Academy to Celebrate Disney's Marc Davis

The evening will feature an onstage panel discussion moderated by animation critic Charles Solomon. Honored guests James Baxter, Andreas Deja, Pete Docter and Eric Goldberg will spotlight the mentors who fostered their professional development as well as provide insights into their individual approaches to their art. The celebration will include clips from the masters' work that inspired each of the panelists, and from the panelists' work reflecting that inspiration.

Baxter oversaw "star" performances as the supervising animator for Belle in "Beauty and the Beast" (1991), Quasimodo in "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" (1996), and Spirit in "Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron" (2002), as well as the animation sequences in "Enchanted" (2007).

Deja brought to life characters as diverse as Gaston in "Beauty and the Beast" (1991), Scar in "The Lion King" (1994), and Lilo in "Lilo & Stitch" (2002).

Docter earned Oscar® nominations for Original Screenplay for "Toy Story" (1995), Best Animated Feature Film for "Monsters, Inc." (2001), and Best Animated Short Film for "Mike's New Car" (2002).

Goldberg served as the character designer and supervising animator for Genie in "Aladdin" (1992), and co-directed "Pocahontas" (1995) with Mike Gabriel, and directed the "Rhapsody in Blue" and "Carnival of the Animals" segments in "Fantasia 2000" (2000).

Tickets for the Academy's 12th Marc Davis Celebration of Animation are $5 for the general public and $3 for Academy members and students with a valid ID. They may be purchased online at www.oscars.org, in person at the Academy box office or by mail. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. All seating is unreserved. The Academy is located at 8949 Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills. For more information, call (310) 247-3600.