholarships NONPROFIT SPONSORS Vincent Waller
Annette O’Neil Chair Animation Guild John Williamson
Michael Bonitatis, Student Sheridan College Jude S. Walko
PROGRAM BOOK DESIGN AND Showcase Chair John Williamson
PRODUCTION Kathy Baur
Olivia Hernandez, Odez Designs Lee Crowe
50th ANNUAL ANNIE AWARDS 5

FEBRUARY 25, 2023
UCLA ROYCE HALL - LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA
PROGRAM
Welcome to the 50th Annie Awards
Best Student Film
Best Short Subject
Best Production Design in an Animated TV/Media Production
Best Production Design in an Animated Feature Production
Best Special Production
Best Sponsored Production
50th Anniversary Special
Message from the President
June Foray Award
Certificate of Merit
Music in an Animated TV/Media Production
Music in an Animated Feature Production
Character Design in an Animated TV/Media Production
Character Design in an Animated Feature Production
Message from the Executive Director
Ub Iwerks Award
Character Animation in a Video Game
Character Animation in a Live Action Production
Character Animation in an Animated TV/Media Production
Character Animation in an Animated Feature Production
Animated Effects in an Animated TV/Media Production
Animated Effects in an Animated Feature Production
Editing in an Animated TV/Media Production
Editing in an Animated Feature Production
Winsor McCay Awards
Voice Acting in an Animated TV/Media Production
Voice Acting in an Animated Feature Production
Writing in an Animated TV/Media Production
Writing in an Animated Feature Production
In Memoriam
Best TV/Media Production for Preschool Children
Best TV/Media Production for Children
Best TV/Media Production for Mature Audiences
Best TV/Media Production, Limited Series
Storyboarding in an Animated TV/Media Production
Storyboarding in an Animated Feature Production
Directing in an Animated TV/Media Production
Directing in an Animated Feature Production
Best Animated Independent Feature
Best Animated Feature
BEST STUDENT FILM
Au revoir Jérôme ! - Luce Grosjean Birdsong - Michelle Cheng
Synchronie Passagère - The Most Boring Granny in the The Soloists -

Patrick De Carvalho Whole World - Damaris Zielke Luce Grosjean
Celebrating
50+ years of
storytelling.
For over 50 years, Sheridan College has trained
the world’s top animators and storytellers. We’re
proud to partner with ASIFA-Hollywood to celebrate
the art of animation and the people who create it.
Congratulations to our talented alumni nominated
tonight, and to all nominees this year.
The Fox & The Pigeon was written and produced by a team of students
in Sheridan’s Honours Bachelor of Animation program and won the
Best Student Film in 2020.
8 50th ANNUAL ANNIE AWARDS

BEST ANIMATED SHORT SUBJECT
Amok - Boddah, in co-production Black Slide - The Hive Studio, in

with Safe Frame co-production with FlipBook Studio
Ice Merchants - COLA Animation Love, Dad - 13ka, in co-production The Flying Sailor -
production & Wild Stream with FAMU & nutprodukcia National Film Board of Canada
HATS OFF TO THIS YEAR’S NOMINEES
 Guillermo del Toro Guy Davis

Mark Gustafson Tucker Barrie
Alexandre Desplat David Bradley
Roeban Katz Gregory Mann
Patrick McHale Ken Schretzmann
Aaron Weintraub Holly Klein
Warren Lawtey Emily Chiu
Alireza Malmiri Hamilton Barrett
Mikhail Donchenko Lisa Hanawalt
Baptiste Malbranque Jed Hathaway
Curt Enderle
CONGRATULATES THIS YEAR’S ANNIE AWARD NOMINEES
PRODUCTION DESIGN IN AN ANIMATED
TELEVISION/MEDIA PRODUCTION
Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal, Episode: Echoes of Eternity - Adult Swim - Scott Wills
Three-time Primetime Emmy Award-winner Scott Wills has worked in the animation industry for nearly
30 years. His credits include art directing feature films such as The Road to El Dorado, Monsters vs.
Aliens, Flushed Away and, most recently, serving as Production Designer on Sony Pictures Animation’s
Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation. His many television credits include The Ren & Stimpy Show
and a 20-year collaboration with Director Genndy Tartakovsky (art directing on Samurai Jack,
Star Wars: Clone Wars, Sym-Bionic Titan and Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal for Adult Swim).
Mall Stories - Atilla the Grilla, Short Subject - Chromosphere / Kikutowne -

Jasmin Lai, Lauren Zurcher, Junyi Wu
To bring director Elizabeth Ito’s dream mall to life, Chromosphere’s production design team
(Art Director Jasmin Lai, Visual Development Artist Lauren Zurcher, and Prop/Effect Designer
Junyi Wu) visualized the bright and poppy hangout that could appeal to every mall walker, shop-
til-you-dropper and mallrat with a discerning eye for sophisticated but welcoming design. Jasmin
and Lauren kicked things off by honing in on the overall look of the mall with particular focus on the
food court where the short takes place. Junyi then designed an impressive library of signs, seats,
escalators and--of course--a mouthwatering array of food. Drawing from a lifetime of experience
killing time at the mall, the team at Chromosphere designed a space you’d be happy to get lost in
(but don’t worry if you need a map, they designed some mall directories too).
Oni: Thunder God’s Tale, Episode: The Demon Moon Rises - A Netflix Series / A Tonko House
Production - Robert Kondo, Rachel Tiep-Daniels, Lia Tin, Yohei Hashizume, Masa Inada
Lead by Robert Kondo and Rachel Tiep-Daniels, Tonko House’s international design team created
an iconic world of Japanese folklore characters that embodied Dice Tsutsumi’s storytelling into every
aspect of design (as well as celebrating Japanese culture).
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse, Special Production - A NoneMore and Bad Robot
Production for Apple TV+ and BBC - Mike McCain
Mike McCain is an Art Director and Visual Development Artist based in Los Angeles, so deeply
inspired by nature that his wife is convinced he was a tree in a past life. In 2019, Mike stepped away
from a career directing video games to focus on his passion for painting and animation. Since then,
he’s done work for a variety of studios with credits including Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse,
The Ghost and Molly McGee and the animated adaptation of The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the
Horse. Mostly self-taught as a painter, Mike holds a degree in Computer Science from the University
of Washington and, in his spare time, heads for the nearest open sky to hike, paint, and practice
photography.
The House, Special Production - Nexus Studios for Netflix - Niklas Nilsson, Alexandra Walker
Alex Walker’s career in British cinema as both a Production Designer and Art Director has spanned
almost three decades. Highly accomplished and celebrated by a number of international wins
and nominations, her credits include three Harry Potter films, Tim Burton’s Frankenweenie and
Wes Anderson’s Fantastic Mr. Fox, based on the 1970 classic children’s book by Roald Dahl. Alex’s
love for animation has continued to flourish, as has her career working on a diverse body of live
action independent features, animated commercials and in the development of various studio
fantasy feature.
Nicklas Nilsson is a Stockholm-based Production and Costume Designer for feature films, stage stop
motion animation and TV. His credits include the music video for the David Bowie song Blackstar
and the viral video phenomenon Las Palmas. His accolades include two Guldbagge (the Swedish
Academy Award) in Production Design for his work on the acclaimed director Roy Anderssons’
features About Endlessness (2019) and A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence (2014).

PRODUCTION DESIGN IN AN ANIMATED
FEATURE PRODUCTION
Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio - Netflix Presents A Double Dare You! Film / A Shadowmachine Production
in association with The Jim Henson Company - Curt Enderle, Guy Davis
Trained as a Set Designer for live theater, Portland-based Curt Enderle split his time between design for live
theater and opera and art direction for stop-motion animated commercials has had a role in generating
over 13 hours of stop-motion animated content.
Guy Davis is an American creature designer, concept artist, illustrator and storyboard artist who has
worked on film, television, comic book and video game projects. Known for his collaborations with filmmaker
Guillermo del Toro, he is also the regular artist for the Hellboy spinoff comic B.P.R.D., as well as the artist
behind his own comic, The Marquis.
Mad God - Tippett Studio - Phil Tippett
Founder of Tippett Studios, Phil Tippett is a pioneer in the Animation and Visual Effects Industry. His career
in visual effects has spanned over 45 years, from Star Wars to Jurassic Park–over the course of which he
has garnered two Academy Awards, six nominations, one BAFTA award, two Emmys, the prestigious Winsor
McCay and a Georges Melies award.
Puss in Boots: The Last Wish - DreamWorks Animations - Nate Wragg, Joseph Feinsilver, Claire Keane,
Wayne Tsay, Naveen Selvanathan
Nate Wragg has worked for more than a decade in the animation industry as a Production Designer,
Art Director, Character Designer and Visual Development Artist on many award-winning features and
short films. Joseph Feinsilver’s credits include visual development work on Academy Award-winning and
-nominated feature films. Claire Keane, a visual development artist known for her design and development
work, is also the author and illustrator of the picture books Little Wonder, Little Big Girl and Once Upon
A Cloud. Wayne Tsay, an architect prior to his career as a Visual Development Artist, is also an avid Los
Angeles Plein Air landscape painter and instructor. Naveen Selvanathan is an engineering-trained visual
development artist working across illustration, game and movie concept art, currently based in LA and
working as an art director for an upcoming animated feature film.
The Bad Guys - DreamWorks Animation - Luc Desmarchelier, Floriane Marchix
Luc Desmarchelier has been working as an illustrator, designer, art director and production designer in
advertising, feature animation and live action films since 1984. He has built an impressive global career
working for RSCG, Universal, Amblin, DreamWorks Animation Sony and others. He was an Associate
Professor at Laguna College of Art and Design between 2011 and 2018 and is currently based in Los Angeles.
Floriane Marchix began her career working as a visual development artist of the animated feature
The Rabbi’s Cat. After finishing studying her animation studies at Gobelins, she made the transition to
the video game industry to work for Ubisoft as the lead concept artist on the game Rayman Origins.
Dreamworks then tapped Floriane to undertake a role in visual development, where she has contributed
her talents ever since.
The Sea Beast - Netflix - Matthias Lechner, Jung Woonyoung
Ventura-based Mattias Lechner, born in the idyllic south-German city of Mannheim, German, started his
path in animation in the awakening German scene, then studied classical animation in Dublin, Ireland.
For 30 years, he has worked quite globally as an art director and production designer on animated features
like Disney’s Zootopia and Ralph Breaks the Internet.
Jung Woonyoung is a Los Angeles-based Art Director/Concept designer from South Korea. He has been
working in the animation industry since 2010. His filmography includes Puss in Boots, Rise of The Guardians,
and How To Train Your Dragon 2 & 3. Most recently, at Netflix Animation, he art directed The Sea Beast.

Illumination Salutes the Members of the
INTERNATIONAL
ANIMATED FILM SOCIETY
and Proudly Congratulates Our Nominees for the
50TH ANNIE AWARDS
BEST SPONSORED BEST STORYBOARDING

“MINIONS: THE RISE OF GRU” / THE OFFICE (FEATURE)
Brad Abelson “MINIONS: THE RISE OF GRU”
Elisabeth Patte Nima Azarba
BEST FX BEST STORYBOARDING

(FEATURE) (FEATURE)
“MINIONS: THE RISE OF GRU” “MINIONS: THE RISE OF GRU”
Frank Baradat Dave Feiss
Simon Pate
Milan Voukassovitch
Milo Riccarand
universalpicturesawards.com © 2020 UNIVERSAL STUDIOS

BEST SPECIAL PRODUCTION
Prehistoric Planet - BBC Studios in Superworm - The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the
association with Apple Magic Light Pictures Horse - A NoneMore and Bad Robot
Production for Apple TV+ and BBC
The House - Nexus Studios for Netflix The Sandman - A Netflix Original Series /
A Warner Bros. Television Production
BEST ANIMATED SPONSORED PRODUCTION
Can’t Negotiate the Melting Minions: The Rise of Gru / Save Ralph - Arch Model Studio
Point of Ice - NOMINT The Office - Illumination
Ted Lasso: The Missing Christmas Mustache - Apple presents Today’s Holiday Moments are Tomorrow’s
a Doozer Production in association with Warner Bros. Memories - Hornet
Television and Universal Television

Disney+/Pixar Animation Studios/Walt Disney Pictures 20th Century Studios
BEST FEATURE BEST FX – FEATURE
BEST CHARACTER ANIMATION – FEATURE Johnathan M. Nixon, David Moraton, Nicholas Illingworth, Disney+/Disney Branded Television
Teresa Falcone David Caeiro Cebrian, Alex Nowotny BEST TV/MEDIA – PRESCHOOL
BEST CHARACTER ANIMATION – FEATURE BEST CHARACTER ANIMATION – LIVE ACTION “Name Tag”
Eric Anderson Daniel Barrett, Stuart Adcock, Todd Labonte,
BEST DIRECTION – FEATURE Douglas McHale, Stephen Cullingford
Domee Shi
BEST MUSIC – FEATURE
Ludwig Göransson, Billie Eilish,
Finneas O’Connell Pixar Animation Studios/Walt Disney Studios
BEST WRITING – FEATURE BEST FX – FEATURE Disney Channel/Disney Branded Television
Domee Shi, Julia Cho Carl Kaphan, Cody Harrington, Hope Schroers, BEST TV/MEDIA – CHILDREN
BEST EDITORIAL – FEATURE Jon Barry, Nate Skeen “King’s Tide”
Nicholas Smith, Steve Bloom, David Suther, BEST EDITORIAL – FEATURE
Anna Wolitzky, Christopher Zuber Tony Greenberg, Katie Bishop, Chloe Kloezeman,
Axel Geddes, Tim Fox
Disney+/Walt Disney Animation Studios Disney+/Disney Branded Television

BEST TV/MEDIA – LIMITED SERIES BEST VOICE ACTING – TV/MEDIA
“Sofia” Walt Disney Animation Studios “New Kids On The Block” - Karen Malina White
BEST DIRECTION – TV/MEDIA BEST STORYBOARDING – FEATURE
“Sofia” - Lissa Treiman Jeff Snow
BEST WRITING – TV/MEDIA BEST STORYBOARDING – FEATURE
“Sofia” - Cirocco Dunlap Javier Ledesma Barboll
20th Television Animation
BEST TV/MEDIA – MATURE
“Treehouse of Horror XXXIII”
BEST TV/MEDIA – MATURE
Disney Channel/Disney Branded Television “Some Like it Bot Part 1: Eighth Grade Runner”
BEST CHARACTER DESIGN – TV/MEDIA Disney+/Walt Disney Animation Studios
BEST EDITORIAL – TV/MEDIA BEST VOICE ACTING – TV/MEDIA
“All In” - Andrew Sorcini, Yoonah Yim, Jennifer Calbi, “The Godfather of the Bride” - Maurice LaMarche
Julie Anne Lau, Louis Russell
Disney+/Pixar Animation Studios JURIED AWARD

BEST FX – TV/MEDIA WINDSOR MCCAY AWARD
“Road Rumblers” - Christopher Foreman, Elana Lederman, Pete Docter, Pixar Animation Studios
John Lockwood, Jae Jun Yi, Justin Ritter
©DISNEY
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
Wow, are we happy to see you!
The last couple of years have been...um...interesting to say the least, and it seems apparent
that many of the changes that have come about, both in our industry and in our day-
to-day lives, have yet to be completely understood. But through it all, the desire to bring
stories to life…to animate…have remained constants.
And so, we are back and welcoming all of you to a milestone Annie Awards, our 50th! It was
that long ago that June Foray thought it would be a good idea to pat ourselves on the
back and celebrate our own people and their good work, primarily because there was
almost no one else in the film industry who was interested in doing that. In fact, at the time,
even animation folks were dubious of such a gathering, that is, until more than 400 people
showed up at the old Sportsman’s Lodge for the very first Annie Awards.
Back then, it was only lifetime achievement honors--the Winsor McCay’s-- that were
awarded, but slowly more categories were added as the Annies became more important,
not only to us, but to the entire filmmaking community, and not only here in Los Angeles,
but increasingly world-wide.
As always, we must change with the times as we continue to be driven by an ever-

expanding interpretation of our mission. That has led to the other efforts that ASIFA-
Hollywood champions; from education, increased outreach and equitable representation,
to film preservation, historical conserva tion, open source tools and community assistance.
We even produced a very timely animated message for UNICEF this year.
And, of course, as June had planned, recognition and celebration, which is why we are here
tonight. So, to all of you in the auditorium and those of you watching us around the world,
welcome to half a century of creativity and magic--the 50th Annie Awards!
Sue Shakespeare Frank Gladstone

President, ASIFA-Hollywood Executive Director, Asifa-Hollywood

JUNE FORAY AWARD
Significant and benevolent or charitable impact on the art and industry of animation.
MINDY JOHNSON
Award-winning author, historian, filmmaker, and
preeminent expert on women in early animation,
Johnson’s groundbreaking book Ink & Paint – The Women
of Walt Disney’s Animation, (Disney Editions) redefines
our collective history. This essential volume casts a light
on the thousands of unsung female artists behind the
creative and technical advances within the animated art
form.
Recipient of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts &

Sciences - AMPAS/Oscars.org Film Scholar Award, and
the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Educators Forum Grant, Mindy’s research continues into the earliest women
of animation with several forthcoming books and film projects. Most notably, she recently unearthed the
oldest- surviving hand-drawn animated and directed films by a woman. This game-changing discovery of
Bessie Mae Kelley and her early work at the dawn of animation re-defines the established understanding
of our collective past. Kelley’s restored films debuted in their World Premiere at the Academy Motion Picture
Museum in Los Angeles - 100 years after their creation.
Mindy’s young-reader volume, entitled Pencils, Pens & Brushes – A Great Girls’ Guide to Disney Animation
(Disney Press), celebrates the contributions of 20 remarkable women within early Disney animation and is a
treasure for all ages. Her critically acclaimed debut, Tinker Bell – An Evolution (Disney Editions), was honored
with rare consecutive Family Choice Awards. She is also a contributing writer for the epic volume The Walt
Disney Film Archives – The Animated Movies 1921-1968 (Taschen), as well as the celebrated collection, Marc
Davis: Walt Disney’s Renaissance Man (Disney Editions).
A sought-after commentator, speaker, lecturer and panelist, Mindy explores a wide range of subjects within
her presentations and appearances at numerous studios, campuses, international festivals, and conferences
including: The Smithsonian Speakers Series, Ottawa International Animation Festival, NAFF Festival-Bosnia
Herzegovina, Lucasfilm, Dreamworks, TCM Classic Film Festival, Film Forum-NYC, D23 Expo, ABC-Network
Specials, San Diego ComiCon, CTN Expo, World Animation Festival and more. She has written for numerous
international publications and produced record-breaking global campaigns for the film industry.
In addition to a background in network television and film production, Mindy is also an award-winning
playwright, Grammy-nominated songwriter, musician, and a contributing artist on several internationally
acclaimed recordings. When she isn’t speaking, researching, or writing on a myriad of subjects, Mindy also
teaches film/animation studies, women’s animation history, screenwriting & intercultural film at CalArts and
other campuses in Southern CA, as well as Drexel University in Philadelphia, PA.
For more, visit mindyjohnsoncreative.com.

CERTIFICATE OF MERIT
The Certificate of Merit is awarded to an individual or organization for generous service
to the art, craft, and industry of animation.
JOHN OMOHUNDRO
The Certificate of Merit is given to an individual who provides selfless and valuable
service to ASIFA-Hollywood and to the art, craft, and industry of animation. Each
year, ASIFA-Hollywood sponsors and participates in conventions and events
that expand our reach into the animation community. At these events, John
Omohundro is always ready and willing to do whatever is needed to help ensure
that we achieve our goals, voluntarily giving us his time, energy and expertise. For
his unstinting and beneficial activities on our behalf, and his contributions to the
industry in general and to ASIFA in particular, we are pleased to award John this
year’s Certificate of Merit.

MUSIC IN AN ANIMATED
Love Death + Robots, Episode: The Very Pulse of the Machine - Blur Studio for Netflix - Rob Cairns
Rob Cairns is an award-winning composer and multi-instrumentalist whose eclectic body of work
ranges from feature films and episodic television to main titles, short films, game cinematics and
stage musicals. Equally comfortable working in genres from orchestral to indie rock and electronic,
Rob’s experience, skill, and collaborative process has made him a highly valued creative partner on
projects including Netflix’s Love Death + Robots (for which he composed 23 episodes and serves as
the overall series music consultant).
Oni: Thunder God’s Tale, Episode: Onari’s Kushi Power - A Netflix Series / A Tonko House Production -
Zach Johnston, Matteo Roberts
Zach and Matteo, also known as Pep Magic, are award-winning music composers based in LA. After
touring the world with the indie band Phox, they transitioned to full-time studio work and have been
scoring TV & film since 2012. In that time, they’ve scored the Netflix animated miniseries Oni: A Thunder
God’s Tale, the Oscar-Nominated film The Dam Keeper, the Emmy-Nominated short film Namoo and
the Annecy award-winning series Pig: The Dam Keeper Poems. They have also contributed an original
song to the Cartoon Network / HBOMAX series Summer Camp Island.
Production for Apple TV+ and BBC - Isobel Waller-Bridge, Charlie Mackesy
Charlie Mackesy award-winning art work has featured in books, private collections, galleries and
public spaces around the world. His internationally bestselling book, The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and
the Horse, holds the record as the longest running Sunday Times Non-Fiction book of all time and,
since 2013, is one of eight books that has remained on the New York Times Bestseller list. Charlie’s
beloved book has been translated into over 40 different languages and dialects. His paintings have
been exhibited widely and his bronzes can be found in public spaces in London. Away from art,
Charlie co-runs Mama Buci, a honey social enterprise in Zambia that helps families of low and no
income become beekeepers. He lives between Brixton and Suffolk with his dog Barney.
The Cuphead Show!, Episode: Carn-Evil - Netflix Animation - Ego Plum, Cosmo Segurson,
Dave Wasson
Based on the award-winning video game that smashed onto the scene with a gorgeous retro
animation style, The Cuphead Show! is a character-driven comedy series following the unique
misadventures of loveable, impulsive scamp Cuphead and his cautious (but easily swayed) brother
Mugman. As the two scour their surreal homeworld of the Inkwell Isles in search of fun and adventure,
they always have each others’ backs...unless there’s only one cookie left, in which case it’s every cup
for himself. The Emmy Award-winning series combines nostalgic delights, side-splitting gags and a
healthy dose of the heebie jeebies (especially when their ridiculously weird nemesis, The Devil himself,
arrives on the scene to toy with our heroes).
The House, Special Production - Nexus Studios for Netflix - Gustavo Santaolalla
Gustavo Santaolalla has been recognized as a gifted multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, producer, and
composer. He has enjoyed a multi-phased career that took him from his home country of Argentina
to the United States, Mexico City, and back to Los Angeles. Over the years, he has picked up Grammy
and Oscar wins (as well as the respect of the movie and music industries for his accomplishments).
Some of his Oscar-winning scores include Brokeback Mountain, The Motorcycle Diaries, Babel, and
August: Osage County, as well as Grammy wins for his production work with Julietta Venegas, Cafe
Tacuba and several others. His score for the video game The Last of Us has also won awards. His solo
albums--notably, Camino and Ronroco--were nominated for Grammys.

MUSIC IN AN ANIMATED
FEATURE PRODUCTION
Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio - Netflix Presents A Double Dare You! Film / A Shadowmachine
Production in association with The Jim Henson Company - Alexandre Desplat, Roeban Katz,
Guillermo del Toro, Patrick McHale
It took three years for the team to imagine the songs and the score for Pinocchio. When it came
time to write the score, a key question arose: what instrumentation could render Pinocchio’s world?
Since Pinocchio is made of wood, it seemed that composer Alexandre Desplat could explore that
idea and create music belonging solely to the sonic wooden world of Pinocchio. With Guillermo’s
consent, Alexandre put together a very special orchestra, made only of wood instruments: guitar;
mandolin; piano; accordion (yes, it’s made of wood!); harp; violins; viole; celli; bassi; wood percussion;
woodwinds. The result was a score with a very unique identity.
Mad God - Tippett Studio - Dan Wool

Originally from St. Louis Missouri, Dan Wool is a San Francisco, California, based composer and
sound designer who has worked in New York, Los Angeles, London, Mexico City and Anhui China
creating scores and sound design for broadcast television projects, multichannel-audio theme park
installations and more than 35 feature films, including seven films for celebrated cult filmmaker Alex
Cox (director of Repo Man and Sid & Nancy). Dan first gained notoriety as the principal composer
in the soundtrack-group Pray for Rain. From 2010 to 2021 Dan collaborated with filmmaker and
legendary special effects artist Phil Tippett to create the score for Tippett’s epic stop-motion feature,
Mad God.
The Bad Guys - DreamWorks Animation - Daniel Pemberton

Daniel Pemberton is an Academy Award-nominated composer who has regularly been cited as
one of the most exciting and original new voices working in modern film scoring today. Comfortable
composing for everything from rock bands to symphonic orchestras, record-scratchers to jazz
quintets, Pemberton’s innovative scores have consistently been singled out for critical acclaim. His
credits include both studio and independent films across genres and roles, many of which have won
major awards and nominations.
The Sea Beast - Netflix – Mark Mancina, Nell Benjamin, Laurence O’Keefe
Born in Santa Monica, Mark Mancina began his musical training at an early age, focusing on classical
guitar, classical piano and composition. His scores frequently feature his own performances on piano,
guitar, bass, percussion and drums, highlighting unique sounds harvested from a personal collection
of traditional, exotic, and custom instruments from around the world. Mancina has created a body
of work ranging from the Hollywood box office to the Broadway stage. He has been awarded three
Grammy Awards, Britain’s Ivor Novello Award, two American Music Awards and a Tony nomination
as co-composer/lyricist and music producer of The Lion King On Broadway, a record-breaking
production.
Turning Red - Pixar Animation Studios - Ludwig Göransson, Billie Eilish, Finneas O’Connell
Grammy, Oscar and Emmy award-winning composer, Ludwig Gransson, created the original score
for Turning Red. Gransson aimed to produce a musical representation of what it might feel like to
be a teenager in the early 2000s. The score is a clash of cultures as well a clash between the older
generation and the new, pushing the main character forward into her journey of self-discovery and
underscoring the Lee family’s heritage and their mystical connection to their ancestor Sun Yee.

CHARACTER DESIGN IN AN ANIMATED
Amphibia, Episode: The Hardest Thing - Disney TV Animation - Joe Sparrow

Joe Sparrow is a writer, artist and argumentative human being who makes animation and comics.
He lives and works in London, England.
Entergalactic, Special Production - Netflix/Mad Solar/Khalabo Ink Society/Edelgang -

Meybis Ruiz Cruz
Meybis Ruiz is a Berlin-based Cuban illustrator with a great love for graphic design, typography
and the visual arts in general. Her main focus is portraiture and character design, drawing
inspiration from beloved movies, TV shows, and observations from everyday life. She mainly works
in digital 2D, but loves to explore other mediums and techniques--like gouache painting or clay
sculpting--as they inform her work.Since 2020 she has been working remotely as a character
designer on different projects (mainly for Netflix Animation, Disney TV, Riot, Titmouse, Hasbro and
Axis Studios). When not working, she loves playing ping pong, drinking coffee and hanging out with
her friends.
Love, Death + Robots, Episode: Jibaro - Blur Studio for Netflix - Alberto Mielgo
Emmy-winning animated anthology Love, Death + Robots returns with a third volume executive
produced by Tim Miller (Deadpool, Terminator: Dark Fate) and David Fincher (MINDHUNTER, Mank).
Terror, imagination and beauty combine in new episodes which stretch from uncovering an ancient
evil to a comedic apocalypse, telling startling short stories of fantasy, horror and science-fiction
with trademark wit and visual invention.
Oni: Thunder God’s Tale, Episode: The Demon Moon Rises - A Netflix Series/A Tonko House
Production - Rebecca Chan
Rebecca Chan is a Bay-Area based artist working in animation, most recently at Tonko House
and Netflix. She loves creating cute and cool characters, and telling stories through her designs.
Outside of art, she enjoys playing video games, rooting for the Golden State Warriors and trying
as many different kinds of noodle soup as she can find.
Spirit Rangers, Episode: Belly of the Beast - Laughing Wild / Netflix - Marie Delmas
Marie Delmas was born in Bordeaux and grew up between the southwest of France and the Paris
suburbs. After high school, she entered the Emile Cohl school in Lyon, where she obtained a degree
in Animation. Her graduation short film, Le Couvre-Chef, won the PISAF Grand Prize in 2008 and
rewarded her with a one-year scholarship to the Vancouver Film School. She chose a program
that allowed her to expand her 2D skills to include CGI and graduated with a degree in Digital
Character Animation. She began her professional career as an animator, but then focused on
the 2D side of production (geared towards Color keys and Digital Background painting). In mid-
2020, she began a new chapter in her career by becoming the Art Director of Netflix Animation’s
preschool series, Spirit Rangers. As such, she developed the core graphic codes and the main
designs, as well as the artistic universe of the series.

CHARACTER DESIGN IN AN ANIMATED
FEATURE PRODUCTION
Luck - Skydance LLC, Apple Original Films - Massimiliano Narciso

Massimiliano NarcisoMax Narciso is a character designer on Luck. He is a highly skilled and experienced
artist in the animation and comic industries, with more than two decades of experience. He currently
works as lead character designer at Netflix Animation. With a strong artistic background, Max honed
his skills at a Milan-based animation school and the Disney Academy. He then made his way to
America as a character designer for Warner Bros, which led to his collaborations with other major
companies including Disney, Laika, Paramount and Skydance. He gained recognition for his character
design work in comics, particularly for his contributions to graphic novels published by Disney (including
The Nightmare Before Christmas, Alice in Wonderland, Frozen and Lilo and Stitch).
Puss in Boots: The Last Wish - DreamWorks Animation - Jesús Alonso Iglesiasn
Jesus Alonso Iglesias worked as a character designer for DreamWorks Animation’s 2023 Academy
Award nominated feature Puss in Boots: The Last Wish. Before that, he also served as character
designer for Sony Animation’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) and, most recently, in the
upcoming sequel Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. Jesus began his professional career in the
animation industry after obtaining his degree in Design at Universidad Complutense de Madrid in 1995.
As a comic artist, his work has been published in several different languages, and won the Best Album
Award at the Barcelona Comic Con for Ghost of Gaudi (2015) and earned two nominations (an Eisner
award and a Harvey). He is currently combining both careers--comic artist and character designer-
-for various publishers and productions.
Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Movie - Nickelodeon Animation Studio - Ida Hem
Ida Hem is a character designer, who has worked in animation and comics for over six years. After
graduating from the Savannah College of Art and Design in 2016, she entered the industry as a 2D
animator and quickly found her path as a character designer on Nickelodeon’s Rise of the Teenage
Mutant Ninja Turtles. During her time at Nickelodeon, she has worked on a variety of projects (including
Transformers, Middlemost Post and Monster High). With an interest in all things action, monster and
adventure, her work has a focus in dynamic poses and expressive characters. Coming from Norway,
with limited resources for animation, she found her passion and inspiration from comic book art and
manga of the early 2000s.
The Bad Guys - DreamWorks Animation - Taylor Krahenbuhl

Taylor Krahenbuhl is currently a Character Design Lead for Alcon Entertainment’s Garfield production
which will release in 2024. He previously designed for DreamWorks Animation on The Bad Guys and
Trolls 3. Before that he designed for Illumination on Sing 2, Minions: The Rise of Gru and The Super Mario
Bros. Movie. He also worked as a character designer on The Sea Beast (Academy Award Nominee for
Best Animated Feature) with director Chris Williams.Since 2007, Taylor has worked for numerous gaming
and animation studios in the capacity of concept artist, illustrator, and character designer.
In 2017 he was nominated alongside Shane Prigmore, Bobby Pontillas, and Mayumi Nose for
Outstanding Achievement for Character Design in an Animated Television/Broadcast Production
on Tangled: Before Ever After.Taylor studied and graduated from Brigham Young University in 2009
with the degree of Bachelor of Fine Arts in Animation.
Wendell & Wild - Netflix Presents A Monkeypaw Production/A Gotham Group Production -
Pablo Lobato
Pablo Lobato was born in Trelew, Patagonia, Argentina in April 1970. He studied graphic design at
Universidad Nacional de La Plata, where he also studied Painting and Engraving, then moved to
Buenos Aires to work as a graphic designer in the editorial field. After five years he got bored and
decided to give his true love--portraits--one more chance. His illustrations have been published in
magazines and newspapers as Rolling Stone, The New Yorker, Wired, New York Times, Entertainment
Weekly, TV Guide and The Village Voice, and featured in Illustration Now Vol.3 and Portraits! by Taschen
editorial. He has taken part in numerous collective exhibits in Argentina, the United States, Italy, Chile
and Portugal. In 2015, Pablo held his own individual exhibit, The Illustrissimo, hosted by the Galleria
D’Italia at the Palazzo Montanaro, in Vicenza, Italy. In 2015 he published his first book, Pablo Lobato
Illustration and, later, Another Angle in Caricature. He currently lives and works in Buenos Aires.

UB IWERKS AWARD
For technical advancements that make a significant impact on the art or industry of animation.
VFX REFERENCE PLATFORM

VFX and Animation studios have always had to integrate off-the-shelf digital content creation tools, such
as Maya or Houdini, with in-house software (and other third-party packages) to create a connected,
end-to-end content creation pipeline for their artists. As that third-party software had been built against
a heterogeneous mix of library versions and compiler settings, this created incredible complexity–resulting
in studios requiring specialist expertise to integrate these dependencies, or often even deciding against
supporting certain software altogether. This process consumed development teams, stifled innovation
and slowed adoption of new technologies across the industry.
The VFX Reference Platform was proposed in 2013 as a solution. It’s an annually published set of tool
and library versions, used as a common target platform for building software for the VFX and animation
industry. Its purpose is to minimize the incompatibilities between different software packages, ease
the support burden for content creation pipelines and accelerate adoption of new software through
improved cross-industry coordination.
Originally proposed to the VES Technology Committee by Nick Cannon in February 2013, the initiative
was launched publicly at SIGGRAPH in 2014.
The VFX Reference Platform is governed by the VES Technology Committee and run by the VFX Reference
Platform Working Group (which consists of two members from said committee, as well as two each
from Autodesk, Foundry and SideFX Software). The initiative is run on a volunteer basis as an open,
independent effort for the benefit of the global VFX and Animation communities It builds on previous
platform standardization work, such as the Studio Linux initiative (led by Ray Feeney) and Maya’s
platform leadership (led by David Morin and Marc Petit).
Since its launch, the VFX Reference Platform has successfully improved software interoperability,
reduced the support burden of integrated pipelines and accelerated the adoption of new software
across the industry.
For more information, see vfxplatform.com.

Key Contributors
• VFX Reference Platform Working Group Co-Leads -
Nick Cannon and Francois Chardavoine
• Current and previous members of the VFX Reference
Platform Working Group
• Valued sponsors - Rob Bredow, Ray Feeney,
David Morin, Sebastian Sylwan
• Current and previous members of the VES Technology
Nick Cannon Francois Chardavoine
Committee

TROPHY TRIBUTE
TOM WOODWARD
Tom Woodward was born in Kansas City,
Missouri. He was introduced to art as a
child and, after taking art classes in high
school, received a Scholastic Scholarship to
the Carnegie Institute of Technology (now
Carnegie Mellon University). Tom graduated
with a BFA in 1953, served for a short time
in the Marine Corps, then moved to Los
Angeles. There, he studied graphic design
at the Art Center and met his future wife
Teresa. He soon made his bride this “gifted
illustrator, who could draw anything, in any style.” Once married,
Tom and Teresa opened a design and illustration studio.
Through the studio, Tom set about working on a suite of freelancing

projects for the County Museum. When LACMA opened in 1965, he was
involved with exhibit and catalog design and, through that lens, that
he became aware of ASIFA-Hollywood. (At the time, ASIFA-Hollywood
was a fledgling organization, showing animated films at the LACMA’s
Bing Theater.) Phil Chamberlin, the Film Curator at LACMA, introduced
Tom to June Foray. Phil suggested that Tom could put his significant
talents to the task of graphic design and, thus, help shape ASIFA’s
nascent brand identity.
Tom’s first project was the ASIFA logo. Tom’s concept was that the
phenakistoscope disk figures not only iconify the artform but suggest
“an active ASIFA, going places.” Next was the organization’s stationery
and business cards, of course–and a poster for LACMA, announcing
eight weekend programs covering various aspects of animation.
That same year, Tom designed the now-iconic, zoetrope-inspired
Annie Awards trophy, first presented at the 1973 awards.
Tom is very pleased to know that his design has endured for the last
half century and has been awarded to so many creative people over
the years. He thanks ASIFA-Hollywood for so many fond memories,
and for the recognition of his important and definitive contribution
to the Annie Awards.

TROPHY TRIBUTE
JOHN BILLINGS
Master craftsman John Billings has been
making the Annie Award zoetrope statuette
for 47 of its 50 years.
It’s no exaggeration to say that John Billings’

craftsmanship changes lives. As well as the
iconic Annie Awards, he (and, now, his small
team) hand-create each Grammy and John
R. Wooden Award – as well as undertaking
the world’s trickiest antique-award
restoration and crafting a fascinating list of pieces for film.
John now works seven days a week in a 2,000-square-foot workshop

in the San Juan mountains. Originally, he’s Southern Californian: born in
Santa Monica, lived in a Quonset hut in Griffith Park in the 40’s, grew up
in Van Nuys.
It was there, in the Valley, that Billings first encountered the Grammy
awards. His family’s next-door neighbor happened to be Bob Graves –
the craftsman who first made the Annie zoetrope, and who made the
first Grammy, as well. Graves operated a small workshop from his garage.
Young Billings began an apprenticeship under Graves in 1976, eventually
taking over the business upon Grave’s death in 1983.
“I got to know June Foray in 1976 when she came by Bob’s house to pick
up the Annie Awards,” Billings remembers, “as in those days there were
only six or seven. She was a delightful person and a lot of fun.
When you would call her phone, you were always greeted by one of her
cartoon voices. I always think of her when I’m in the process of making
the Annies. and especially when I engrave The June Foray Award.”
Today, John lives in a log cabin in the artists colony of Ridgcrest,

Colorado with his wife, Robin Meiklejohn, and their three cats.
He also paints, plays guitar and bass, fishes, gardens and boats.

CHARACTER ANIMATION IN A VIDEO GAME
Cuphead - The Delicious Last Course - Studio MDHR - Chad Moldenhauer, Hanna Abi-Hanna,
Cuphead Animation Team
Led by Studio MDHR Director Chad Moldenhauer, the animation team on Cuphead - The Delicious
Last Course challenged itself to surpass the ambitions achieved by the Annie award-winning original
game. The result was an expansion hailed by critics as “an exhilarating showcase of breathtaking art
and animation” (EDGE Magazine). Studio MDHR is deeply thankful for the immense honor of an Annie
nomination, as well as humbled by this recognition from ASIFA and the global animation community.
Best of luck to all the stellar nominees in this and all other categories!
God of War Ragnarök - Santa Monica Studio - God of War Ragnarök Animation Team God of War
Ragnarök Animation Team
The diverse God of War Ragnark animation team, under the direction of Bruno Velazquez and
leadership of Erica Pinto and Mehdi Yssef, is united with a singular goal of crafting the highest-quality
animation in video games. The gameplay animators lent their prowess to the interactive experience
and breathed life into an extensive menagerie of crawling, flying and fighting mythological characters.
From the tiniest of pests to the most titanic boss battles, the team thrives on bringing memorable
adventures to all players and are overwhelmingly proud that their latest project has resonated with
both long-time supporters and new fans.
Horizon Forbidden West - Guerrilla - Richard Oud, Jan-Erik Sjovall, Guerrilla Animation Team
The Guerrilla team is composed of experienced specialized animators who have a (sometimes long)
history of working together on multiple projects, developing a strong understanding of the in-house
engine and animation pipeline, which allows them to efficiently create high-quality animation. They
have been responsible for bringing life to the characters and creatures of the post-apocalyptic world
of Horizon Forbidden West through motion capture and keyframe animations.
Moss: Book II - Polyarc - Richard Lico

Richard Lico is co-director and animator of Moss: Book 2 (which, as well as being nominated for this
Annie Award, is also The Game Awards 2022 VR game of the year). Richard’s unique animation workflow
concepts and approach to character direction have been subjects of his highly rated lectures at Game
Developers Conference, Siggraph, the Montreal International Game Summit and more. (That workflow
is also the subject of his online school, Animation Sherpa.) As an industry mentor, leader, and instructor,
many of his former students and co-workers have risen to become key talent and leadership within the
gaming industry.
Potionomics - Voracious Games - Emily Lattanavong, Anguel Bogoev

Hailing from Vientiane, Laos, Emily Lattanavong was drawn to traditional media such as drawing and
painting from a young age. She originally intended to become an illustrator, but later discovered an
interest in 3D animation and served as lead animator for five years on Voracious Games’ debut title,
Potionomics, crafting over 3500 animations for a cast of 18 characters. Emily is now taking on a new
challenge and pursuing a career in 3D character modeling. She is overjoyed and surprised to receive
this Annie Award nomination!
At 13, Anguel decided he was going to make games and got started in online game modding
communities. At 16, he tested out of high school to focus on applied studies and making games.
Anguel worked as an animator, rigger, and technical artist on cutting-edge AAA sports simulations
and commercials. Eventually he returned to the challenge of independent game startups and joined
Voracious Games. On Potionomics, Anguel was responsible for character rigging, special effects,
animation programming, and implementation.

CHARACTER ANIMATION IN A
LIVE ACTION PRODUCTION
Avatar: The Way of Water - FX Wētā FX - Daniel Barrett, Stuart Adcock, Todd Labonte,
Douglas McHale, Stephen Cullingford
Daniel Barrett, Stuart Adcock, Todd Labonte, Douglas McHale and Stephen Cullingford translated a
wealth of unique actors into instantly recognisable Na’vi and Metkayina personalities. A new strain-
based facial animation system gave animators unprecedented control over even the finest facial
expressions, incorporating both captured performances and handmade keyframe animation input,
amplifying emotion with subtle signalling through ear and tail animation. Underwater performance
capture allowed the team to take advantage of natural resistance and proper weighting of a body
in water. For some characters playing younger versions of themselves, historical footage was used to
accurately translate the captured performance into an alien physiology.
Beast - FX Framestore - Alvise Avati, Chris McGaw, Bora Şahin, Krzysztof Boyoko, Laurent Benhamo
Framestore’s Beast animation team has a rich history of industry experience. Originally self-taught,
Animation Supervisor Alvise Avati approaches his twentieth year as an animator, having worked
across feature films such as Peter Jackson’s King Kong, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, for which he earned a VES Award. Together with his fellow
nominees, the team studied hundreds of hours of reference footage, dissecting the musculature and
movement of real lions so that they could build their digital asset from the skeleton up. The artists
experimented with groom techniques to capture the Beast’s coarse fur, adding how it would look
under different conditions -- wet, muddy, or dusty -- from stalking the Plains. Together, they pooled
decades of animation expertise to create a photoreal (and truly terrifying!) villain for the film.
Finch - FX MPC - Simon Allen, Harinarayan Rajeev, Paul Nelson, Matthias Schoenegger
Simon Allen, Harinarayan Rajeev, Paul Nelson, and Matthias Schoenegger came together to
collaborate on Finch (an Apple TV+ Original Film) and were integral in helping bring the character
of Jeff to life, infusing him with heart, soul, and love. Led by Simon Allen and Harinarayan Rajeev, the
animation team keyframed over 700 shots of the robot Jeff, who is the only other voiced character
in the film besides our title character, Finch. Paul Nelson led the Assets Team on the build, with
Matthias Schoenegger overseeing the complex rigging of Jeff. As Jeff embarks on his journey, his AI
learns and evolves from Finch, eventually becoming almost human in his movements. This concept
led to a fascinating performance challenge for our VFX team (and one the team thoroughly
relished)
Jurassic World Dominion - FX Industrial Light & Magic - Jance Rubinchik, Alexander Lee,
Rich Bentley, Antoine Verney Carron, Sally Wilson
Peacemaker - FX Wētā FX - Michael Cozens, Mark Smith, Kai-Hua Lan, Selene McLean,
Richard John Moore
Michael Cozens, Mark Smith, Kai-Hua Lan, Selene McLean and Richard John Moore created
Peacemaker’s sidekick and best friend, Eagly, from the inside out, matching the anatomy of an
American Bald Eagle down to the bones and feathers and imbuing him with unmistakable attitude
and personality. Real-world reference informed all of the build and performance decisions, and
a wide range of birds lent their unique quirks and traits to Eagly. An entire library of realistic body
motion, fine behaviour and facial expressions were built to suit each scene. Fun fact: Eagly has more
feathers than the average Bald Eagle (and they are accurate down to the microscopic barbules that
determine a feather’s natural look and behaviour). All of this helped the team imbue the bird with
characteristic boldness and brashness without losing his realistic appearance.

CHARACTER ANIMATION IN AN ANIMATED
Entergalactic, Special Production - Netflix/Mad Solar/Khalabo Ink Society/Edelgang -

Aziz Kocanaogullari
Aziz Kocanaogullari, a two-time Annie Award nominee, is an experienced lead animator with
a passion for bringing stories to life through motion. With over 11 years of experience in the
animation industry, Aziz has had the opportunity to work on a diverse range of projects, from VFX
to commercials, animated features, short films, VR, and gaming.Currently, Aziz is a lead animator
at DNEG Animation, where he is working on the upcoming animated film, -That Christmas-. At
DNEG Animation, Aziz has had the opportunity to contribute to a slate of highly acclaimed projects,
including the Netflix original -Entergalactic- and the film adaption of the best-selling graphic novel,
-Nimona-.A graduate of The Academy of Art in San Francisco, Aziz gained experience at some
of the most well-established studios in the industry, such as Framestore, MPC and The Mill. Before
joining DNEG Animation, Aziz contributed to the Oscar-winning -Gravity-, -Fantastic Beasts- and
-Here We Are-. Aziz’s latest VR project, -Madrid Noir-, where he served as animation director,
won the Children and Family Emmy for Outstanding Interactive Media. He also received an Annie
Nomination for Best Character Animation - Video Game, highlighting his ability to bring unique
and innovative ideas to life through his animation skills.
Oni: Thunder God’s Tale, Episode: The Mighty Storm Gods - A Netflix Series/A Tonko House
Production - Toshihiro Nakamura
Toshihiro Nakamura, a Japanese animator, studied at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco.
Toshihiro started his career as an after effects artist on the Academy Award nominated short film
The Dam Keeper, then went on to animate at Sony Interactive Entertainment. After that, Toshihiro
joined Tonko House and worked on notable projects such as the short film Moom and the 2D
animated series Pig: The Dam Keeper Poems. This Annie-nominated project, ONI: Thunder God’s
Tale, has been his first role as an animation supervisor.
StoryBots: Answer Time, Episode: Taste - JibJab Bros. Studios for Netflix - Henrique Barone
Henrique Barone is an independent director of animation. Originally from Brazil, Henrique now lives
and works in Vancouver, Canada. Other than his work for StoryBots: Answer Time and his extensive
commercial work in the Animation and Motion Graphics industry, he is also known for his short films:
This Idea is Not Working (2011), Tough West (2011) and The Man Who Saw a Boat (2013).
Production for Apple TV+ and BBC - Tim Watts
The House, Special Production - Nexus Studios for Netflix - Kecy Salangad

CHARACTER ANIMATION IN AN ANIMATED
FEATURE PRODUCTION
Production in association with The Jim Henson Company - Tucker Barrie
Tucker’s origin story begins in a similar fashion to many stop motion animators creating over-
the-top music videos with action figures during his youth. But as much as tens of thousands of
views on YouTube can fuel a fifteen-year-old’s ambition, it would be several years before he
found himself diving into the world of animation again. After high school, Tucker moved from his
tiny hometown of Kohler, WI to Chicago to pursue an education in cinematography. Only then,
late in his college career, did he rediscover stop motion, landing an internship in Los Angeles on
his first feature film, Charlie Kaufman’s Anomalisa (2015). After a successful move to NYC, Tucker
found himself moving to what is arguably the stop-motion hub of the world: Portland, OR. There,
he eventually signed on to a dream project that he’d heard whispers of for nearly a decade:
Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio.
The Bad Guys - DreamWorks Animation - Jorge Capote

Jorge A. Capote most recently worked as the Lead Character Animator and Character Designer
for DreamWorks Animation’s The Bad Guys. Previously, right when he joined DreamWorks back in
2019, he took part in the making of Trolls: World Tour as Character Animator. For the last 13 years,
Jorge has worked in the animation industry as an Animator, an Animation Supervisor (in both 2D
and 3D films) and Character Designer on several movies including Klaus (2019), Smallfoot (2018),
Ferdinand (2017) and Lupin III: The First (2019) among others. Prior to his professional career, Jorge
studied traditional animation and filmmaking in Madrid, Spain.
The Bad Guys - DreamWorks Animation - Min Hong

Min Hong recently served as the Lead Animator on Mr. Snake for DreamWorksAnimation’s The
Bad Guys. Before that film he was the Supervising Animator on Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse
at Sony. For over a decade, Min has worked in the animation industry as an animator on
numerous films including Trolls World Tour (2022), Storks (2016), The Angry Birds Movie (2016),
Smurfs (2017) and a couple of VFX films (including Batman vs Superman (2016) and GooseBumps
(2015). Prior to his professional career, Min studied in the Character Animation Department at
Sheridan College in Canada.
Turning Red - Pixar Animation Studios - Teresa Falcone

Teresa Falcone is known for her incredible character animation work on Turning Red (2022),
Lightyear (2022) and Smallfoot (2018).
Turning Red - Pixar Animation Studios - Eric Anderson

Eric Anderson is known for his incredible character animation on Turning Red (2022), Soul (2020)
and Inside Out (2015).

© 2023 DREAMWORKS ANIMATION LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
BEST ANIMATED EFFECTS IN
Cars on the Road, Episode: Road Rumblers - Pixar Animation Studios - Christopher Foreman,
Elana Lederman, John Lockwood, Jae Jun Yi, Justin Ritter
Marrying realism with playfulness, the The Cars on the Road FX team makes the fantastical
look real. Viewers are pulled into the magic of the landscape through believability, emotion,
and elevated storytelling driven by the team’s FX elements. Road Rumblers features dancing
bonfires strewn across a desert terrain, puffs of dust and rocks kicked up from the chaos, intense
flamethrowers, explosions and electricity that add dynamism to the environment. Whether
crafting centerpieces like a dust storm to advance the story or creating subtle artistic elements to
ground the characters, the FX team displays a mastery of their craft.
Love, Death + Robots, Episode: Bad Travelling - Blur Studio for Netflix, FX Blur Studio - Kirby Miller,
Igor Zanic, Joseph H. Coleman, Steven Dupuy, Josh Schwartz
Emmy-winning animated anthology Love, Death + Robots returns with a third volume, executive-
produced by Tim Miller (Deadpool, Terminator: Dark Fate) and David Fincher (MINDHUNTER,
Mank). Terror, imagination and beauty combine in new episodes which stretch from uncovering an
ancient evil to a comedic apocalypse, telling startling short stories of fantasy, horror and science-
fiction with trademark wit and visual invention.
Prehistoric Planet, Episode: Coasts - BBC Studios in association with Apple FX MPC -
VFX Supervisor: Elliot Newman, VFX Supervisor: Andy Hargreaves, Compositing Supervisor:
Suresh Hari, FX Lead: Abdel Halim Garess, FX Key Artist: Jane Sun
Production for Apple TV+ and BBC – Peter Baynton, Raymond Pang, Martial Coulons
The House - Special Production - Nexus Studios for Netflix FX Nexus Studios - Germán Díez,
Álvaro Alonso Lomba, Hugo Vieites Caamaño
The House is an eccentric dark comedy about a house and the three surreal tales of the
individuals who made it their home. It takes the form of an anthology, directed by the leading
voices in independent stop motion animation: Emma de Swaef, Marc Roels, Niki Lindroth von Bahr
and Paloma Baeza, produced by Nexus Studios.

BEST ANIMATED EFFECTS IN AN
ANIMATED FEATURE PRODUCTION
Avatar: The Way of Water - 20th Century Studios / Disney Studios FX Wētā FX - Johnathan M. Nixon,
David Moraton, Nicholas Illingworth, David Caeiro Cebrian, Alex Nowotny
Johnathan Nixon, David Moraton, Nicholas Illingworth, David Caeiro Cebrian, Alex Nowotny and their
teams are responsible for the FX animation in 98% of Avatar: The Way of Water. Building on a ten-year
body of research and development to create an entirely new pipeline for water simulation, the team
created the FX in 3,240 shots in the film, 2,225 of which were water shots. The team also expanded
traditional simulation and animation workflow solutions for plant dynamics, volumetric, fire and
combustion, as well as bulk, thin film, foam and spray water simulations. They were not only accurate
and repeatable at scale, but tightly integrated with one another to capture the interdependent
physics of the natural world.
Production in association with The Jim Henson Company FX MPC - Aaron Weintraub, Warren Lawtey,
Alireza Malmiri, Baptiste Malbranque, Mikhail Donchenko
From the mind of Academy Award-winning filmmaker Guillermo del Toro and award-winning stop-
motion legend Mark Gustafson, Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio reinvents the classic story of a wooden
puppet brought to life in a stunning stop-motion musical tale. For the FX team, the primary challenge
was to integrate FX simulations into a hand-crafted world: all the water, fire, explosions, snow, and rain
elements, as well as digital crowds and hero environments.The FX team comprised an expert team of
career Houdini savants led by veteran VFX Supervisor, Aaron Weintraub. CG Supervisor Warren Lawtey
was integral in establishing the look of the ocean scenes and jumped in to tackle some of the most
difficult shots. FX Lead Alireza Malmiri oversaw a team of 50 artists to tackle a wide range of effects,
from water simulations to fire and smoke elements. Mikhail Donchenko handled the dogfish interaction
with the ocean, while Baptiste Malbranque oversaw the waterfall simulations that took place inside.
Lightyear - Pixar Animation Studios FX Pixar - Carl Kaphan, Cody Harrington, Hope Schroers,
Jon Barry, Nate Skeen
The Lightyear FX team took their imagination to the far reaches of time and space to create moments
of awe: towering plumes of spaceship launch smoke; the fiery rings of the planet Alpha Centauri; zero-
gravity explosions; goopy creature splatters; retro-futuristic space ranger technology. In a film where
fast-paced adventure and suspense abound, a masterful FX team elevated the story’s thrills
“to infinity and beyond” with their loving homage to classic sci-fi films.
Minions: The Rise of Gru - Illuminations – Frank Baradat, Simon Pate, Milan Voukassovitch,
Milo Riccarand
In addition to their collaboration on Minions: The Rise of Gru, Computer Graphics Supervisors Frank
Baradat and Milan Voukassovitch and Effects Supervisors Simon Pate and Milo Riccarand (all based
at Illumination Studios Paris) have individually or together worked on such previous Illumination films
as Minions, the Despicable Me franchise, The Lorax, The Secret Life of Pets and The Grinch, as well as
the upcoming film, The Super Mario Bros. Movie. This is the first Annie Award nomination for Pate and
Voukassovitch, while Baradat and Riccarand have previously been recognized with both Annie Award
and VES Award nominations for their work.
The Sea Beast - Netflix FX Sony Pictures Imageworks - Spencer Lueders, Dmitriy Kolesnik,
Kiel Gnebba, Oleksandr (Alex) Loboda , Jeremy Hoey

EDITORIAL IN AN ANIMATED
Amphibia, Episode: All In - Disney TV Animation - Andrew Sorcini, Yoonah Yim, Jennifer Calbi,
Julie Anne Lau, David Vasquez
This Amphibia Editorial crew has been working together as a well-oiled machine for the majority
of the series. Together they have combined decades of experience in animation, working on
projects such as Gravity Falls, Waking Sleeping Beauty, Star vs. The Forces of Evil, Over the Garden
Wall, Phineas and Ferb, The Owl House, Dora the Explorer, Wander Over Yonder and Big Hero 6:
The Series. They’ve never met a frog they didn’t like.
Green Eggs and Ham, Episode: The Sam Who Came In From The Cold - Gulfstream Pictures/
A Stern Talking To/A Very Good Production in association with Warner Bros. Animation for
Netflix - Margaret Hou
Margaret Hou started her editing career in Animation over 20 years ago. She has worked on
projects such as Legend of the NeverBeast, Under the Red Hood, SpongeBob SquarePants
and Monsters Inc. This is her second Annie nomination for Green Eggs and Ham, and she feels
extremely fortunate to have worked alongside an incredibly talented and fun group of people.
She is currently working on an animated feature at Netflix Animation.
Karma’s World, Episode: Keys, The Inventor - 9 Story Media Group, Brown Bag Films and Karma’s
World Entertainment for Netflix - Damien Dunne, Ultan Murphy, Emma O’Brien, Fred O’Connor,
Aiden McKenna
Karma’s World follows Karma Grant, an aspiring musical artist and rapper with big talent and an
even bigger heart. Smart, resilient and deeply empathetic, Karma pours her soul into songwriting,
channeling her feelings into whip-smart rhymes with passion, courage and her signature brand of
humor. In this series, Karma is only beginning to grasp the incredible emotional power that words
and music can have. She doesn’t just want to share her music with the world...she wants
to change the world with it!
Star Trek: Lower Decks, Episode: The Least Dangerous Game - CBS’s Eye Animation Productions,
Titmouse; Secret Hideout; and Roddenberry Entertainment - Andy Maxwell, Zach Lamplugh,
Paul Mazzotta, Caleb Yoder
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse, Episode: Special Production - A NoneMore and
Bad Robot Production for Apple TV+ and BBC - Daniel Budin

EDITORIAL IN AN ANIMATED
FEATURE PRODUCTION
Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio - Netflix Presents A Double Dare You! Film / A Shadowmachine Production in
association with The Jim Henson Company - Ken Schretzmann, Holly Klein, Emily Chiu, Hamilton Barrett
The editing team of Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio assembled for the first time at Shadow Machine in Portland,
Oregon, bringing their diverse experience and backgrounds to the various phases of editorial that spanned
several years. Ken Schretzmann, ACE (Animatic Editor), came from CG animation (Toy Story 3, The Secret Life
of Pets); Holly Klein (Production Editor), started her career as an animator on Blue’s Clues, then moved to the
editing department on stop-motion features at Laika (ParaNorman, Coraline); Emily Chiu (1st Assistant Editor),
came from live action features and television (The Stand, Her), and Hamilton Barrett (1st Assistant Editor)
added his experience from the stop-motion cutting room (The Shivering Truth) to the crafting of the film. After
years of hard work, through 1,000 days of shooting (and a global pandemic!), the editing team is proud of this
beautiful, moving film about love, loss, and the celebration of life.
Lightyear - Pixar - Tony Greenberg, Katie Bishop, Chloe Kloezeman, Axel Geddes, Tim Fox
Even before the pandemic forced everyone into lockdown, cutting a film like Lightyear was full of unique
challenges: how to create a new take on an iconic character from a beloved franchise? How to make an
animated film with the look and feel of an epic live action sci-fi film, while still honoring Toy Story? How to
make a taut, action-packed emotional experience that appeals to audiences worldwide? Chlo, Katie, Tim
and Axel, under the guidance of Lead Editor Tony Greenberg, supported by an amazing team of assistants
and a tireless production team, met all of these challenges and more with unflagging exuberance.
Puss in Boots: The Last Wish - Dreamworks Animation - James Ryan, ACE, Jacquelyn Karambelas,
Natalia Cronembold, Joseph Butler, Katie Parody
A Chicago native, James Ryan, ACE, got his start at DreamWorks Animation in 1996 as an apprentice editor on
The Prince of Egypt (1998). He is also a member of AMPAS. Jacquelyn Karambelas’ professional career has also
included work in live-action projects, most recently as a VFX Editor on the Netflix series Lost in Space (2018). In
2010, she edited the critically acclaimed film The Hammer, about the life of Matt Hamill. She was an Assistant
Editor on numerous features including Angels & Demons (2009) and Frost/Nixon (2008). Natalia Cronembold
started in the animation industry as a post production intern nearly 15 years ago. She later worked up to
Production Assistant and Coordinator on many films and shows including Madagascar 2, Monster vs. Aliens
and Madly Madagascar. Joseph Butler has worked in the film industry as an Editor, VFX Editor and Assistant
Editor on various animation and live action productions including The Grinch (2018), The Mentalist (2014-2015),
Alvin & The Chipmunks (2007) and Garfield (2004). Katie Parody began her career in Editorial in the Warner
Bros. Creative On-Air department. There, she both assisted and edited promos for a variety of Warner Bros.
content, including The Big Bang Theory, The Flash, Supernatural, The Bachelor and many more.
The Sea Beast - Netflix - Joyce Arrastia, ACE, Will Erokan, Vivek Sharma, Michael Hugh O’Donnell,
Daniel Ortiz
The Sea Beast needed to find a balance between classic swashbuckling action adventure with the comedy,
heart and palpable peril to thrill and move audiences. Editor Joyce Arrastia led a diversely talented editorial
team (composed of Associate Editors Will Erokan and Vivek Sharma, and Assistant Editors Michael Hugh
O’Donnell and Daniel Ortiz). Every production presents its unique challenges, but the most unexpected one
for The Sea Beast was quickly making the shift to working from home while ensuring there was no compromise
in quality during production--and delivering a finished film that would live up to expectations.
Turning Red - Pixar Animation Studios - Nicholas Smith, Steve Bloom, David Suther, Anna Wolitzky,
Christopher Zuber
“All about that hustle, amiright?” The editors of Turning Red have a combined 156 years of editorial experience,
including 101 years at Pixar working on Brave, Coco, Onward and many other features and shorts. During the
years spent cutting and recutting Turning Red, Domee Shi’s coming-of-age story (and love letter to early
2000s boy bands), the editors depended on a crew of assistant editors and production staff who were
The Bomb Dot Com. Ride or die!

WINSOR M C CAY AWARD
Recognition for career contributions to the art of animation
The Winsor McCay Award, named for the most influential of character animation pioneers, was the first Annie Award established
by Asifa-Hollywood and is awarded to a maximum of three individuals annually in recognition of lifetime or career contributions
in direction, animation, design, writing, voice acting, sound and sound effects, technical expertise, music, education, or for other
endeavours which exhibit an outstanding devotion to and promotion of excellence in the art of animation.
CRAIG MCCRACKEN
Craig McCracken is an influential animator, writer, director, producer, and
cartoonist. Over his 30 year animation career he created and produced
Cartoon Network’s The Powerpuff Girls and Foster’s Home for Imaginary
Friends, Disney Channel’s Wander Over Yonder, and Netflix Animation’s
Kid Cosmic, each of which have won multiple Emmy and Annie Awards.
Additionally, McCracken lent his talents as art director and storyboard artist
for Dexter’s Laboratory, and art director for 2 Stupid Dogs. He also served
as the head of Cartoon Network’s creator focused shorts development
program “The Cartoonstitute.” He lives with his wife and fellow animator,
writer and producer, Lauren Faust, and their daughter, Quinn.
PETE DOCTER
Pete Docter (Chief Creative Officer, Director, Pixar
Animation Studios) is the Oscar®-winning director of
Monsters, Inc. (2001), Up (2009), Inside Out (2015) and
Soul (2020.
Starting at Pixar in 1990 as the studio’s third animator,

Docter collaborated with John Lasseter and Andrew
Stanton in developing the story and characters for Toy
Story (1995), Pixar’s first full-length animated feature
film, for which he was also Supervising Animator. He
served as a storyboard artist on A Bug’s Life (1998), and
wrote initial story treatments for both Toy Story 2 (1999) and WALL•E (2008). Upon joining Pixar, he animated
and directed several commercials, and has been nominated for eight Academy Awards®, including ‘Best
Animated Feature’-winners Up, Inside Out, Soul and nominee Monsters, Inc., and ‘Best Original Screenplay’
for Up, Inside Out and WALL•E. In 2007, Up also was nominated for a Best Picture Oscar® by the Academy of
Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

WINSOR M C CAY AWARD
Recognition for career contributions to the art of animation
EVELYN L AMBART
Evelyn Lambart’s contributions to Canadian animation are
colossal. As the first woman animator in Canada, Evelyn
Lambart is literally the “First Lady of Canadian Animation,”
paving the way for women’s presence in a milieu where
men make up the majority to this day. A gifted artist, an
impassioned, inventive filmmaker and an immensely resilient
soul, she left us a prodigious and delightful body of work.
In 1939, at the behest of the federal government, John Grierson founded the NFB. Mere months later, the
world was at war, and the fledgling organization busied itself producing propaganda films.
It was against this backdrop that Evelyn knocked on the doors of the Film Board one day in 1942, looking for
work. Grierson offered her a position with a small team of animators led by Norman McLaren. She was asked
to animate the maps featured in the documentary series The World in Action. She employed the paint-on-
glass method, a technique with which she would later display virtuosic ability.
After World War II, she made her first film, The Impossible Map (1947), an educational short that brilliantly
illustrated the the impossibility of accurately projecting the spherical surface of the Earth onto a flat
surface, a problem she had tackled many times when painting maps on glass.
For more than twenty years, Evelyn Lambart worked closely with Norman McLaren. She began as his
assistant, and their collaboration soon grew into a true partnership that saw her credited as co-director
of the films they developed together. Alongside McLaren, she helped pioneer stereoscopic (3D) animation,
assisted the development of a card system for synthetic sound and perfected an apparatus for
photographing his synthetic notes.
By the late 1960s, Evelyn was focused entirely on her own creations, producing magnificent, delicately
fashioned and colorful films for children. These relied on paper cutout animation, a complex technique
where precise movements express all manner of emotions. She was responsible for every creative aspect
of her films: story, character design, painting, drawing, and animation under the camera.
In 1974, after a thirty-year career at the Film Board, she retired to her country home in Knowlton, in the
Eastern Townships. It was there that she made her last two films, The Lion and the Mouse (1976) and The
Town Mouse and the Country Mouse (1980). Evelyn Lambart died in 1999, aged ninety-four.

VOICE ACTING IN AN ANIMATED
Looney Tunes Cartoonsl, Episode: Hex Appeal - Warner Bros. Animation - Candi Milo
Candi Milo--probably, the voice of your childhood--is one of the busiest actresses in voiceovers
today and is honored to have taken the mantle from the legendary late June Foray for all of Warner
Brothers Animation projects. Milo is a successful stage and screen actor and, now, a three-time Annie
Award nominee, best known for voicing Dexter in Dexter’s Laboratory and The Flea in Mucha Lucha,
along with literally hundreds of other well-known characters. Candi’s rich life embodies her in the
roles of successful actor, mother and passionate advocate for people dealing with mental illness and
homelessness. Much like her former stand-up comic father and her many cartoon characters,
Milo gives voice to those who others pretend not to see.
StoryBots: Answer Time, Episode: Glue - JibJab Bros. Studios for Netflix - Fred Tatasciore
Fred Tatasciore is an American voice actor/animator. He’s honored to give voice to the character
“Bang” on the educational series StoryBots: Answer Time. He has also earned impressive credits
across animated and live-action films, television shows and video games: most recently, “Lieutenant
Shax” on Star Trek’s Lower Decks and t”he new Moon Girl” and “Devil Dinosaur” on the Devil Dinosaur
series. He can also be heard regularly on Family Guy, American Dad, Robot Chicken, Teen Titans Go!,
Animaniacs, various Star Wars media, The SIMS and Disneyland theme parks rides. He resides in
Los Angeles with his wife, son and many animals.
Teen Titans Go! & DC Super Hero Girls Mayhem in the Multiverse, Episode: Full Movie - Warner Bros
Animation - Tara Strong
Karen Malina White reprises her role as Dijonay Jones in the Emmy-Award winning Disney+ Original
series, The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder. Born and raised in Philadelphia, White graduated from
the High School For Creative & Performing Arts and then furthered her acting studies at Howard
University, receiving a B.F.A. in drama with cum laude honors. In her senior year, she became Miss
Howard University and moved to New York, where she landed the coveted role of Kaneesha Carter,
opposite Morgan Freeman, in the film Lean On Me. White’s other iconic appearances include that of
Charmaine Brown on The Cosby Show and its spin-off, A Different World, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,
Roc, Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper, Parenthood and in the cult favorite My So-Called Life, opposite Claire
Danes. She is still very, very busy.
The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder, Episode: New Kids On The Block - Disney TV Animation -
Karen Malina White
Karen Malina White reprises her role as Dijonay Jones in the Emmy-Award winning Disney+ Original
series, The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder. Born and raised in Philadelphia, White graduated from
the High School For Creative & Performing Arts and then furthered her acting studies at Howard
University, receiving a B.F.A. in drama with cum laude honors. In her senior year, she became Miss
Howard University and moved to New York, where she landed the coveted role of Kaneesha Carter,
opposite Morgan Freeman, in the film Lean On Me. White’s other iconic appearances include that of
Charmaine Brown on The Cosby Show and its spin-off, A Different World, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,
Roc, Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper, Parenthood and in the cult favorite My So-Called Life, opposite Claire
Danes. She is still very, very busy.
Zootopia+, Episode: The Godfather of the Bride - Walt Disney Animation Studios - Maurice LaMarche
Maurice LaMarche is a Canadian comedian and voice actor from Toronto. He is most well-known for
voicing “Brain” from Pinky and the Brain, “Lrrr,” “Morbo” and “Calculon” from Futurama, “Estroy” from
Evil Con Carne, “Mr. Big” from Zootopia, “King Agnarr” from Frozen, “Mr. Freeze” from Batman: Arkham
City, “Yosemite Sam” from Looney Tunes, “Jack O’Lantern” from The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy,
“Toucan Sam” from the iconic Froot Loops commercials and Orson Welles from The Critic.

VOICE ACTING IN AN ANIMATED
FEATURE PRODUCTION
Production in association with The Jim Henson Company - David Bradley
David is a BAFTA Award-winning actor, trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art before
joining the Royal Shakespeare Company where he appeared in many productions including
Henry IV Part II (for which he was nominated for the 1993 Olivier Award for Best Supporting Actor).
He has performed in several critically acclaimed National Theatre productions, as well as earning
a comprehensive list of small- and large-screen credits. David has just won the Best Actor award
for his performance in Roy at the British Short Film Awards, and voiced “Merlin” in Guillermo Del
Toro’s Dreamworks Animation Series Wizards: Tales of Arcadia (for which he won an Annie Award
for Best Voice Acting in TV/Media).
Production in association with The Jim Henson Company - Gregory Mann
Gregory Mann, a versatile, quirky actor from North London, is the voice of “Pinocchio” in Guillermo
del Toro’s titular stop-motion animated musical fantasy. Greg’s gusto for performing began when
a local production of Singing in the Rain went wrong and the director stopped the show to take
questions from the audience. (Most of them came from Greg and his brother, Leo.) His interest
piqued, he joined the weekend boys’ programme at the North London Performing Arts Centre
(NLPAC), which led to auditions for TV and film and a plethora of fun roles. Greg sings, plays the
piano and ukulele, is especially keen on football and has a keen eye for business (mostly, avoiding
getting caught out for selling contraband candy). He supports Arsenal FC.
Marcel the Shell with Shoes On - Marcel the Movie LLC - Jenny Slate
Jenny Slate is a critically-acclaimed actress, comedian, and New York Times bestselling author
known for her starring role in Obvious Child and as the co-creator and voice of Marcel the Shell
with Shoes On. Jenny’s animated film credits include Muppet Babies, Bob’s Burgers, The Great
North, Big Mouth, Star vs. the Forces of Evil, The Secret Life Of Pets 1 and 2 and Zootopia. Besides
being a starring cast member on NBC’s Saturday Night Live and many other television credits, her
comedy special Jenny Slate: Stage Fright was nominated for a Critics’ Choice Award. Jenny’s latest
book, Little Weirds, was an instant New York Times best seller. Currently, Jenny can be seen in I
Want You Back, Everything Everywhere All At Once and The Ark and the Aardvark.
Puss in Boots: The Last Wish - DreamWorks Animation - Wagner Moura

Brazilian actor, director, filmmaker, musician and journalist Wagner Moura started his career doing
theater in Salvador. There, he worked with renowned directors and soon scored some appearances
in films. His prominent role in the much-feted film Carandiru propelled him to the center of Brazilian
cinema, after which he continued starring in national feature films. In 2015, he starred in the series
Narcos, playing drug trafficker Pablo Escobar, a role for which he was nominated for several awards
(including the Golden Globe). In 2021, he made his debut as a movie director and screenwriter with
biopic Marighella which hit cinemas after a well-received debut at the Berlin Film Festival. That film
won several awards: Best Picture, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay.
The Sea Beast - Netflix - Zaris-Angel Hator

Zaris-Angel Hator, now 18 years old, trained at the Sylvia Young Theatre School in London. She has
worked widely on stage and screen, credits including the titular character in Matilda: the Musical in
London’s West End, [BLANK] at the Donmar Warehouse, appearances in Endeavour and Victoria for
ITV, The Midnight Gang and Black Earth Rising for the BBC. Zaris-Angel also voiced “Nella” in Nella
the Princess Knight for Nickelodeon. Zaris will appear as “Sima” in the upcoming Amazon Prime
dramatization of Naomi Alderman’s novel The Power.

WRITING IN AN ANIMATED
BAYMAX!, Episode: Sofia - Walt Disney Animation Studios - Cirocco Dunlap

Cirocco Dunlap is the creator and Executive Producer of The Hospital, an original animated half hour
for Amazon with Natasha Lyonne and Maya Rudolph’s Animal Pictures. Cirocco’s previous credits
include Russian Doll, Waffles + Mochi, Big Mouth, Miracle Workers, Man Seeking Woman and Baymax!.
Cirocco has also written features for Fox, Disney and Fox Animation. Her short film, Everything Is Okay,
screened at SXSW in 2018.
Big Nate, Episode: The Legend of the Gunting - Nickelodeon Animation Studio - Mitch Watson,
Emily Brundige, Ben Lapides, Sarah Allan
The Big Nate writers were all hired in the now infamous second week of March 2020. They met each
other on a Wednesday, went home on a Friday, and never saw each other again. Over the course of
the pandemic they did, however, meet everyone’s babies, spouses, and pets (including a rabid bird
that refused to stop banging on a window and numerous keyboard-loving, Zoomhogging, camera-
loving cats). They wrote two full seasons of the show in their pajamas, and have sadly forgotten to
turn the audio off during pee breaks--not once, but twice. They can all safely say that--unlike the
star of their show Nate Wright--they didn’t, indeed, peak in middle school, and are all grateful for the
do-over.
Love Death + Robots, Episode: Bad Travelling - Blur Studio for Netflix - Andrew Kevin Walkere
The House, Episode: Special Productiont - Nexus Studios for Netflix - Enda Walsh
Enda Walsh is a playwright and screenwriter who shot to fame when he won both the George Devine
Award and the Stewart Parker Award in 1997 with his play Disco Pigs, followed up by Fringe awards in
both 2007 and 2008 for his plays The Walworth Farce and The New Electric Ballroom. In 2011, Once,
Enda’s adaptation of the film by John Carney, picked up eight Tony Awards, including Best Book.
Since his initial (and ongoing) success as a playwright, Enda has gone on to write for the screen.
His 2008 Bobby Sands biopic, Hunger, won a host of awards, including the Camera d’Or. It was
nominated for seven BIFAs, six British Film and Television Awards and BAFTA’s Outstanding British Film
Award 2009. Enda is currently working on Troubles with Blueprint Pictures, Let Me Not Be Mad with
Tiger Aspect and The House with Nexus Studios.
Tuca & Bertie, Episode: The Pain Garden - The Tornante Company - Lisa Hanawalt
Lisa Hanawalt, creator of Tuca & Bertie and the Production Designer/Producer of BoJack Horseman,
grew up in Palo Alto, California and graduated from UCLA in 2006. She has written and illustrated four
books, all of which published by Drawn & Quarterly: My Dirty Dumb Eyes, 2013, Hot Dog Taste Test,
2016, Coyote Doggirl, 2018 and I Want You, 2020. Lisa co-hosts a podcast called Baby Geniuses with
comedian Emily Heller.

WRITING IN AN ANIMATED
FEATURE PRODUCTION
ETERNAL SPRING (長春) - Lofty Sky Entertainment Inc. - Jason Loftus

A Peabody Award-winning filmmaker and four-time Canadian Screen Award nominee, Jason’s work
spans documentary films, animation, docuseries, virtual reality, and narrative games. Jason wrote,
directed, and produced the animated documentary feature Eternal Spring, which was named
Canada’s official submission to the 2023 Academy Awards in the Best International Feature Film
category--the first-ever Mandarin-language and animated entry from Canada. Jason lives with his
wife and producing partner Masha Loftus and their two children in Toronto, Canada.
Inu-Oh - Asmik Ace / Science SARU - AKIKO NOGI

Screenwriter Akiko Nogi won the 22nd Fuji TV Young Scenario Awards with her debut script--
Sayonara, Robinson Kuruso--in 2010. She then won the 7th Ichikawa Shinichi Screenplay prize with
the original script Unnatural, and the 37th Kuniko Mukoda Award with Weakest Beast. Among her
most famous work is The Voice of Sin, I Am A Hero and original series for television (such as MIU404
and Kotaki Kyodai to Shikuhakku, among others).
Marcel the Shell with Shoes On - Marcel the Movie LLC - Dean Fleischer Camp, Jenny Slate,
Nick Paley, Elisabeth Holm
Dean Fleischer Camp is the award-winning filmmaker, designer, and New York Times-bestselling
author who co-created the viral sensation Marcel the Shell with Shoes, Jenny Slate is a critically-
acclaimed actress, comedian, and New York Times bestselling author and the voice of Marcel
the Shell with Shoes On, among many other animation and live action credits. Nick Paley is a Los
Angeles-based writer/director, editor and co-founder with Dean Fleischer Camp, of Sunbeam Film &
Television. Elisabeth Holm is a writer and producer of feature films and broadcast productions. Holm
has also written for Time Out New York, Filmmaker, and Paper magazines.
Turning Red - Pixar Animation Studios - Domee Shi, Julia Cho

Creative VP Domee Shi was born in Chongqing, China and resided in Toronto, Canada most of her
life. She graduated from the animation program at Sheridan College, where she was fueled by her
love of anime/manga, Disney, and Asian cinema influences that can be seen in her work to this
day. Her career began as a story intern at Pixar Animation Studios in June 2011, after which she was
promptly hired as a story artist on the Academy Award-winning feature film Inside Out. Since then,
she has worked on many feature films. She currently lives in Oakland, California, and notes that her
love of animation is only rivaled by her love of cats.
Driven by keen curiosity and a passion for language, Julia Cho strives to create work that expands
our worlds and sparks our deepest empathies. She high-tailed it from the arid suburbs of Southern
California and Arizona, armed with an MFA in writing from NYU and a fellowship at The Juilliard
School, and launched herself into the New York theater scene. Julia has since cultivated a career
as a playwright, writer and producer for a broad range of television shows from cult sci-fi (Fringe)
to character-driven drama (Big Love, Halt and Catch Fire) and was most recently a Co-Executive
Producer on Paper Girls. She’s currently developing a new series at FX and is a Senior Creative at
Pixar Animation Studios.

IN MEMORIAM
Remembering those lost in 2022...
1. Dale Alexander, art props & services 53. Shishiro Kobayashi, art director
2. Gil Alkabetz, animator 54. John Korty, animator, director
3. Ron Allen, assistant director 55. Angela Lansbury, voice actor
4. Louie Anderson, voice actor 56. Fernando Laverde, stop-motion animator
5. Mark Barrows, effects animator 57. Chris Ledesma, music editor
6. Jules Bass, producer, studio co-founder 58. Mary Locatell, background and color artist
7. Carl Bell, animator 59. Lee Lorenz, cartoonist, designer
8. Anne Bernstein, writer 60. Bob Lusk, animator
9. Claudio Biern Boyd, animation producer 61. Stacy Maniskas, ink & paint
10. Phyllis Bird, ink & paint 62. Kevin Martonick, animator
11. George Booth, cartoonist, designer 63. Bill Matthews, animator, educator
12. Todd Brian, executive producer 64. Burt Medall, animator
13. Raymond Briggs, writer/illustrator 65. Tony Mines, animation creator/stylist
14. Myrna Bushman, storyboard dialogue timing 66. Ichiro Mizuki, anime composer, voice actor
15. Nick Busostow, producer 67. Robert Morse, voice actor
16. Maryanne “Mickie” Caparilli-McGowan, voice actor, 68. Marsha “Bunny” Munns, color stylist
casting director 69. Sho Murase, designer, animator
17. Pat Carroll, voice actor 70. Barrie Nelson, animator, director
18. Paul Coker Jr., designer 71. George Newell, animation creator/stylist
19. Robbie Coltrane, voice actor 72. Nichelle Nichols, voice actor
20. Kevin Conroy, voice actor 73. Yuki Nunakawa, producer
21. James Cordero, layout artist 74. Manubu Ohashi, animator, producer
22. Charles Csuri, CGI pioneer 75. Everett Peck, cartoonist, producer
23. Marija Dail, animator 76. Vlasta Pospisilova, puppet animator
24. Alice Davis, designer 77. Gerald Potterton, director, producer
25. Daniel De La Vega, animator 78. Janet Quen, effects animator
26. Simon Deitch, layout artist, designer 79. Jan Rabson, voice actor
27. Borijov Dovnikovíc, filmmaker 80. Gisele Recinos, assistant animator
28. Michael Edens, writer 81. Peter Robbins, voice actor
29. Ralph Eggleston, art director 82. Jan Rogowski, studio co-founder
30. Steve Fickinger, producer 83. Amber Rudolph-Mantorelli, animator
31. Christopher Finch, animation historian 84. James F. Ryan, writer, layout artist
32. Jonathan Finn-Gamino, storyboard artist 85. Ernie Schmidt, timing director, animator
33. Bob Fortier, animator 86. Jean-Jacques Sempé, illustrator
34. Gerald Forton, storyboard artist 87. Paul Shardlow, designer, layout artist
35. Evelyn Gabai, writer 88. Garrett Sheldrew, animator, director
36. Lina Gagnon, animator 89. Virginia Sherwood, background artist, model designer
37. Sari Gennis, effects animator 90. Leonid Shvartsman, art director, director
38. Peter Gentle, checker 91. Paul Sorvino, voice actor
39. Karl Geurs, director, writer, producer 92. Jim Stocks, cel service
40. Lee K. Go, designer 93. Andrei Svitslotski, director, storyboard artist
41. Gilbert Gottfried, voice actor 94. Norma Swank-Haviland, ink & paint
42. Laurie Hanson, ink & paint 95. Kazuo “Kazuki” Takahasi, designer
43. Noriko Hawks, ink & paint 96. Kumiko Takizana, voice actor
44. Dylan Hoffman, technical director 97. Eugene Troubetzkoy, CGI pioneer, studio co-founder
45. Jeff Howard, effects animator 98. David Warner, voice actor
46. William Hurt, voice actor 99. Wendell Washer, storyboard artist
47. Blake James, artist 100. Chumei Watanaba, composer
48. M. Henry Jones, animator 101. Ian Wilcox, background and layout artist
49. Darlene Kanagy, ink & paint 102. Michel Kenneth Williams, voice actor
50. Angelika Katz, ink & paint 103. Steve Wilzbach, producer, scene planning
51. Melvin Keefer, designer, layout artist 104. Sandra Wogatzke, checker
52. Ken Knowlton, CGI pioneer
IS PROUD TO SPONSOR THE
50th ANNIE AWARDS TM
CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OF OUR TALENTED ANIMATION WRITERS,

PRODUCERS, CREATORS AND DIRECTORS WHO HAVE BEEN NOMINATED
OR WORKED ON ANNIE-NOMINATED PROJECTS THIS YEAR!
www.gotham-group.com
BEST ANIMATED TELEVISION PRODUCTION
FOR PRESCHOOL CHILDREN
Elinor Wonders Why, Episode: 136B - Gabby’s Dollhouse, Episode: Cakey’s Rise Up, Sing Out, Episode: Name Tag -
Rest is Best- SHOE Ink. LLC Cupcake Cousins - DreamWorks Animation Disney TV Animation
Spirit Rangers, Episode: Thunder Mountain - The Tiny Chef Show, Episode: Pancakes -
Laughing Wild / Netflix Tiny Chef Productions LLC / Imagine Entertainment
BEST ANIMATED TELEVISION/MEDIA

PRODUCTION FOR CHILDREN
Abominable and the Invisible City, Big Nate, Episode: The Legend of the Gunting Moominvalley, Episode: Lonely Mountain -
Episode: Everest Returns - - Nickelodeon Animation Gutsy Animations
DreamWorks Animation
The Owl House, Episode: King’s Tide - We Baby Bears, Episode: The Real Crayon - Cartoon
Disney TV Animation Network Studios

PRODUCTION FOR MATURE AUDIENCES
Bob’s Burgers, Episode: Some Like it Bot Part 1: Harley Quinn, Episode: Batman Begins Rick and Morty, Episode: Night Family -
Eighth Grade Runner - 20th Television/Bento Forever - Warner Bros. Animation Rick and Morty LLC
Box Entertainment
The Simpsons, Episode: Treehouse of Horror XXXIII Tuca & Bertie, Episode: The Pain Garden -
- A Gracie Films Production in Association with The Tornante Company

PRODUCTION, LIMITED SERIES
BAYMAX!, Episode: Sofia - Walt Disney El Deafo, Episode: Everybody Sounds HouseBroken, Episode: Who’s Having A
Animation Studios So Weird - Lighthouse Studios in Merry Trashmas? - Kapital Entertainment
association with Apple and FOX Entertainment
Oni: Thunder God’s Tale, Episode: The Demon Moon Undone, Episode: Rectify -
Rises - A Netflix Series / A Tonko House Production Tornante Company and Amazon Studios

STORYBOARDING IN AN ANIMATED
Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, Episode: Let You Down - CD Projekt Red in association with Netflix -
Yoshiyuki Kaneko
LisaBorn on January 22, 1985, Yoshiyuki Kaneko created an original animation CHUYA-DEN: The Night
and Day Chronicles via Kickstarter in 2015. He has since participated in several projects, including
Darling in the FRANXX (as Episode Director), Promare (as Unit Director), Godzilla Singular Point (as
Storyboard), Knights of the Zodiac: Saint Seiya (as Storyboard), Cyberpunk: Edgerunners (as Assistant
Director) and, most recently, SSSS.GRIDMAN Grand Episode (as Director).
Kung Fu Panda: The Dragon Knight, Episode: The Knight’s Code - DreamWorks Animation -
Grace Liu
LisaGrace Liu is a professional storyboard artist who has worked in animation since 2015. Grace has
had a strong interest in drawing for action adventure shows for as long as she can remember. She
runs on the power of God and anime (but mostly anime). When she’s not busy drawing, Grace has
a passion for petting rabbits, repeatedly flinging herself at LA traffic on a motorcycle and putting
together furniture from IKEA.
Looney Tunes Cartoons, Episode: Hex Appeal - Warner Bros. Animation - Mike Ruocco
LisaMichael Ruocco moved out to LA after graduating from the animation program at the School
of Visual Arts in New York City. Since then, he’s worked on numerous animated productions as an
animator, storyboard artist and storyboard supervisor, not limited to BoJack Horseman, Wabbit/
New Looney Tunes, Looney Tunes Cartoons, The Cuphead Show! and StoryBots: Answer Time!. He
also performs minor voice-over work for productions, including voicing Beaky Buzzard for Looney
Tunes Cartoons. Outside his studio work, he creates his own independent short films and does
freelance animation work for various independent projects across the globe.
Love, Death + Robots, Episode: The Very Pulse of the Machine - Blur Studio for Netflix - Emily Dean
LisaEmily Dean--one of Variety Magazine’s Top 10 Animators To Watch in 2019 and one of Piaget’s
Extraordinary Women 2021--is a Los Angeles based Asian-Australian filmmaker. Following her training
at Pixar, Emily worked as a story artist on several notable features and shorts. Emily’s independent
animated short film, Forget Me Not, inspired by her family’s experience with Alzheimer’s disease, was
nominated for an Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts award in 2012. Her live-action
scifi short film, Andromeda, was awarded at several genre film festivals and is now available to
stream on Dust. Emily writes, directs and executive produces content for film and television under
her production banner, Grade 8 Productions.
The Cuphead Show!, Episode: A Very Devil Christmas - Netflix Animation - Karl Hadrika
LisaKarl Hadrika is a renowned animation creative known for his dynamic humor and nuanced
character acting. He has over a decade of experience with credits ranging from directing, writing,
voice acting, and storyboarding for TV and Feature. In addition to his work on The Cuphead Show!,
he has directed on The Wonderful World of Mickey Mouse and won an Emmy for outstanding
individual achievement in animation for his storyboards on Animaniacs. Karl has also worked on
several independent projects, including his 2016 viral pilot, Becky Prim. He is currently pitching/
developing new adult animated shows.

STORYBOARDING IN AN ANIMATED
FEATURE PRODUCTION
Minions: The Rise of Gru - Illumination - Nima Azarba

After graduating from the Gobelins School in 2008, Nima Azarba worked as a Layout Artist on several
projects before deciding to move into a career as a Story Artist. He began his career on the TV show
Dude, That’s my Ghost! for Gaumont Animation before joining the Story training program at Walt
Disney Feature Animation. After training, Nima was hired as Story Artist on Big Hero 6. After returning
to France, he worked on several TV shows, on Rabbids at Ubisoft and on the animation segment of
the live-action feature A Monster Calls, directed by J.A. Bayona. He joined Illumination Studios Paris
as a Story Artist in 2015, where he currently works.
Minions: The Rise of Gru - Illumination - Dave Feiss

David Feiss started his career in animation as a teenager at Hanna Barbera in 1978. He is best
known as the creator of Cartoon Network’s hit series Cow and Chicken, I Am Weasel and Yoohoo
and Friends, as well as animating on the iconic Heavy Metal in 1980. David directed and animated
TV Commercials throughout the 80s, both in the US and Europe. Later, he moved into feature story,
serving on many theatrical films including Open Season, Hotel Transylvania, Rango, Despicable Me,
Minions, The Grinch and The Secret life of Pets. His latest film, Hitpig, is due for release in 2023.
Puss in Boots: The Last Wish - DreamWorks Animation - Anthony Holden

Anthony Holden is a multi-disciplinary cartoonist, story artist and character designer who has worked
on a variety of film, television, print and gaming projects over the last 13 years with studios such as
DreamWorks, Laika, Sony, Marvel, Harper Collins, Bungie, Disney and others. Prior to his professional
career, Holden studied Japanese Language and Literature (as well as Animation) at Brigham Young
University in Provo, Utah.
Strange World - Walt Disney Animation Studios - Jeff Snow

Born in Burlington, Colorado, Jeff Snow grew up in Idaho Springs and always wanted to be a
cartoonist. Consistently gifted in the arts, he graduated from the University of North Texas and
received a jazz performance degree with an emphasis in saxophone. He joined Walt Disney
Animation Studios in 1994 as a story artist on The Hunchback of Notre Dame and worked on several
beloved films there before moving over to DreamWorks Animation as the Head of Story on The Road
to El Dorado and Over the Hedge. Zootopia marked Snow’s return to Disney Animation, where he
added titles such as Moana, Encanto and Strange World to his impressive credits. In addition to
feature films, Snow also worked on numerous television series. He lives with his wife, Meg, in
Shadow Hills, California.
Strange World - Walt Disney Animation Studios - Javier Ledesma Barbolla

Javier Ledesma Barbolla was born and raised in Madrid, Spain where he expressed an early
interest in superheroes as a child. His early dream was to be a comic book artist (which persisted
until animation crossed his path). He studied chemistry at Colegio San Agustin, but joined Tridente
Animation in Madrid soon after. In 2019, he began work at Walt Disney Animation Studios as a story
artist on Raya and the Last Dragon, where he remained as part of the story team on Disney+ series
Olaf Presents, Zootopia and animated features such as Strange World and the Oscar-winner
Encanto. He currently works for Skydance Animation and lives in Burbank with his wife and two
children.

DIRECTING IN AN ANIMATED
BAYMAX!, Episode: Sofia - Walt Disney Animation Studios - Lissa Treiman

LA-born Lissa Treiman has loved drawing from a very young age--much to the consternation of almost
all of her grade-school teachers. At the age of nine, she saw and fell in love with The Lion King and, for
the first time, it clicked that this thing she loved so much was made by people who also drew pictures.
After high school, she attended CalArts and landed two consecutive summer internships at Pixar,
which honed her interest in storyboarding. After completing the Trainee program at WDAS, Lissa was
promptly promoted to full-time story artist. She has since contributed to a long list of popular Disney
Animation features.
exception / エクセプション, Episode: Misprint - Studio 5 / Tatsunoko Production Co., Ltd. for Netflix - Yuzo
Yūzō Satō was raised in Tokyo on July 18, 1974. After majoring in econometrics at Hosei University, he
started his career as a system engineer. After completing the 3DCG course at Digital Hollywood Tokyo,
he worked as a digital artist for the animation production company Sunrise and joined Tatsunoko
Production as a CGI director in 2009. After that, he gradually changed the focus of his activities to
animation direction and storyboarding. He is known for directing MUTEKING THE Dancing HERO (2021)
and Transformers: Titans Return (2017). He was an episode director on PSYCO-PASS 2 (2014) and a
digital artist on Ping Pong The Animation (2014).
More Than I Want To Remember, Episode: short subject - Mugeni Film LLC, MTV Entertainment Studios
- Amy Bench , Maya Edelman
Director Amy Bench trained as a cinematographer, and her observational style highlights the small
details of the human experience that transcend formal explanation. She was the cinematographer
on Trans in America: Texas Strong, which won an Emmy for Best Original Short Documentary in 2019,
and 2 Webby Awards.
Emmy Award-winning Animation Director Maya Edelman is an illustrator and animation director who
was born in Kiyv, USSR. She came to the US as a refugee when she was 13 and is familiar with the
disorientation of being in a new place without the language it takes to fully express oneself. She
studied animation and film at Pratt Institute, then went on to create a body of work spanning a
variety of themes and media, including animation for documentaries and short films.
Oni: Thunder God’s Tale, Episode: The Demon Moon Rises - A Netflix Series / A Tonko House Production
- Daisuke “Dice” Tsutsumi
Daisuke “Dice” Tsutsumi, originally from Japan, is a filmmaker and painter. A graduate from The School
of Visual Arts in New York, Dice has worked as a visual development/color key artist at Blue Sky
Studios on Ice Age, Robots and Horton Hears a Who!. His credits at Pixar Animation include Lighting
Art Director for Toy Story 3 and Monsters University. After the success of his directorial debut, The Dam
Keeper, Dice left Pixar to co-found Tonko House Inc. with Robert Kondo. Passionate about charity work,
Dice spearheaded both The Totoro Forest Project and Sketchtravel. In 2021, Dice was recognized with
ASIFA’s June Foray Award.
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse, Special Production - A NoneMore and Bad Robot Production
for Apple TV+ and BBC - Peter Baynton, Charlie Mackesy
A graduate of Central St Martin’s in London, Peter Baynton is an award-winning director of animated,

shorts, music promos and commercials and, over the yers, has picked up over 30 awards at film
festivals around the world. After years of making shorts and commercials, Peter began working on
longer form projects, such as Sarah & Duck, Paddington 2, The Tiger Who Came To Tea and now
Charlie Mackesy’s beloved book The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse. Peter thinks directing this
film with Charlie “has been the greatest privilege of his professional life.” He is now in the early stages of
directing a feature film to be released in 2024.
Charlie Mackesy award-winning art work has featured in books, private collections, galleries and public
spaces around the world. His internationally bestselling book, The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse,
holds the record as the longest running Sunday Times Non-Fiction book of all time and, since 2013, is
one of eight books that has remained on the New York Times Bestseller list. Charlie’s beloved book has
been translated into over 40 different languages and dialects.

DIRECTING IN AN ANIMATED
FEATURE PRODUCTION
Production in association with The Jim Henson Company - Guillermo Del Toro, Mark Gustafson
Mexican-born filmmaker Guillermo del Toro has created a distinctive cinematic style mixing the
world of monster movies, comic books, and exuberant visuals straight from his imagination. He
studied under Oscar-winning special effects artist Dick Smith and made his first feature film, Cronos,
in 1993. Since then, he has directed and produced numerous films in both the United States and
Mexico, and won the Oscar, the Golden Globe Award and the BAFTA for Best Director. With this,
his twelfth feature film, del Toro employed the magic of stop motion to hand craft an enchanting
reimagining of the infamous Carlo Collodi fairytale.
Mark Gustafson got his start in Animation at the legendary Will Vinton Studios in Portland Oregon.
There he honed his skills as an animator and went on to create the award winning short film Mr
Resistor. Mark has worked as a Director on over 200 TV commercials (including the iconic ‘California
Raisins spot). He has received numerous awards including two Emmys, two Annies and a Clio. He is
directing Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio alongside the filmmaker, which has kept him “mostly out of
trouble” since 2018.
Marcel the Shell with Shoes On - Marcel the Movie LLC - Dean Fleischer Camp, Kirsten Lepore,
Stephen Chiodo
My Father’s Dragon - Cartoon Saloon for Netflix - Nora Twomey

Academy Award- and Golden Globe-nominated Director Nora Twomey is also Partner & Creative
Director at Ireland’s Cartoon Saloon. In a career spanning more than two decades, Nora has
worked in a number of capacities on Cartoon Saloon’s creative output. From the studio’s early years,
directing award winning short films & commercials, she went on to co-direct Tomm Moore’s Academy
Award-nominated The Secret of Kells while also guiding the development processes on a number
of series (including the preschool show Puffin Rock). Nora was Head of Story and Voice Director on
Academy Award-nominated Song of the Sea. She then directed The Breadwinner, which picked
up numerous wins and nominations including the Best Indie Feature Annie and the Audience & Jury
Awards at Annecy.
Turning Red - Pixar Animation Studios - Domee Shi

Creative VP Domee Shi was born in Chongqing, China and resided in Toronto, Canada most of her
life. She graduated from the animation program at Sheridan College, where she was fueled by her
love of anime/manga, Disney, and Asian cinema influences that can be seen in her work to this
day. Her career began as a story intern at Pixar Animation Studios in June 2011, after which she was
promptly hired as a story artist on the Academy Award-winning feature film Inside Out. Since then,
she has worked on many feature films. She currently lives in Oakland, California, and notes that her
love of animation is only rivaled by her love of cats.
Wendell & Wild - Netflix Presents A Monkeypaw Production / A Gotham Group Production -
Henry Selick
Henry Selick is the creative force behind the award-winning animated films Coraline (Laika’s first and
still most successful feature, which he wrote, directed, and co-produced), the iconic The Nightmare
Before Christmas (which he directed for producer Tim Burton) and the stunning James and the
Giant Peach, which he directed for Disney. Currently, Selick has just completed his latest stop motion
project, Wendell & Wild, for Netflix Animation. The film, based on his original story, was co-written
and co-produced with Jordan Peele, who voices one of the titular characters, along with Keegan
Michael Key. Selick says his fantastical, scary, funny films are intended for “brave children of all ages,”
and believes that stop motion--the oldest form of animation and his chosen technique--is the most
magical and timeless.

N ETFLIX
A S I FA - H O
AND PROUDLY CONGR ATUL ATES
FILM
BEST FEATURE
BEST FEATURE
BEST DIRECTION - FEATURE
BEST FX - FEATURE
BEST FX - FEATURE
BEST MUSIC - FEATURE
BEST CHARACTER ANIMATION - FEATURE
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN - FEATURE
BEST MUSIC - FEATURE
BEST VOICE ACTING - FEATURE
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN - FEATURE
Zaris-Angel Hator as Maisie Brumble
BEST VOICE ACTING - FEATURE
BEST EDITORIAL - FEATURE
David Bradley as Geppetto
Gregory Mann as Pinocchio
BEST EDITORIAL - FEATURE
BEST INDIE FEATURE

BEST FEATURE
BEST CHARACTER DESIGN - FEATURE BEST CHARACTER DESIGN - FEATURE
TELEVISION
BEST CHARACTER ANIMATION - TV/MEDIA

BEST CHARACTER DESIGN - TV/MEDIA
“CARN-EVIL”
BEST MUSIC - TV/MEDIA
“A VERY DEVIL CHRISTMAS”
BEST STORYBOARDING - TV/MEDIA “MISPRINT”
BEST FX - TV/MEDIA
“LET YOU DOWN” “CAKEY’S CUPCAKE COUSINS”

BEST STORYBOARDING - TV/MEDIA BEST TV/MEDIA - PRESCHOOL
THANKS
L LY W O O D
OUR ANNIE AWARD NOMINEES
TELEVISION
“THE SAM WHO CAME IN FROM THE COLD” BEST CHARACTER ANIMATION - TV/MEDIA
BEST EDITORIAL - TV/MEDIA “THE DEMON MOON RISES”
BEST TV/MEDIA - LIMITED SERIES
BEST DIRECTION - TV/MEDIA
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN - TV/MEDIA
BEST FX - TV/MEDIA “ONARI’S KUSHI POWER”
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN - TV/MEDIA
BEST WRITING - TV/MEDIA
“KEYS, THE INVENTOR”

BEST EDITORIAL - TV/MEDIA “THUNDER MOUNTAIN”
BEST TV/MEDIA - PRESCHOOL
“BELLY OF THE BEAST”
“THE KNIGHT’S CODE”

BEST STORYBOARDING - TV/MEDIA

“GLUE”
BEST VOICE ACTING - TV/MEDIA
“BAD TRAVELLING” Fred Tatsciore as Bang
BEST FX - TV/MEDIA
BEST WRITING - TV/MEDIA
“JIBARO”
“THE VERY PULSE OF THE MACHINE”
BEST STORYBOARDING - TV/MEDIA
BEST INDIE FEATURE
Charlotte - January Films Ltd., Balthazar Inu-Oh - Asmik Ace / Science SARU / Distributed by GKIDS
Productions, and Walking the Dog
Little Nicholas, Happy As Can Be -

On Classics (Mediawan) / Bidibul Productions
Marcel the Shell with Shoes On - My Father’s Dragon -

Marcel the Movie LLC Cartoon Saloon for Netflix

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio - Netflix Presents A Puss in Boots: The Last Wish -
Double Dare You! Film / A Shadowmachine Production DreamWorks Animation
in association with The Jim Henson Company
The Sea Beast - Netflix
Turning Red - Pixar Animation Studios Wendell & Wild - Netflix Presents A Monkeypaw
Production / A Gotham Group Production

You’re invited to join ASIFA-Hollywood! Whether Animation Aid Foundation and
you’re a professional in the industry, a student Community Allocation Programs
wanting to get into the business, or just someone who Each year, funds are set aside to
loves animation, an ASIFA membership is right for you! help members of our animation
community in need. Over the
ASIFA-Hollywood is a California 501(c)(3) non profit past several years, we have also
organization established nearly fifty years ago established new funding to help
to promote and encourage the art and craft of pay for scholarships and grants,
animation. To achieve this purpose, ASIFA-Hollywood via our Educators Forum, as well
is dedicated to striving for the following goals: as funding for animation preservation,
open source initiatives, financial support for ASIFA-
• Support and encourage animation education International and more subsidies for our own year-
• Support the preservation and critical evaluation round events.
of animation industry
• Recognize achievement of excellence in the art Members’ Screenings and Events
and field of animation Throughout the year members are invited to special
• Increase the public awareness of animation screenings of the latest animated features and
• Act as a liaison to encourage the free exchange broadcast series, often featuring an informative
of ideas within the animation community Q & A with the filmmakers. Other screenings are
• Encourage journalism documenting current trends often programs you cannot see anywhere else.
and activities in animation Presentations include rare animated features, anime,
• Encourage the social interaction of professional tributes to individual animators, the best of Annecy,
and non–professional animation enthusiasts Zagreb, Ottawa and other international festivals.
• Encourage the development and expression ASIFA-Hollywood also presents panel discussions
of all forms of animation celebrating past animation classics as well as
educational symposiums aimed at both the
To achieve these objectives, ASIFA-Hollywood student and the professional.
sponsors the following programs and projects:
Membership Categories
Annie Awards We invite you to join ASIFA-Hollywood, and to
Since 1972, ASIFA-Hollywood has hosted an participate in the various activities that we have
annual awards ceremony to honor individuals to offer, whether attending an event or volunteering
who have made significant contributions to the “behind the scenes.” Membership is available in the
art of animation. Originally designed to honor the following packages:
lifetime achievements of legendary veterans of
the field, the Annie Awards now recognizes the Professional Membership ($150/year) individual,
year’s best animated features, broadcast media corporate individual and out of US
productions, commercials, short subjects and
outstanding individual achievements in the field of Associate Membership ($45/year) studio support
animation. Qualified members participate in the and enthusiasts
nomination process and final voting. The Annie
Awards are regarded as animation’s highest honor, Student Membership ($45/year for two years)
and the ceremony is one of ASIFA-Hollywood’s most individuals currently enrolled as full time students
prestigious and elegant events.
Patron Membership ($200/year) professional only
ASIFA Film Preservation and Archives
Each year, ASIFA continues to restore and preserve
animation films that will otherwise be lost and also If you are working for one of our corporate member
works diligently in conjunction with the Academy of studios, check with your HR representative to see if
Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to professionally you can be added to their member list. Or you may
archive nearly forty years of collected feature join on your own by including the studio name
animation artifacts, dating back to the earliest days (subject to verification) on the enrollment form.
of our art form. We continue to search for a partner
to help us assess and conserve the television assets
and other broadcast materials we have collected HOW TO JOIN
and hope that we will also be able to revitalize our Register online at ASIFA-Hollywood.org/membership
digital archive efforts for the worldwide use of artists,
scholars and students.
Animation Educator’s Forum

The Animation Educator’s Forum is dedicated WE’RE ONLINE
to the preservation and promotion of animation You can find ASIFA-Hollywood and Annie Awards
through education. Our members, with their diverse on Twitter and Facebook.
backgrounds in both the animation and educational
fields, are focused on extending their knowledge and
experience to others within the burgeoning animation #Asifa-Hollywood #ASIFAHollywood
community, worldwide. The AEF is entering it’s eighth #AnnieAwards #AnnieAwards
cycle of Student Scholarships and has just completed
the fifth Faculty Grant Program as well.
Thank you to all the sponsors
of tonight’s 50th Annie Awards
PLATINUM SPONSORS
GOLD SPONSORS
SILVER SPONSORS
BRONZE SPONSORS
EDUCATIONAL/NONPROFIT
Local 839 IATSE

THE ASIFA-HOLLYWOOD
ANIMATION EDUCATORS FORUM
ASIFA-Hollywood’s Animation Educators Forum is dedicated to the preservation and promotion of animation
through education. Our growing international membership, with their diverse backgrounds in both the animation
and educational fields, are focused on extending their knowledge and experience to others within the worldwide
animation community. Thanks to the generous support of ASIFA-Hollywood, our volunteer organization is able to
offer scholarship and grant opportunities, host discussions about current topics of interest at various conferences
and events, and feature student work in the online Student Animation Showcase.
Our Student Scholarship program is designed to support students enrolled in accredited college animation
programs around the world, enabling students to complete animation projects, purchase essential equipment,
finalize/present theses, and conduct research in the field. Proposals are accepted from undergraduate students
entering sophomore through senior years and from graduate students working toward the completion of a thesis
or dissertation. In 2022, the Scholarship Committee awarded a total of $41,414 to seven undergraduate and four
graduate students from the United States and Europe. The awards of $1,800 to $5,000 supported a wide range
of animation projects including virtual reality, music, and screenwriting.
The AEF’s Faculty Grant program is designed to provide support to individuals or groups in the academic setting
for reasonable expenditures associated with research, scholarly activity, or creative projects in the field of
animation. For 2022 the Faculty Grant Committee awarded $12,012.50 to three faculty. The selected proposals
included support for research on a book titled Animated Voices: Vocal Performance in Disney and Pixar Feature
Animation, pre-production support for a 3-minute animated rock opera titled Hey Men, and post-production
support toward completion of an animated documentary film titled Disabled.
At the AEF’s General Membership Meeting in October, we held a discussion titled Teaching in the Dark. Directors
Jennifer Yuh-Nelson (Netflix’s Love, Death & Robots) and Stefan Frank (Marvel Studios’ What If...?) joined us to
consider how the prevalence of dark, dystopian stories in popular and award-winning shows may be influencing
what we see in classrooms.
The AEF also hosts panel discussions throughout the year. Although we were not physically present at SIGGRAPH
2022, we held an online Summertime Birds of a Feather Discussion presenting Strategies for Bridging History-
Theory-Practice Gaps in Animation Curricula. Led by Dr. Charles daCosta, participants considered how the history
of animation informs the present and can inevitably impact the future of the craft. At CTN eXpo 2022, Tom Sito
and Kathy Baur continued the discussion from the General Membership Meeting,
hosting a hybrid in-person and online event that focused more specifically on
sharing classroom experiences and meeting student needs in the seemingly dark
contemporary world outlook.
For the third year, the AEF and ASIFA-Hollywood presented their annual Student
Animation Showcase celebrating the intense study and dedication to the craft
exhibited by graduating students from college level animation programs around
the world. We are proud to continue to present this “first look” at the talent of
these graduates as they begin a career in the animation industry.
In the upcoming year we will strive to increase our membership and extend the
conversation to newer topics relevant to our ever-changing creative industry.
For more information about the AEF, please visit our newly revamped website:
animationeducatorsforum.org.

CONGRATS TO OUR
ANNIE AWARDS NOMINEES
Best Character
Design - Feature
Ida Hem
Best TV/Media
Children
Best Writing
TV/Media
Mitch Watson, Emily Brundige
Ben Lapides, Sarah Allan
Best TV/Media
Preschool
© 2023 Viacom International Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Congratulations
to all of this year’s
Annie Award nominees
We love what you set in motion!
Mall Stories is a Kikutowne

& Chromosphere Production
ANNIE Awards 2023 v10.indd 1 1/31/23 12:44 PM
C O N G R A T U L A T E S
ALL THE NOMINEES OF THE
5 0 TH A N N U A L A N N I E A W A R D S
Join us for our 5th Annual celebration of the arts

October 27-29, 2023
LightBoxExpo.com

50 Annie Awards Program

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Congratulations

to ASIFA-Hollywood, all the nominees

half a century of celebrating artistic excellence

50th ANNUAL ANNIE AWARDS 5

Au revoir Jérôme ! - Luce Grosjean Birdsong - Michelle Cheng

Synchronie Passagère - The Most Boring Granny in the The Soloists -

8 50th ANNUAL ANNIE AWARDS

Amok - Boddah, in co-production Black Slide - The Hive Studio, in

HATS OFF TO THIS YEAR’S NOMINEES

Guillermo del Toro Guy Davis

Mall Stories - Atilla the Grilla, Short Subject - Chromosphere / Kikutowne -

12 50th ANNUAL ANNIE AWARDS

Mad God - Tippett Studio - Phil Tippett

The Bad Guys - DreamWorks Animation - Luc Desmarchelier, Floriane Marchix

The Sea Beast - Netflix - Matthias Lechner, Jung Woonyoung

50th ANNUAL ANNIE AWARDS 13

50TH ANNIE AWARDS

BEST SPONSORED BEST STORYBOARDING

BEST FX BEST STORYBOARDING

universalpicturesawards.com © 2020 UNIVERSAL STUDIOS

BEST ANIMATED SPONSORED PRODUCTION

50th ANNUAL ANNIE AWARDS 15

Disney+/Walt Disney Animation Studios Disney+/Disney Branded Television

Disney+/Pixar Animation Studios JURIED AWARD

As always, we must change with the times as we continue to be driven by an ever-

Sue Shakespeare Frank Gladstone

50th ANNUAL ANNIE AWARDS 17

Recipient of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts &

18 50th ANNUAL ANNIE AWARDS

50th ANNUAL ANNIE AWARDS 19

20 50th ANNUAL ANNIE AWARDS

Mad God - Tippett Studio - Dan Wool

The Bad Guys - DreamWorks Animation - Daniel Pemberton

50th ANNUAL ANNIE AWARDS 21

Amphibia, Episode: The Hardest Thing - Disney TV Animation - Joe Sparrow

Entergalactic, Special Production - Netflix/Mad Solar/Khalabo Ink Society/Edelgang -

22 50th ANNUAL ANNIE AWARDS

Luck - Skydance LLC, Apple Original Films - Massimiliano Narciso

The Bad Guys - DreamWorks Animation - Taylor Krahenbuhl

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VFX REFERENCE PLATFORM

For more information, see vfxplatform.com.

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Through the studio, Tom set about working on a suite of freelancing

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It’s no exaggeration to say that John Billings’

John now works seven days a week in a 2,000-square-foot workshop

Today, John lives in a log cabin in the artists colony of Ridgcrest,

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Moss: Book II - Polyarc - Richard Lico

Potionomics - Voracious Games - Emily Lattanavong, Anguel Bogoev

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Entergalactic, Special Production - Netflix/Mad Solar/Khalabo Ink Society/Edelgang -

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The Bad Guys - DreamWorks Animation - Jorge Capote

The Bad Guys - DreamWorks Animation - Min Hong

Turning Red - Pixar Animation Studios - Teresa Falcone

Turning Red - Pixar Animation Studios - Eric Anderson

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 Guillermo del Toro Guy Davis