Variety Unveils Its 10 Animators to Watch for 2020 List, Presented by Nickelodeon

Variety’s 10 animators to watch all have one thing in common: passion for the art form that has seen its popularity explode with global audiences.

On Oct. 19 at 4 p.m. PT/7 P.M. ET, Nickelodeon presents a one-hour special on the future of animation that includes the work and interviews with Jorge Gutiérrez - this year's recipient of Variety's annual Creative Impact in Animation Award, celebrating Gutiérrez’s body of work from the Nickelodeon animated series El Tigre: The Adventures of Manny Rivera and the Guillermo del Toro-produced Book of Life to the upcoming Maya and the Three, which releases in 2021 - and Variety‘s 10 Animators to Watch honorees on the Nickelodeon YouTube channel (youtube.com/user/Nickelodeon) and the Variety YouTube channel (youtube.com/user/Variety).

Amanda Li

Maya and the Three

Photo: Courtesy of Amanda Li

Li began her career in another art discipline, architecture. It was a field that offered her an artistic outlet yet was limiting. “I really love architecture,” Li says, but notes that in the real world, architects have to deal with budgets, clients, materials, engineers, builders. “I realized that it just wasn’t as creative an outlet as I expected it to be.”

She kept a sketchbook, followed a lot of artists online, boldly contacted those who worked in animation and a whole new world opened up. She decided to try her hand at a career in cartoons. “I didn’t know if I would be successful at it, but I was 24 at the time and very ignorantly naïve.” She bought a one-way ticket to L.A. and realized that her architecture portfolio wasn’t going to cut it, so she took some art school coursework to help her build a resume. It took a year but she landed at Nickelodeon in 2011 on Monsters vs. Aliens. “Seeing that whole process was terrifying and exciting. At the same time, I really felt the imposter syndrome very, very strongly. I was convinced the first month or two that I was going to get fired. And then, you figure it out. I think I’ve always been very flexible and open to challenges.”

Those challenges include working on series such as Netflix’s upcoming epic Maya and the Three from Jorge Gutierrez; Disney’s Tangled: The Series; Cartoon Network’s Samurai Jack, from Genndy Tartakovsky; Kung Fu Panda: Paws of Destiny; and Uncle Grandpa.

Li’s now at Nickelodeon’s Intergalactic Shorts Program, aimed at developing new talent from around the world. “We have 12 different mini-pilots that we’re working on right now, each with a different creator,” she says, “They’re all completely different styles, different content … I’m here to help creators find the vision. [It’s a] unique job. Not many artists get to work on such a diverse variety at one time.” The challenges of working in different styles and both 3D and 2D have only strengthened her career as an artist. “Every job I’ve taken has been so different. But that’s what led me to where I am now.”

Aminder Dhaliwal

Twigs

Photo: Courtesy of Aminder Dhaliwal

Canadian artist Dhaliwal’s humor shines through in her first graphic novel, Woman World, filled with wry observations in a world where men have all died off. Woman World was serialized on Instagram and became a hit. Her new book, Cyclopedia Exoctica, centers on the world of art and life in the cyclops community. Her third book, Dead End Jobs for Ghosts, will be published later this year. She’s currently head of story for Sony Animation feature Twigs, and has worked at Nickelodeon and Netflix’s upcoming Centaurworld, from Megan Dong, as a writer.

“I was always drawing. My entire like grade school and high school identity was being an artist. And it was really hard going to an art college — Sheridan College in Canada — and finding out that everyone’s identity was the artist. I thought, ‘Oh, I guess I need more of a personality,’” she says.

Her style sort of came out of necessity. She had been working in development at Nickelodeon for

several years and had been under an NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement). When that ended, she realized that she didn’t have much of an online presence — de rigueur for artists.

“I decided that I wanted to just put stuff out and I wanted to develop a style where I could, an hour before posting, change the entire content if I had to — if I felt like it wasn’t funny enough or if it wasn’t up to my standards that I could change it and it didn’t feel impossible.”

But while she was creating books and online comics, she’s been constantly working in television animation. “I actually did my entire book tour on the weekends,” she says. She started at Sony in March, just as the global pandemic led to nationwide lockdowns.

She’s got another book idea cooking, and “I would love to turn one of my projects into a show — Woman World would make an excellent adult comedy.”

Elaine Bogan

Photo: Courtesy of Elaine Bogan

DreamWorks Spirit Untamed

Bogan was fresh out of Toronto’s Sheridan College when she started as a story trainee at DreamWorks Animation. Now she’s directing her first feature for DWA, DreamWorks Spirit Untamed, set for a May release.

“It was just a great learning environment, and, obviously, you go through these crazy insecurities and fears and all of that stuff as an artist, and especially when you when you’re dropped into an environment surrounded by your heroes and now you’re working on projects under them or with them. It’s intimidating, but as long as you just keep saying yes and keep trying and work hard you have to take that opportunity.”

Those opportunities included How to Train Your Dragon, Monsters vs. Aliens and in 2011, she became DreamWorks Television’s first female director when she helmed episodes of Dragons: Riders of Berk. She also directed episodes of Trollhunters and 3Below: Tales of Arcadia. Her own passion for horses — she’s been riding since she was a child and her horse is called Ziggy Stardust — is an inspiration for Spirit Rising Free, based the DreamWorks Netflix TV series.

“I’ll be honest, at first I was like ‘Oh, horses are kind of my escape from the world.’” But she found that bringing her lifelong experience with horses to the project was “really freeing … and it’s opened up different aspects of creativity because I have to call on experience and knowledge that I’ve been gaining since I was a kid, completely unrelated to the art world, it’s just pure storytelling from experience.”

She credits her artistic, supportive parents and brother with helping her nurture her imagination. Keeping calm on the back of a horse has helped her project confidence, even when she’s terrified inside.

“Nobody has any idea how much that translates into something like directing your first movie. It’s like flying the plane as you’re building it.” As for post-Spirit, “There’s always a million ideas. Even when I’m trying to go to sleep at night. But currently, I’m still trying to figure out how to direct a feature film from my living room. You know, that essentially is taking up all the brain space.”

Myke Chilian 10 Animators to Watch

“Tig n’ Seek”

Photo: Courtesy of Myke Chilian

Chilian, creator of HBO Max’s Tig n’ Seek, has turned a lifelong love of drawing and an affinity for the offbeat into a career. He got his start in animation after meeting Rick and Morty co-creator Justin Roiland. “I helped him with his short films like House of Cosbys and Doc and Mharti, the precursor to [Adult Swim’s] Rick and Morty. Eventually I helped him design the main cast of characters for Rick and Morty.”

He moved on from that into writing and storyboarding Cartoon Network’s Uncle Grandpa. “That was one of the most fun jobs I’ve ever had,” Chilian says. “Cartoon Network Studios really liked my sense of humor, so they gave me a chance to develop a pilot in their shorts department. This is where I made

a short called Tigglewinks; that pilot eventually evolved into what is now Tig n’ Seek.”

Chilian has also dabbled in live action, honing his comedy skills on Comedy Central’s The Sarah Silverman Program. “Rob Schrab, who directed the show, asked me to help him break down special sequences for certain episodes. It was my first official storyboarding job. You couldn’t have asked for a cooler gig,” he recalls. “I was working alongside some of the biggest comedy geniuses of that time — Dan Harmon, Jay Johnston, Rob, and, of course, Sarah. I feel very fortunate to have had that opportunity, especially so early in my career.”

Chilian, who plays the accordion in a band called the Manx, would love to make a feature film someday, and it’s likely going to be a musical. “I’ve had this idea for an intergalactic musical with lots of references to my Armenian heritage and amazing ballads. It sounds a little crazy, but so does any idea out of context.”

Tiffany Ford

Craig of the Creek

Photo: Courtesy of Tiffany Ford

From her love of empowering young people, Ford considered a career in education before she broke into the world of children’s animation. The veteran artist launched and built her career at Cartoon Network, contributing to long-running series including Steven Universe and We Bare Bears.

“I’m really thankful to have the opportunity to use my art in a way that is able to help kids and bring them joy,” says Ford, the supervising director of Craig of the Creek.

The animator drew inspiration for stories from bouncing ideas off of the other artists on her team. She believes her supportive co-workers, alone, make the show a significant stride in her career.

The multi-hyphenate Ford — with animation, writing, directing and acting experience under her belt — hopes to continue building lasting relationships on upcoming projects, no matter the role. She is also open to branching out beyond stories for young audiences, because “whatever it is that we work on together, it’s about leaving with amazing friends and important memories.

“I hope that I find projects that help others be themselves and that others can find relatable,” she says, speaking to the importance of representing diverse narratives in animation. “And I do really hope that even in a project that I didn’t work on, folks find something that inspires them to do what they want to do.”

For aspiring animators, Ford believes the key to breaking into the industry is having faith in their unique stories: “Be true to what brings you joy in artmaking. I think if it makes you really happy to tell this kind of story and you think it’s going to make other people happy, then you should tell it.”

Brittany Myers

Over the Moon

Photo: Courtesy of Brittany Myers

Most people never get to meet their idols, let alone work with them. But Over the Moon character designer Brittany Myers has not only gotten to work with her idol, Glen Keane, she’s received the ultimate compliment from him. While working on Over the Moon, Myers recalls, “He said, ‘I sometimes sit at my desk and I’m trying to draw and I’d think, what would Brittany do?’ and I was, like, ‘What?’”

Myers first discovered Keane’s work when she was around 12 years old when she saw Tangled. “I remember seeing the trailer and seeing Rapunzel and I thought she was so cute. Then I discovered his drawings, and I didn’t even know [animation] was a job at the time.”

About two years ago, Myers posted a drawing she did of Ariel from The Little Mermaid on Facebook and it somehow made its way to Keane. “I got a little notification from Glen Keane and I was like, ‘Oh, my God! It’s really him!’” He commented to Myers how much he liked her Ariel drawing and that it reminded him of his own work. The next day, she got a Facebook message from Over the Moon producer Gennie Rim asking her if she’d like to work on the project. Dream come true? Check.

For Myers it was like completing a circle. “It went from when I was a little girl and I was just a fan, and I would look to [Keane’s] drawings for inspiration,” she says. “I learned so much about character. Then on Over the Moon, being there with him in the room, getting notes from him, I learned so much.”

In addition to Over the Moon, the California Institute of the Arts grad’s character and costume design work can be seen Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, and the upcoming Netflix projects Trash Truck, Escape From Hat and Jacob and the Sea Beast.

John Trabbic

Middlemost Post

Photo: Courtesy of John Trabbic

Feeling trapped in his job as a journeyman carpenter, Trabbic “quit my job and decided to pursue my dream of animation.” “I cut my teeth” working on the pilot for Chosen at Floyd County Prods. That led to Pig Goat Banana Cricket and then to Nickelodeon where he worked on SpongeBob SquarePants for four years as a storyboard director on more than 30 episodes. “The cartoon-ness and the wackiness and the homage to the old school Looney Toons, stretchy, squashy animation seemed to be kind of more in my wheelhouse,” he says, recalling a past boss reprimanding him for drawing “too wonky.” “My instincts are to go cartoony and draw in that kind of fashion versus realistic, tight and clean.” And that is what he loves about his latest show, Middlemost Post, which he is working on for Nickelodeon to air next year. To Trabbic, a recovering addict, the story about a “reformed rain cloud, who doesn’t want to rain on people any more, he just wants to brighten people’s days,” is also about his own evolution. Besides the animation, “it leans into humor and I am incorporating stop-motion sets.”

Among his heroes are Tex Avery, “one of my favorites, he’s my hero,” he says, while others are “Sergio Aragones, he’s the guy who did Groo and Mad magazine; Basil Wolverton, another Mad magazine guy. My dad was big into the alternative comics, the ’70s [Fabulous Furry] Freak brothers and hippy-type stuff and that’s what I gravitate toward because that’s what my dad was into and that’s what he just had laying around the house versus like superheroes and stuff.”

And bringing it full circle, Trabbic has been showing his 10-year-old son his animation. “What better way to test your stuff on somebody than to show your own kid. He’s the audience, you know.”

Trioscope Studios: L.C. Crowley, Brandon Barr, Greg Jonkajtys

The Liberator

Photo: Courtesy of Trioscope

Producers L.C. Crowley, Brandon Barr and Greg Jonkajtys helm Trioscope Studios, a company that develops animated projects using a combination of elements that audiences have seen before, but not in this way.

“That’s why it’s Trioscope: It has three components,” Jonkajtys says. “One is live action, one is a [computer-generated] environment and the third is this ‘sauce’ to make it all look like a 2D animated film.”

The “sauce” in question utilizes a series of techniques and software to help transform the actors’ images into a style similar to the overall composition. Trioscope Studios’ decision to combine live acting and large animated worlds came as a solution for expressing characters’ emotions in realistic, moving ways.

Jonkajtys noted that anime often appeals to a wide range of viewers, but the majority of audiences in Western Europe and the U.S. rarely tune into animated films for adult-skewing drama or action — even those animated films not necessarily meant for children. Trioscope became their solution for bringing animation dealing with serious subjects to the West.

“The question of, ‘Why can’t a mass audience really find emotional value in animation’ is where [Trioscope] started,” Crowley says. “We started to zero in on the visual and arrived at the idea that if we want to make animation more human, maybe we should just put humans in the animation.”

In the case of The Liberator, their current project for Netflix, their strategy captures serious themes of the film, which is set during World War II. Crowley says the preservation of actors’ body language helps capture the tone.

Though The Liberator is styled as a graphic novel, Trioscope can be used to animate different styles to meet the needs of any film that has an expansive environment.

“Trioscope is really a platform for imagination. The first step in the process is figuring out what that’s going to look like, and there’s a wild variation. The key benefit is, whether the world is more painterly or gritty, it’s always got that human performance at the heart, holding everything together,” Crowley says.

Genevieve Tsai

Animaniacs

Photo: Courtesy of Genevieve Tsai

A dream career in animation did not come easily for Tsai. Since completing her masters in 2D animation and VFX from San Francisco’s Academy of Art University, Tsai spent nearly 10 years designing characters for video games including League of Legends, Hearthstone and Dota 2. But a daytime job didn’t stop the aspiring animator from taking on freelance projects to build a portfolio aimed at the toon industry.

“It took a long time talking to professionals to learn what [the] animation [business] is looking for,” says Tsai, who also illustrated graphic novels. “I created a sketchbook of characters to see if I could sell it at a convention to get exposure and made connections at Comic-Con where I found a big group of like-minded fans to see what journeys they’ve gone through.”

Tsai, who animated characters for Bento Box Entertainment and Disney Junior, moved to Hollywood when she was offered an in-house position as a background painter on Netflix’s Green Eggs and Ham. Her meticulousness as a character designer shined through, paving her way to a leadership role on her next project.

As the design supervisor for Hulu’s revival of Animaniacs, the animator finds a wealth of inspiration from the original series but is unafraid to pepper the story with her own wit and humor. “It’s surreal to be working on it, when I remember running home every day to catch every episode of the show,” she says with a laugh, adding that she collected plush dolls of every character. “One of my biggest passions is facial expressions, so I wanted to give a lot more expressiveness to the characters in both poses and faces, while staying true to what I love about the original.”

Aside from reimaginging Animaniacs, set for release in 2021, Tsai has her eyes on Netflix’s upcoming Bone series and dreams of creating a feature film with original characters.

Anne Walker Farrell

Duncanville

Photo: Courtesy of Anne Walker Farrell

Fox’s Duncanville, which follows the misadventures of 15-year-old Duncan, his friends and family, combines the sweet and salty, the absurd and sublime, which are traits that Walker Farrell loves to highlight in her work on the show. Fox has renewed the animated series, executive produced by Amy Poehler (The Mighty B!, Parks and Rec), Mike Scully and Julie Thacker Scully (both of The Simpsons), for Season Two.

“The Simpsons is one of the first cartoons I remember watching as a kid. I’m ever grateful to my parents for letting us watch it because it hugely informed my sense of humor and … it’s what drew me to animation, really,” she says, adding that a lot of what she finds funny is what her friends call “the sugar-coated bitter pill.”

That pill also came in handy during her time on Netflix’s BoJack Horseman, which dealt with complicated issues such as addiction and depression, but with lots of visual gags in an animated universe populated with animals and humans. “BoJack was just brilliant in the way that it’s a misdirect. If you go into the show, like, ‘Oh, it’s a funny animal comedy about Hollywood.’ And then, ‘Oh, my God, it’s about depression.”

Like Duncanville’s teen protags, Walker Farrell grew up feeling “a little bit unseen or unheard,” and “I think that for me, animation allowed me an escape, with drawing and storytelling. As for Season Two of Duncanville? “I love this show. I love the characters. I have laughed at a lot of my animatics so far. Maybe that’s the equivalent of laughing at my jokes, but who cares? I think they’re cute.”

More Nick: Nickelodeon Upfront 2020 Roundup!

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