Annie Awards Program Book

20
June Foray Award
Significant and benevolent or charitable impact on the art and industry of animation.
ToM siTo
Anyone who has a career in animation knows you have an animation
family in addition to your biological family. Often you spend more time
with the former than the latter. Tom Sito was taught this by the artists
that were his mentors, people like Howard Beckerman, Shamus Culhane,
Harvey Kurtzman and Richard Williams.
In 1974 he resolved to be an animator, but how could this son of a
Brooklyn firefighter find this fabled animation industry? Gil Miret, his
teacher at SVA, suggested he join ASIFA. Since then Tom has been an
animator at most of the major studios, and his credits include classics
like Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast,
Aladdin, The Lion King, Shrek and many more. Tom co-directed Osmosis
Jones, and his 1987 short film Propagandance ran at Annecy and Varna.
Tom is president-emeritus of The Animation Guild Local 839, Hollywood.
He teaches as an Adjunct Professor of Animation, and as such he is a sought-after lecturer around the world.
He is the author of three books: Drawing The Line: The Untold Story of the Animation Unions From Bosko To Bart
Simpson, Timing For Animation, and the animation chapter to the anthology Jews In American Popular Culture.
But Tom Sito never forgot his animation family. Tom became a member of the ASIFA-Hollywood board of directors
in 1989, and was elected it’s vice president in 1992. He began by creating the Evenings With series, where he
interviewed past masters like Joe Grant. Dave Tendlar, Bill Melendez, and Maurice Noble. In 1990 he organized
the 100th Birthday Banquet for Betty Boop creator Grim Natwick, which became the last great gathering of the
legendary artists from Hollywood’s Golden Era. In 1991 he created the 50th Anniversary Reunion Picnic for the
original Disney Studio Strikers.
He was a strong advocate for creating the competitive categories for the Annie Awards, as well as the Oscar
category for Best Feature Animation in the Academy, where he serves on the branches executive committee.
Tom Sito also started the Afternoon of Remembrance for the community to say goodbye to their departed
colleagues, which has become an annual ToonTown tradition. He is a member of SIGGRAPH, WIA, and a founding
member of the the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Educators Forum.
Between his duties as artist, teacher and author, Tom continues to do work for ASIFA-Hollywood. This past year
he organized the 20th Anniversary Reunion for The Little Mermaid and the 10th Anniversary Reunion for The
Iron Giant.
So – for thirty years of giving of his time and energies in the service of our animation family, Tom Sito is the
recipient of this years June Foray Award.
37th Annual Annie AwArds