Animator from Dayton named a Disney Legend

A man from Dayton was named one of the 2024 Disney Legends Award Honorees.

The Disney Legends Awards program is a 37-year tradition of the Walt Disney Company, and being a Disney Legend is ‘the highest honor’ the company can bestow, according to Walt Disney Company Chief Executive Officer Bob Iger.

Mark Henn, born in Dayton, is one of 14 Disney Legends Award Honorees for 2024.

“To be named a Disney Legend is the highest honor our company can bestow on anyone, reserved for those whose talent and achievement have earned them an enduring place in our history,” Iger said. “The fourteen individuals to be honored as Disney Legends this year have each made extraordinary creative contributions across the worlds of Disney.”

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Henn joined Walt Disney Animation Studios in 1980 as an assistant animator on The Fox and the Hound (1981). His first major assignment was animating Mickey Mouse in Mickey’s Christmas Carol (1983), which was Mickey’s first big-screen appearance in 30 years.

Henn would go on to serve as the supervising animator for young Simba and five female leads, more than any artist in the history of the studio. He supervised the animation of Ariel, Belle, Jasmine, Mulan, and Tiana. He also animated Simba from The Lion King (1994), the titular character in Pocahontas (1995), and Giselle from Enchanted (2017).

Henn has helped a new generation of Disney animators with character animation in CG features such as Ralph Breaks the Internet (2018). He was the lead 2D animator on Big Hero 6 (2014) and Frozen (2013) and served as a 2D animator for “Mini Maui” in Moana (2016).

In 2013, Henn received ASIFA’s highest award in animation, the Winsor McCay Award for lifetime achievement. Henn was also commissioned to paint Mickey Mouse’s official portrait for the character’s 90th anniversary in 2018.