Gwen Wetzler is an American producer,

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

and

animator An animator is an artist who creates images, known as frames, which give an illusion of movement called animation when displayed in rapid sequence. Animators can work in a variety of fields including film, television, and video games. Animat ...

and is best known as the first woman to produce and direct

animation Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby still images are manipulated to create moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Animati ...

for a major network.

Early years

At a young age while growing up in

Erie, Pennsylvania Erie is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, fifth-most populous city in Pennsylvania and the most populous in Northwestern Pen ...

, Gwen Wetzler found her love of art. During high school Wetzler would paint signs for local businesses because of her artistic ability and steady hand. In the early 1950s Gwen was married and moved from

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

to suburban

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. In 1955 she started in the animation business at

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...

Art House touts youth talent
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on such classics as ''

Sleeping Beauty "Sleeping Beauty" (, or ''The Beauty Sleeping in the Wood''; , or ''Little Briar Rose''), also titled in English as ''The Sleeping Beauty in the Woods'', is a fairy tale about a princess curse, cursed by an evil fairy to suspended animation in fi ...

'' and ''

Lady and the Tramp ''Lady and the Tramp'' is a 1955 American Animated film, animated Musical film, musical romantic comedy film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by Buena Vista Film Distribution. Based on Ward Greene's 1945 ''Cosmopolitan (magazine) ...

''.

Career

In 1977, after 20 years at Disney, Wetzler became the first woman to direct and produce animation at major studios including

MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

and the

Hanna-Barbera Studios Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. ( ; formerly known as H-B Enterprises, Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. and H-B Production Co.), simply and commonly known as Hanna-Barbera, was an American animation studio and production company, which was acti ...

. Wetzler's directorial debut was on ''

Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids ''Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids'' (often referred to simply as ''Fat Albert'') is an educational American animated television series created, produced, and hosted (in live action bookends) by comedian Bill Cosby, who also lent his voice to a nu ...

'' which led to further projects. Other directed titles include ''

The Transformers ''Transformers'' is a media franchise produced by American toy company Hasbro and Japanese toy company Tomy, Takara Tomy. It primarily follows the heroic Autobots and the villainous Decepticons, two Extraterrestrials in fiction, alien robot fac ...

'', ''

The New Adventures of Batman ''The New Adventures of Batman'' is an animated series that aired on CBS from February 12 to May 28, 1977, featuring the DC Comics superheroes Batman, Dick Grayson, Robin, and Barbara Gordon, Batgirl. The series was a Filmation and DC Comics pro ...

'', ''

My Little Pony ''My Little Pony'' (''MLP'') is a toy line and media franchise developed by American toy company Hasbro. The first toys were developed by Bonnie Zacherle, Charles Muenchinger, and Steve D'Aguanno, and were produced in 1981. The ponies feature ...

'', ''The New Archie/Sabrina Hour'', ''

Flash Gordon Flash Gordon is the protagonist of a space adventure comic strip created and originally drawn by Alex Raymond. First published January 7, 1934, the strip was inspired by, and created to compete with, the already established ''Buck Rogers'' ...

'' and ''

Sport Billy ''Sport Billy'' is an animated television series produced in 1980 by Filmation in the United States based on a German comic book created by Rolf Deyhle in 1977, whose eponymous hero is a boy who promotes sportsmanship. A single 26-episode season ...

'' among others. Her later directorial work included ''

He-Man and the Masters of the Universe ''He-Man and the Masters of the Universe'' (often referred to simply as ''He-Man'') is an American animated television series produced by Filmation based on Mattel's toy line ''Masters of the Universe''. The show was one of the most popular an ...

'', ''

She-Ra Adora, known by her alter ego She-Ra, is a fictional superheroine in the ''Masters of the Universe'' franchise. She is introduced as the protagonist of the 1985 Filmation series '' She-Ra: Princess of Power'', which reveals her to be the long lo ...

'', ''

Spawn Spawn or spawning may refer to: * Spawning, the eggs and sperm of aquatic animals Arts, entertainment and media * Spawn (character), a fictional character in the comic series of the same name and in the associated franchise ** ''Spawn: Armageddon' ...

'', ''

Tiny Toon Adventures ''Tiny Toon Adventures'' is an American animated television series created by Tom Ruegger and produced by Warner Bros. Animation. It originally aired from September 14, 1990 to December 6, 1992, airing in syndication before eventually settling a ...

'', and '' All Dogs Go to Heaven: The Series''. In the 1980s, Wetzler became the first woman to produce animation for a major studio; she produced ''

'', '' Jem'', and ''

The Legend of Prince Valiant ''The Legend of Prince Valiant'' is an animated television series based on the ''Prince Valiant'' comic strip created by Hal Foster. Set in the time of King Arthur, it is a family-oriented adventure show about an exiled prince who goes on a quest ...

''. Along with directing, producing, and animating series, Wetzler also worked on feature full-length feature films such as ''

Mighty Mouse Mighty Mouse is an American animated character created by the Terrytoons studio for 20th Century Fox. He is an anthropomorphic superhero mouse, originally called Super Mouse, and made his debut in the 1942 short ''The Mouse of Tomorrow''. Th ...

''. Gwen Wetzler retired from the animation industry in the early 2000s, giving her time to focus primarily on her artwork.

Selected filmography

Films

* Animator of '' A Snow White Christmas'' (1982) * Director of '' Mighty Mouse in the Great Space Chase'' (1983) * Animator of ''We Think the World is Round'' (1984) * Director of ''

The Secret of the Sword ''The Secret of the Sword'', also known as ''He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword'', is a 1985 American animated superhero film produced by Filmation. Although released before the series '' She-Ra: Princess of Power'' began, the film was a ...

'' (1985) * Director - Segment - The Cat and the Spider of ''Skeletor's Revenge'' (1986) * Animation Director of ''

'' (1986) * Timing Director of '' Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland'' (1992) * Timing and Sheet Director of ''An All Dogs Christmas Carol'' (1998) * Timing Director of ''The Sissy Duckling'' (1999) * Animation Timing Director of ''

Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet the Wolfman ''Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet the Wolfman'' is a 2000 American animated comedy horror musical film produced by Bagdasarian Productions and Universal Cartoon Studios and based on characters from ''Alvin and the Chipmunks''. It is the second ''Al ...

'' (2000)

Television

* Director of ''

'' (1978) * Animation Director of ''Super Witch'' (1978) * Director of ''Batman and the Super Seven'' (1981) * Director of '' Flash Gordon: The Greatest Adventure of All'' (1983) * Director of ''

The New Adventures of Flash Gordon ''The New Adventures of Flash Gordon'', also known as ''The Adventures of Flash Gordon'' or simply ''Flash Gordon'', is a 1979–1982 animated television series. The series is actually called ''Flash Gordon'' but the expanded title is used in o ...

'' (1983) * Director of '' She-Ra: Princess of Power'' (1986) * Sheet Director of ''

All Dogs Go to Heaven ''All Dogs Go to Heaven'' is a 1989 animated musical fantasy comedy-drama film directed by Don Bluth and co-directed by Gary Goldman (his directorial debut) and Dan Kuenster. Set in New Orleans in 1939, it tells the story of Charlie B. Barkin ...

'' (1989) * Animation Director of ''

The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest ''The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest'' (also known as ''Jonny Quest: The Real Adventures'') is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Cartoons and broadcast on Cartoon Network from August 26, 1996, to April 16, 1997. ...

'' (Animated Series) (1996) * Director of ''Little Orphan Annie's Very Animated Christmas'' (1995) * ''G.I. Joe: Extreme'' (1997) * ''Todd McFarlane's Spawn'' (1999) * Animator in ''

The Lionhearts ''The Lionhearts'' is an American animated television series from MGM that aired on Saturday and Sunday mornings in syndication from September 19 to December 12, 1998. The series aired on syndication in the United States and was also seen in Aus ...

'' (1999) * ''Three Little Pigs: From the Series "Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales For Every Child"'' (1999) * ''Empress's Nightingale: An Animated Special From "The Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales For Every Child"'' Series (2000) * ''Happy Prince: An Animated Special From "The Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales For Every Child"'' Series (2000) * ''Frog Princess: An Animated Special From the "Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales For Every Child"'' Series (2000) * ''Sissy Duckling'' (2000) * ''Robinita Hood: An Animated Special From the "Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales For Every Child"'' Series'' (2000) * ''Rip Van Winkle: An Animated Special From the "Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales For Every Child"'' Series (2000) * ''Henny Penny: An Animated Special From "The Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales For Every Child"'' Series (2000) * ''

Dragon Tales ''Dragon Tales'' is an animated educational television, educational Fantasy fiction, fantasy children's television series created by Jim Coane and Ron Rodecker, developed by Coane, Wesley Eure, Jeffrey Scott, Cliff Ruby and Elana Lesser, and pr ...

'' (2002)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wetzler, Gwen American television producers Living people American women animators American women film directors American animated film directors Women animated film directors American animated film producers American women television producers Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century American women