Brenda Banks (animator) facts for kids
Brenda Lee Banks (born July 19, 1948 – died December 30, 2020) was an amazing American animator. She made history as one of the very first African American women to work professionally in animation.
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History of Brenda Banks's Career
Early Life and Education
Brenda Banks was born in Los Angeles on July 19, 1948. She finished John C. Fremont High School in 1967. After high school, she went to the California Institute of the Arts. She kept studying there until 1977, even while she was already working on animation projects.
Becoming an Animator
Brenda Banks started her animation career in the early 1970s. Some of her first known works included animated shows with Flip Wilson and a TV special called B.C.: The First Thanksgiving in 1973.
In 1973, Brenda went to animator Ralph Bakshi's studio. She told him she didn't have much animation experience. But he gave her a small job on his 1974 movie Coonskin. She did so well that Bakshi gave her a bigger task. She worked on the background characters, sometimes called "goons," for his film Wizards. These characters didn't need super detailed animation. Brenda's work was a huge success! Ralph Bakshi even called her the "star of the goons at the studio."
After that, Brenda worked on many more of Bakshi's films. These included The Lord of the Rings in 1978 and Fire and Ice in 1983.
Working at Famous Studios
After her time with Ralph Bakshi, Brenda Banks moved to Warner Bros.. There, she worked on their famous Looney Tunes television specials. She also worked at other big animation studios. These included Hanna-Barbera for shows like The Pirates of Dark Water. She even worked on several episodes and games for Fox's popular show Simpsons.
From 1997 to 2005, Brenda was a special layout animator for the TV show King of the Hill. A layout animator helps plan out how the characters and backgrounds will look in each scene. After 2005, she stopped working in animation.
Awards and Recognition
Brenda Banks received a special award in 2018. The non-profit group Women in Animation gave her a WIA Diversity Award. This award recognized her many years of important work in the animation field.
About Brenda Banks
People who worked with Brenda Banks often said she was a quiet and shy person. She didn't share much about her personal life. Animator Lee Crowe remembered that Brenda didn't want to be known just for being one of the first black women in animation. She wanted her work to speak for itself. Another animator, Nancy Beiman, shared one personal detail: Brenda had a physical disability and needed leg braces before she had surgery.
Images for kids
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Brenda Lee Banks
