Tony Bancroft, the award-winning veteran animator, director and producer whose credits include classic Disney films such as Mulan, The Lion King, Aladdin and Beauty and the Beast, will make his first appearance at this year’s Animayo Gran Canaria Festival in Spain, where he will discuss his work and career and perform Avery Kroll’s acclaimed animated short, The Piano.
Mr. Bancroft will lead an in-person workshop, “Visual Storytelling: Think Like an Artist, Tell Like a Director,” and conduct a master class, “Animation with a Legacy: Mulan, The Lion King, Aladdin, and Other Unforgettable Films.”
Bancroft, who is the executive producer of “The Piano,” will also screen a short film on the opening night of the 21st Animayo Gran Canaria, which will be held from May 6th to 9th.
With a career spanning more than 30 years, Bancroft has worked as a director, producer, and animator with major companies such as Walt Disney Animation Studios, Sony Pictures, and Warner Bros. Pictures.
Trained at California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) and currently director of the undergraduate and master’s programs in animation at Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tennessee, Bancroft is considered one of the architects of the Walt Disney feature animation resurgence in the 1990s. The festival said he is widely recognized for his role in developing the animation and visual style of the then-iconic title.
In addition to co-directing the award-winning Mulan alongside Barry Cooke, Bancroft is an animation director and animator who also created iconic characters such as Pumbaa from The Lion King. Iago from “Aladdin”. Cogsworth from “Beauty and the Beast.” Gargoyles from “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” and Kronk from “The Emperor’s New Groove.”
His extensive filmography also includes titles such as Mary Poppins Returns, Enchanted, The Rescuers Down Under, The Prince and the Pauper, and the 2023 Disney Centennial short Once Upon a Studio.
Beyond his 12-year stint at Disney, Bancroft likewise served as executive producer on Kirby Atkins and Jun Huang’s Oscar-nominated “Mosley” from Fufu Studios and China Film Animation. He also served as animation director on Sony Pictures Imageworks’ “Stuart Little 2” and 2D and lead animator on Warner Bros. Pictures’ “Space Jam: A New Legacy.”
He has also made his mark on animated television series such as Rallyboy: The Cartoon Adventures and Lilo & Stitch: The Series, as well as writing the book “Directing for Animation.”
Bancroft is the co-founder of Toonacious Family Entertainment Studio, which focuses on producing family content, and co-founder of Animation Wyo! Expo, the first animation exhibition in the southern United States
Similarly, he hosts the ‘Bancroft Brothers Animation Podcast’ along with his brother Tom Bancroft.
