
Princess and the Frog

© Disney Enterprises, Inc. All
Rights Reserved.
www.Disney.com/PrincessAndTheFrog
WALT DISNEY PICTURES
Presents
THE PRINCESS
AND THE FROG

Directed by . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . JOHN MUSKER
RON CLEMENTS
Produced by. . . . . . . . . . . PETER DEL VECHO
Executive Producer. . . . . . . . JOHN LASSETER
Story by. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . RON CLEMENTS
& JOHN MUSKER
and GREB ERB
& JASON OREMLAND
Screenplayby . . . . . . . . . . . . RON CLEMENTS
& JOHN MUSKER
and ROB EDWARDS
Associate Producer. . . . . . . . . . . . CRAIG SOST

Original Songs and Score Composed
and Conducted by . . . . . . . RANDY NEWMAN
Production
Manager . . . . . . . . . . MONICA LAGO-KAYTIS
Editor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . JEFF DRAHEIM
Art Director . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IAN GOODING
Visual Effects
Supervisor . . . . . . . . . . . . . KYLE ODERMATT
Technical Supervisor . . KIMBERLY W. KEECH
Story Inspired in Part by
“The Frog Princess” by . . . . . . . . . E.D. BAKER
Executive Produced by. . . . . . . . . . . AGHI KOH

Artistic Supervisors
Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DON HALL
Layout. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . RASOUL AZADANI
Backgrounds . . . . . . SUNNY APINCHAPONG
Clean-up Animation . . . . . . . VERA PACHECO
Effects Animation. . . . . . . . . . MARLON WEST
Color Styling and
Compositing . . . . MARIA DOLORES GONZALEZ
Technical and
Artistic Support . . . . . . . . . . . GINA BRADLEY

Executive Music Producer. . . CHRIS MONTAN
Music Supervisor . . . . . TOM MACDOUGALL
“NEVER KNEW I NEEDED”
Written and Performed by NE-YO

Production
Supervisor. . . . . . . . . . . MICHELE MAZZANO
Production Designer . . JAMES AARON FINCH
Additional Art Direction. . . . . MIKE GABRIEL
Lighting Design . . . . . . . . RASOUL AZADANI
Supervising Sound Editor/
Sound Designer. . . . . . . . . . . . ODIN BENITEZ
Post Production
Executive . . . . . . . . . . BÉRÉNICE ROBINSON

STORY
Production Department
Manager . . . . . ANGELA FRANCES D’ANNA
Story Artists
PAUL BRIGGS RANDY CARTWRIGHT
TOM ELLERY KEVIN GOLLAHER
BRUCE MORRIS WILBERT PLIJNAAR
TOBY SHELTON JOSIE TRINIDAD

Story Apprentices . . . . . . NICOLE MITCHELL
JEREMY SPEARS
Production Assistant . . . . . . . . . . KELLY FEEG
Additional Story
Material by . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CHRIS URE

JARED STERN
DEAN WELLINS
Additional Source
Material by. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WILL CZAKLOS
RALPH EGGLESTON
CREDITS
1

CREDITS
EDITORIAL
Production Department
Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . KRISTEN KOLADA
First Assistant
Editor . . . MARGARET JOHNSON-HOLZENDORF
Second
Assistant Editor . . . . . . . DARRIAN M. JAMES
Dialogue Reader . . . HERMANN H. SCHMIDT
Production Assistant. . . . JEREMY COSTELLO
Casting by. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . JEN RUDIN, CSA
Additional Casting by . . . CURTIS A. KOLLER
Additional Casting—
New Orleans. . . . . . . . . . MARK FINCANNON

CAST
Tiana. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ANIKA NONI ROSE
Prince Naveen . . . . . . . . . . . BRUNO CAMPOS
Dr. Facilier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . KEITH DAVID
Louis . . . . . . . . . . MICHAEL-LEON WOOLEY
Charlotte . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . JENNIFER CODY
Ray. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . JIM CUMMINGS
Lawrence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PETER BARTLETT
Mama Odie. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . JENIFER LEWIS
Eudora. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OPRAH WINFREY
James . . . . . . . . . . . . . . TERRENCE HOWARD
“Big Daddy” La Bouff . . . . JOHN GOODMAN
Young Tiana . . . . . . . . ELIZABETH DAMPIER
Young Charlotte . . . . . . . BREANNA BROOKS
Reggie . . . . . . . . . . RITCHIE MONTGOMERY
Darnell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DON HALL
Two Fingers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PAUL BRIGGS
Mr. Henry Fenner . . . . . . . . . JERRY KERNION
Mr. Harvey Fenner . . . . . . . . COREY BURTON
Buford. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MICHAEL COLYAR
Marlon the Gator . . . . . . . . EMERIL LAGASSE
Ian the
Gator. . . . . KEVIN MICHAEL RICHARDSON
Cousin Randy. . . . . . . . . . . RANDY NEWMAN
Louis’ Trumpet
Playing. . . . . . . . . . . TERENCE BLANCHARD
Georgia . . . . . . . . DANIELLE MONE’ TRUITT

VISUAL DEVELOPMENT
Production Department
Managers . . . . . . . . . . . . . JAMES E. HASMAN
CHRISTOPHER KRACKER
Visual Development Artists
SUNNY APINCHAPONG CHRIS APPELHANS
ARMAND BALTAZAR LORELAY BOVE

CRAIG ELLIOTT JAMES AARON FINCH
LISA KEENE ED LI
SAI PING LOK JIM MARTIN
KELLY MCGRAW SUE NICHOLS
DOUGLAS ROGERS DOUG WALKER

STEVIE WERMERS-SKELTON
Character Design
BILL SCHWAB TOM ELLERY
ERIC GOLDBERG KEVIN GOLLAHER
RIK MAKI
Production Assistant . . . . . JENNIFER KILGER

LAYOUT
Production Department
Manager. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ROCCO PUCILLO
Animatic Supervisors . . . . RASOUL AZADANI
JEAN-CHRISTOPHE POULAIN
Layout Artists
JEAN-CHRISTOPHE POULAIN PETER J. DELUCA
JAMES ALLES ALFRED “TOPS” CRUZ
JASON HAND LAM HOANG
DANIEL HU BENOIT JEAN CLAUDE LE PENNEC
ASHLEY LENZ JULIO LEON
ROBERT J. ST. PIERRE ALLEN TAM
DOUG WALKER CHUNG SUP YOON
JENNIFER YUAN YONG ZHONG

CG Modeling . . . . . . . JON KIM KRUMMEL II
Layout Apprentices . . . . . . . PATRICK RAINES
CESARE ASARO

Scene Planning
THOMAS BAKER GEORGE “BINGO” FERGUSON
MARK HENLEY DAN C. LARSEN
RICHARD T. SULLIVAN
Production Assistants
JENNY BETTIS ALICE S. LIN

ANIMATION
Production Department Manager…TIM PAUER
—Tiana—
Supervising Animator . . . . . . . . . MARK HENN
Animators
YOSHIMICHI TAMURA ERIC WALLS
JOE OH TIM ALLEN

2
—Prince Naveen—
Supervising Animator . . . . RANDY HAYCOCK
Animators
RUSS EDMONDS SANDRO CLEUZO
BOB DAVIES RANDY CARTWRIGHT
ROBERTO ENZO CASALE RICHARD HOPPE
SAM MARIN PRISCILLANO A. ROMANILLOS

—Dr. Facilier—
Supervising Animator . . . . . BRUCE W. SMITH
Animators
JAMES LOPEZ FRANS VISCHER
DEAN WELLINS

—Louis—
Supervising Animator . . . . . ERIC GOLDBERG
Animators
BERT KLEIN HYUN-MIN LEE
—Charlotte—
Supervising Animator . . . . . . . . . NIK RANIERI
Animators
DANNY GALIEOTE JIN KIM
JARED BECKSTRAND
—Ray—
Supervising Animator . . . MICHAEL SURREY
Animators
DALE L. BAER BRIAN FERGUSON
MICHAEL SHOW
—Lawrence—
Supervising Animator. . . ANTHONY DEROSA
Animators
BILL WALDMAN MATT WILLIAMÊS
—Mama Odie and Juju—
Supervising Animator . . . . . . ANDREAS DEJA
Animator . . ANDREAS WESSEL-THERHORN
—Eudora and James—
Supervising
Animator . . . . . . . . RUBEN AZAMA AQUINO
—“Big Daddy” La Bouff—
Supervising
Animator . . . . . . DUNCAN MARJORIBANKS
—Frog Hunters—
Lead Animator . . . . . . . . . . . . . DALE L. BAER
—Fenner Brothers—
Lead Animator . . . . . . . . . . SANDRO CLEUZO
—Mob Shadows—
Lead Animator. . . . . . . ALEX KUPERSHMIDT
—Masks / Voodoo Dolls / Band—
Lead Animator . . . . . . T. DANIEL HOFSTEDT
—Marcel and Stella—
Lead Animator . . . . . . . . . . . RUSS EDMONDS
—Buford and Spoonbills—
Lead Animator. . . . . . . . . . . ADAM DYKSTRA
—Ray’s Family—
Lead Animator . . . . . . . . . BRIAN FERGUSON
—Butterflies and Swooning Girls—
Lead Animator . . . . . . . . . . . MICHAEL SHOW
—Tap Dancing Kid—
Lead Animator. . . . . . . . . . . . . . JAMES LOPEZ
—Miscellaneous Characters—
Supervising Animator . . . . . ERIC GOLDBERG
Apprentice Animators
SARAH AIRRIESS MARIO FURMANCZYK
JENNIFER HAGER MINKYU LEE
Rough In-Betweeners
ERIK FOUNTAIN TODD JACOBSEN
MIYUKI KANNO LONG JOE PITT
JULES SOTO WES SULLIVAN
DESTINY WOOD
—Tiana’s Fantasy Sequence—
Animation Supervisor . . . . . ERIC GOLDBERG
Color and Design
SUE NICHOLS LORELAY BOVE
DOUG WALKER
Animators
SANDRO CLEUZO BERT KLEIN
HYUN-MIN LEE FRANS VISCHER
BILL WALDMAN
Technical Lead . . . . . . . . . . . . ERIC DANIELS
CREDITS
3
CREDITS
Follow-Up
ERIK FOUNTAIN TODD JACOBSEN
JOE PITT
Character
Sculptures . . . . . . . RAFFAELLO VECCHIONE
Production Assistant . . . . ALLISON NORMAN
CLEAN-UP ANIMATION
Production Department
Manager . . . . . . . . . . . NATHAN MASSMANN
—Tiana—
Lead Key. . . . . . . . . . . RACHEL RENEE BIBB
Keys
CLAUDIA KEENE KELLIE D. LEWIS
HELEN MICHAEL TREVOR TAMBOLINE
Assistants
DAN BOWMAN INNA CHON
NICOLA-JANE COURTNEY LEE DUNKMAN
CYNTHIA JILL FRENCH MILLET HENSON
MYUNG KANG SUSAN LANTZ
JAN NAYLOR NATASHA DUKELSKI SELFRIDGE
EUNICE (EUN OK) YU
—Prince Naveen—
Lead Key. . . . . . . JULIET STROUD-DUNCAN
Assistant. . . . . . . . . . . . . RICHARD D. ROCHA
—Frog Naveen—
Lead Key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DAN TANAKA
Key . . . . . . MARCIA KIMURA DOUGHERTY
Assistants . . . . . . . DIETZ TOSHIO ICHISHITA
YOON SOOK NAM
—Dr. Facilier—
Lead Key . . . . . . . . . . . . . TRACY MARK LEE
Key. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . TAIK LEE
—Louis—
Lead Key. . . . . . . . . . . . . JUNE M. FUJIMOTO
Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . EMILY JIULIANO
BRETT NEWTON
—Charlotte—
Lead Key. . . . . . MARGIE WRIGHT DANIELS
Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ERIC PIGORS
LURELINE WEATHERLY
—Ray—
Lead Key. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GINNY PARMELE
Assistants. . PATRICIA ANN BILLINGS-MALONE
ELIZABETH S. WATASIN
—Lawrence—
Lead Key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . LIEVE MIESSEN
Assistant. . . . . . . MARGARET “MAC” SPADA
—Mama Odie / Juju / Frog Hunters—
Lead Key. . . . . . . . . . KATHLEEN M. BAILEY
Assistant. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . JODY KOOISTRA
—Eudora / James / “Big Daddy” La Bouff—
Lead Key. . . . . . . . . . . . MARIANNE TUCKER
Assistants . . DEBRA ARMSTRONG-HOLMES
RAYMOND FLORES FABULAR
—Miscellaneous Characters—
Lead Key. . . . . . . . . . . . . JUNE M. FUJIMOTO
Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NANCY KNIEP
DONALD PARMELE
MARSHALL LEE TOOMEY
Assistant . . . . . . BRIGITTE FRANZKA-FRITZ
Production Assistants. . . . . ELISSA SUSSMAN
RACHEL ILLOWSKY
MIKE HUANG
EFFECTS ANIMATION
Production Department
Manager . . . . . . . . CHRISTOPHER KRACKER
Effects Animators
ROBERT BENNETT ALLEN BLYTH
TED KIERSCEY DAN LUND
JAMES DEV. MANSFIELD MAURO MARESSA
MARK MYER MASA OSHIRO
PHILLIP D. VIGIL DAVID (JOEY) MILDENBERGER
Effects Animating Assistants
VIRGILIO JOHN AQUINO JAY BAKER
KIMBERLY BURK FELIPE CERDÁN
GEOFFREY C. EVERTS NOÉ GARCIA
ELIZABETH HOLMES JEFF HOWARD
DAVID MICHAEL KCENICH DAVID LEE
JOHN MACFARLANE MATTHEW MANERS
CYNTHIA NEILL KNIZEK VAN SHIRVANIAN
AMANDA J. TALBOT
Production
Assistant . . . . ARIA EVANGELINE STEWART
4
BACKGROUNDS
Production Department
Manager. . . . . . . . . . . . . . JAMES E. HASMAN
Background Artists
DOUG BALL JAMES GALLEGO
MICHAEL HUMPHRIES LISA KEENE
ANN LEE SAI PING LOK
JERRY LOVELAND KELLY MCGRAW
GREG MILLER DONNA PRINCE
DAN READ LEONARD ROBLEDO
WEI ZHAO
Assistant Background Artist. . . . . YOUA VANG
Background Retouch Artist . . . . JEFF TURLEY
Production Assistant . . . . . JENNIFER KILGER
COLOR STYLING AND COMPOSITING
Production Department
Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . HOLLYE. BRATTON
Model Development/
Color Compositing . . . . . . BRANDON BLOCH
BARBARA LYNN HAMANE
Color Stylists / Compositors
SYLVIA FILCAK-BLACKWOLF HEIDI FRIESE
ALISON JOTA SARAH-JANE KING
FRANCES KUMASHIRO ANN MARIE SORENSEN
CLAIRE WILLIAMS JAISON DUELL WILSON
Final Check
CAROL S. BERKE TERI N. MCDONALD
DAN C. LARSEN
Ink and Paint
RUSSELL BLANDINO PHYLLIS ESTELLE FIELDS
PATRICIA L. GOLD LESLIE HINTON
DAVID KARP LISA MARIE LEONARDI-KNIGHT
BETH S. MORRIS
Production
Assistant . . . . . JENNIFER “TED” NEWFIELD
TECHNICAL AND ARTISTIC SUPPORT
Production Department
Manager . . . . . . . KRISTIN LEIGH YADAMEC
Technical Directors
ROSS BLOCHER . . . . . . . . . . ERIC DANIELS
DARRIN DREW . . . . . . LOUIE C. JHOCSON
TODD LAPLANTE . . . . . DAVID SCARPITTI
WALT STURROCK . . . . RICHARD TURNER
Assistant Technical
Directors . . . . . . . . . . . EDWARD “TED” BOYKE
DENNIS MATTHEW JOHNSON
JOSUE PEREZ-FIGUEROA
BENJAMIN CHRISTOPHER SAKAI
Animation Check
SUSAN BURKE GEORGE “BINGO” FERGUSON
HELEN O’FLYNN EDWIN SHORTESS
RICHARD T. SULLIVAN
Scanners
DAVID JOHN DUFF MICHAEL ALAN MCFERREN
EDWIN SHORTESS
Pre-Production Technical
Supervisor. . . . . . . . . TARA HANDY TURNER
Production Software Development
DAVID M. ADLER DALE BECK
LAWRENCE CHAI JOHN ROBERT PERRY
Production Assistant. . . . JEREMY COSTELLO
VIDEO REFERENCE
Production Department
Manager. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . LORRY ANN SHEA
Choreographer of
Video Reference. . . . . . . . . . . BETSY BAYTOS
Video Reference Camera. . . . AL M. VASQUEZ
DAVID DUDLEY WILLIS
Video Reference
Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . MICHELLE LAVIGNE
Video Reference Actors
DANIELLE MONE’ TRUITT JEREMY HUDSON
BRIANA FEEHAN JENNIFER KILGER
Primary Dancers
DOMINIQUE KELLEY SHARI BUTLER
KIMO KEOKE CHARLOTTE JORGENSON
JOHNATHAN ATKINSON JEREMY HUDSON
DAVID CARMON JESSE CASPER BROWN
Miscellaneous Dancers
JERMAINE JOHNSON SEAN SCOTT
JOHN SCOTT DIONNE FIGGINS
JENNIFER PERRY JOSETTE WIGGAN
MALLAURI ESQUIBEL MEISHA LEE
Additional Reference . . . . . . . EDDIE BAYTOS
End Credit Animation
Lead Artist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . JOE PITT
Color and Design. . . . . . . . . . LORELAY BOVE
Concept Boards . . . . . . . . . . JEREMY SPEARS
ERIC DANIELS
MARIO FURMANCZYK
DAVID (JOEY) MILDENBERGER
ALLISON NORMAN
CREDITS
5
CREDITS
PRODUCTION
Production Finance
Lead . . . . . . . . JANELLE O’BRIEN SAMPLES
Production Finance Analyst . . JOHN D. ROPER
Assistant Production
Accountant . . . . FRANK WILLIAM KNITTEL, JR.
Administrative Manager . . . . . . . . VICKI CASE
Sweatbox / Braintrust Department
Manager. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . LORRY ANN SHEA
Assistant Manager, Production
Communication . . . SHANDA M. WILLIAMSON
Assistant to the Producer . . . . . . . ERIN SENGE
Assistant to the
Directors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . DUSTIN STERLING
Sweatbox / Braintrust Production
Assistant. . . . . . . . . . . . BROOKE RANDOLPH
ADDITIONAL VOICES
KEITH ANTHONY KWESI BOAKYE
ROGER AARON BROWN JUNE CHRISTOPHER
DAVID COWGILL PETER DEL VECHO
TERRI DOUGLAS JEFF DRAHEIM
ROB EDWARDS EDDIE FRIERSON
AL HEBRON BRIDGET HOFFMAN
KELLIE HOOVER RIF HUTTON
WOLFGANG WESLEY HUTTON MARGARET JOHNSON-HOLZENDORF
JOHN KASSIR JENNIFER KILGER
MONA MARSHALL JOHN MUSKER
ALLISON NORMAN PHILIP PROCTOR
PETER RENADAY LYNWOOD ROBINSON
KIMBERLY RUSSELL LORRY ANN SHEA
BRUCE W. SMITH ELISSA SUSSMAN
FRED TATASCIORE CLAUDETTE WELLS
MARLON WEST JOE WHYTE
SETH R. WILLIAMSON SHANDA M. WILLIAMSON
SHANE R. WILLIAMSON MICK WINGERT
PARTNER STUDIOS
Yowza Animation Inc.
Studio Head . . . . . . . . . . CLAUDE CHIASSON
Executive Producer . . . . . . . PETE DENOMME
Production Manager . . . . . PIERRE CHIASSON
Clean-up Assistants . . . JAMES MCCRIMMON
MIKE DEMUR
Clean-up Department
DEBORAH AHEE YOUNG-MI BAE
KYUNG HEE BAKER ROBERT BARTON
JEE CHAN BAYLIS-SEO ANDRE BEAULNE
ROSE BIVIENS MANEERAT BUNCHOO
CHRISTINA BUTTERFIELD JANINE CHO
YEON-TAE CHOI ROWENA CRUZ
RICH DRAPER FABIOLA FILETTI
CERISSA GRIEVE ALEJANDRO GUTIERREZ
MYUNG HEE HEO MICHELLE HOUSTON
GLORIA HSU BRAD HUGHES
MATTHEW KALINAUSKAS WERONIKA KAPELANSKA
SANDY KELLERMAN MIN HYE KIM
ANNE L’ECUYER MI-YOUNG LEE
BEV LEHMAN MICHELLE MACDOUGALL
BORIS MARAS DEANNA MARSIGLIESE
RON MIGLIORE MIKE MILLIGAN
ADRIANO MONDALA JOHN MORGAN
PAUL MOTA KENNY NG
HILARY PHILLIPS HONG QI
VITTORIA QUANE MARIO RICHARD
ROYSTON ROBINSON CILBUR ROCHA
NEDENIA ROCHA MAUREEN SHELLEAU
JOEY SO KAREN STEPHENSON
WENDO VAN ESSEN NICK WATSON
LYNN YAMAZAKI SEUNG-GWAN YANG
AFFEE YEP SEUNG SOO Y UN
AMANDA ZIMA
Effects
Effects Supervisor . . . . . . . . . . . DAN TURNER
Effects Department
SEAN BRANIGAN RON CHEVARIE
LORENZO DEL BIANCO JENNIFER DUCZMAL
NATALIE GARCEAU-TURNER LOUISE KINER
IAN D. MAH KEVIN MCGIBBON
SADAF SYEDA MULTANI SHANNON PENNER
Head of Ink and Paint/
Composite . . . . . . . SONYA HASSAN-CAREY
Head of Clean-up
Composite . . . . . . . . . DAMIAN TEMPORALE
DEVIN WAGNER
Ink and Paint
Supervisor . . . . . . . . CHRISTINE O’CONNOR
Continuity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . KEMAL ALLY
Coordinators . . . . . . . . MICHELLE LEDESMA
BEAU PARSONS
6
Ink and Paint
MICHELLE BEAUREGARD TRUDY BINDER
MARIA BOYLAN NIGEL CAREY
DAVE CHAPMAN LINCOLN EARLLS
KEITH GRACHOW ROCHELLE HUGH-SAM
KATIE HUSAK JESSIE ILHAM
DON KENNEDY QIN LENG
ANNA LI LYNDA LYONS
JOANNE MERRILL NASSRIN MONEM
DOLORES MOREIRA KEN NG
OLEH PRUS ANNE SHEPSTONE
GORD SINCLAIR ANDREW SMITH
MARYLA STRACZYNSKI TRISTAN TEMPORALE
HSIAO MEI TSAO CANDICE WARE
MICHAEL WESTMAN SEAN WICKETT
Information Technology
CEFERINO ASIDO ANDREW KLAASSEN
Premise Entertainment
Head of Production. . . DOMINIC M. CAROLA
Production Manager . . . . . KIMBERLEY COPE
Artistic Coordinator . . . . . . . PAM M. DARLEY
Clean-up Artists
MONICA M. MCDONALD MI YUL LEE
BRYAN M. SOMMER JAMES A. HARRIS
Clean-up In-Betweeners
JASON PELTZ JANELLE BELL-MARTIN
TERESITA QUEZADA-GEER PETER RAYMUNDO
JOEL BISKE LON SMART
JOHN J. PIERRO MERRITT F. ANDREWS
CHAD THOMPSON MAURILIO MORALES
JACQUELINE SHEPHERD PIERRO
Head of
Backgrounds. . . DAVID (YING GUANG) WANG
Background Artist. . . . . . . . . DAVID MURRAY
Additional Background Artists
CHARLES R. VOLLMER BARRY R. KOOSER
ROBERT STANTON
Head of Effects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . TONY WEST
Effects Artists
ENOC CASTANEDA JR. GARRETT J. WREN
Scanning / Ink and Paint . . . . PAUL R. STEELE
Ink and Paint
LAURA LYNN RIPPBERGER MAC MASTERS
PAULO R. ALVARADO TY SCHAFRATH
RON COHEE
Assistant
Production Manager . . . . . . . . . . . RON BETTA
Head of Production
Finance . . . . . . . . . IRIS TOINETTE PEARSON
Head of Production
Resources. . . . . . . . . . . MARY KAY HASELEY
Production
Accountant . . JOAN MACKENZIE-TURGEON
Production Coordinator. . . JASON P. HOPKINS
Technology Support. . . . . . . . . . . WADE LOWE
Special Thanks
TAO HUU NGUYEN THOMAS THORSPECKEN
HUGO J. GIRAUD COLLAZO KENNETH SPIRDUSO
HGN Produções
Studio
Head. . . . . . . HAROLDO GUIMARÃES NETO
Production
Manager . . . . BEATRICE HOTZ VON SYDOW
Clean-up
Supervisors . . . AUGUSTO BORGES BASTOS
ROBERT SPRATHOFF
Clean-up
Department . . . . . ANA PAULA INDALÊNCIO
BENEDITO ANTONIO DE OLIVEIRA SILVA
EVANILDO PEREIRA
FABIANA ASAI ROMANI
FABIO EIJI SIRASUMA
FABRICIO PRETTI
GENOVIZ PAGANI
GLORIA COSTA
GUSTAVO ARDITO TEIXEIRA
ISRAEL OLIVEIRA DOS SANTOS
JEFFERSON BARBOSA GOMES BASTIDA
JOÃO GUARCHE
LEONARDO MATSUDA
MARCIO J. LIMA
MAURILIO AUGUSTO
PAULO IGNEZ
PAULO FRADINHO
REINALDO KEINTIRO YAMADA
ROBSON MENEZES DOS SANTOS
RODRIGO ESTRAVINI
ROGERIO FERRAZ DA SILVA
ROSINALDO J. LAGES
SAMUEL SATHLER
TATHIANA SCHORR
VAGNER FARIAS
Ink and Paint
Supervisor . . . . SHEILA MAKI DE MORAES E MIRANDA
CREDITS
7
CREDITS
Ink and Paint
Department . . . . . . . . ALEXANDRE KOYAMA
ANTONIO C. S. JUNIOR
ANTONIO LINHARES
CARLOS EDUARDO ROSENFELD GONÇALVES
CAROLINE FRAGA PENTEADO
CHAN TONG YUN
DANIEL DE OLIVEIRA
DIANA YOUN
ERIC HONDA
FERNANDA DE ALBUQUERQUE
FLAVIO RAPHAEL TRAMBUSTI
GABRIEL DE AZEVÊDO NEVES
GABRIEL NAVARRO CINTAS
LEONARDO REITANO
LUCIANA VANUCCHI DE FARIAS
LUCIANO DE ALBUQUERQUE ARAUJO
LUIZ GUSTAVO LADISLAU PETRONILHO
MARCOS FARIAS
PAULA MAGRINI URBINATI
PRISCILLA DE B. VERTAMATTI
RAQUEL G. OLIVEIRA
VIVIAN CORRAL
Production Assistant. . . DANIELA MACHADO
ADDITIONAL PRODUCTION SUPPORT
DOUGLAS ADDY BRETT BOGGS
AMY CHUNG IAN COONY
PAUL FELIX KELLIE HOOVER
JESSICA JULIUS MIKE KING
PAUL LANUM MAGGIE MALONE
DANIEL MCHUGH DAVID MOOY
LYDIA PAWESKI BARDO S. RAMIREZ
LEWIS N. SIEGEL PENELOPE THORNTON
LISA WEBSTER
MUSIC
“Down In New Orleans”
Performed by Dr. John
“Almost There” and “Almost There Reprise”
Performed by Anika Noni Rose
“Friends On The Other Side”
Performed by Keith David
“When We’re Human”
Performed by Michael-Leon Wooley,
Bruno Campos, Anika Noni Rose
Featuring Terence Blanchard
“Gonna Take You There”
Performed by Jim Cummings
Featuring Terrance Simien
“Ma Belle Evangeline”
Performed by Jim Cummings
“Dig A Little Deeper”
Performed by Jenifer Lewis
Featuring The Pinnacle Gospel Choir
“Down In New Orleans (Prologue and Finale)”
Performed by Anika Noni Rose
“Never Knew I Needed”
Produced by Chuck Harmony
Co-Produced by Ne-Yo
Recorded by Bei Maejor
Assisted by Chris Utley
Mixed by Kevin “KD” Davis
Ne-Yo appears courtesy of
The Island Def Jam Music Group
Original Songs
Produced by. . . . . . . . . . . MITCHELL FROOM
Original Score
Produced by. . . . . . . . . . . MITCHELL FROOM
and RANDY NEWMAN
Original Songs and Score Recorded
and Mixed by . . . . . . . . . . . DAVID BOUCHER
Orchestrations by . . . . . . . JONATHAN SACKS
and RANDY NEWMAN
Music Production Director . . . ANDREW PAGE
Song Music Editor . . . . . . . . EARL GHAFFARI
Score Music Editor. . . . . . . . . . BRUNO COON
Source Music Composed by . . . DAN HIGGINS
Music Business
Affairs . . . . . . . . . . . . . DONNA COLE-BRULÉ
Music Production
Coordinator . . . . . . . . . . . . . ASHLEY CHAFIN
Executive Music Assistant . . . . JILL HEFFLEY
Music Production
Assistant . . . . . . . . . . . . SIOBHAN SULLIVAN
Music Contracted by . . SANDY DECRESCENT
and PETER ROTTER
8
Additional Music
Contracting by . . . . . . . . . . . REGGIE WILSON
Song Music Preparation
by. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BOOKER WHITE—
WALT DISNEY MUSIC
Score Music Preparation
by . . . . . . . . JO ANN KANE MUSIC SERVICE
Vocal Coaching. . . . . . . . . . . . . . SAM KRIGER
EUGENE GWOZDZ
LYLE HENDERSON
Assistant to Mr. Newman. . . . . . DEREK ZHAO
Additional
Music Direction by . . . . . . . . MICHAEL ROTH
Additional Recording by . . . . . . FRANK WOLF
“Dippermouth Blues”
Written by . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . JOSEPH OLIVER
“Cajun Love Song”
Written by. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . LEON RUSSELL
PRODUCTION RESOURCES
Production Deployment. . . . CAROLYN SOPER
Admin Manager . . . . . . . . . . KELSI TAGLANG
Production Resource
Manager. . . . . . . . . . . . JASON HINTZ LLOPIS
Digital Art Specialist . . . . . . . KENT GORDON
Production Support PA . . . . . . . TOM POWELL
POST PRODUCTION
Post Production Supervisor . . BRENT W. HALL
Post Production
Coordinator. . . . . . . . . . . . . BRIAN MILLMAN
Original Dialogue Mixers . . . . . . . . DOC KANE
GABRIEL GUY
BILL HIGLEY
Sound Services. . . . . . STUDIO 8 SOUND LLC
BUENA VISTA SOUND
Re-Recording
Mixers. . . . . . . . . . . . DAVID E. FLUHR C.A.S.
DEAN ZUPANCIC
Dialogue / ADR Supervisor . . . . G. W. BROWN
Supervising Foley Editor . . . . . . . TODD TOON
Sound Effects Editors . . . . JEFFREY SAWYER
GREG HEDGEPATH, M.P.S.E.
ARTIE FARKAS
Dialogue / ADR
Editors . . CHRISTOPHER T. WELCH, M.P.S.E.
CHARLES W. RITTER
First Assistant
Sound Editor . . . . . . . . PERNELL L. SALINAS
Foley Artists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . JOHN ROESCH
ALYSON DEE MOORE
Foley Mixer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MARY JO LANG
Foley Editor . . . . . . WILLARD OVERSTREET
Mix Technician . . . . . . . . . . . BRIAN DINKINS
ADR Group Voice Casting . TERRI DOUGLAS
Digital Imaging
Specialist . . . . . . . . . . . . ROBERTH. BAGLEY
Digital
Intermediate Colorist . . . . . . PAUL BRONKAR
Domestic Film Color Timer . . . . . JIM PASSON
International Film Color
Timer . . . . . . . . . . . . . CHRIS DELAGUARDIA
End Title Designer. . . . . . . . . . . . MARY HOGG
Transfer Room/
Theater Operator . . . . LUTZNER RODRIGUEZ
FILM AND DIGITAL SERVICES
Director. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . JOE JIULIANO
Assistant Manager . . SUZY ZEFFREN-RAUCH
Supervisor. . . . . . . . . . . . WILLIAM FADNESS
Technical
Supervisor . . . . . . . . . CHRISTOPHER W. GEE
Digital Camera
Operators. . . . . . . . . . . . . REZA LIZ KASRAVI
DAVID BOOTH
Coordinator. . . . . . . PATRICIA ADEFOLAYAN
TECHNOLOGY
Director of Technology . . . . . . DAN CANDELA
FROG Technology Strike Team
MARK R. CARLSON JAMES P. HURRELL
GENE S. LEE MICHAEL D. KLIEWER
CHRISTOPHER D. MIHALY KIMBERLY M. RIOS
MATTHEW SCHNITTKER MARYANN SIMMONS
TAMARA VALDES TERENCE WORLEY
Animation Technology
Technology Manager . . . . . . . . ERICK MILLER
BRAD BROOKS SEAN CURTIS
BRENDAN DUNCAN EVAN GOLDBERG
CATHERINE LAM CHUNG-AN ANDY LIN
ESAN MANDAL ALEXANDRE TORIJA-PARIS
DMITRIY PINSKIY PETER Z. TIPTON
JUSTIN WALKER
CREDITS
9
CREDITS
Infrastructure
Technology Manager . . . . . KEVIN GAMBREL
DAVID AGUILAR GINA Y. CHEN
MARGARET ANN DECKER PAUL HILDEBRANDT
HIDE A. HIRASE G. KEVIN MORGAN
URI OKRENT WENDY M. TAM
SCOTT S. TEREK TRUONG VO
JON Y. WADA TOMAS A. WONG
Look / EFX / Dynamics
Technology Manager . . . . . ARTHUR H. SHEK
BRENT BURLEY ELENA DRISKILL
DYLAN LACEWELL MARK A. MCLAUGHLIN
ANDY MILNE ANDREW SELLE
SHINGO JASON TAKAGI DANIEL TEECE
THOMAS V. THOMPSON II KELLY WARD
YING LIU
Media Engineering
Technology Manager . . . . . . . . . . RON GILLEN
Principal Software Engineer . . . TODD SCOPIO
WILLIAM T. CARPENTER YUN-PO PAUL FAN
JOHN LONGHINI JOSEPH W. LONGSON
EUGENE STRULYOV ROY TURNER
HOWARD WILCZYNSKI LISA S. YOUNG
AOHAN ZHAO
Production Development / IxD
Technology Manager. . . . . . JANET E. BERLIN
BRETT ACHORN TINA PEDIGO BROOKS
RICHARD N. KANNO MATTHEW E. LEVINE
JOSEPH M. LOHMAR THADDEUS P. MILLER
STEFAN LUKA RAJESH SHARMA
BRIAN WHERRY
Production Engineering
Technology
Manager . . . . . . . . . . . JONATHAN E. GEIBEL
JAMES COLBY BETTE HANK BARRIO
SCOTT BURRIS KEVIN C. CONSTANTINE
CARLOS C. ESTIANDAN ERIC N. GARCIA
THOMAS GREER MARC JORDAN
TINA H.T. LEE STUART MCDOUGAL
ALAN A. PATEL AARON SANTEE
PAUL TAKAHASHI MATT WATSON
DEREK E.WILSON
Systems
Technology Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . JEFF KING
RICHARD BOMBERGER STEVEN C. CARPENTER
TOM CORRIGAN DAVID PATRICK FLYNN
AARON J. GREUSEL JAY HILLIARD
RONALD L. JOHNSON FREDERICK LACAYANGA
BHAVESH LAD JAMES MACBURNEY
MICHAEL A. MCCLURE GREG NEAGLE
STEVEN SEED ZACHARY STOKES
DOUG WHITE
Technical Support
Technology
Manager . . . . . . . . . . SHANNON R. HOWARD
NATALIE ACOSTA PETER LEE CHUN
VINCE D’AMORE MICHAEL DOBSON
MICHAEL M. FUKUMOTO LEO GULLANO
DANNY JEWELL NAVNEIL KUMAR
CHRIS LOZANO JOHN READICK
IOANNIS L. TSANGARIS GRACE H. SHIRADO
Technology
Assistant Manager . . . . . DAYNA B. MELTZER
DISNEY SENIOR STAFF
ED CATMULL ANDY HENDRICKSON
ANN LE CAM JOHN I. MCGUIRE
ANDREW MILLSTEIN ALI ROWGHANI
CAMERON WALKER KRISTINA REED
Development
DOROTHY MCKIM KATHY BOND
SUSIE COFFER JENNIFER MAGEE-COOK
BRYAN DAVIDSON KATHERINE RAMOS
JAMIE SPARER ROBERTS, CSA
Marketing
DONALD EVANS CAROL NICOLAU
JOE DUNN JESSICA HALLOCK
EMILY HOPPE DALE ANN KENNEDY
TIA MELL JULIA ORR
ANGELA SABETTA SHARON QUAN
DAVID BESS ERIC ELROD
Consumer Products
MARY BEECH KATHY FRANKLIN
REGAN FORMAN RENATO LATTANZI
BRIAN SIEGEL GEORGE MCCLEMENTS
ROGER MILLER HEATHER OSTER
LISA RUDOLPH VICTORIA SAXON
LEIGHANNA MACFADDEN
10
Finance
JEFF RUGGELS JULIANNE HALE
ROWENA BARCELONA-NUQUI BONNIE HOLMOE HAYS
KIM LAPAGE LINDA Y. MATSUOKA
COLIN KING MILLER DEBORAH L. RILEY
BRANDEN L. ROBERTS EDEN SERINA
JENNIFER MORGAN SHOEMAKER LISAMARIE WORLEY
Business and Legal Affairs
GUS AVILA CHRISTINE CHRISMAN
MELODIE CROSSLEY JERI HOWARD
EDWIN KHANBEIGI ANGELA ONTIVEROS
Human Resources and Animation Resources
BRANDY CONTRERAS CHANTAL BECK BUMGARNER
SCOTT CAMPBELL GINGER WEI-HSIEN CHEN
JACQUELYN GOLOMB-PEREZ ALISON MANN
LARA MCLAUGHLIN KATHERINE QUINTERO
MATT ROBERTS DENISE IRWIN STASTNY
Talent Development
DAWN RIVERA-ERNSTER PATRICIA BECKMAN
TRACY BOVASSO CAMPBELL SEAN GOLDMAN
JAMES LAVRAKAS MELISSA ROBERTS
DEB STONE
The Academy
TENNY CHONIN BRITTON CARDUCCI
LORI HAMMOND ARNO KRONER
ARTHUR LEE BOB MORGAN
WALT STURROCK ERIK VANHORN
Employee Services
NANCY EVANS MELISSA COLE FANFASSIAN
Operations
CHRISTOPHER HIBLER TANJA KNOBLICH
CHARLINE F. BOYER JENN CORRIGAN
JESSICA DEARBORN PAMELA ANN DUGAN
RANDY FUKUDA MARTY PRAGER
EDUARDO RUIZ KEVIN WALDVOGEL-DEMONACO
BENNY DE FRANCO BARRY BRYSMAN
REY CERVANTES KEN LEWIS
BRUCE PARKER
Technology Admin
MELISSA BADA DAWN HALLORAN CHAROUHAS
JOHN DANKO
Research and Development
JOE MARKS JAREK ROSSIGNAC
RASMUS TAMSTORF BRIAN WHITED
Animation Research Library
LELLA SMITH MARY WALSH
JILL BREZNICAN FOX F. CARNEY
TAMMY CROSSON MARK M. DAWSON
DOUG ENGALLA ANN W. HANSEN
TAMARA N. KHALAF TRACY LEACH
MARISA LEONARDI KRISTEN MCCORMICK
HEATHER MCLAUGHLIN TOM PNIEWSKI
AMY SENSTAD JACKIE VASQUEZ
PATRICK WHITE MARY ANN WILLIAMS
Ink and Paint
RIKKI CHOBANIAN JIM LUSBY
PEGGY MURAKAMI SHERRI VANDOLI
ANTONIO PELAYO
Executive Assistants
CASSANDRA ANDERSON PATTI CONKLIN
HEATHER FENG-YANU JENNIFER MCCORMICK
TANYA OSKANIAN BONNIE POPP
WENDY DALE TANZILLO
Security
FORREST IWASZEWSKI TERRY LARAIA
CARLOS MENDEZ ALAN MERCHANT
With gratitude to two extraordinary women
whose strength, wit, and character
embody the spirit of New Orleans:
LEAH CHASE COLEEN SALLEY
Special Thanks
CLEO ROBINSON ADRIENNE THOMAS
AVA K. JONES DR. WENDY A. GAUDIN
AL HEBRON SONNY BOREY
NANCY RATHBORNE ADOLPH BYNUM
BARRY KERN BLAIR KERN
TK KERN LORETTA H. CARPENTER
JOHN MCGILL JOHN LAWRENCE
TRACY SWARTOUT JOHN TORRENCE
DAVID SHELLEY ROSALIND COOK
ROB FLORENCE STEPHEN SWAIN
FLORENCE WINGERTER JOHN BULLARD
CAPTAIN REGGIE DOMANGUE
and the New Orleans Museum of Art
CREDITS
11
CREDITS
JAY CARDUCCI EVELYN O’GILVIE For the purposes of copyright law in
GILBERT DÁVILA SCOTT AIGES the United Kingdom, Disney Enterprises, Inc.
FRANCISCO DEL CUETO STEVE MASSON
JEAN-RAYMOND LEMIEUX FILIP DEFOORT
CARLOS BENAVIDES MICHAEL DEVRIES
JAY JETT RUBEN I. NAVARRO
RICARDO R. PALMA EDGAR CARDOZA
MANUEL MARTINEZ ELISA MUFFELMAN
GLORIA RAMIREZ ROY GILBRECH
ANGEL VALLES SARAH ANN WILLIAMS
LYNWOOD ROBINSON IRFAN BAIG
MARK BARNES BARBARA BROOKS
NICOLA CANDUSSI MARK T. CARLSON
SHARON DANEL KITT HIRASAKI
RON KLASKY JAMES LESLIE
MARISA PAOLERCIO-LESLIE JULIA LOPEZ
VINOD MELAPUDI SUKI SAMRA
JAY SLOAT JIM TANNAHILL
RENE VAN DE POEL KAREN MASIAS
ROLAND JOSE CESAR CASTELLANOS
MARC-ANDRÉ BOUVIER-PELLETIER
CRISTINA GUGLIELMO-MAGGETTI
The filmmakers would like to thank
the Disney Story Trust and the Pixar Braintrust
for their invaluable contribution, and the entire
Disney Animation Studios for their dedication,
support, ingenuity, and good humor.
PRODUCTION BABIES
AARON ADELYN
AIDEN AUDREY
AUSTIN AVALON
BENNETT DEUK
DIEGO EDEN
ELLA HENRY
JACK JAYDEN
LEILA ROSE LEO
LIAM LILY
MADDIX MADELYN
MAE OWEN
QUINLAN QUINTUS
SARAH
© 2009 Disney Enterprises, Inc.
All Rights Reserved.
was the owner of copyright in this film
immediately after it was made.
Original Soundtrack Available from
Video Games Available from
MPAA #45696
Domestic Prints by
DELUXE®
International Prints by
TECHNICOLOR®
12
Distributed by
Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
CREDITS
13
“‘The Princess and the Frog’ is a return to the timeless world of
hand-drawn animation at Disney. It’s an ageless fairy tale, but with a fresh
twist
that combines everything we look for in great stories:
comedy, adventure, music—and most of all, the kind of heart that
always sets Disney animation apart.”
~ John Lasseter, Executive Producer and Chief Creative Officer,
Walt Disney Animation Studios
ABOUT THE PRODUCTION
Walt Disney Animation Studios serves up a joyous gumbo of adventurous
storytelling,
captivating characters, offbeat comedy and memorable music in the all-new
feature “THE
PRINCESS AND THE FROG,” an animated comedy set in the great city of New Orleans.
From the creators of “The Little
Mermaid” and “Aladdin” comes
a modern twist on a classic tale,
featuring a beautiful girl named
Tiana (ANIKA NONI ROSE), a
frog prince who desperately
wants to be human again, and a
fateful kiss that leads them both
on a hilarious adventure through
the mystical bayous of
Louisiana. “THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG” marks the return to hand-drawn animation
from the revered team of John Musker and Ron Clements, with music by
Oscar®-winning
composer Randy Newman.
Everyone knows the story in which a princess finds true love by kissing a frog
that
magically turns into her handsome prince. In this telling of the story, the girl
still kisses a frog,
but the result is quite different; it’s only one of dozens of surprises in this
mix of wacky
ABOUT THE PRODUCTION
14
FAIRY TALE TO SILVER SCREEN
humor, thrills, melody and emotion. Love eventually finds a way—between a prince
and a
princess…between frogs, perhaps…or maybe between a firefly and the object of his
affection.
But it’s clear that the most important details lie well beneath the skin. The
film features
Disney’s newest princess, its next great fairy tale and the Studio’s return to
the Disney
musical, reminiscent of classics like “Beauty and the Beast,” “The Lion King”
and “Aladdin.”
The voice cast for “THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG” features a varied and renowned
troupe of actors. Tony® Award winner Anika Noni Rose (Best Performance by a
Featured
Actress in a Musical, for her role in “Caroline, or Change”) stars as Tiana,
international star
Bruno Campos is Prince Naveen. Emmy Award® winner Keith David is the magical and
menacing Dr. Facilier; romantic Ray, the Cajun firefly, is illuminated by Emmy
Award
nominee Jim Cummings. Jenifer Lewis casts a spell as the mystical Mama Odie,
Michael-
Leon Wooley lends his voice to Louis the trumpet-playing alligator, and Golden
Globe® and
Emmy Award winner John Goodman provides the voice of the Southern gentleman Big
Daddy. Academy Award® nominees Terrence Howard (“Hustle & Flow”) and Oprah
Winfrey
(“The Color Purple”) provide the
voices of Tiana’s loving parents,
James and Eudora.
“THE PRINCESS AND THE
FROG” is executive produced by
Walt Disney Animation Studios’
chief creative officer John
Lasseter (director of “Toy Story,”
“A Bug’s Life,” “Toy Story 2” and
“Cars”). Disney veteran Peter Del
Vecho is the film’s producer. “THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG” is directed by Ron
Clements and John Musker (the team behind “The Great Mouse Detective,” “The
Little
Mermaid,” “Aladdin,” “Hercules” and “Treasure Planet”) from an original story by
Clements
& Musker and Greg Erb & Jason Oremland; the directors teamed up with writer Rob
Edwards
to create the screenplay. Don Hall is story supervisor.
Oscar®-winning composer Randy Newman (“Cars,” “Monsters, Inc.,” “Toy Story”)
created
an all-new score for the feature in a range of styles, including jazz, blues,
gospel, Dixieland
and zydeco; and featuring seven new songs, plus the featured end-credit song by
multi-
platinum, three-time Grammy Award®-winning Def Jam recording artist Ne-Yo, who
sings
“Never Knew I Needed.”
Presented by Walt Disney Pictures, “THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG” is the 49th
animated feature film from Disney, a tradition established nearly 75 years ago
with the release
of “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.” The film is rated G by the MPAA.
BRING YOUR PAINTBRUSH AND YOUR DANCE SHOES
From Fairy Tale to Silver Screen—Disney Style
“THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG” marks Walt Disney Animation Studios’ return to
hand-drawn animation, a return to the classic fairy tale and a return to the
musical.
“If there was a single lesson we could take from Walt himself to take Walt
Disney
Animation Studios into the future,” says executive producer John Lasseter, “it
is to leverage
15
the richness of its past: its beloved storytelling forms, its successful
characters, its musical
opulence—all of these are an essential part of our newest hand-drawn project.”
The filmmakers saw the hand-drawn medium was as vibrant and appealing as ever,
and
ventured into recapturing and
reinventing the art form with
reverence, purpose and a renewed
sensibility.
“At every turn,” director Ron
Clements says, “we realized that
we could reach out and touch the
legacy of the animated Disney
fairy tale, and yet move in
surprising and interesting new
ways, rather than slavishly imitating or reproducing what had been done before.”
Once upon a time, not so many years ago, the traditional hand-drawn Disney
animation gave
way to new technology, leaving behind the single art form most closely
identified with Walt
Disney himself.
In 2006, when John Lasseter and Ed Catmull took the reins of Walt Disney
Animation
Studios, they understood that traditional handcraft of Disney animation
certainly had not lost
its value as either art or entertainment. And although his greatest fame has
come from
pioneering in the field of computer animation, Lasseter’s love was not exclusive
to his own
specific form. He grew up with
and began his career in the
traditional animation that Disney
invented, nurtured and developed
over decades into an art form all
its own. New animated features
were being considered in
whatever animation technique
was deemed most suitable.
“We were invited to pitch
ideas for new hand-drawn Disney features,” director John Musker recalls. “We
were all
particularly inspired by the Brothers Grimm tale of ‘The Frog Prince.’”
“We’re returning to sincere, classic Disney fairy-tale storytelling.
It’s a return to the musical. It’s also the return to the warmth and grandeur
of hand-drawn animation and hand-painted backgrounds. All of that together
makes it feel like coming home.”
~ Peter Del Vecho, Producer
Producer Peter Del Vecho has taken great personal pleasure in being part of the
rekindling
of a great art form. “There’s something really rewarding about watching the
animator put
down pencil to paper, and then when you’re watching the film, you forget all
about the
individual pencil lines and those characters are really coming off the screen.
You kind of take
them home with you in your mind—each of the characters is rich and has a life of
his own.”
FAIRY TALE TO SILVER SCREEN
16
CAST OF CHARACTERS
Music was another element of the Disney legacy that the creative team wanted to
reach
back and touch, but take in a new direction, too. Clements and Musker pitched
the film as a
musical, but not in the traditional
Broadway-style form that
Disney had pioneered in 1937
and reinvented in the 1980s.
They pitched the idea that the
music would be a tapestry of
zydeco, blues, gospel, jazz and
all of that distinctly American
sound.
The return to tradition allows
audiences to once again share an opportunity to see whether true love can really
triumph, to
strive for an ending where everyone lives happily ever after, and to leave the
theater humming
that song that they can’t seem to get out of their heads.
WHO’S WHO IN “THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG”
The Cast of Characters
TIANA (voice of Anika Noni Rose) is certainly not the typical fairy-tale
princess. Her
daydreams are not of faraway kingdoms or castles in the clouds, but of personal
success and
a thriving business. “She has dreams of opening the finest restaurant in all of
New Orleans,”
says screenwriter Rob Edwards. “It’s a dream that’s been instilled in her from
her father.”
Tiana is an attractive and independent African-American woman, hardworking and
strong-
willed, but still a loving and loyal friend and a compassionate soul. She
treasures her mother
and holds her father near and dear to her heart, and although she knows the way
won’t be easy,
believes that she can achieve her ambitions if she works hard enough.
In her sensible pursuit of her life’s goals, however, Tiana doesn’t really
appreciate what is
happening on her way to them. She can never simply slow down and enjoy herself.
She has
no time for romance, and is certainly not about to waste her time mooning over
men—let
alone kissing any frogs.
Supervising animator Mark Henn, who is behind Disney heroines Ariel (“The Little
Mermaid”), Belle (“Beauty and
the Beast”) and Jasmine
(“Aladdin”), found Tiana
particularly appealing. “I think
you can more easily identify
with her, or want to cheer her on.
Our animated leading ladies
have evolved over the decades,
from just being ‘princesses in
peril’ like Snow White—
characters to whom events happen, rather than figures of action motivating their
own story. It
was an easy character to fall in love with and get in her corner. Tiana has her
own motivating
desire, and decisions that drive her and make her interesting and sympathetic.”
17
Edwards says his niece can’t wait to meet Tiana. “Every time I talk to her, she
says, ‘Oh,
tell me about the princess!’ I can’t wait for her to see the movie.”
The alluring qualities of New Orleans drew PRINCE NAVEEN (voice of Bruno Campos)
from his far-off kingdom of Maldonia. Although spoiled and irresponsible, Naveen
has an
irresistible charm and joie de vivre that captivate those around him, and a
passion for the
Dixieland jazz being popularized by Paul Whiteman, Jimmie Noone, Earl Hines,
King Oliver,
Jelly Roll Morton and Louis Armstrong.
Naveen’s supervising animator Randy Haycock has animated classic Disney
characters,
including Simba (“The Lion King”) and Powhatan (“Pocahontas”). “Disney has a
long
tradition of princes, but we’ve
never had a prince that really
influenced a heroine,” says
Haycock. “It was always love at
first sight. For once we have a
girl that meets a guy and it
follows a romantic-comedy idea
where the couple meet and they
really don’t like each other.”
Like anyone, Naveen’s flaws
are actually part of his virtues. The heroine has a flaw, too—she doesn’t know
how to
appreciate life. She doesn’t know how to enjoy herself. “And that’s what Naveen
teaches her,”
Haycock says. “He teaches her to settle down once in a while and simply
appreciate what’s
going on. Have some fun, enjoy, be happy with what you have around you.”
DR. FACILIER (voice of Keith David) is a devious scoundrel, the shadowy figure
of
threat who causes no shortage of predicament and menace to Prince Naveen and
Tiana. He’s
a smooth operator who works his
magical spells and uses his
connection to “friends on the
other side” to get what he wants
by way of his mysterious,
menacing and dangerous charm.
“He’s musical, he’s threatening,
he’s tall, he’s lean, he’s thin. He
can be very sweet. He’s
handsome. He’s graceful. And I
think all that stuff is, in very contemporary animation anyway, rare to see that
type of villain,”
says Bruce Smith, supervising animator of Dr. Facilier. “It’s always great as an
animator to
get the villain, and the villain is always that character that holds up the film
and keeps
everything interesting and on edge. Luckily, in this case, I’ve really got a
very unique
villain—a great villain.”
18
CAST OF CHARACTERS
CAST OF CHARACTERS
MAMA ODIE (voice of
Jenifer Lewis) is the bright side
of Facilier; a sassy, eccentric and
witty 197-year-old magic Queen
of the Bayou who guides Tiana
and Naveen in their mission to
undo Dr. Facilier’s spell.
According to the story, Mama
Odie dwells in “the deepest,
darkest part of the bayou.” In an
old shrimp boat, improbably wedged upside down in a giant tree, Mama Odie and
her snake
Juju dispense spells, heyacalls and gris gris to those in need.
Supervising animator Andreas Deja is behind Disney favorites like Gaston
(“Beauty and
the Beast”), Jafar (“Aladdin”), Hercules (“Hercules”), Scar (“The Lion King”)
and Lilo (“Lilo
& Stitch”). “I remember completely gravitating toward Mama Odie,” Deja says.
“This blind
little shriveled-up old woman who was eccentric and has this seeing-eye snake,
and
everything about her was just so unusual.”
Some of the spirit of Mama Odie was guided by the filmmakers’ appreciation of
the late
New Orleans storyteller Coleen Salley, author of several picture books, esteemed
University
of New Orleans professor, and an ambassador for children’s literature.
RAY (voice of Jim Cummings) is the laid-back, love-struck Cajun firefly. Alight
with
Southern charm, gentle humor and even romantic passion—Ray’s heart’s desire is a
“firefly”
named Evangeline, the most beautiful firefly in all creation. His admirable
devotion for his
unattainable, but no less true, love anchors the movie.
Supervising animator Mike Surrey, who was behind memorable Disney characters
like
Timone from “The Lion King” and
Clopin from “The Hunchback of
Notre Dame,” says Ray knows
exactly who he is. “He’s the
romantic,” Surrey says. “He is
what Naveen and Tiana are, but he
has no problem expressing his
love, openly and with not a care—
where he knows the two of them
are in the same boat he is, but they
just can’t. It’s hard not to feel for a character like that. He brings a real
embodiment of the idea
of the transcendent power of love. All from this lumpy, gap-toothed,
goofy-looking little guy.”
19
LOUIS (voice of Michael-Leon Wooley) is a syncopated swamp hipster, an engaging
and
charming alligator with a passion for jazz and trumpet-playing whose assistance
to Tiana and
Naveen adds fun and comedy to
their bayou adventure. “He’s
needy,” says supervising animator
Eric Goldberg, who was behind
the Genie in “Aladdin.” “He’s full
of neuroses. But he has this one
gift—playing jazz, and when he
gets to play his jazz, that’s when he
really is who he is.”
“Here was an alligator playing a
trumpet—what’s not to love?” says screenwriter Rob Edwards.
BIG DADDY (voice of John Goodman) is a solid, stout, funny Southern gentleman of
wealth and station, who wants nothing more than her heart’s desire for his
little princess
Charlotte—he even arranges a Mardi Gras Ball as the stage for Charlotte to debut
as a
princess.
Big Daddy pays homage to an
American literary character
made vernacular in “Cat on a
Hot Tin Roof” and “Hush, Hush
Sweet Charlotte,” the rich and
powerful patriarch. But where
those characters were motivated
by power to destroy their
children, this Big Daddy has a
motivation not of control or
authority, but rather unbridled adoration for his only daughter.
CHARLOTTE (voice of Jennifer Cody), the spoiled, demanding and flamboyant
daughter of Big Daddy, is the ultimate early-20th-century little rich girl, but
Charlotte is by
no means the stereotyped bratty daughter of wealth.
Big Daddy dotes on his blonde, blue-eyed dear one, taking every opportunity to
shower her
with custom-made dresses and feed her fantasies, which include marriage to a
prince (and
becoming a princess in the process), even if she has to kiss a few frogs. Part
of the grounding
provided to Charlotte is the friendship of the little girl, Tiana, daughter of
the finest seamstress
in New Orleans—a sensible, non-frog-kissing girl who grows to become Charlotte’s
lifelong
friend.
JAMES (voice of Terrence Howard) is Tiana’s inspiration and she is the legacy of
his
love. A strong, loving father who has instilled his daughter with her ethics and
with a familiar
bond in New Orleans residents: their love of good food. “You see,” James tells
little Tiana,
“food brings folk together from all walks o’ life. It warms ’em right up, and
puts smiles on
their faces—and when I open my own restaurant people are gonna line up for
miles, just to
CAST OF CHARACTERS
20
THE STORY
get a taste of my food.”
“Our food,” Tiana lovingly corrects him.
Supervising animator Ruben Aquino says, “It’s the core of what she wants and why
she is
the way she is. I’ve got to sell the audience on showing how much love there is
in the family
and how James loves Tiana so much. He is always present in Tiana’s heart.”
EUDORA (voice of Oprah Winfrey) is Tiana’s foundation, both anchor and
inspiration.
Tiana sees in her mother the successful and respected businesswoman she aspires
to be. As a
girl, Tiana’s happiest moments are spent with her mother, playing in the home of
one of her
wealthy clients with a little girl named Charlotte. But where Tiana’s father
James is a
romantic, Eudora is a pragmatist. She knows the tough times Tiana will face as
an independent
woman.
“Eudora has a particular personality,” says supervising animator Ruben Aquino.
“She’s
more about being the nurturing mother who also has her own career; she’s a
seamstress and
it’s a modest living, but she’s very good at what she does, and she loves her
daughter, and
wants what’s best for her, too.”
THE STORY
A New Twist on an Old Tale
“THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG” is the sixth collaboration by the veteran team of
Ron
Clements and John Musker, the team behind “The Great Mouse Detective,” “The
Little
Mermaid,” “Aladdin,” “Hercules” and “Treasure Planet.” The animation duo was
drawn to the
project because of its compelling story and comic promise.
“John Lasseter loved the idea,” Musker recalls, “and the idea of New Orleans as
a setting,
with all the cultural, historical, visual and magical ideas that great city
offered us. We decided
that the Jazz Age added an
element of both nostalgia and
musicality, and we really wanted
to play up the fairy tale
archetypes.”
“THE PRINCESS AND THE
FROG” is, of course, inspired by
the fairy tale “The Frog Prince”
from the Brothers Grimm. But
the filmmakers had to put their
own spin on the story. Screenwriter Rob Edwards says the writing process is an
extremely
collaborative one. “Most of my writing is done while walking through the halls
and talking to
the storyboard artists and the animators and some of the voice talent and the
directors,” he
says. “The easy part is going back to my office and just writing it.”
On the bend of the Big River, New Orleans sparkles with opulence, adventure,
romance,
music and magic. Here in the “once upon a time” of the Jazz Age 1920s, among the
wrought-
iron balconies and beckoning alleyways of the French Quarter and environs, a
most unusual
tale unfolds.
Tiana is an attractive, independent, hardworking young woman. She has no time
for
21
romance and the dalliance of dreams, she has a love of cooking, and plans to be
a successful
restaurateur, fulfilling the love of food that is her father’s legacy. But in
spite of her hard work
and diligence, obstacles keep Tiana’s goals out of reach.
Down on the Mississippi riverfront, a handsome and gregarious jazz fanatic has
arrived in
the Crescent City: the royal outcast Prince Naveen from far-off Maldonia. A
little spoiled,
irresponsible and indolent, perhaps, Naveen has made his way through life on his
good looks
and undeniable charm. His position attracts the evil Dr. Facilier, a
practitioner of dark magic,
whose effort to steal Naveen’s royal privilege results in the handsome prince’s
transformation
into a frog.
Naveen’s attempt to use the
old fairy-tale standby of a kiss to
return him to human form only
results in Tiana being
transformed, too, and the
amphibious twosome find
themselves cast adrift in the
Louisiana bayou, pursued by
frog hunters and seeking the
good magic of a mysterious 197-year-old priestess named Mama Odie.
Helping them along in their precarious, awkward, but truly laughable journey are
a
lovesick Cajun firefly named Ray and a Jazz-playing alligator named Louis; and
although
their way is fraught with peril, the contrary pair bring out each other’s better
selves, overcome
their differences and their obstacles, and discover that dreams do come true—but
never in the
way one might expect.
In the end, love wins out, and the differences that seemed so very important
before seem
to fade away into the bayou.
Edwards says his goal was simple: “I want to tell an honest story about two
wonderful
people who meet and fall in love. I want to tell it to my friends and my
friends’ sons and
daughters, and that’s it.”
But does “THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG” have the makings of a classic? “What
makes a classic?” asks Edwards. “Compelling characters, strong points of view,
humor that’s
both sophisticated for parents and fun for kids, great music. You want to make a
kind of
rollercoaster ride with great highs and lows. You should laugh, you should cry.
You should be
touched, and I think if it touches people, then everything else falls into
place.”
ANIMATION AND ACTING
Classic Character Animation and Inspired Voice Talent
Bring a New Cast of Characters to Life
“The Princess and the Frog” marks the 49th time that an animation “casting call”
has gone
out from Disney to the stars and stalwarts of Hollywood, but unlike their
live-action
counterparts, Disney animated features use two primary performers for each
individual
onscreen role: the hand of the artist and the voice of an actor.
For the voice of the film’s leading lady, Tiana, the filmmakers called on Tony
Award®
winner Anika Noni Rose, who fulfills a lifelong ambition with the role.
ANIMATION AND ACTING
22
ANIMATION AND ACTING
“I can honestly say that this is a dream come true for me. Since I was a little
kid I wanted
to work for Disney—and I didn’t need to be the princess. I would have been a
tick or a flea!
“I’m glad that I was able to be here at the right time for this to happen,” the
actress continues.
“It’s a blessing, an honor and a
joy.”
Supervising animator Mark
Henn is the other half of Tiana’s
persona, and his opinions and
ideas about Disney princesses
are not just academic, they are
personally informed. He is
variously kidded as “The Actor’s
Studio Animator,” and Disney’s
greatest leading lady—having animated (among other characters) Ariel, Belle,
Jasmine,
Pocahontas and Mulan.
“I find myself an actor trying to put myself in all of my characters’ shoes,
whether it’s a
female, or a lion cub, or a mouse, or whatever,” Henn says. “There’s a level of
the integrity
of how the characters move and are genuine. I think particularly with the
leading ladies it’s
important.”
The prince in “THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG” takes center stage like never before.
This prince is on a journey of discovery all his own and Bruno Campos was tapped
to give
Naveen his voice. “He’s got some issues,” says Campos of his character. “He’s
got a lot of
sass. He’s got some wit. He can be a little feisty, but he grows throughout the
movie.”
Thanks to Campos and Randy Haycock, supervising animator for Prince Naveen and
Frog
Naveen, the prince comes to the big screen with enough charisma to wow audiences
worldwide. “I had a roommate in college who liked the ladies, you know,” says
Haycock. “I
used to watch him, because he was really good with the girls and I wasn’t, and I
noticed that
he was a leaner. He was always leaning in, he always got really close. If girls
were sitting on
a chair, he’d sit next to them and he’d lean in. If they were standing, he’d
find something to
lean on. I always have Naveen leaning on his hand or leaning on something
because that’s that
confidence, you know, he’s not stiff at all. He’s very loose, because he’s very
cool and
confident about who he is.
“The funny thing is,” continues Haycock, “whereas he looks very charming and
kind of
seductive as a human, it’s almost comical to make him a frog. It adds a layer of
humor to his
character—the fact that this goofy-looking frog thinks of himself as a ladies’
man.”
In Disney animation, the villain is usually the great motivation in the
story—escaping
from, vanquishing or humiliating the villain is the heroic task.
Supervising animator Bruce Smith tried not to be intimidated by the importance
of the Dr.
Facilier role. “I try to let that sit in the back of my head, because I don’t
want to put that type
of pressure on myself. But at the same time, that’s why I’m here. To feel that
type of pressure,
and to be able to have a position where you want to rise to that occasion. I
always knew I had
it in me personally. You know, I totally can do a villain, and give it a
different take that maybe
our audiences have not really experienced or seen before.”
His performance was certainly supported and elevated by the vocal vibrancy of
the prolific
and talented actor Keith David, who was drawn to the character…as if by magic.
“One of the
23
characters I’ve always wanted to play is High John the Conqueror (a folk hero)
who was a
conjurer. Dr. Facilier is like that. He’s a conjurer, and a sorcerer of sorts.”
The whole art form is a kind of sorcery to the veteran actor, too. “And that’s a
fascinating
point about it, since I think of the process of animation as always magical,
putting all those
elements together—it’s a fascinating process.”
Eric Goldberg, supervising animator for Louis, says the jazz-loving gator was a
bit of a
challenge at first. “He doesn’t actually have anything on him that you would
normally use to
make your animation fluid,” says Goldberg. “He doesn’t have feathers, he doesn’t
have hair,
he doesn’t have clothing. All he has is his body—his muscle, his bone, his
fat—we have to
utilize those elements to make him feel as alive as possible.”
Goldberg says he had to seriously consider scale when it came to Louis. “If you
put Ray
into the mix, it’s an even bigger concern; he’s tiny compared to the two frogs,
and the frogs
are tiny compared to Louis. But scale helps give Louis presence. He is a
formidable alligator,
which actually adds to the humor and warmth of the character.”
Michael-Leon Wooley won the part of Louis after many months of audition tapes
and
meetings. “I was walking through Times Square actually on my way to an audition,
and my
agent called and just said, ‘You got it,’” says Wooley. “I was literally
stopping people in the
street—they thought I was some
crazy man. But it’s been very
exciting—getting the job, my
first time at the studio, my first
time seeing the character of
Louis, hearing my voice with the
character. The whole process
never ceases to amaze me.”
In contrast, Jim Cummings,
who voices the lovesick firefly
Ray, is an old hand at providing voices, having given vocal life to King Louis,
Kaa the Snake,
Pete, Darkwing Duck, Bonkers, Fat Cat, Monterey Jack, Don Karnage, Winnie the
Pooh and
Tigger, too.
“Well, I’ve been very fortunate. The very first job I got in the business was
for the Disney
Channel, on ‘Dumbo’s Circus.’ I actually do feel like I’m part of carrying on a
Disney
tradition that’s been there back from when I was just in the audience. I feel
like I carry all that
tradition, and all that magic, for a new generation.”
Ray the Cajun firefly nearly steals the show thanks to Cummings’ vocal talents,
as well as
the talents of supervising animator Mike Surrey. The animator says he learned
while working
with Ray that bigger is by no means better. “They asked me to work on Ray,” the
animator
says, “I didn’t even know who Ray was. Your ego says, ‘Firefly? That’s really
small, so what
is that?’ But from the very first, he was memorable.”
Cummings is a real fan of the firefly, and an even bigger fan of his role in
bringing him to
life. “It’s a real honor,” he says. “This is the stuff I do in the shower for
free, and that used to
get me kicked out of class. So, I’m happy.”
Screenwriter Rob Edwards remembers how the acting chops of supervising animator
Andreas Deja inspired his storytelling when it came to the mysterious lady of
magic Mama
Odie. “There was a time when Mama Odie was in danger of becoming superfluous,
but we
ANIMATION AND ACTING
24
ANIMATION AND ACTING
knew that as an actor Andreas is so awesome, we had to give him something, and
just kept
going back to the drawing board. It’s like writing for a great performer, and
the same is true
of these animators, where you just say, ‘I can’t wait to see what he does!’ It
fires you up. It
pushes you to a level that you may not have gone.”
Matching the pencil performance of Deja is the vivid voice of prolific and
award-winning
actress Jenifer Lewis. “Well, I am amazed. I’m going to tell you the truth. I
woke up this
morning and as soon as I opened
my eyes, I thought, ‘history.’ I’m
going to be a part of something
so wonderful, so historic, so
exciting—and you know, when
you’re one of those voices for a
Disney animated feature, it’s
going to live forever.
“I love Mama Odie,” Lewis
continues. “Because she’s so
sweet. She knows who she is. She’s been around a long time and she’s just here
to help
everybody. I see a lot of Jenifer Lewis in Mama Odie. I give out a lot of
candy.”
Broadway veteran Jennifer Cody was tapped to provide the voice of Tiana’s
childhood
friend Charlotte. “Charlotte is an excitable and determined debutante,” says the
actress.
“While she has always gotten everything her heart desires, she wants more than
anything to
be a princess. She is passionate in her quest and her motor is always running.
She is like a
giggling Mack truck.”
With roles in shows like “Shrek: The Musical,” “Beauty and the Beast,”
“Seussical the
Musical” and “Cats,” Cody was well-suited to take on the Southern belle. “I
think what people
will love about Charlotte is her squeak and her giggle,” says Cody. “When
Charlotte can’t
control her excitement, she squeaks this high-pitched yelp that is a lot like a
tea kettle. It
seemed very appropriate because Charlotte always seems about to boil. In my
mind, she is a
mix of a gun moll, Scarlett O’Hara and Foghorn Leghorn.”
Nik Ranieri spearheaded Charlotte’s look. The animator says that the real
challenge with
Charlotte was finding a balance between making her believable and bringing out
her wacky
personality. “My feeling has always been to exaggerate and push it and do things
that live
action wouldn’t be able to do. And the way you bring it back into reality is
just to make sure
that anything that’s secondary is animated as real as possible. Charlotte is
zipping all over the
place—all the exaggerated primary animation is sold by believable secondary
action—the
dresses, the sleeves, the hair—make that believable because it’s really not a
personality issue.”
Even though John Goodman is a veteran of both Disney and Pixar animated features
(“The
Emperor’s New Groove,” “Monsters, Inc.”), playing the genteel giant of Southern
patriarch
Big Daddy is not just another cartoon. “You never know how audiences are going
to feel,”
Goodman says, “but this one looks like it’ll carry you away to a different
place, a different
time.”
Duncan Marjoribanks is the supervising animator for Big Daddy. Famed for
animating
Disney characters like Sebastian the Crab in “The Little Mermaid,” Aladdin’s pal
Abu, and
Mrs. Caloway the cow in “Home on the Range,” Marjoribanks admits, “I dropped
subtle hints
that I’d be really interested in working on a human character this time out. And
Big Daddy
25
was just the right fit.”
Goodman is still entranced by the way animation works its magic. “What they do
is create
their own world. You surrender to the myths, and you give it up to the film. And
the way the
art work looks—and the music especially…it’s just going to take you to that
other place.”
Tiana’s parents are deftly drawn and important. “I always think of characters
like James and
Eudora as very important for the emotional storyline,” supervising animator
Ruben Aquino
says.
Oprah Winfrey provided the calm, supportive voice of Tiana’s mother, Eudora, and
Academy Award® nominee Terrence Howard is the voice of Tiana’s father, James,
whose
shared passion for cooking and a love of good food drive the heroine’s dreams to
the bayou
and back again. “It’s about time to be a part of something like ‘once upon a
time’ again,”
Howard says. “I mean I dreamed big when I was a kid. I never knew that I would
end up doing
animation, but I always wanted to play with those voices. So, it’s my own little
personal dream
come true.”
ANIMATION ALL-STARS
The Greatest Talents in Disney Animation Reunite
“I think there’s something about hand-drawn animation—where the animator’s
really expressing himself almost directly through his hand, through the pencil
onto
the paper—nothing else matches that. It’s fun for a lot of these animators
to be returning to their roots.”
~Peter Del Vecho, Producer
The filmmakers began the long journey of creating “THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG” by
considering what artistic talent would be required to make a new Disney animated
feature. “It
really is a great crossroads in the medium, and an opportunity for everyone here
to do something
that nobody else in the world is doing, and something that, to a certain extent,
no one else can
do,” producer Peter Del Vecho says. “Everyone on this project deeply cares about
it.”
The filmmakers discovered that favorite animators who were doing well in digital
animation were willing and eager
to return to hand-drawn animation.
There was also a whole new
generation of artists who had
grown up watching the classic
Disney films, and those films that
directors John Musker, Ron
Clements, and their colleagues had
made. Many of the new recruits for
“THE PRINCESS AND THE
FROG” had seen films such as
“The Little Mermaid” and “Beauty and the Beast” as children, and were equally as
excited
and enthusiastic to join in the production.
“We’re trying to reinvent everything,” says art director Ian Gooding (“Chicken
Little,”
“How to Hook Up Your Home Theater”). “It’s so hard to just pick up this
animation style
ANIMATION ALL-STARS
26
THE BIG EASY
again—it’s not like it was in the freezer and you just thawed it out. There are
lots of
challenges—there’s a lot of training and…trying to figure out where to buy paper
from again.”
“It has been a very interesting process,” Del Vecho says. “Fortunately, we have
a lot of
collective memory here, so we know how we wanted to do it, but since we are
starting from
scratch, we also had to think about how we want to do it going into the future.
So we talked
about doing paperless hand-drawn. But, since technology hasn’t quite caught up
to that ability
yet, the best thing to do for now
was to animate on paper. I’m
really glad we made that
decision.
“It is a process that is akin to
laying the track as the train is
going down the line,” Del Vecho
continues. “It’s not easy, and it
causes a fair amount of anxiety,
but we’re trying to only pay
attention to the things that matter. We’re putting our efforts into what gets up
on the screen.
To us, it’s all about what the audience ultimately sees.
“We brought back to the Studio the best of the best,” continues Del Vecho. “If
you think
about the animators we have on the team—it’s almost like we’re bringing back our
modern-
day version of the Nine Old Men; they all get to collaborate on one movie
together, they’re at
the top of their form.”
“I think this film benefits highly from the skill level of all the artists,”
says supervising
animator Bruce Smith (“Home on the Range,” “Tarzan”). “I can’t recall a film
outside of ones
the Nine Old Men did where there was such a concentrated group of talent in the
animators’
positions, and it really shows up on the screen. It’s sort of a baseball cliché
of everybody
leaving it on the field, but it’s like that. I think everybody’s really pouring
their guts out on
the screen. You’re really getting some great performances.”
“One of the things that John Lasseter brought in is this idea that our
communication could
be more open,” explains supervising animator Randy Haycock (“The Lion King,”
“Hercules,”
“Tarzan”). “We can be passionate about it. We don’t have to be afraid of
somebody getting
freaked out because somebody’s passionate about an idea. It’s passion and it
comes from the
same place that everybody else’s passion comes from—a desire to make this movie
great.”
DREAMS DO COME TRUE IN NEW ORLEANS
The Filmmakers Do a Little Hard Work to Make a Big Easy
“One of the unique things about ‘THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG’—
it’s not just a fairy tale, it’s actually set in a real time, in a real city.
That’s been
really fun, it allowed us to actually go to this place and research, and a lot
of
environments in the movie are places you can actually visit.”
~John Musker, Director
As a setting for the fantastic, the enchanted, the musical, and even the
villainous, nowhere
on earth seemed quite so right for “THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG” as New Orleans.
27
Researching the Big Easy
“We really feel that the city is a major character in the movie,” says director
Ron Clements.
“We wanted to be true to this city and what’s special about it.”
To capture the authenticity of the film’s setting, the filmmakers made multiple
trips to New
Orleans to research the food, music, architecture, surrounding bayous and the
people. They
took more than 50,000 photos of local iconic images to use as reference and
inspiration.
“We visited these great mansions in the Garden District, since part of our story
takes place
there,” says Clements. “Our story also takes place near the ninth ward. We
worked on a
Habitat for Humanity project while we were down there.”
The filmmakers also explored the bayou, meeting a few of the swamp’s animal
residents;
a trip to the New Orleans Audubon Zoo showcased additional creatures, including
indigenous
alligators, which inspired the film’s trumpet-playing alligator, and
spoon-billed birds, which
influenced the birds in Mama Odie’s gospel song “Dig a Little Deeper.”
The filmmakers soaked up as much of the city as possible, experiencing the New
Orleans
Jazz & Heritage Festival—in the rain—as well as taking the Nanchez Riverboat
tour to
properly capture the riverboat scenes, and touring the streetcar system. Sound
designer Oden
Benitez even went to Jackson Square to record the sounds of the church bell and
streetcar.
Directors Musker and Clements, as well as producer Peter Del Vecho, were invited
to
participate in Mardi Gras aboard a float. “The climax of our film takes place in
Mardi Gras,”
says director John Musker. “So we were trying to get some of the vibe in terms
of the float
design and the ambiance.
“We got to experience the power of the beads,” Musker continues. “For those few
moments
when you’re on that float holding those beads—it’s like you’re holding a
fortune; everybody
wants those beads.”
Adds Clements, “We got to experience being rock stars for 15 seconds at a time.
The moment
the float passed the people, they’d
turn their attention to the next
thing. Fame was so fleeting.”
The research proved valuable
as Disney artisans strived to
capture the city’s almost
inexplicable magic. “New
Orleans is a shockingly different
place. It’s just so different from
anywhere else in America,” says
art director Ian Gooding. “If you blindfolded someone and put them on a plane
that landed in
New Orleans, and they’d never been there, you could tell them they were in
another country—
and they’d probably believe you.”
The sense of otherworldliness within a distinctly American setting was a
component of the
filmmakers’ approach to developing their New Orleans fairy tale. Within the
geography and
history of the region were all of the elements they required, and the real
places themselves
inspired the storytelling.
28
THE BIG EASY
THE BIG EASY
“This movie is challenging in that it has such different environments. You
have the French Quarter, and the wild, colorful Mardi Gras, and the polished
sophistication of the Garden District—and then you have the Bayou.”
~Maria Gonzales, Color Supervisor
The Garden District
As the residential setting for the ostensible “royal family” in this American
fairy tale, the
filmmakers found a locale that evoked the ideas of luxury, solidity and
tradition of a majestic
castle. The Garden District was the first suburban neighborhood of New Orleans.
Developed
from 1832 to about 1900, the Garden District evokes the stately homes and
mansions of the
wealthy newcomers who built opulent homes to reflect their prosperity—and that
of New
Orleans during the era.
The filmmakers faced the challenge of taking a very ordered, architectural,
real-world
inspiration and making it into a lush and nostalgic fairy-tale realm.
Additionally, the human
environs had to seamlessly co-exist with the extreme naturalism of an
uncultivated bayou that
also plays such an important role.
Art director Ian Gooding added an element of caricature to the design, in order
to relieve
the innate rigidity of the horizontal/vertical statements of real architecture.
Ornamentation,
turnings, scrollwork and posts were exaggerated, but without compromising the
solid look of
the buildings.
The French Quarter
North of Canal Street is the picturesque French Quarter (Vieux Carré) of the old
city, now
one of the best-loved attractions in the American South.
Many of the multi-storied French Quarter buildings feature ornate balconies and
elaborate
cast-iron work. Most buildings are built with brick or plastered brick, painted
in bright colors,
and feature window and door shutters for protection against tropical storms. At
night, the glow
of gas lamps and lanterns light the cobbled alleys and courtyards, casting
shadows that
stimulate the romantic, the imaginative—and the apprehensive.
This undercurrent of darkness and magic lurking behind the graceful wrought-iron
balconies helped define the key
element of enchantment in the
story. While sinister, this element
is not unattractive—especially to
the youthful and spirited prince.
In designing these more
ominous settings of the city, the
artists developed a visual
vocabulary that would reinforce
both the mood of the spaces and
the characters that inhabit them. Tall, narrow spaces and doorways reveal
artifacts, masks and
objects. Strong contrast and unsettling light-and-shadow patterns add disquiet.
In all, elements
of fantasy and terror are more pronounced and stylized; the environment evokes
the attractive
malevolence of the villainous Dr. Facilier.
29
The Bayou
In the Delta region of Louisiana and Mississippi, sluggish offshoots of the “Big
River”
meander through marshes of the lowlands, creating great swampy regions known as
bayous.
Alligators slip through the brackish waters beneath palmetto leaves, and
fireflies create a glow
among the branches of gnarled live oaks and scrub pine, all draped in shrouds of
Spanish
moss. It’s the perfect setting for the mysterious, the magical and the romantic.
“I grew up in Florida,” says production designer James Aaron Finch, “so I had a
sense of
this Southern environment, the great oaks, the swampy areas. The indigenous
plants that
people don’t see much in
California, palmettos and things,
and how to put them in there. I
bring a little bit of that language of
the South, and what’s authentic to
the Bayou.”
Bringing together such
disparate environments was a
genuine concern of the production
team, but perhaps not in the
manner one might assume. Kyle Odermatt explains, “The organics of the Bayou are
easy to
do, straight to final. The architectural things were actually harder to do. And
the real challenge
from an artistic standpoint is going from one to another and having it feel
okay.”
Visual development artist Susan Nichols adds, “New Orleans really is emblematic
of
‘Americana,’ in that it’s a melting pot of so many varied cultures, and always
has been, which
gives a flavor to the community and the ethnicity that is integral to the entire
environment there.
It added a layer of flavor to the visuals that we haven’t tapped into before,
and I loved it.”
MOVING FORWARD WHILE LOOKING BACK
Classic Disney Design Informs “THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG”
“This movie was just filled to the rim. I think no other film
that we’ve done has got so much going on in terms of location.”
~James Aaron Finch, Production Designer
Creating a world that has credibility while maintaining an aura of fantasy is
always a challenge,
so the filmmakers examined how the Disney masters of the past had designed their
films.
“The directors were talking about ‘Lady and the Tramp’ for the architectural
stuff, but
‘Bambi’ for the natural stuff, the organic stuff,” Ian Gooding says. “In ‘Bambi’
they took
something incredibly complex, a forest environment—leaves and twigs, rocks and
bark
clumps, everything else that you find in a forest—and they painted only what was
important.
You still have the feeling of a forest, but not a literal forest. You don’t miss
the billions of
twigs and leaves and stuff. It completely works the way that they conceived and
executed it.”
“We knew we were working on a period piece,” says production designer James
Aaron
Finch, “and we knew that some of the architecture was of that Garden District
feel, so we
looked at ‘Lady and the Tramp,’ not so much for the application of paint, but
definitely the
caricature of shapes and the compositional elements.”
CLASSIC DISNEY DESIGN
30
CLASSIC DISNEY DESIGN
Lighting and Color
“In lighting and color, I think our film is actually a little bit more complex
than our early
films, although we often look to the simplicity of previous titles,” says head
of backgrounds
Sunny Apinchapong.
In color styling, visual development artist Lorelay Bove aimed for balance. “For
the color
on the bayou, I would look at
photographs and research on the
Internet, and really look at what’s
appealing, or what colors were
working together. If the moment
was a sad moment, maybe it’s
monochromatic and more on the
gray side.”
Ian Gooding says the process
involves a lot of push and pull.
“We started with a background, and I painted it, contextually, too far—too
organic, too brush-
stroked, too painterly, too soft. We put characters on top of it and showed it
to the directors
and John Lasseter. They said, ‘Parts of this are working, but let’s tighten up
these areas,’ and
we started pulling back until we found what worked.”
Apinchapong adds, “One thing we try to do is that even though we’re using
software to
paint these days, we don’t want it to look too digital. We try to make sure it
feels more
traditional, even though we don’t use brush or paint.”
A Frog’s Eye View
The differing species of characters led to another unique design challenge for
the
filmmakers—creating a relative size scale that would enable the appropriate
staging of scenes
between characters of differing sizes, and their scale relationships to their
settings.
“It’s something we always have to be aware of and not just cheat like mad so it
doesn’t feel
real,” says supervising animator Eric Goldberg. “Yes, there’s some liberties
that you can take
in order to stage things
effectively and make it look like
characters are having a
conversation, but everything has
to be in proper relationship to
everything else.”
Rasoul Azadani, layout
supervisor and lighting designer,
recalls how the notion of scale
affected a research trip to a real
bayou. “When I went to the bayou, some parts had no water, so we could see the
buildup of
bayou from the ground up, we could see what the ground would look like, and you
could see
the water marks, how the water would come in. So I was walking with my camera
right on
the ground, taking snapshots from the point of view of the frogs.”
31
MAKING A MUSICAL
Oscar®-Winning Composer Randy Newman Adds Authenticity and Experience
It was unanimous among the filmmakers—Randy Newman was their first choice, their
ideal composer for “THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG,” right from the beginning.
Newman, a longtime collaborator for Disney•Pixar films, received an Academy
Award® for
his work on “Monsters, Inc.” He won Grammy Awards® for “Monsters, Inc.,” “Toy
Story” and
“A Bug’s Life” (among others).
Newman’s 1974 song “Louisiana 1927” had gotten a lot of play after Hurricane
Katrina in
2005, and the directors began thinking of the innate sense of musical theatre in
a lot of
Newman’s work, including his scores for Milos Forman’s “Ragtime” or Barry
Levinson’s
“The Natural.”
“We just kept thinking, ‘You know, Randy would be really good, there is an
Americana
aspect of it and that just seems like it would be intriguing,’” John Musker
recalls.
With family ties to New Orleans and a few summers there as a child, Newman says
he has
a life-long love of the music. “The music is, I find, congenial,” says Newman.
“I don’t know
what it is. It’s hard to believe I heard something as a baby, you know, that
will always feel
good to me. But, who knows?
It’s very comfortable to me, that
kind of music.”
Newman created an all-new
score for the feature in a range of
styles, including jazz, blues,
gospel, Dixieland and zydeco.
He called on the music world’s
greatest contributors to take part.
The result? Magic.
“We are fortunate to have really accomplished musicians working with Randy
Newman on
‘THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG,’” says producer Peter Del Vecho. “Grammy
Award®winning
musicians like Dr. John, Terence Blanchard and Terrance Simien brought not only
their talents, but their own unique New Orleans flair to the project and working
with them was
a real honor.”
Directors Musker and Clements say that one of their most exciting trips to New
Orleans
was to witness a recording session with Dr. John and Newman. Born in Louisiana,
Dr. John
is a well-known musician and singer. He was the filmmakers’ first choice to
perform over the
opening of the film, a sequence that introduces the main characters and the city
of New
Orleans.
World-renowned musician Terence Blanchard was pleased to see Disney’s return to
the
musical. “Being part of a musical is a great thing,” he says. “My father sang
opera; he loved
musicals. One of the first movies he took me to was ‘Fiddler on the Roof.’ I’m
sorry he’s not
here to see this. I’m also kind of lucky he’s not here to see this, because he
would be in the
studio giving suggestions about what to do.”
The trumpet player lent his phenomenal expertise to the film’s Louis the
alligator. “Michael
[Leon Wooley] was the voice of Louis and I was the trumpet sound, so I told
Michael, ‘Louis
is a very complicated character. It takes two of us to comprise this one
character, man. He’s a
MAKING A MUSICAL
32
MAKING A MUSICAL
very powerful dude.’”
Blanchard also voiced the role of Earl the bandleader in the riverboat band.
Artist Terrance Simien brought a New Orleans staple to the project: zydeco
music. “Zydeco
music is the music of the Creoles of Louisana,” he says. “There are so many
great styles of
music that people don’t really get a chance to hear because it’s not played on
the radio. I hope
audiences will hear Zydeco music and be more adventurous, explore other styles
of music,
music from different cultures. I hope they might want to hear a little bit more
Zydeco.”
“THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG” features new songs, including “Down in New
Orleans” (featuring “Trombone Shorty,” a well-known local musician), “Friends on
the Other
Side,” “When We’re Human,” “Gonna Take You There,” “Dig a Little Deeper,” “Ma
Belle
Evangeline” and “Almost There.”
Tiana’s signature tune “Almost There” was performed by Anika Noni Rose. “‘Almost
There’ is the song in which Tiana expresses her emotions about having a
restaurant and
achieving her goal,” says Newman. “Anika comes from Broadway and singing with a
backbeat is not what she typically does, but she did it and did it beautifully.”
One of the more emotional characters in “THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG” is Ray.
Newman helped bring the Cajun firefly’s emotions to light, so to speak.
“‘Evangeline’ is a love song
for Ray, the firefly, who is in
love with a beautiful faraway
firefly he has yet to meet, which
is a nice idea,” says Newman. “It
was easy to write because I knew
instantly that it was going to be a
Cajun waltz. His emotion is
clear. He’s in love.”
Newman says he understands
the power of music for filmmakers, particularly those creating an animated film
like “THE
PRINCESS AND THE FROG.” “When you score an animated picture, the characters’
actual
behavior is reflected in the music,” he says. “If they fall down, you go ‘ba-dum-dum.’
And if
you try not to go ‘ba-dum-dum,’ it doesn’t look right. But the music can also do
stuff
emotionally for you, too.”
NE-YO: “Never Knew I Needed”
For the end-credit song, the filmmakers turned to multi-platinum, three-time
Grammy
Award®-winning Def Jam recording artist Ne-Yo. The artist sings “Never Knew I
Needed,” a
song that captures the journey of both Tiana and Prince Naveen.
From Walt Disney Records, the soundtrack album is available Nov. 24, 2009.
33
ABOUT THE VOICE CAST
ANIKA NONI ROSE (Tiana) won the 2004 Tony Award® for
her role in “Caroline, or Change,” and was seen weekly as Grace
Makutsi on HBO’s “The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency.” On the
big screen, Rose starred in the feature film “Dreamgirls.”
Classically trained at the San Francisco American Conservatory
Theater, Rose wasted no time transitioning to the Broadway stage
when she was hired for the production of “Footloose.” Her theatre
repertoire also includes “Eli’s Comin’,” for which she received an
Obie Award, the role of “Lutiebelle” in the Encores! production of
“Purlie,” “The Threepenny Opera,” and “Tartuffe,” which played at
A.C.T.’s Geary Theater. She also workshopped Tony Kushner and Jeanine Tesori’s
“Caroline,
or Change,” which was directed by George C. Wolfe. In 2003, the musical opened
at New
York’s Public Theater, with Rose playing the role of “Emmie Thibodeaux.”
“Caroline, or
Change” moved to Broadway, taking Rose with it. In 2007, Rose starred again on
Broadway
as Maggie in the revival of “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” opposite James Earl Jones,
Terrence
Howard, and Phylicia Rashad, directed by Deborah Allen. Rose was also a featured
vocalist
at the Vatican in Leonard Bernstein’s “Mass.”
After Broadway, Rose played a role in the independent comedy feature “Just Add
Water,”
directed by Hart Bochner and co-starring Danny DeVito and Justin Long. Rose was
later cast
in the original television adaptation of Gigi Levangie Grazer’s New York Times
best seller,
“The Starter Wife.” From director Jon Avnet, the series premiered to record
ratings and
received several Emmy® nominations.
After pursuing her drama career in New York City, Rose quickly realized her
potential
when she was cast in the critically acclaimed screen adaptation of the musical “Dreamgirls.”
Rose portrayed Lorrell Robinson, the third member of the legendary trio, and
mistress to
Eddie Murphy’s James “Thunder” Early.
She also spent time in Africa, portraying Grace Makutsi in Anthony Minghella’s
production of “The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency.” Based on the Alexander McCall
Smith
novels, and produced by The Weinstein Company for the BBC and HBO, she co-stars
with
Jill Scott, which focuses on a female detective in Botswana.
To date, Rose has received a Drama-Logue Ensemble Award for her role in
“Insurrection:
Holding History,” a Garland/Drama-Logue Award for “Valley Song” at the Berkeley
Repertory Theatre, and was honored in 2004 with a Tony Award® win, for Best
Performance
by a Featured Actress in a Musical, for her role in the widely acclaimed
Broadway show
“Caroline, or Change” as well as a Drama Desk Award nomination.
Rose has also achieved the Lucille Lortell Award, a Theatre World Award, and a
Clarence
Derwent Award. When she reprised her role in the West-Coast productions of
“Caroline, or
Change” in San Francisco and Los Angeles, Rose won both the Los Angeles Critics
Circle
Award and an Ovation Award. She was also nominated for two NAACP Image Awards, a
Screen Actors Guild Award® and shared a Grammy® nomination with Beyoncé Knowles
and
Jennifer Hudson for the soundtrack of “Dreamgirls.” She performed the nominated
Best
Original Song from “Dreamgirls” (“Patience”) at the 79th Annual Academy Awards®,
along
with Knowles and Hudson.
ABOUT THE VOICE CAST
34
ABOUT THE VOICE CAST
Rose has signed on to host “AfroPoP: The Ultimate Cultural Exchange,” an
innovative
documentary series on contemporary life, art and pop culture in the African
Diaspora. The
series is produced by the National Black Programming Consortium (NBPC), and
co-presented
by American Public Television (APT).
TERRENCE HOWARD (James), Academy Award® nominee,
exploded onto the Hollywood scene in 2005 after delivering
powerful performances in a number of film and TV productions.
Howard has garnered multiple accolades including Academy Award
and Golden Globe® nominations, as well as awards for
Breakthrough Actor by the National Board of Review, Movieline
and the Gotham Awards. Crowned as the Indie Film King by
Entertainment Weekly, he has also received the Rising Star Award
from the Palm Springs International Film Festival, the Renaissance
Artist Award from the Diversity Awards, and the Career
Achievement Award from the Chicago International Film Festival.
For his leading role in John Singleton’s “Hustle & Flow,” Howard received
nominations
for an Academy Award®, a Golden Globe®, an Image Award and an Independent Spirit
Award
and won the Satellite Award for Best Actor. The song, which he performs in the
film, received
a Critics Choice Award and became the first rap song ever to receive an Academy
Award. The
cast also received a Screen Actors Guild® nomination for Best Ensemble.
For the Oscar®-winning Best Picture “Crash,” Howard and the all-star cast,
including
Sandra Bullock, Don Cheadle, Thandie Newton and Matt Dillon, received a Screen
Actors
Guild Award® for Best Ensemble, was nominated for a Gotham Award, and swept up
an Oscar
at the 2006 Academy Awards® for Best Picture.
Keeping a powerful presence on the small screen as well, Howard was seen in the
HBO
film “Lackawanna Blues,” directed by George C. Wolfe, and based on Tony
Award®-winning
Ruben Santiago-Hudson’s autobiographical play. The cast, which includes Jeffrey
Wright and
S. Epatha Merkerson, was nominated for an NAACP Image Award. In 2006, Howard
took on
a new role as host of the Emmy Award®-winning PBS series “Independent Lens,” a
showcase
for independent filmmakers that introduced a new drama or documentary every
episode.
Howard’s love for acting came naturally, through summers spent with his
grandmother,
New York stage actress Minnie Gentry. He later began his acting career on “The
Cosby
Show,” after being discovered on a New York City street by a casting director.
The chance
encounter helped Howard break into feature films and soon he was cast in such
films as “Mr.
Holland’s Opus.”
Howard’s memorable performances are of scene-stealing characters such as Cowboy
in the
Hughes brothers’ film “Dead Presidents,” and as Quentin in Malcolm D. Lee’s film
“The Best
Man”; the latter earned him an NAACP Image Award, Independent Spirit Award
nomination
and a Chicago Film Critics Award nomination.
Other film credits include “Pride,” as swim coach Jim Ellis, who starts a swim
team for
troubled teens at the Philadelphia Department of Recreation, John Singleton’s
crime drama
“Angel Eyes,” “Harts War,” “Four Brothers,” “Idlewild” and Jim Sheridan’s “Get
Rich or Die
Tryin’.”
Howard was most recently seen starring in Dito Montiel’s “Fighting” with
Channing Tatum
35
and in Paramount’s “Iron Man” opposite Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow and
Jeff
Bridges, which is based on the famed comic book series. He also starred in the
Warner Bros.
thriller “The Brave One” with Jodie Foster, “The Hunting Party” with Richard
Gere, “August
Rush” with Keri Russell and Jonathan Rhys Meyers, and The Weinstein Company’s
“Awake”
with Jessica Alba and Hayden Christensen. He will next be seen in Lucasfilm’s
“Red Tails”
with Cuba Gooding Jr.
This past winter, Howard made his Broadway and stage debut in the revival of
“Cat on a
Hot Tin Roof,” directed by Debbie Allen and starring Phylicia Rashad, James Earl
Jones and
Anika Noni Rose.
A self-taught musician, Howard plays both the piano and the guitar. His musical
talents
were first seen on the big screen alongside Jamie Foxx in “Ray,” for which they
both earned
a SAG Award® nomination. In 2008, Howard released his debut album “Shine a
Light”—
which he wrote, produced and performed—with Columbia Records.
Howard is also an involved philanthropist. He partnered with the Daimler
Chrysler
Foundation in 2007 and helped garner a donation of $35,000 to the Kaleidoscope
program at
the Settlement Music School in Philadelphia. He is an Ambassador for the EIF
National
Colorectal Cancer Research Alliance and is the Mentor Foundation’s 2009 Global
Ambassador for the promotion of health and wellbeing of children around the
world.
JOHN GOODMAN (Big Daddy) remembers the day in 1975
when he left his native St. Louis for New York, armed only with a
degree in fine arts from Southwest Missouri State University,
$1,000 his brother had lent him, and a dream of becoming a
professional actor.
He didn’t want to look back later and say, “I wonder if I could
have.” He made the rounds, worked at odd jobs and just tried to
keep busy. He’s been quite busy ever since.
Goodman’s film project “You Don’t Know Jack,”—HBO’s
biopic of Jack Kevorkian—reunites him with Al Pacino (“Sea of
Love”) and Susan Sarandon (“Speed Racer.”) In addition, Goodman stars in “The
Station,” a
comedy pilot produced by Ben Stiller for FOX.
Upcoming releases include MGM’s “Bunyan and the Babe,” Constantin Films’ “Pope
Joan”
and Alabama Moon Entertainment’s “Alabama Moon.”
Goodman has garnered many accolades, including a Golden Globe Award® for Best
Actor
and seven Emmy® nominations for his role in “Roseanne.” He also earned Emmy
nominations
for his starring roles in TNT’s “Kingfish: A Story of Huey P. Long,” CBS’s
production of
Tennessee Williams’ “A Streetcar Named Desire,” and the Coen brothers’ film
“Barton Fink.”
In 2007, Goodman won the Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actor for his role on
“Studio 60 on
the Sunset Strip.”
Previous film credits include “In the Electric Mist,” “Confessions of a
Shopaholic,” “Speed
Racer,” “Bee Movie,” “Gigantic,” “Marilyn Hotchkiss’ Ballroom Dancing and Charm
School,” “Beyond the Sea,” “Masked and Anonymous,” “Storytelling,” “O Brother,
Where
Art Thou?,” “Coyote Ugly,” “What Planet Are You From?,” “One Night at McCool’s,”
“Bringing Out the Dead,” “Fallen,” “The Borrowers,” “Blues Brothers 2000,” “The
Runner,”
“The Flintstones,” “Mother Night,” “Arachnophobia,” “Always,” “Pie in the Sky,”
“Born
ABOUT THE VOICE CAST
36
ABOUT THE VOICE CAST
Yesterday,” “Matinee,” “The Babe,” “King Ralph,” “Punchline,” “Everybody’s All-
American,” “Sea of Love,” “Stella,” “Eddie Macon’s Run,” “C.H.U.D.,” “Revenge of
the
Nerds,” “Maria’s Lovers,” “Sweet Dreams,” “True Stories,” “The Big Easy,”
“Burglar” “The
Wrong Guys,” “Raising Arizona” and “The Big Lebowski.”
He has lent his voice to numerous animated films, including “Monsters, Inc.,”
“The
Emperor’s New Groove,” “Tales of the Rat Fink” and “The Jungle Book II.” He also
voiced
a main character in NBC’s animated series “Father of the Pride.”
Goodman went to Southwest Missouri State intending to play football, but
suffered an
injury, changed his major to drama and graduated with a degree in Theatre.
Most recently, he starred on Broadway in “Waiting for Godot,” receiving rave
reviews as
Pozzo. His other stage credits include dinner theatre and children’s theatre
productions and
several off-Broadway plays. His regional theatre credits include “Henry IV,
Parts I and II,”
“Antony and Cleopatra,” “As You Like It” and “A Christmas Carol.” He performed
in a road
production of “The Robber Bridegroom” and starred in two Broadway shows, “Loose
Ends”
in 1979 and “Big River” in 1985. In 2001, he starred in the NY Shakespeare
Festival Central
Park staging of “The Seagull,” directed by Mike Nichols. The following year,
Goodman
appeared on Broadway in the Public Theatre’s “Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui.”
Goodman and his family have homes in Los Angeles and New Orleans.
KEITH DAVID (Dr. Facilier) continues to exemplify the
character of Hollywood’s greatest actors with a humble, untrying
ability to remain in demand, with more than 150 film, television and
stage credits to his name.
Some of his dozens of onscreen feature-film roles include Oliver
Stone’s Academy Award®-winning “Platoon,” Clint Eastwood’s
“Bird,” and Paul Haggis’ Academy Award®-winning “Crash,” as
well as “There’s Something About Mary,” “Armageddon,” “Pitch
Black,” “The Chronicles of Riddick,” “Requiem for a Dream,” “Mr.
and Mrs. Smith,” and “Barbershop.”
On television, some of David’s numerous acting credits are guest arcs on “ER”
and
“Seventh Heaven,” appearances on “Law & Order” and “CSI,” and LeVar Burton’s
telefilm
“The Tiger Woods Story,” for which he received an Emmy Award® nomination.
Noted for his deep, commanding voice, another dimension of David’s career is as
an
Emmy®-winning voiceover artist, internationally known as the voice behind
“Goliath” from
“Gargoyles,” and the title character in the “Spawn” animated series. He provided
the voice for
“Vhailor” in the video game “Planescape: Torment” and “The Arbiter” for Halo 2.
Other
voiceover credits include the A&E cable series “City Confidential” and the U.S.
Navy
television commercials.
David’s strong working relationship with Ken Burns made him the narrative voice
for three
of Burns’ epic documentaries. The segment “A Necessary War” from Burns’
miniseries “The
War” earned David an Emmy Award® to add to his first, won for “Unforgivable
Blackness:
The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson.” The miniseries “Jazz” also earned David an
Emmy®
nomination.
In addition, he is the voice behind the character of “The Black Cat” in the
Focus Features
adaptation of the book “Coraline.”
37
A native New Yorker, David has extensive stage experience. His studies in voice
and
theater at the prestigious Juilliard School of Drama garnered him a 1992 Tony®
Award
nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a Musical for his role in the classic
Broadway play
“Jelly’s Last Jam.” His stage credits also include Sarah Pia Anderson’s revival
of “Hedda
Gabler” and Lloyd Richards’ original Broadway staging of the late August
Wilson’s “Seven
Guitars.”
Also an accomplished singer/songwriter with his own band, David has drafted some
of
today’s top producers and most popular performers to join him on his debut
album. The album
features both traditional jazz and his personalized brand of a hip-hop/jazz
hybrid.
Currently, David is the new voice of Smooth Jazz, 94.7 The WAVE, the Original
Smooth
Jazz radio station in Los Angeles, and streaming worldwide. David also stars in
the title role
of Rock Capital Films’ “Pastor Brown.”
MICHAEL-LEON WOOLEY (Louis) was last seen on
Broadway as the voice of Audrey 2, the man-eating plant, in “Little
Shop of Horrors.” Other Broadway credits include “Five Guys
Named Moe,” “The Music Man,” “Abby’s Song” and “House of
Flowers.” Wooley was Tiny Joe Dixon in the motion picture
“Dreamgirls,” and is featured on the soundtrack with the song
“Takin’ the Long Way home.” Other film credits include “Ghost
Town,” “My Father’s Will” and “Good Sharma.” TV credits include
Law & Order,” “Rescue Me,” “The Knights of Prosperity” and
“Cosby” (Prism Award). He sang at Carnegie Hall with the New
York Pops and at the Kennedy Center for the Bill Clinton’s Presidential
Inauguration.
JIM CUMMINGS (Ray) “Tell the kid he’s got it,” said the
legendary Mel Blanc with a smile after listening to a young man’s
first demo tape of cartoon character voices. The year was 1984, “the
kid” was Jim Cummings. Since then, “the kid” has gone on to give
life and voice to some of America’s most beloved animated
characters, even a few of the late Mel Blanc’s. Cummings was
nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award® for his work as the lovable
Tigger on Disney Channel’s “My Friends Tigger and Pooh,” in
which he also voices everyone’s favorite bear, Winnie the Pooh.
Born and raised in Youngstown, Ohio, Cummings spent
Saturday mornings riveted to the TV screen as he mimicked the characters in his
favorite
cartoons, all the while dreaming that one day he would voice them himself. At
age 19, he
moved to New Orleans, where he performed as a drummer, a singer, a deck hand on
riverboats, and even designed and created Mardi Gras floats, all while absorbing
the rich
characters and accents that would some day find expression in animation.
Years later, Cummings relocated to Southern California and managed a video store
as he
pursued his childhood dream. He gave his first demo tape to a customer who was
also a movie
producer, and the rest, as they say, is history. In 1984, Cummings landed his
first role as Lionel
the Lion, in Disney Channel’s “Dumbo’s Circus.” During his illustrious career,
he has worked
ABOUT THE VOICE CAST
38
ABOUT THE VOICE CAST
extensively for The Walt Disney Studios, voicing classic characters such as
Winnie the Pooh,
Tigger, King Louis, Kaa the Snake, Pete (formerly Peg-Leg Pete), and more. His
many other
Disney credits include Darkwing Duck, Bonkers, Fat Cat and Monterey Jack on
“Chip ‘n
Dale: Rescue Rangers,” Don Karnage on “Talespin,” and more.
His credits read like a top-list of animated and live-action films, including
“Who Framed
Roger Rabbit,” “The Little Mermaid,” “Aladdin,” “Tarzan,” “Pocahontas,” “The
Lion King,”
“Babe: Pig in the City,” “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” and “Brother Bear 2,”
among
others.
Cummings’ work in voiceover includes hundreds of television and radio
commercials,
movie trailers, promos and videogames.
He’s a proud father of four and resides in Southern California with his wife
Stephanie, their
beautiful daughters Grace and Lulu Rose, and their critters.
JENIFER LEWIS (Mama Odie) is best known for her sassy
portrayal of “Lana Hawkins” on Lifetime Television’s six-year hit
series “Strong Medicine.” She has performed on Broadway in
“Eubie,” “Comin’ Uptown,” “Rock and Roll, the First 5000 Years”
and “Hairspray.” Lewis starred on stage as “Dolly Levi” in the 5th
Avenue Theatre’s hugely successful production of “Hello, Dolly!,”
and also starred with Meryl Streep in New York’s Shakespeare in
the Park’s production of “Mother Courage and Her Children.”
She received two NAACP Image Award Nominations for
“What’s Love Got to Do with It” and “The Preacher’s Wife,” with
Denzel Washington.
Lewis has appeared in more than 60 films, including “Antwone Fisher,” “Corrina,
Corrina,” “Tyler Perry’s Meet the Browns” and “Tyler Perry’s Madea’s Family
Reunion,”
“Renaissance Man,” “Sister Act,” “Sister Act 2,” “Dead Presidents,” “Blast from
the Past,”
“The Brothers,” “Mystery Men,” “Beaches,” “Not Easily Broken,” “Poetic Justice,”
“Girl 6,”
“Jackie’s Back!,” and “Cast Away.”
Her numerous television credits include starring roles in “The Temptations,”
“Friends,”
“Murphy Brown,” “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air,” “That’s So Raven,” “Shark,” “The
Little
Richard Story,” “Girlfriends” and “Boston Legal.” Lewis’ distinctive voice is
heard in
animated films, including “Shark Tale,” “The Proud Family,” “The PJs” and
“Cars.”
Lewis resides in Los Angeles with her adopted daughter Charmaine and is a
relentless
supporter of finding cures for breast cancer and HIV/AIDS.
39
OPRAH WINFREY (Eudora), through the power of media,
has created an unparalleled connection with people around the
world. As supervising producer and host of the top-rated, award-
winning “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” she has entertained,
enlightened and uplifted millions of viewers for nearly two and a
half decades. Her career spans the worlds of television, film, radio,
theater, magazines, radio and philanthropy and her
accomplishments as a global media leader and philanthropist have
established her as one of the most respected and admired public
figures today.
With a broad body of work in a host of successful hit projects,
BRUNO CAMPOS (Prince Naveen) has displayed impressive
acting range and audience appeal. He is recognizable as the suave
and notorious surgeon nicknamed “The Carver” on F/X’s Golden
Globe®-winning smash-hit drama “Nip/Tuck” during its highest
rated season, listed by Vanity Fair Magazine in “The Best of 2005.”
Campos was also widely known to the 23 million weekly
viewers of NBC’s Thursday night Christina Applegate starrer
“Jesse” in the 1998-2000 seasons. His breakout role as her sexy and
grounded boyfriend Diego earned him votes from People magazine
as one of the “Sexiest Men Alive” and TV Guide’s “16 Sexiest Stars on TV.” For
his work,
Campos was also awarded an ALMA (American Latino Media Arts) Award.
His other film credits include starring roles as an Italian immigrant in
Brazil’s Oscar-
nominated “O Quatrilho,” and the indie drama “Dopamine,” which won the Sloane
Award at
Sundance and was purchased and distributed by Robert Redford.
His other series leads include starring roles as a conflicted shark lawyer in
the Showtime
TV series “Leap Years,” and an idealistic ADA in ABC’s “The D.A.” created by
“The
Closer’s” James Duff, in which he starred opposite Steven Weber, Felicity
Huffman and JK
Simmons. Campos did a major arc on NBC’s groundbreaking “ER” and co-starred
opposite
Joe Mantegna in Mario Puzo’s Mafia TV miniseries “The Last Don.” He also just
completed
a starring role in Zach Braff’s first directed TV pilot.
Campos has done numerous guest roles on TV shows, including “CSI,” “Cold Case,”
“Will
& Grace,” “Boston Legal,” “Suddenly Susan,” “Cybill” and “Resurrection Blvd.”
Stage work includes the male lead in Tony Award®-winning director Mary
Zimmerman’s
production of Shakespeare’s “All’s Well That Ends Well.”
Other voice work includes a 2006 campaign for Doritos™.
Campos received a Bachelor’s degree in Performance Studies from Northwestern
University in 1995 and attended high school for three years at the Interlochen
Arts Academy.
40
ABOUT THE VOICE CAST
ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS
JENNIFER CODY (Charlotte LaBouff) is best known for her
work on Broadway. Her shows include: “Shrek: The Musical,” “The
Pajama Game,” “Urinetown,” “Taboo,” “Beauty and the Beast,”
“Seussical the Musical,” “Best Little Whorehouse in Texas,”
“Grease,” “Cats,” Andrew Lippa’s “The Wild Party,” “No No
Nanette,” “Junie B. Jones,” “Henry and Mudge” (Drama League
Nomination) and “Best Foot Forward.” She received the Kevin
Kline Award for Best Supporting Actress for “Hello, Dolly!” Her
television credits include “Law & Order,” “Rosie Live” and “The
Untitled Paul Reiser Project” (pilot). Her voice can be heard on
many cast recordings, commercials and video games.
ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS
JOHN MUSKER (Director/Screenplay By) continues to be a major force in the art of
animation and one of Disney’s greatest resources. From “The Little Mermaid” and
“Aladdin”
to the epic comedy “Hercules,” his irreverent wit, strong visual style and
unconventional
approach to storytelling helped to create some of the most successful films in
motion-picture
history.
Born in Chicago, Ill., Musker first began drawing while in grammar school and
knew by
the age of 8 that he wanted to become an animator. Inspired by such Disney
classics as
“Sleeping Beauty” and “Pinocchio,” as well as Bob Thomas’ primer “The Art of
Animation,”
he developed a thorough understanding of the animation process. His fascination
with comics,
cartoons and Mad Magazine further stimulated his desire to draw.
At Loyola Academy, a Jesuit high school in Wilmette, Ill., Musker became a
cartoonist for
the school paper. His special brand of caricature, which included outrageous
sketches of
teachers and school celebrities, quickly caught on. This preoccupation with
caricature and
cartooning continued throughout his college years at Northwestern University,
where he
majored in English and drew cartoons for The Daily Northwestern.
Following graduation from college in 1974, Musker put together a portfolio and
set out for
California to pursue a career as an animator. Initially rejected by Disney, he
enrolled at the
California Institute of the Arts the following year to master his craft.
After completing his first year, which included a summer internship at the
Disney Studio,
he was offered a full-time job as an animator. This time Musker turned it down,
opting instead
to complete the second year of his training.
In 1977, Musker started work at Disney, where his two training tests were
enthusiastically
received and he began as an assistant animator on “The Small One.” He also
animated on
“The Fox and the Hound” and did story work on “The Black Cauldron.”
Musker and Clements joined creative forces in 1983 to write “The Great Mouse
Detective”
and went on to co-direct the film along with Burny Mattinson and Dave Michener.
This
successful collaboration led to a reteaming on “The Little Mermaid,” the
award-winning film
that helped to revitalize feature animation at Disney and generate new
excitement for the
genre as a whole. Since then, Musker and Clements have co-written and
co-directed two of
the funniest and most memorable animated features ever, “Aladdin” and
“Hercules.” Their
next project was the Disney animated feature “Treasure Planet,” a swashbuckling
intergalactic
41
adventure based on the classic novel “Treasure Island” by Robert Louis
Stevenson.
Of his successful partnership with Ron Clements, Musker says, “We’re both
relatively
agreeable Midwestern types, and we each have slightly different strengths and
approaches.
Ron is more structure-oriented and makes sure that the overall story doesn’t
disintegrate
during the course of too many rewrites. I tend to be more concerned with
specific details and
gags. We constantly go over each other’s scenes and drafts and add new ideas and
suggestions
in the process.”
Musker and his wife, Gale, whom he met at Disney, have three children (including
twins).
They live in La Cañada, Calif.
RON CLEMENTS (Director/Screenplay By) has emerged as one of the top talents in
the
field of animation today, and his gentle humor, visual integrity and strong
story sensibilities
have helped to attract a wider audience than ever before to animated feature
films. Along with
his directing partner, John Musker, Clements has dedicated himself to expanding
the Disney
legacy and taking the art of animation in exciting new directions.
Born and raised in Sioux City, Iowa, Clements traces his interest in animation
to his first
viewing of “Pinocchio” at the age of 10. As a teenager, he began making super-8
animated
films, including “Shades of Sherlock Holmes,” a 15-minute featurette he animated
singlehandedly.
“Shades” won critical acclaim and led to a part-time job as an artist at a
television
station, where he animated commercials for the local market. Several years
later, “Shades”
helped Clements get a job at Disney and also served as the inspiration for “The
Great Mouse
Detective,” which he wrote and directed with Musker.
After graduating from high school, Clements came to California to try his luck
at
animation. Because there were no openings at Disney, he worked for several
months at
Hanna-Barbera while studying life drawing in the evening at Art Center. With
persistence and
determination, Clements was finally accepted into Disney’s Talent Development
Program, a
training ground for young animators. His self-taught experience and ambition
made up for his
lack of formal training.
After successfully completing the training program, Clements served a two-year
apprenticeship under Disney legend Frank Thomas. He quickly progressed through
the ranks
from in-betweener to assistant to animator-storyman. His credits include “Winnie
the Pooh
and Tigger, Too,” “The Rescuers,” “Pete’s Dragon,” “The Fox and the Hound” and
“The
Black Cauldron.”
Clements made his writing-directing debut (with Musker) on the 1986 Disney
animated
feature “The Great Mouse Detective.” Following that, he successfully pitched an
animated
version of the classic Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale “The Little Mermaid,”
which
reteamed Clements and Musker as co-writers and co-directors and became one of
the studio’s
greatest artistic and commercial achievements. Musker and Clements went on to
write and
direct two of the funniest and most memorable animated features ever—“Aladdin”
and
“Hercules.” Clements and Musker’s next project was “Treasure Planet,” the
swashbuckling
intergalactic adventure based on the classic novel “Treasure Island” by Robert
Louis
Stevenson.
Clements and his wife, Tami, live in the San Fernando Valley.
42
ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS
ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS
’Round about his senior year at New York’s Syracuse University, Detroit-native
ROB EDWARDS (Screenplay By) figured he was due for a change of climate. Having
already stunned his doctor father and science teacher mother into silence with a
super-
practical major in Film, Edwards figured he had nothing to lose by heading to
L.A. to give the
entertainment industry a try.
In short order he landed a job at the legendary MTM Studio as head of the entire
beverage
delivery department. Adept at discerning who wanted “pop” from those who craved
“soda,”
Edwards also slipped his spec script into deliveries. His MTM tenure was cut
short when a
producer on the lot passed his script along and soon Edwards was writing full
time. “Full
House,” “A Different World,” and “The Marshall Chronicles” followed, as did “In
Living
Color,” for which he received an Emmy Award® nomination. From there, Edwards
joined the
staff of “Fresh Prince of Bel Air,” and the next year, with Fresh Prince
producers Susan and
Andy Borowitz, he created “Out All Night,” starring Patti LaBelle, Morris
Chestnut and
Vivica A. Fox. That same year he delivered son Joseph, a co-production with wife
Michele.
Next came two seasons as co-executive producer on Fox’s “Roc,” starring Charles
S.
Dutton, which broadcast live. After working on Tea Leoni’s “The Naked Truth,”
L.L. Cool J.’s
“In The House” and second son, Sammy, Edwards turned his attention to
feature-film writing,
selling his first script, “Westside, to Lawrence Gordon’s Largo Productions. His
second script,
“Anger: A Love Story” landed Edwards a job writing Disney’s Academy
Award®-nominated
animated feature “Treasure Planet.”
Over the next few years Edwards worked on assignments for Will Smith’s Overbrook
Productions, Fox Searchlight Films, Room Nine Productions, “U Better Watch Out”
for
Reuben Cannon Productions, Chris Rock Entertainment and Motion Picture
Corporation of
America. He executive produced MTV’s adaptation of the neo-classic Korean action
film
“Volcano High,” and in 2006, Edwards made a brief return to television to work
on NBC’s
“Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip.” He returned to Disney Animation as writer on “
The Princess
and the Frog,” followed by “King of the Elves,” based on a short story by
Phillip K. Dick.
Edwards continues to collaborate with Michele, on developing Joseph and Sammy.
Early
reviews on the boys are positive, although a final release date has yet to be
set.
PETER DEL VECHO (Producer) joined Disney Animation Studios in 1995 and came to
the studio with a wealth of production experience in theater. Having worked at
numerous
theaters in New York and on the East Coast, Del Vecho eventually joined the
renowned
Guthrie Theater before leaving in 1995 as the associate producing director. It
was Del Vecho’s
passion for a collaborative artistic environment that brought him to Disney in
1995.
Del Vecho relies on his past production experience in both animation and theater
in his
current role as the producer of Disney’s next musical fairy tale, “The Princess
and the Frog.”
This latest film project reunites him with directors Ron Clements and John
Musker, creators
of “The Little Mermaid” and “Aladdin.”
Peter began his professional career at Disney in 1995. As the production manager
of
“Hercules,” he was responsible for guiding a production team of 300 artists and
helping to
bring this epic adventure to the screen. His next credit was as the associate
producer of the
2002 animated film “Treasure Planet.” Del Vecho also served as associate
producer on the
2005 animation adventure “Chicken Little,” where he was creatively involved in
the
production of the studio’s first full-length 3D animated feature.
43
Born and raised in Boston, Mass., Del Vecho developed an interest in music and
theater at
an early age and he went on to study theater production at Boston University
where he
graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts. From there he worked as a stage manager
in various
theaters on the east coast before a nine-year stint at the renowned Guthrie
Theater in
Minneapolis, Minn.
In addition to his accomplishments as a filmmaker, Del Vecho is married to a
loving and
supportive wife, Jane, and is father of twin 12-year-old children, Gregory and
Georgina. He
holds an FAA Sport Pilot certificate and flies his own weight shift trike in and
around the Los
Angeles area.
JOHN LASSETER (Executive Producer) is chief creative officer of Walt Disney and
Pixar Animation Studios and principal creative advisor, Walt Disney
Imagineering. He is a
two-time Academy Award®-winning director and oversees all films from Walt Disney
and
Pixar Animation Studios and associated projects. Lasseter directed the
groundbreaking and
critically acclaimed films “Toy Story,” “A Bug’s Life” and “Toy Story 2.”
Additionally, he
executive produced “Monsters, Inc.,” “Finding Nemo,” “The Incredibles” and “Up.”
Lasseter
returned to the director’s chair in 2006 with the release of the Disney•Pixar
film “Cars.”
In 2004, Lasseter was honored by the Art Directors Guild with its prestigious
Outstanding
Contribution to Cinematic Imagery award and received an honorary degree from the
American Film Institute. Lasseter received the 2008 Winsor McCay Award from
ASIFA-
Hollywood for career achievement and contribution to the art of animation.
Under Lasseter’s supervision, Pixar’s animated feature and short films have
received a
multitude of critical accolades and film industry honors. He received a Special
Achievement
Oscar® in 1995 for his inspired leadership of the “Toy Story” team. His work on
“Toy Story”
also resulted in an Academy Award® nomination for Best Original Screenplay, the
first time
an animated feature had been recognized in that category. “Finding Nemo,”
released spring
2003, became the highest-grossing animated feature of all time and won the Oscar
for Best
Animated Feature Film.
As creative director of Pixar, Lasseter enjoyed the critical acclaim and
box-office success
of “The Incredibles” in 2004. The film was recognized with a record-breaking 16
Annie
Award nominations and several “Best Of” awards by The Wall Street Journal,
American Film
Institute, National Board of Review and many others.
Lasseter also has written, directed and animated a number of highly renowned
short films
and television commercials for Pixar, including “Luxo Jr.” (1986 Academy Award®
nominee);
“Red’s Dream” (1987); “Tin Toy” (1988 Academy Award winner); and “Knickknack”
(1989),
which was produced as a 3D stereoscopic film. Pixar’s “Tin Toy” became the first
computer-
animated film to win an Oscar® when it received the 1988 Academy Award for Best
Animated
Short Film.
Prior to the formation of Pixar in 1986, Lasseter was a member of the Computer
Division
of Lucasfilm Ltd., where he designed and animated the computer-generated Stained
Glass
Knight character in the 1985 Steven Spielberg-produced film “Young Sherlock
Holmes.”
Lasseter attended the inaugural year of the Character Animation program at
California
Institute of the Arts and received his BFA in film there in 1979. While
attending California
Institute of the Arts, Lasseter produced two animated films, both winners of the
Student
Academy Award® for Animation: “Lady and the Lamp” in 1979 and “Nitemare” in
1980. His
44
ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS
ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS
very first award came at the age of 5 when he won $15 from the Model Grocery
Market in
Whittier, Calif., for a crayon drawing of the Headless Horseman.
RANDY NEWMAN (Composer) is an Oscar®-, Grammy®- and Emmy®-winning
composer and songwriter whose numerous film credits include “James and the Giant
Peach”
(1996), “A Bug’s Life,” “Monsters, Inc.” and “Cars.”
Newman has been nominated for 17 Academy Awards® including two each for
“Ragtime”
(1981), “Monsters, Inc.” and “Toy Story.” He won his first Oscar in 2002 for the
song “If I
Didn’t Have You” from “Monsters Inc.” The song also earned him his second of
five Grammy
Awards®. Newman’s song “When She Loved Me,” written for “Toy Story 2,” won a
Grammy
for Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or other Visual Media.
Newman’s other film scores include “The Natural,” “Avalon,” “Parenthood,” “Seabiscuit,”
“Awakenings,” “The Paper,” “Pleasantville,” “Meet the Parents” and “Meet the
Fockers.” He
has also written songs for television, including the Emmy Award®-winning “Monk”
theme
song, “It’s a Jungle Out There.”
The multi-talented Newman co-wrote the screenplay for “Three Amigos!” (1986)
with
Steve Martin and Lorne Michaels and also wrote three songs for the film.
Born in 1943 into a famously musical family, Newman began his professional
songwriting
career at 17, knocking out tunes for a Los Angeles publishing house. His uncles
Alfred, Lionel
and Emil were all well-respected film composers and conductors. His father
Irving
Newman—a prominent physician—wrote a song for Bing Crosby.
In 1968, Newman made his recording debut with the lushly orchestrated album
“Randy
Newman.” Before long, his extraordinary and evocative compositions were being
covered by
a wide range of top artists, from Pat Boone and Peggy Lee to Ray Charles and
Wilson Pickett.
Critics raved about his 1970 sophomore effort “12 Songs,” and increasingly the
public started
to take notice of his sly, satirical songwriting with albums such as 1970’s
“Live,” the 1972
classic “Sail Away” and the acclaimed and provocative 1974 release, “Good Old
Boys.” His
1977 album, “Little Criminals,” included the left-field smash hit “Short
People.”
In the 1980s, Newman divided his time between film composing and recording his
own
albums, including 1988’s “Land of Dreams,” another breakthrough work marked by
some of
his most personal and powerful work.
The ’90s saw the release of Newman’s comedic take on “Faust,” which included
performances by Don Henley, Elton John, Bonnie Raitt, Linda Ronstadt and James
Taylor, the
compilation “Guilty: 30 Years of Randy Newman,” and a 1999 album for DreamWorks,
“Bad
Love.”
Newman’s studio album “Harps and Angels” was produced by Mitchell Froom and
Lenny
Waronker and released in August 2008.
NE-YO (Singer, “Never Knew I Needed”) made headlines one year ago when his most
recent RIAA platinum album “Year of the Gentleman” debuted at the top of the
Soundscan
and UK national charts. The album went on to generate a league-leading total of
five Grammy
Award® nominations—with its No. 1 R&B smash single “Miss Independent” winning in
the
Best R&B Song (songwriters award) and Best Male R&B Vocal Performance
categories.
“Year of the Gentleman” followed up “Because of You” (released May 2007), which
won the
Grammy Award® for Best Contemporary R&B Album, and “In My Own Words” (February
45
2006)—both of which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and R&B/Hip-Hop Albums
charts.
Information contained within as of November 16, 2009.
®®
SCREEN ACTORS GUILD AWARDand SAG AWARDare the registered trademarks and service
marks of Screen Actors
OSCARand ACADEMY AWARDare the registered trademarks and service marks of the
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and
Sciences.
®
®
Guild.
TONY AWARD® is a registered trademark and service mark of The American Theatre
Wing.
46
ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS
We, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, grant you, the intended recipient of
this press kit, a nonexclusive,
non-transferable license to use the enclosed photos under the terms and
conditions
below. If you don’t agree, don’t use the photos. You may use the photos only to
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You are solely
responsible for any and all liabilities arising from unauthorized use or
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press kit is the property of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures and must not be
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©Disney Enterprises, Inc. All rights reserved.
(C) MBN 2009