CLARKSVILLE, TN – Animation duo Tom and Tony Bancroft, who have worked on iconic Disney films such as The Lion King, Mulan, Aladdin, and Beauty and the Beast, will speak at Austin Peay State University during a free public event at 6 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 11 in Art + Design Room 120.

Austin Peay’s Department of Art + Design, with support from the Center of Excellence for the Creative Arts, will host the Bancroft brothers as they discuss their work, careers, and the highlights of a life spent building characters. The two have worked as supervising animators, directors, authors, university faculty, and more, and currently host The Bancroft Brothers Animation Podcast (available on Spotify or Apple Podcasts).

About the artists

Tom Bancroft has over 25 years of experience in the animation industry, much of which was for Walt Disney Feature Animation. He was an animator on four animated shorts and eight feature films, including Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, Aladdin, Pocahontas, Mulan, and Brother Bear. He has been nominated for Annie and Reuben division awards, spoken at the Kennedy Center and awarded an entry into the Chicago Children’s Film Festival.

Bancroft left Disney in 2000 to follow his heart and help Big Idea Productions, creators of the popular VeggieTales animated series, create their first feature film, Jonah: A VeggieTales Movie. While there, he also directed and co-created the popular 2D animated video series Larryboy: The Cartoon Adventures.

With over 30 years in the animation industry, Tony Bancroft has been creatively involved in almost every position making animated films, videos, commercials, and short films. His animation and directing skills have been sharpened and honed while working at Walt Disney Feature Animation, Sony Pictures, his own animation company, Toonacious Family Entertainment, and currently, as an independent contractor working with Disney, Warner Brothers, and many more.

Bancroft’s most notable accomplishments include being the co-director of Disney’s animated film, Mulan, for which he received the Annie Award for Director of the Year from ASIFA-International; and animation supervisor of Sony’s Stuart Little 2, for which he received the Visual Effects Society’s top award for character animation.