Burny Mattinson

Burnett "Burny" Mattinson (May 13, 1935-September 28, 2018) is an American storyboarder for the Disney Feature Animation studio. Starting work in 1953, Burny has been, and still is part of Disney today. Mattinson was honored as an inductee of the Disney Legends program in 2008.

Early life
Mattinson was born in San Francisco in 1935. His father, Bernie Mattinson, was a jazz drummer who starred with the Horace Heidt big band and, later, was a recording session drummer for Elvis Presley among many others. In 1945, the family moved to Los Angeles, once his fathers Band ended. A few years before, Mattinson was inspired by the 1940 film Pinocchio, Mattinson became enamored of animation and practiced by drawing Disney characters throughout his school years. After graduating high school, Mattinson took a job in "Traffic" (mail room) at Disney Studios (1953), hoping to someday pursue a career as an animator, and maybe get the chance to actually meet some animators.

Career
Later, Mattinson began as a "inbetweener" (an animator who draws pictures to fill frames in between the key frames), and soon started on the 1955 film Lady and the Tramp. He worked as an assistant on Sleeping Beauty and 101 Dalmatians. Mattinson then worked as an assistant to Eric Larson on The Sword and the Stone, Mary Poppins, The Jungle Book and The Aristocats, and became a character animator on Robin Hood and Winnie the Pooh.

Mattinson was a storyboard artist for the 1977 film The Rescuers. He also has story credits for The Fox and the Hound (1981), The Great Mouse Detective (1986), The Black Cauldron(1985), Beauty and the Beast (1991), Aladdin (1992), The Lion King (1994), and Mickey's Christmas Carol (1983).

Mattinson produced and directed Mickey's Christmas Carol and The Great Mouse Detective.

In 2008, Mattinson was awarded the Disney Legends award, and he also began working as Story Supervisor on the 2011 Winnie the Pooh reboot.

On March 24, 2011, Mattinson announced that he was pitching an idea for a full-length animated feature with Mickey Mouse as the main protagonist. If greenlit, it may become an installment in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series.

Personal life
Mattinson married Sylvia Fry, who also worked as an in-between artist on the Disney film Sleeping Beauty. They have three children. Sylvia Mattinson has also worked as an animator on films such as The Fox and the Hound and The Black Cauldron.

Death
In 2017, Mattinson has a breast cancer and died in 2018 during production of The Dolphin of the Ocean