Animator, illustrator, author got his start at Hancock

It’s a small world after all.

And that’s easily proven in the many Santa Maria residents that have made it big. Among them, Eric Walls, a character animator at Disney.

Walls moved with his family to Santa Maria after his graduation from high school in 1985, when his dad, Robert Walls, embarked on a 15-year career as teacher and minister at the former Christian Life School. His mother, Alberta Walls, still lives here.

Walls signed up for some art classes at Hancock College, including a newly-launched animation class.

“When I was 7 years old, I thought I’d really like to be an animator when I grew up,” he said in an Oct. 26 phone interview with the Santa Maria Times.

Walls attributes his early aspirations to growing up in southern California, with frequent trips to Disneyland. After studying at Hancock, he transferred to the California Institute of the Arts in Valencia, a school Walt Disney helped establish, where he studied in the character animation program for two years.

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That training resulted in an internship with Walt Disney Feature Animation. The first film Walls worked on was “Beauty and the Beast” in 1990.

Today, Walls is working for Disney again, and since 1990 he has also done stints with DreamWorks, Paramount and Warner Brothers. He’s worked on films including “Aladdin,” “The Lion King,” “Pocahontas,” “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” and “Hercules” for Disney; “The Prince of Egypt” and “The Road to El Dorado” for DreamWorks; “Rugrats Go Wild” and “Barnyard” for Paramount; and “Looney Tunes: Back in Action” for Warner Brothers.

Walls is currently working on Disney’s “Meet the Robinsons,” which is set for a March 2007 release.

While Walls was initially trained as a traditional animator, specializing in hand-drawn animation, his skills have evolved with the craft of animation and three years ago he began working in computer animation.

According to Walls, computer animation combines the skills of traditional animation with computer graphic technology. Although he says the two styles actually have a lot of similarities, his heart is with traditional, hand-drawn animation, and he said he believes that style is making a comeback.

“Maybe a lot of that is hope,” he added.

Still, while Walls says he can tell the difference between computer animation and hand drawn animation, he doesn’t think the average person really notices. Audiences respond to great stories and characters they believe in, he said.

Perhaps it’s Walls’ desire to give audiences those great stories and characters that propelled him to use his animation skills to create art in another medium, a children’s book.

Walls’ drew inspiration for his first book, “The Harbor Light,” from his own collection of children’s books and illustrations, and his career as an animator.

“I kind of approached it as if it were an animated film and then later made it into book form,” he said. He started by writing the text, then began sketching illustrations.

He decided to complete the book before seeking a publisher, thinking he’d have the best chance in getting it published. After researching a variety of publishers, he submitted his work to five. It was picked up by Kregel Publications and published in early 2006.

Walls likes to the think the book is “for everybody,” but more specifically, he says it’s for children aged 5 and older.

“The Harbor Light” tells the story of a little lighthouse with a big responsibility. He knows he has to always keep his light shining so boats can safely find their way to the harbor. But when a mean-spirited boat makes fun of him, he’s forced to choose between being accepted and doing his job. With the help of the friendly lighthouse keeper, the lighthouse learns some valuable lessons about how important his light really is.

According to Walls, the story is based on Bible verses Matthew 5:14 to 16, which, Walls said, is about being a good person by living as a light to the world.

But the book’s messages go beyond the Christian experience and can speak to any child, regardless of religious belief.

“At its core it’s about being responsible, being true to who you are and about trying to help other out,” said Walls.

Emily Welly can be reached at 739-2220 or ewelly@santamariatimes.com.