It’s a sad day for animation fans, as legendary animator Richard Williams has died at age 86 in at his home in Bristol on Friday.

Perhaps best known to mainstream audiences as the Animation Director on Disney’s Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Williams had a long and storied career in animation and was often regarded as an animator’s animator in animation circles.

Here’s more from the BBC…

Williams, who was hired to supervise animation sequences, helped create the film versions of Roger Rabbit and his wife, Jessica, first depicted in the book, Who Censored Roger Rabbit.

Williams won two Oscars for the film, in the special academy award category and for special effects.

His daughter, Natasha Sutton Williams, said her father – who had six children – had been suffering from cancer, in what she said had been quite a swift illness.

She said: “He really was an inspiration to everyone that met him. Whether they were animators, or from the top to the bottom of society.

The Canadian animator was known for his very quirky, high frame rate animation style. His works include the Christmas special Ziggy’s Gift and the animated musical Raggedy Ann and Andy.

Ironically, Williams magnum opus is said to be The Thief and the Cobbler, which many believe Disney borrowed inspiration from for their own animated version Aladdin.

Williams also wrote The Animator’s Survival Kit, a must-have for aspiring animators.

[Source: BBC]