Matt Groening is a cartoonist, animator, and producer best known for creating The Simpsons, television's longest-running primetime animated series. Although it debuted as a series of cartoon shorts for another television show in 1987, The Simpsons launched on its own in 1989, making the dysfunctional family of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie famous almost overnight.

Ten-time Oscar-nominated Walter Lantz was one of Hollywood's most prolific directors and producers of animation. Over six decades, his studio produced more than 800 cartoons, including over 600 theatrically released cartoons, more than any other Hollywood animation studio, and set high standards for the art of animation in its fledgling years. Lantz is renowned for producing cartoons starring the world-famous Woody Woodpecker.

Tex Avery, considered the father of screwball animation, was one of the most influential animators of the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s. Creator of such classic characters as Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and Droopy, he directed many cartoons for Warner Bros., MGM, and Walter Lantz Productions and was nominated for six Academy Awards.

Best known for creating Mickey Mouse, Walt Disney is one of the 20th century's most honored and important icons of animation. Nominated for 63 Academy Awards, he produced many cartoons and feature films considered classics today. Walt Disney: The Mouse That Roared delves into this man's colorful life, explaining the inspiration for his classic creations and revolutionary animation techniques.

Hayao Miyazaki is one of the world's most respected Japanese animation filmmakers. He is known for creating compelling characters, engaging stories, and breathtaking animation, all of which have earned him international acclaim while setting box-office records. Miyazaki, who began his career in 1963 as an in-betweener for Toei Doga studio, soon found his true calling as an anime and manga artist, working on classic Japanese features and television series and writing the best-selling manga, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind.