History Creator / BruceWSmith

Smith, along with fellow Disney legend Floyd Norman, is notable for being one of the few animators to make a name for himself in WesternAnimation while being black. (He cites Norman as an influence.) Unlike Norman, who historically has not liked being defined by his skin color, Smith has embraced this fact and has spent much of his career both lobbying for and creating diverse representation in his field. He agreed to his afore-mentioned appearance in ''Return to Neverland'' solely because he wanted to show the public that yes, black people can be Disney animators too, and while obviously grateful for the work Disney has given him, he's also never been shy to call their bluff on [[ButNotTooBlack lack of proper representation]] or reliance on positive discrimination. Prior to ''The Proud Family'', he worked on the HBO series ''WesternAnimation/HappilyEverAfterFairyTalesForEveryChild'', which told famous fairy tales [[RaceLift with all-nonwhite casts]].

Smith, along with fellow Disney legend Floyd Norman, is notable for being one of the few animators to make a name for himself in WesternAnimation while being black (he cites Norman as an influence). Unlike Norman, who historically has not liked being defined by his skin color, Smith has embraced this fact and has spent much of his career both lobbying for and creating diverse representation in his field. He agreed to his afore-mentioned appearance in ''Return to Neverland'' solely because he wanted to show the public that yes, black people can be Disney animators too, and while obviously grateful for the work Disney has given him, he's also never been shy to call their bluff on [[ButNotTooBlack lack of proper representation]] or reliance on PositiveDiscrimination. Prior to ''The Proud Family'', he worked on the HBO series ''WesternAnimation/HappilyEverAfterFairyTalesForEveryChild'', which told famous fairy tales [[RaceLift with all-nonwhite casts]].

His most recent project was as one of the three directors on the 2019 indie short ''WesternAnimation/HairLove''. That same year, he inked an exclusive deal with Disney, with his first project being a reboot of ''The Proud Family'', subtitled ''[[WesternAnimation/TheProudFamilyLouderAndProuder Louder and Prouder]],'' for Creator/DisneyPlus.

His most recent project was as one of the three directors on the 2019 indie short ''WesternAnimation/HairLove''. That same year, he inked an exclusive deal with Disney, with his first project being a reboot of ''The Proud Family'', subtitled ''Louder and Prouder,'' for Creator/DisneyPlus.

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One of several artists from UsefulNotes/TheRenaissanceAgeOfAnimation to study his craft at the prestigious California Institute of The Arts (aka [=CalArts=]), Smith is an artist with a resume that's both extremely prolific and extremely varied. His first professional job was as an assistant on the ''ComicStrip/{{Garfield}}'' [[WesternAnimation/GarfieldSpecials TV special]] ''Garfield In The Rough''. His second? A writer on ''WesternAnimation/ThunderCats1985'' and ''WesternAnimation/{{Silverhawks}}''! Afterwards, he'd do odd animation jobs for various studios on both features and television, everything from animation to character designs to directing. He'd make his feature directorial debut in 1992 with the CultClassic ''WesternAnimation/BebesKids'', the first animated feature to star an all-black cast, and was one of the four credited animation directors on the seminal 90s classic ''Film/SpaceJam''.

Smith's relationship with Disney began in the mid-80s as a late hiree for the landmark film ''Film/WhoFramedRogerRabbit'', later working on two of the WesternAnimation/RogerRabbitShorts. A year later, he'd both animate and appear AsHimself in the Disneyland short film attraction ''Back To Neverland''. He'd take semi-permanent residence at Disney in the [[TheNineties the late 90s]] through to TheNewTens, both as an animator on their last few 2D feature films and as the creator of the Creator/DisneyChannel series ''WesternAnimation/TheProudFamily'', the first animated series to star an all-black family.

Smith, along with fellow Disney legend Floyd Norman, is notable for being one of the few animators to make a name for himself in WesternAnimation while being black (he cites Norman as an influence). Unlike Norman, who historically has not liked being defined by his skin color, Smith has embraced this fact and has spent much of his career both lobbying for and creating diverse representation in his field. He agreed to his afore-mentioned appearance in ''Return to Neverland'' solely because he wanted to show the public that yes, black people can be Disney animators too, and while obviously grateful for the work Disney has given him, he's also never been shy to call their bluff on [[ButNotTooBlack lack of proper representation]] or reliance on PositiveDiscrimination. Prior to ''The Proud Family'', he worked on the HBO series ''WesternAnimation/HappilyEverAfterFairyTalesForEveryChild'', which told famous fairy tale characters [[RaceLift with all-nonwhite casts]].

One of several artists from UsefulNotes/TheRenaissanceAgeOfAnimation to study his craft at the prestigious California Institute of The Arts (aka [=CalArts=]), Smith is an artist with a resume that's both extremely prolific and extremely varied. His first professional job was as an assistant on the ''ComicStrip/{{Garfield}}'' [[WesternAnimation/GarfieldSpecials TV special]] ''Garfield In The Rough''. His second? A writer on ''WesternAnimation/ThunderCats1985'' and ''WesternAnimation/{{Silverhawks}}''! Afterwards, he'd do odd animation jobs for various studios on both features and television, everything from animation to character designs to directing. He'd make his feature directorial debut in 1992 with the CultClassic ''WesternAnimation/BebesKids'', the first animated feature to star an all-black cast, and was one of the four credited animation directors on the SoBadItsGood classic ''Film/SpaceJam''.

One of several artists from UsefulNotes/TheRenaissanceAgeOfAnimation to study his craft at the prestigious California Institute of The Arts (aka [=CalArts=]), Smith is an artist with a resume that's both extremely prolific and extremely varied. His first professional job was as an assistant on the ''ComicStrip/{{Garfield}}'' [[WesternAnimation/GarfieldSpecials TV special]] ''Garfield In The Rough''. His second? A writer on ''WesternAnimation/ThunderCats1985'' and ''WesternAnimation/{{Silverhawks}}''! Afterwards, he'd do odd animation jobs for various studios on both features and television, everything from animation to character designs to directing. He'd make his feature directorial debut in 1992 with the CultClassic ''WesternAnimation/BebesKids'', the first animated feature to star an all-black cast, and was one of the four credited animation directors on the SoBadItsGood classic ''Film/SpaceJame''.

One of several artists from UsefulNotes/TheRenaissanceAgeOfAnimation to study his craft at the prestigious California Institute of The Arts (aka [=CalArts=]), Smith is an artist with a resume that's both extremely prolific and extremely varied. His first professional job was as an assistant on the ''ComicStrip/{{Garfield}}'' [[WesternAnimation/GarfieldSpecials TV special]] ''Garfield In The Rough''. His second? A writer on ''WesternAnimation/ThunderCats1985'' and ''WesternAnimation/{{Silverhawks}}''! Afterwards, he'd do odd animation jobs for various studios on both features and television, everything from animation to character designs to directing. He'd make his feature directorial debut in 1992 with the CultClassic ''WesternAnimation/BebesKids'', the first animated feature to star an all-black cast.

His relationship with Disney began in the mid-80s as a late hiree for the landmark film ''Film/WhoFramedRogerRabbit'', later working on two of the WesternAnimation/RogerRabbitShorts. A year later, he'd both animate and appear AsHimself in the Disneyland short film attraction ''Back To Neverland''. He'd take semi-permanent residence at Disney in the [[TheNineties the late 90s]] through to TheNewTens, both as an animator on their last few 2D feature films and as the creator of the Creator/DisneyChannel series ''WesternAnimation/TheProudFamily'', the first animated series to star an all-black family.

His website/{{Twitter}} page is [[https://twitter.com/BruceAlmighteee here.]]

Bruce Wayne Smith is an American animator, writer and director, best known for his work with Creator/{{Disney}}.

His twitter page is [[https://twitter.com/BruceAlmighteee here]].

Smith, along with fellow Disney legend Floyd Norman, is notable for being one of the few animators to make a name for himself in WesternAnimation while being black (he cites Norman as an influence). Unlike Norman, who historically has not liked being defined by his skin color, Smith has embraced this fact and has spent much of his career both lobbying for and creating diverse representation in his field. He agreed to his afore-mentioned appearance in ''Return to Neverland'' solely because he wanted to show the public that yes, black people can be Disney animators too, and while obviously grateful for the work Disney has given him, he's also never been shy to call their bluff on [[ButNotTooBlack lack of proper representation]] or reliance on PositiveDiscrimination. Prior to ''The Proud Family'', he worked on the HBO series ''WesternAnimation/HappilyEverAfterFairyTalesForEveryChild'', which told famous fairy tale characters [[RaceLift with all-nonwhite casts]]. And lest you think he only animates black characters, he was the lead animator for Pacha on ''WesternAnimation/TheEmperorsNewGroove'' and for Rabbit and Piglet on ''WesternAnimation/WinnieThePooh2011''.

His most recent project was as one of the three directors on the 2019 indie short ''WesternAnimation/HairLove''. That same year, he inked an exclusive deal with Disney, with his first project being a reboot of ''The Proud Family'', subtitled ''Louder and Prouder.''

His most recent project was as one of the three directors on the indie short ''WesternAnimation/HairLove''.

Smith, along with fellow Disney legend Floyd Norman, is notable for being one of the few animators to make a name for himself in WesternAnimation while being black (he cites Norman as an influence). Unlike Norman, who historically has not liked being defined by his skin color, Smith is well aware of this fact and has spent much of his career both lobbying for and creating diverse representation in his field. He agreed to his afore-mentioned appearance in ''Return to Neverland'' solely because he wanted to show the public that yes, black people can be Disney animators too, and while obviously grateful for the work Disney has given him, he's also never been shy to call their bluff on [[ButNotTooBlack lack of proper representation]] or reliance on PositiveDiscrimination. Prior to ''The Proud Family'', he worked on the HBO series ''WesternAnimation/HappilyEverAfterFairyTalesForEveryChild'', which told famous fairy tale characters [[RaceLift with all-nonwhite casts]]. And lest you think he only animates black characters, he was the lead animator for Pacha on ''WesternAnimation/TheEmperorsNewGroove'' and for Rabbit and Piglet on ''WesternAnimation/WinnieThePooh2011''.

One of several artists from UsefulNotes/TheRenaissanceAgeOfAnimation to study his craft at the prestigious California Institute of The Arts (aka [=CalArts=]), Smith is an artist with a resume that's both extremely prolific and extremely varied. His first professional job was as an assistant on the ''ComicStrip/{{Garfield}}'' [[WesternAnimation/GarfieldSpecials TV special]] ''Garfield In The Rough''. His second? A writer on ''WesternAnimation/ThunderCats1985'' and ''WesternAnimation/Silverhawks''! Afterwards, he'd do odd animation jobs for various studios on both features and television, everything from animation to character designs to directing. He'd make his feature directorial debut in 1992 with the CultClassic ''WesternAnimation/BebesKids'', the first animated feature to star an all-black cast.

Smith, along with fellow Disney legend Floyd Norman, is notable for being one of the few animators to make a name for himself in WesternAnimation while being black. Unlike Norman, who historically has not liked being defined by his skin color, Smith is well aware of this fact and has spent much of his career both lobbying for and creating diverse representation in his field. He agreed to his afore-mentioned appearance in ''Return to Neverland'' solely because he wanted to show the public that yes, black people can be Disney animators too, and while obviously grateful for the work Disney has given him, he's also never been shy to call their bluff on [[ButNotTooBlack lack of proper representation]] or reliance on PositiveDiscrimination. Prior to ''The Proud Family'', he worked on the HBO series ''WesternAnimation/HappilyEverAfterFairyTalesForEveryChild'', which told famous fairy tale characters [[RaceLift with all-nonwhite casts]]. And lest you think he only animates black characters, he was the lead animator for Pacha on ''WesternAnimation/TheEmperorsNewGroove'' and for Rabbit and Piglet on ''WesternAnimation/WinnieThePooh2011''.

His twitter page is [[https://twitter.com/BruceAlmighteee here]].

[[quoteright:183:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/download_7504.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:183:A [[WesternAnimation/TheProudFamily proud]] man.]]