
"BUILDING
OUR CHILDREN'S SELF-ESTEEM
WITH EDUCATIONAL AND
RECREATIONAL MEDIA"
Here goes...EDUCATION, FUN, AND FANTASY
Meet the guys who create the programs that entertain and
educate kids and grown-ups alike.
LEO SULLIVAN and FLOYD NORMAN
The two filmmakers met in the summer of 1960. Floyd Norman
was working as an animation artist at the Walt Disney Studios
in Burbank, CA and Leo Sullivan, fresh out of art school,
was looking for a job. The meeting at Disney's was not to
be a one time thing for the two of them found that they
had a lot in common. Both Leo and Floyd had made films while
attending high school. The two of them shared the same fascination
with the animated films of Walt Disney and Warner Brothers.
Both, at a young age, built animation cameras and produced
crudely made but very funny films. It was only natural that
they would work together. At first, the films were just
for fun. Leo wrote and directed a cartoon short on the story
of Christopher Columbus and later, Floyd and Leo produced
an elaborate animated fantasy tale. None of these films
were made to sale, but they helped land Leo his first professional
job in the animation industry.
Leo's credits span from the
Beany and Cecil Show to the first Fat Albert Special on
NBC to Tiny Toons where he won an Emmy for Timing Direction.
Leo's years of experience resulted in him being appointed
as Studio Manager for a Hong Kong animation company (Pacific
Rim) in China and the Philippines. Leo was in China in 1989,
during the Tiananmen Square massacre, training Chinese to
become animators, layout artists, inbetweeners, and cell
inkers and painters. The significance of this is that at
the time, the only Black people that the Chinese workers
in the studio knew about were Dr Martin Luther King, Jr,
Michael Jackson and Leo Sullivan.
Over the years both Leo and
Floyd worked at various animation studios. During Floyd's
stint at the Walt Disney Studios, he started writing for
their publishing department. He became a story editor for
Disney's little books and Mickey Mouse syndicated comic
strip. Floyd wrote for the two multimillion dollar hit animated
features Toy Story I and II.
The two creators of this
site have a total combined 90+ years in the animation industry.
They are among the many black men and women who are behind
the scenes bringing forth animated entertainment to your
children. Most of these artisans do not get any recognition
in the industry. Leo Sullivan and Floyd Norman are among
this group.
Leo and Floyd have been honored
for their talents and collaborative works twice (1979 and
1991) by the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame in Oakland, California
along with such greats as, Lena Horne, Esther Rolle, Michael
Schultz, Clarence Muse, Reginald and Warrington Hudlin,
Sammy Davis, Jr., Raymond St. Jacques, Herb Jeffries, Earl
Father Hines, Diana Sands, and Paul Winfield, just to name
a few.
An excerpt from a letter
to Leo Sullivan from the Board of Directors of the Black
Filmmakers Hall of Fame, Inc. "The Board of Directors
of Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame, Inc. was indeed delighted
to be able to again highlight the little known work you
have been doing for many years. Because you do your job
well and make quality contributions to the projects assigned
to you, you have been able to open film industry doors for
other African Americans. However, the public knows very
little about the people who work behind the scenes in the
movie industry. You are a wonderful role model for our young
people but if they do not ever hear of your accomplishments,
they can hardly aspire to be able to play a small role in
bringing to public view, the work that artists like you
and Mr. Floyd Norman are doing. We thank you for your struggle,
your high standards and for accepting our invitation to
become members of the Hall of Fame."
With their backgrounds as
filmmakers, animators, directors, and writers in various
facets of the entertainment and educational industries and
through their companies Vignette Films, Inc. and Vignette
Multimedia, they produce and distribute African American
videos and other media to schools, libraries, African American
bookstores, art galleries, and boutiques. Under the auspices
of Vignette Multimedia, they have participated in several
Black Expos, Black History Month Celebrations, and other
Black conventions throughout the United States. When the
internet opened up another line of communication, Leo and
Floyd seized upon this opportunity to show positive images
for Black children to relate to: Images like being the leader,
being the hero, being the thinker, being the one out front
meeting the challenges, and solving the problems without
being the comic relief.
Afrokids.com is aware of
the many agendas in the African American community and realize
that the basic connection is being Black, no matter what
the agenda is. What we are trying to do is offer our skills
and talents in presenting to our children images that may
be Pan African American to Euro-African American; Urban
to Suburban; and, Multicultural to Mainstream. This is Afrokids.com's
agenda. What we have learned in our years of experience
in working for mainstream companies is basically, children
have no agenda.
There are over ten thousand
mainstream children's sites and only ten African American
children's sites to-date.
Now we ask of you: Spread
the word. Give us your support. Send in any suggestions.
WRITE TO US. What features would you like to see? Would
you like us to expand on existing features? Communicate,
Communicate, Communicate.
Copyright 1999/2007 by Leo D. Sullivan / All rights reserved