Bio
Tony Bancroft is a 2D animator with a passion for animating, directing, storytelling, creating, and teaching the next generation.
Career
With over 30 years in the animation industry, Tony Bancroft has been creatively involved in almost every position making an animated film, video, commercial, or short film. 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 was accepted into the exclusive California Institute of the Arts (Cal-Arts) in 1987, where he thrived artistically and developed a lifelong passion for animation. Soon after, he realized one of his childhood dreams as he was hired to animate for Walt Disney Animation Studios. During his 12-year career with Disney Studios, Bancroft helped create and animate Pumbaa, the lovable warthog in The Lion King; Kronk, the dim-witted sidekick in The Emperor’s New Groove; Cogsworth the nervous clock from Beauty and the Beast; and Iago the pestering parrot in Aladdin.
Bancroft’s most notable accomplishments include being the co-director of Walt 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.
Bancroft also served as the Animation Director for Sony Pictures' summer 2002 release, Stuart Little 2 and, in 2003, was voice director of the English language version of the Miyasaki film Porco Rosso through Walt Disney Studios.
In 2001, with his two partners, Bancroft started Toonacious Family Entertainment, as Executive VP/Creative Production. Using his prior 16 years experience in the animation industry, Bancroft has helped to make Toonacious an animation studio committed to producing quality family entertainment. Toonacious created a video series called, ‘Lenny and Sid’ which was about a mouse and rabbit odd couple.
After moving forward from Toonacious, Bancroft has committed to projects that allow his talents as animator, director, producer, writer, and creator to thrive. In 2013, he authored the book Directing for Animation: Everything You Didn’t Learn in Art School, released worldwide through Focal Press. In recent years, Bancroft executive produced a CG feature Mosley and voice directed the animated feature Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs, both released in 2019. Bancroft loved being co-director on another CG animated feature Animal Crackers that released internationally on Netflix in July 2020. He recently went back into animation for Disney’s 2018 Mary Poppins Returns and, currently, Warner Brother’s Space Jam: A New Legacy (set to be released in 2021).
In an effort to prepare and enrich the next generation of animators and storytellers, Bancroft joined Azusa Pacific University as the head of the school's new Animation and Visual Effects degree program beginning in the fall of 2018. He has been thrilled to pour into his students, knowing that the animation industry is in good hands.
A fun side project has been The Bancroft Brothers Animation Podcast! Beginning in 2014, Bancroft and his twin brother, Tom Bancroft, have put out 100+ podcast episodes in an effort to talk about the past, present, and future of animation. Tony and Tom have had the honor of hosting amazing guests and recording live podcasts at conventions, and are honored to be the #1 Animation Podcast on iTunes. Check it out on Apple Podcasts here!
For a more thorough credits, please view my IMBD page.
Personal
Tony is blessed with a beautiful and supportive wife of 30+ years, Rene’. Together, they have three grown daughters and one son-in-law, Caitlin and Joey, Savannah, and Sierra. Tony and Rene’ live in Los Angeles, CA with their beast of a dog, Maximus Prime.
Awards
In 1998 Bancroft received the Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement in Directing, along with co-director Barry Cook for Mulan
In 2003, Bancroft received the Visual Effects Society Award for Best Character Animation in an Animated Motion Picture, along with David Schaub, Eric Armstrong, and Sean Mullen, for Stuart Little 2
In 2019 Bancroft received the Uzeta Award at the Etna International Festival of Comics and Pop Culture in Catania, Italy for Best Cross-Media Artist for The Return of Mary Poppins