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Animators from Disney's `The Princess and The Frog`
In this 2009
interview, SIDEWALKS host Maaika Westen interviews
two of Disney's legendary animators, Mark Henn
and Mike Surrey, who talk about their film, "The
Princess and The Frog."
The two men are the supervising animators: Mark was
in charge of lead character Tiana, while Mike was
responsible for animating Ray, the lovestruck
Firefly.
Mark Henn joined the Walt Disney Animation
Studios in June 1980 as an in-betweener on "The Fox
and the Hound" and was promoted to Animator less
than a year later. Most recently, he animated Goofy
in "How to Hook Up Your Home Theater" for Disney’s
newly reinstated shorts program and provided
animation for the bookend sequences of the Studio’s
"Enchanted."
He was promoted to Animator during the featurette
"Mickey’s Christmas Carol," where he was part of the
team responsible for animating Mickey Mouse. As an
Animator on "The Black Cauldron," Mark worked on the
Horned King’s henchman, Creeper, the furry Gurgi and
Fflewddur Flam, the wandering minstrel.
In his first stint as a Supervising Animator, Henn
animated the characters of Basil, Dr. Dawson, Olivia
and Flaversham from "The Great Mouse Detective."
Since then, he has continued in his role as
Supervising Animator, bringing life to Oliver,
Dodger, Jenny and Fagin in "Oliver & Company"; Ariel
in "The Little Mermaid"; Bernard and Bianca in "The
Rescuers Down Under"; Mickey, the Prince and Goofy
in the animated featurette "The Prince and the
Pauper"; Belle in "Beauty and the Beast"; Jasmine in
"Aladdin"; Young Simba in "The Lion King"; the
free-spirited and irrepressible heroine of "Mulan",
as well as Mulan’s father, Fa Zhou; the loving older
sister Nani in "Lilo & Stitch"; and Grace in "Home
on the Range." He also served as an Animator on the
title character in "Pocahontas." In 2000, Mark also
traded his pencil for a director’s chair and
directed the award-winning short, "John Henry,"
which is based on the popular American legend.
Michael Surrey’s first Disney project was
"The Prince and the Pauper" in 1980. His first job
as a Supervisor was on "The Lion King’s" Timon. He
was nominated for an Annie Award for his work on
"The Hunchback of Notre Dame."
 Studio Synopsis:
Walt Disney Animation Studios presents the musical
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.
Comment:
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and The Frog
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