FloydMovie

I was the first black artist to work at Disney simply because I applied for the job and was able to qualify. Nobody was being kept out. If you were talented and ready to work, that was what mattered. Not the color of your skin. Keep in mind, Walt Disney Productions had minorities working at the studio as far back as the thirties. I know. I met a number of those artists during my career.

Walt Disney taught me how important it is to connect with your audience. He taught me the importance of having characters you can like. Characters you fall in love with. If you don't connect with the character...the story doesn't matter. Walt often said, not to become overly focused on story. I know that sounds odd because today we hear that story is everything. Well, honestly story isn't everything. It's important, of course. But, as entertainers we should be focused on our storytelling. HOW you tell the story is what's important. The story could be very simple...however, you must tell that story in a compelling way.

My greatest challenge was working on "The Jungle Book" because I was actually working with Walt Disney. That's a pretty daunting task. My other favorite project was, "Toy Story2." I think that's because we crafted a marvelous story. The film could have been a lackluster sequel. Instead, Pixar made a masterpiece.

Go to school if you can. It can be expensive these days. However, you can educate yourself. There's a good deal of information available these days. When I was young it was difficult to get information about the animation business. Today, with the Internet it's a lot easier.

Walt Disney was a great gag man. He loved gags. His daughter, Diane Disney Miller told me that. To the best of my knowledge, Walt never analyzed gags. Not in front of me anyway. He knew I was a gagster. He knew I did funny stuff. I never analyze why stuff is funny...it just is. Sure, I guess motivation and context are important. I'm sure it plays a part in the way I craft a gag.