Variety Honors New Class of 10 Animators to Watch and Toasts the Legacies of Nick Park, Ramsey Naito and 25 Years of ‘SpongeBob’
The creators behind Hollywood’s latest and upcoming animated projects, including “Inside Out 2,” “Transformers One” and more, were celebrated at Variety‘s 10 Animators to Watch. The event and cocktail reception, presented by Nickelodeon, were held at The Aster in Hollywood on July 10.
Variety Senior Awards Editor Clayton Davis kicked off the ceremony by introducing Josh Cooley, director of “Toy Story 4” and the upcoming “Transformers One,” who presented Paramount Animation and Nickelodeon Animation President Ramsey Naito with the inaugural Executive Impact in Animation award.
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“[Ramsey] understands the power of giving filmmakers the freedom to make creative decisions,” Cooley said. “Her no house style approach also allows creators to build distinct immersive visual worlds and allows us to take creative swings so we can all tell inspiring, meaningful and creative stories.”
Naito accepted her award and said she loves animation because of its unique challenges: limitless possibilities, the ability to cross borders with storytelling and the potential to influence people.
“Art for me is empowering, it’s exciting, it’s acceptance, new ground, inspiration, it’s revolution,” Naito said. “It’s my culture. Art has always connected me to people and worlds, and later in life to animation. Which was the best surprise of all.”
Naito also pointed to the voice cast of Spongebob Squarepants, who were present at the event (along with a cake recreation of Spongebob’s iconic pineapple home). This honor also marked the 25th anniversary of the show, one of the longest-running animated series and most widely distributed properties in Paramount history.
Variety Senior Focus Editor Todd Gilchrist honored the class of 10 animators to watch, all of whom attended the event. The 2024 class includes Echo Wu (“Jentry Chau vs The Underworld” showrunner), Emonee Larussa (Pamanama Studios LLC graphic artist, founder and CEO), Katy Fishell (“Sex Is Weird” animator), Keiko Murayama (“Inside Out 2” character art director), Lisha Tan (The Mill creative director and director), Searit Huluf (“Self” director and writer), Sunmin Inn (“Ultraman: Rising” art director), Ashley Boddy (“That Christmas” head of story), Heidi Jo Gilbert (“The Wild Robot” head of story) and Jason Scheier (“Transformers One” production designers).
Director and writer Brad Bird of “The Incredibles” then took to the stage to award Nick Park, the creator of “Wallace & Gromit,” the Creative Impact in Animation award.
He said that while people often discuss the technical part of the animation process, they rarely focus on the character. Bird pointed to Park’s 1989 film Creature Comforts as his “gateway drug” to the director and as a strong example of animated characters he could connect with.
“[The Wallace & Gromit] films were endlessly inventive and wildly entertaining and super British in all the best ways,” Bird said. “[They’re] animation at its best.”
Park was not present at the event, since he is still in production for the upcoming “Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl.” But, he thanked Bird for accepting the award on his behalf.
He described the two characters as a clay family that he “can’t shake off for long,” especially now that he’s in the final stretch of his fourth feature-length film centered around the pair.
“Filmmaking, as you know, is not really about one person: it’s such a collaborative process,” Park said in a pre-recorded video. “And I’ve been lucky enough to work with and learn from so many creative people, the best really in their field. And many of those have been with me on films since the beginning.”
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