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CRAIG ELLIOT has been interested in the artistic for as long as he can remember. Born in a farm and air force town in California, Craig’s family moved to what is now Silicon Valley California where he grew up. Back then, most of the valley was fruit orchards and open space.  The experience of walking home from school through a shower of blossoms or playing in the creek as a child fostered Craig’s love of nature. Dioramas with sculpted and painted figures often depicting the nature that surrounded him, along with drawing were Craig’s first art forms.

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BILL KROYER is an award-winning director of animation and computer graphics commercials, short films, movie titles and theatrical films.

Trained in classical hand-drawn animation at the Disney Studio, Bill was one of the first animators to make the leap to computer animation on Disney’s ground-breaking 1982 feature, “Tron.”

“There was no software for motion when we made Tron. It didn’t exist.” ~Bill Kroyer

Founding his own company, Kroyer Films, Inc., Bill and his wife Susan pioneered the technique of combining hand-drawn animation with computer animation. Bill was Director for the theatrical animated feature film “FernGully: The Last Rainforest” and for his Academy Award® nominated short film “Technological Threat” . (more…)

Toonin to the World of Animation with Robh Ruppel

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Robh Ruppel

Visual Development Artist, Art Director and Teacher Robh Ruppel has designed for film, television and print. He attended Art Center College of Design and has worked for a varied clientèle including Walt Disney Animation Studios, TV Guide, Boss Films, Naughty Dog and TSR.

“I love inventing worlds and the things in them. The thrill of seeing appear before you is pretty hard to match. In inventing things that don’t exist you’re part architect, part painter and part cameraman. It never gets boring.”

While at Disney Robh art directed Brother Bear and Meet the Robinsons. He’s currently working on conceptualizing a next-gen game at Naughty Dog Studios in Santa Monica California.

Artwork for Treasure Planet by Robh Ruppel

Robh Ruppel can be reached through his CTN Webpage.

Toonin to the World of Animation with Tony Benedict

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CTN Legend Tony Benedict arrived on the Walt Disney Studio lot in summer of 1956 and took an inbetweening potition on Sleeping Beauty and 101 Dalmations before joining Bob McCrea’s television unit where he got to do a bit of animation. Find out how he got started at UPA as an assistant to animator Ed Freidman and was given an opportunity to write some Mister Magoo episodes and his journey to Hanna Barbera as a full time staff writer working with Mike Maltese and Warren Foster. Sit back and enjoy the tales of this talented contributor to the Golden Age of Animation.

Lots of vintage movies, photos and art at Tony’s website at http://www.homepage.mac.com/tonytoons