Cartoon Network and animation studio Black Women Animate teamed up to create an award show that celebrates black animators!
This past Sunday, the first ever Black in Animation Awards were held virtually!
This awards show was created through a Cartoon Network partnership with Black Women Animate, a creative company founded by Taylor K. Shaw to offer top-notch, badass animation. The animation studio looks to hire Black women, women of color, and nonbinary people of color to their teams. We love everything the studio stands for, as well as its amazing creative team, so let’s recap everything we know about the event.
The award show was created to celebrate the many accomplishments of Black animators in the entertainment industry. It celebrates those who paved the way for others as well as those who are continuing to do amazing work.
A few of the honorees for this year’s awards were as follows; Vanessa Morrison, who was named the President of Streaming Television for Walt Disney this year, received the “Trailblazer” award. Dr. Ayoka Chenzira received the “Cultural Innovator” award due to her extensive work on her own feature works. Latoya Raveneau, who currently works on Disney+, received the “Next Gen” award for “making room for this generation of Black talent in animation.”
Other honorees include Bruce Smith and Tina Obo, as well as Carole Holliday, who received the “Lifetime Achievement” award.
As for guests, the award show was hosted by none other than Steven Universe voice actress and American Boy singer Estelle herself. Another super special guest, Anika Noni Rose, also made an appearance during the show! She is most well-known for voicing Tiana in Disney’s The Princess and the Frog.
We congratulate all of this year’s honorees and Black Women Animate for launching the award show!
