James Baxter (animator)
James Baxter | |
|---|---|
 James Baxter c. 2023 | |
| Education | West Surrey College of Art and Design |
| Occupation | Animator |
| Years active | 1987–present |
| Employer(s) | Walt Disney Animation Studios (1987–1997; 2023) DreamWorks Animation (1996–2006, 2008–2018) Cartoon Network Studios (2013, 2017, 2019, 2025) Netflix (2017–present) |
James Baxter is a British character animator. He attended the West Surrey College of Art and Design[1] before working for Walt Disney Animation Studios, including various characters in Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Belle in Beauty and the Beast, Rafiki in The Lion King, and Quasimodo in The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
After The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Baxter moved over to DreamWorks Animation working on films such as The Prince of Egypt, The Road to El Dorado, Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron, Shrek 2, and Madagascar. Early in 2005, Baxter left DreamWorks and set out on his own as an independent animator. He became the head of his own studio, James Baxter Animation in Pasadena, California where he has directed the animation for the 2007 film Enchanted and the opening credits to DreamWorks' Kung Fu Panda. In 2008, Baxter closed his studio and returned to DreamWorks as a supervising animator. While at DreamWorks, Baxter worked on films including Monsters vs. Aliens, How to Train Your Dragon, and The Croods. In 2017, Baxter left DreamWorks once again and went to work for Netflix.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Credits | Characters |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Who Framed Roger Rabbit | Animator[1] | |
| 1989 | Tummy Trouble (Short) | Animator | |
| The Little Mermaid | Character Animator | Ariel | |
| 1990 | DuckTales the Movie: Treasure of the Lost Lamp | Character Animator | |
| The Rescuers Down Under | Character Animator | Joanna, Rescue Aid Society Mice, Insects, Wilbur | |
| 1991 | Beauty and the Beast | Supervising Animator | Belle |
| 1993 | The Making of "The Hitch-Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy" (Video documentary) | Additional Animator | |
| 1994 | The Lion King | Supervising Animator[1] | Rafiki |
| 1996 | The Hunchback of Notre Dame | Character Designer/Visual Development / Supervising Animator | Quasimodo |
| 1998 | The Prince of Egypt | Animator | Moses |
| 2000 | The Road to El Dorado | Senior Supervising Animator | Tulio |
| 2002 | Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron | Senior Supervising Animator | Spirit |
| 2003 | Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas | Supervising Animator | Sinbad |
| 2004 | Shrek 2 | Supervising Animator[2] | |
| 2005 | Madagascar | Additional Supervising Animator | |
| 2006 | Curious George | Animation Supervisor: James Baxter Animation | |
| 2007 | Enchanted | Animation Supervisor: James Baxter Animation | |
| 2008 | Kung Fu Panda | Animation Director: Dream Sequence, James Baxter Animation | |
| Kung Fu Panda: Secrets of the Furious Five (Video short) | Special Thanks | ||
| 2009 | Monsters vs. Aliens | Animator | |
| 2010 | How to Train Your Dragon | Animator[1] | |
| Kung Fu Panda Holiday (TV Short) | Animator | ||
| 2011 | Adam and Dog | Animator | |
| 2012 | Gravity Falls (TV Series) | Additional Animator – 2 Episodes | |
| Rise of the Guardians | Concept Artists – Uncredited | ||
| 2013 | The Croods | Head of Character Animation and Animator: 2D Sequence | |
| Adventure Time (TV Series) | Voice / Animator – 2 Episodes and Character Designer – 1 Episode | James Baxter the Horse | |
| 2014 | How to Train Your Dragon 2 | Supervising Animator | Valka |
| 2016 | Trolls | Additional Animation | |
| 2017 | Regular Show (TV Series) | Additional Animator – 1 Episode | |
| Samurai Jack (TV Series) | Additional Animation - 1 Episode | ||
| 2018 | Mary Poppins Returns | Animator | |
| 2019 | Steven Universe (TV Series) | Additional Animation - 1 Episode[3][4] | |
| Klaus | Animator[5] | ||
| 2020 | Close Enough | Main Title Animation[6] | |
| Wolfwalkers | Animator | ||
| 2021 | Vivo | 2D Development | |
| Centaurworld | Animator - Uncredited | ||
| 2023 | Once Upon a Studio | Animator[7] | Belle, the Beast, Quasimodo, Rafiki |
| 2025 | The Wonderfully Weird World of Gumball | Animator[8] |
Awards and honors
Baxter received an Annie Award for character animation on Kung Fu Panda at the 36th Annie Awards in 2009.[9]
In 2018, Baxter, along with fellow animators Stephen Hillenburg (months before his death), Amanda Forbis, and Wendy Tilby won the Winsor McCay Award at the 2018 Annie Awards.[10]
In popular culture
In May 2013, Baxter was a guest animator for an episode of the 5th season of Adventure Time entitled "James Baxter the Horse".[11] The episode's story focused on the lead characters trying to emulate a horse who can cheer everyone up by neighing his name (James Baxter) and balancing on a beach ball. Both the horse's animation and voice were provided by Baxter. The episode's title card features a drawing of the horse drawing a horse on a beach ball, while sitting at an animation table. A second episode focusing on the character's origins, "Horse and Ball", aired during the show's eighth season with Baxter once again animating and voicing the character.
Personal life
Baxter is married to Kendra.[12][13] They also have two children.[12]
References
- 1 2 3 4 "JAMES BAXTER". Playgrounds. Retrieved 7 January 2026.
- ↑ Carlton, Bob (27 May 2004). "'Shrek' animator says it's not too early to sharpen artistic skills". The Birmingham News. pp. 41–42. Retrieved 20 August 2026.
As one of the three supervising animators in "Shrek 2", Baxter oversaw work on all the characters...
- ↑ Rodriguez, Nicole (21 January 2019). "James Baxter!". @Shnikkles (in Dutch). Retrieved 22 January 2019.
- ↑ Thurm, Eric (28 January 2019). "A really, truly epic hourlong Steven Universe nearly spells the end of everything". CBR. Retrieved 11 November 2019.
- ↑ Milligan, Mercedes (22 March 2019). "Netflix Plans Oscar-Qualifying Release for Original Feature 'Klaus'". Animation Magazine. Retrieved 11 November 2019.
- ↑ "TV Films 3", Annecy Festival Online, 15 June 2020, archived from the original on 15 June 2020, retrieved 15 June 2020
- ↑ Zahed, Ramin (15 October 2023). "'Once Upon a Studio' Directors Reflect on Their Wonderful Disney Centenary Short". Animation Magazine.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ↑ Gallardo, Christopher (16 December 2025). "The Wonderfully Weird World of Gumball Season 2: Creators Discuss the New Season, Meta References, and the Void". Tell-Tale TV. Retrieved 16 December 2025.
- ↑ "36th Annie Awards". ASIFA Hollywood. Retrieved 18 March 2026.
- ↑ ASIFA Hollywood (5 February 2018), Annie Awards 2018 - The Winsor McCay Award - James Baxter, archived from the original on 22 December 2021, retrieved 30 January 2019
- ↑ Ward, Pendleton (6 May 2013). "Tonight. Featuring the work of guest animator… James Baxter". Pendleton Ward's Cartoon Tumblr. Frederator Studios. Retrieved 31 May 2013.
- 1 2 Verrier, Richard (19 June 2005). "The Little Guy Gets a Piece of the Animated Action". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 20 August 2026.
- ↑ McDonnell, Chris (2014). The Art of Ooo. Abrams Books. p. 299. ISBN 9781419704505.