Q&A with animation legend Floyd Norman alongside directors Michael Fiore and Erik Sharkey

Tuesday, Sep. 30 2025, 6:00

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• Floyd Norman is the undisputed “Forrest Gump” of the animation world. Hired as the first African American at Disney in 1956, he would later be hand-­picked by Walt Disney to join the story team on the Jungle Book. After Walt’s death, Mr. Norman left Disney to start his own company (Vignette Films, Inc.) to produce Black history films for high schools. He and his partners would later work with Hanna Barbera, where they animated the original Fat Albert Special as well as the titles to Soul Train. Mr. Norman returned to Disney in the 1980s to work in their Publishing department. And in 1998, he returned to Disney Animation to work in the story department on Mulan. But an invite to the Bay area in the late 90s became a career highlight. Mr. Norman was now working with another emerging great: Pixar and Steve Jobs, on Toy Story 2 and Monsters, Inc. Life as an animator is a nomadic one, but Mr. Norman spent the majority of his career at Disney; he views it as his “home.” Retired by Disney in 2000 at age 65, the documentary focuses on Mr. Norman’s difficulty with a retirement he was not ready for. Not one to quit, Mr. Norman chose to occupy an empty cubicle at Disney Publishing for the last 15 years. As he puts it, “[He] just won’t leave.” A term has been coined by Disney employees — “Floydering.” While not on staff, his proximity to other Disney personnel has led him to pick up freelance work. He continues to have an impact on animation as both an artist and mentor. As Mr. Norman says, “[He] [plans] to die at the drawing board."
• Michael Fiore (co-­director/producer/DP/editor) is an award-winning NYC-based Producer/Director and the creative force behind Fiore Media Group — a hybrid production company and feature film sales agency. Driven by a passion for bold, human-centered storytelling, Fiore has produced and directed acclaimed documentaries, including Veselka: The Rainbow on the Corner at the Center of the World (Prime), hailed by CNN as a “must-see,” and Floyd Norman: An Animated Life (Netflix, HBO Max, TCM, Criterion Channel). Both films were released theatrically across North America and Europe under the Fiore Media Group banner.  Fiore is currently producing a follow-up to Netflix’s acclaimed docu-series Bad Vegan — the surreal story of Sarma Melngailis, whose quest for love and success spiraled into deception, scandal, and jail time.  Fiore and his team are exposing the deeper truths that the docu-tainment Netflix series did not share. Fiore gravitates toward subjects who challenge systems, uplift the overlooked, and speak truth to power.  As Fiore explains, “These are people who are the bright lights in a world leaning into darkness.  I am honored to champion their stories.”
• Erik Sharkey (co-­director) is no stranger to the world of documentary. Before An Animated Life, his last feature documentary about famed movie poster artist Drew Struzan titled Drew: The Man Behind the Poster was noted as an “acclaimed documentary” on Netflix and screened at festivals all over the world. Floyd Norman: An Animated Life marks Erik and Michael Fiore’s first collaboration together.