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Tissa David
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Tissa David
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Thérèse "Tissa" David (January 5, 1921 – August 21, 2012) was a Romanian-born American animator of Hungarian ethnicity, whose career spanned more than sixty years.[1]

She was one of the pioneering women in animation, a field which had been dominated by male animators.[2][3] Millimeter magazine described her as "one of the few women to have reached the top in the traditionally male-dominated animated cartoon field" and "one of the world's best and busiest" animators in a story published in 1975.[3]

In 1953, David directed Bonjour Paris [fr], becoming the second female animator to direct an animated feature film.[2] David later became one of the first women to create and animate a major character in a film when she designed Raggedy Ann for the 1977 film, Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure.[1]

Biography

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Early life

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Born in 1921 in Cluj,[3] Romania, to an ethnic Hungarian family, Thérèse "Tissa" David[2] was the second oldest of her family's ten children.[2] She first became interested in animation after watching the 1937 Walt Disney animated film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.[2]

David initially earned a degree as a teacher.[2] She then enrolled at the Academy of Beaux Arts in Budapest.[2] However, she dropped out of the school to begin her career as an assistant animator at Magyar Film Iroda, a Budapest studio.[3] In 2002, she described seeing her first animation project as, "the most exciting moment in my life."[2] She survived the bombings during the Siege of Budapest in 1944 by eating beans and horse meat.[2] David became the co-owner of the Studio Mackassy and Trsi after the end of World War II, where she oversaw the animated productions.[2][3]

Bonjour Paris

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David moved to Paris, France, in March 1950 with her friend, Judit Reigl, to escape the Hungarian Communist authorities.[2] She initially worked as a maid and cleaner in Paris while she learned French.[2] David became the animation director and principal animator for the animated film, Bonjour Paris [fr], after less than a year of living in Paris.[2] She became the second woman to direct an animated feature film with her work on Bonjour Paris, which would be released in 1953.[2] (The first female animator to direct an animated film was Lotte Reiniger.)[2] David also worked for Paul Grimault and Jean Image, both of whom were film producers, while living in Paris.[3]

Career in the United States

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In 1955, David emigrated to the United States and learned English, settling in New York City.[2][3] In 1956, David joined UPA, where she became the assistant of animator Grim Natwick.[2][3] She first worked with Natwick while both were employed at UPA animation studio.[3] David and Natwick later partnered for freelance work for hundreds of animated television commercials.[2][3] David and Natwick also collaborated to create the last theatrical short released starring the character, Mr. Magoo.[2]

Her television commercial portfolio, which spanned the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, included spots for Piel's Beer, for which she drew the characters, Bert and Harry, who were voiced by Bob and Ray, an American comedy team.[2] David also created animated commercials for Barneys New York, Vlasic Pickles, WQXR, Perrier, Esso and Shell, IBM, Cheerios and Excedrin.[2]

David also worked on films, short films, and commercials with husband and wife animators, John Hubley and Faith Hubley, for Hubley Studios.[1][3] Her credits with the Hubleys included Of Demons and Men and Eggs, both released in 1970, and the 1974 short film, Cockaboody.[3] David animated the little girls in Cockaboody. In 1977 she animated on A Doonesbury Special.[1]

She animated two characters, a man and a woman, for the Hubleys' 1976 independent animated film, Everybody Rides the Carousel. Actress Meryl Streep provided the voice for David's young woman in the film.[2]

David, already an animation pioneer, became one of the first women to animate a major film character with the release of Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure in 1977.[1] David animated the Raggedy Ann character for the film, which was directed by Richard Williams.[4] She noted that "I project a lot of myself into Raggedy Ann."[2] In 1977, David told the New York Times that she designed Raggedy Ann as "a plain Jane with a heart of candy – and she's all female."[1] She elaborated on the production during the same interview saying, "If the work is good, then perhaps I will prove a point ... To create a female character in an animated film, you must think like a woman and 'feel' like a woman. In other words, you must be a woman."[1][5]

David began animating for R.O. Blechman in the late 1970s.[3] Her work with Blechman included television productions such as the television film Simple Gifts. In 1988, David was awarded the Winsor McCay Award during the Annie Awards.[3]

David collaborated with Michael Sporn Animation later in her career,[1] working on Sporn's 1990 adaptation of The Marzipan Pig, as well as Ira Sleeps Over, a 1991 animated television film.[1] David also served as the animation director for Poe, based on the life of Edgar Allan Poe, which Sporn released in 2013.[3]

Death

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David died from a brain tumor at her apartment on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, New York City, on August 21, 2012, at the age of 91.[1][3][6]

References

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Tissa David

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''Tissa David'' is a Romanian-born American animator of Hungarian descent known for her pioneering contributions to the animation industry as a master character animator over a career spanning more than seven decades. She is particularly celebrated for animating the lead character Raggedy Ann in the 1977 feature Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure, and for her long-term collaborations with prominent animators and directors including Grim Natwick, John Hubley, Richard Williams, and R.O. Blechman. Her work endowed characters with warmth, personality, and realistic movement, earning her recognition as a master animator and an influential figure for women in the male-dominated field. Born Thérèse Marie David on January 5, 1921, in Kolozsvár, Romania (now Cluj-Napoca), she grew up in Szeged, Hungary, in an academic family as the second-oldest of ten children. Inspired by Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, she pursued animation, briefly studying at Budapest's Academy of Fine Arts before entering the industry in 1942 as an assistant at the Hungarian Film Office. She co-owned an animation studio in Hungary until the Communist era prompted her emigration in 1950; she settled in Paris, where she served as animation director and principal animator on the feature Bonjour Paris (1953). In 1955, David immigrated to the United States and joined United Productions of America (UPA) in New York as assistant to Grim Natwick, creator of Betty Boop and principal animator on Disney's Snow White; their collaboration lasted twelve years and profoundly shaped her skills. After facing challenges in the industry, she animated on John Hubley's Everybody Rides the Carousel (1975) and developed the definitive animation for Raggedy Ann in Richard Williams' Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure (1977). She maintained a prolific career at studios like R.O. Blechman's Ink Tank and Michael Sporn Animation, contributing to works including The Marzipan Pig (1990), The Soldier’s Tale (1984), and various television specials and shorts. David received the Winsor McCay Award for lifetime achievement at the 1988 Annie Awards and taught animation classes emphasizing expressive drawing and musical timing. Her films and techniques have been preserved in collections such as the Museum of Modern Art, and she continued animating nearly until her death from a brain tumor on August 21, 2012, in New York City at age 91.

Early life and education

Family and early years

Thérèse "Tissa" David was born on January 5, 1921, in Kolozsvár (now Cluj-Napoca, Romania), in the Transylvania region which had been transferred to Romania after World War I by the Treaty of Trianon in 1920 but retained strong Hungarian cultural influence. She was the second-oldest of ten children—seven girls and three boys—born to Dr. Lajos David, a professor of pharmacy, and Szaniszla David. The family relocated to Szeged, Hungary, when Tissa was just over one year old, after her father's university department moved from Kolozsvár due to the region's postwar territorial changes. In Szeged, her father taught at the University of Szeged, providing a stable academic setting despite the modest lifestyle imposed by supporting a large family on a professor's salary. David grew up in a cultured academic household that valued education and achievement, with her father expecting success from all his children in a competitive environment where strong performance was the norm. This supportive family atmosphere extended to the arts, as evidenced by the household's shared enthusiasm for animation, including their collective enjoyment of Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs when she first saw it in 1938.

Education and entry into animation

Tissa David earned a teaching degree despite having no interest in becoming a teacher. She subsequently enrolled at the Academy of Beaux Arts in Budapest to strengthen her draftsmanship skills. However, her path shifted decisively in 1938 when, as a teenager, she viewed Walt Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, an experience that inspired her to declare "This is what I want to do" and commit to animation as her career. In 1942, David responded to a newspaper advertisement brought to her attention by an uncle and was hired as an assistant animator at Magyar Film Iroda, a Budapest studio that produced theatrical commercials using hand-drawn animation and puppetry. She dropped out of the academy to pursue animation full-time. The defining moment came when she first saw one of her animated characters move on screen, an experience she later described as "the most exciting moment of my life."

European career

Hungary

Tissa David began her professional animation career at Magyar Film Iroda in Budapest, where she contributed to theatrical commercials produced with hand-drawn and puppet animation techniques. She had initially joined the studio as an assistant in 1942. During the 1944 Siege of Budapest, she endured intense daily bombings and survived by subsisting on horse meat and boiled beans amid severe shortages and hardship. Following the war, she freelanced on commercials before becoming co-owner of the Mackassy and Trsi animation studio, where she helped oversee production. The studio ceased operations after the Communist takeover in 1949, which prompted her decision to emigrate.

Paris and Bonjour Paris

In March 1950, Tissa David fled communist Hungary with her friend, the painter Judit Reigl, journeying through several countries before reaching Paris. Upon arrival, she supported herself by working as a cook, maid, and cleaner while learning French. In 1951, David was introduced to producer Jean Image, leading to her engagement on the animated feature Bonjour Paris. She served as director, editor, and sole animator for the film, which was released in 1953, and received about $100 per month for her efforts. This work established her as the second woman in animation history, after Lotte Reiniger, to direct a full-length animated feature. When Jean Image's studio closed, David remained unemployed for seven months. She subsequently joined Paul Grimault's La Comète Studio, where she animated commercials aimed at the American market.

American career

Partnership with Grim Natwick

Tissa David immigrated to the United States in 1955 after a five-year visa wait, settling in New York City where she learned English before entering the animation industry. In February 1956, she was hired at United Productions of America (UPA) in New York as assistant to Grim Natwick, the creator of Betty Boop and lead animator on Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. She worked closely with Natwick for twelve years, during which he taught her "absolutely everything" about animation. When UPA closed in 1958, David and Natwick continued their collaboration as freelance partners, producing hundreds of animated television commercials for clients including Bert and Harry for Piel’s Beer, Perrier, Vlasic Pickles, and IBM. They also collaborated on the last theatrical Mr. Magoo short, Terror Faces Magoo (1959). Their partnership endured until Natwick's retirement in 1967, with Natwick crediting David for enabling him to remain active in animation for another decade.

Major collaborations and projects

After Grim Natwick's retirement in 1967, Tissa David encountered substantial difficulties securing animation work in the male-dominated industry until John Hubley hired her in 1970. She animated key characters in several Hubley shorts exploring profound themes, including Death and Mother Nature in Eggs (1971) and the two sisters in Cockaboody (1973), while bringing extraordinary sensitivity to sequences of a young couple navigating trust in the feature Everybody Rides the Carousel (1976). David achieved a major breakthrough as lead animator for Raggedy Ann in Richard Williams' 1977 feature Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure, producing over 1,000 feet of animation—including the pivotal Deep Deep Woods sequence that served as a template for much of the film—and establishing the character's gentle, intuitive personality through her drawings, which formed the basis for model sheets used by the rest of the team. She forged a long-term collaboration with R.O. Blechman at Ink Tank beginning in 1978, contributing animation and layout to the segment "The Great Frost" in Simple Gifts (1977) and animating the swaggering devil in the Emmy-winning The Soldier’s Tale (1984). David worked extensively with Michael Sporn Animation on numerous half-hour specials, serving as animator and storyboard artist on The Marzipan Pig (1990) and as layout and storyboard artist on Ira Sleeps Over (1991), while providing posthumous animation direction on Poe (2013). Her other notable credits include uncredited animation on Richard Williams' The Thief and the Cobbler (1993), work on The Cosmic Eye (1986), episodes of Between the Lions, and various commercials and specials throughout her later career.

Legacy

Teaching and influence

Tissa David was a revered mentor in the animation community, particularly through her informal teaching in New York, where she generously shared her deep knowledge and distinctive philosophy of the craft. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, she led a free after-hours animation class sponsored by the Ink Tank, open to all interested participants regardless of experience level. Her teaching emphasized practical and philosophical foundations of character animation, stressing the importance of exposure sheets, animating to the soundtrack or to classical music for silent characters, limiting drawings to essential storytelling poses, and drawing characters from a real inner emotional place to give them authentic life. David viewed animation as the most complex art form, one that required total devotion and singular focus. She frequently shared guiding principles with students, including her belief that "The greatest animation is the simplest," the directive to "Always think of how your character feels," and the conviction that "You can only have one love if you want to be an animator: animation." Known for her tough-love approach, she pushed aspiring animators rigorously while remaining generous with her expertise and encouragement. Animation historian John Canemaker described her lasting impact, noting that she endowed her characters with charm, personality, warmth, and heart. Her emphasis on economical, emotionally grounded animation influenced many who studied under her, reinforcing her legacy as a teacher who shaped the next generation's understanding of character-driven performance.

Awards and death

Tissa David received significant recognition for her contributions to animation later in her career. In 1988, she was awarded the Winsor McCay Award for lifetime or career contributions in animation at the Annie Awards. In 2003, the Museum of Modern Art presented a retrospective of her work, titled "An Evening with Tissa David, Master Animator," co-curated by John Canemaker and Josh Siegel. David lived alone in a plant-filled one-bedroom apartment on New York's East 83rd Street from 1956 until her death, maintaining a second home in southern France. Known as a private and independent figure, she was a loner who worked solo, an excellent cook specializing in Szeged-style Hungarian dishes that filled her home with the aromas of spices and baked apples, and a frequent traveler to Europe to visit family. She died on August 21, 2012, in Manhattan, New York City, at age 91 from a brain tumor. David is remembered as a pioneering woman in animation who "walked the road for the first time" in a male-dominated industry, breaking barriers through determination and talent. Her legacy endures in her ability to imbue characters with inimitable sensitivity, warmth, heart, and wit, endowing them with authentic emotional depth and personality that transcended traditional animation conventions.
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