Daron Nefcy

Last updated

Daron Nefcy
Daron Nefcy 2018.png
Nefcy in 2018
Born
Daron Leah Nefcy

(1985-11-26) November 26, 1985 (age 38)
Education California Institute of the Arts (BFA, 2009)
Occupations
  • Storyboard artist
  • writer
  • producer
  • voice actor
  • artist
Years active2010–present
Known for Star vs. the Forces of Evil
Spouse
(m. 2015)
Children1
Website www.daronnefcy.com

Daron Leah Nefcy (born November 26, 1985) [1] is an American animator, storyboard artist, writer, producer, artist and voice actress. She is best known for being the creator and executive producer of the Disney XD and Disney Channel series Star vs. the Forces of Evil , [2] for which she voiced additional roles, most notably StarFan13. She was only the second woman to create an original Disney Animation television series, and the first since 1997. [3]

Contents

Early life and education

Nefcy was born in Los Angeles, California.[ citation needed ] She has cited the Japanese anime series Sailor Moon as a major influence on her during middle school. [3]

In her third year of college she came up with the character of Star Butterfly.[ citation needed ] She studied at the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts), where she graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) in Character Animation in 2009. [4] [5] [6]

Career

Nefcy's early credits included Disney XD's Wander Over Yonder, where she worked alongside the show's creator Craig McCracken. [7] She also worked on Robot and Monster (Nickelodeon), [7] and was involved in Mas (Animation) as a designer. [6] [7] She worked on the family film Elle: A Modern Cinderella Tale as a character designer.[ citation needed ]

In 2012, she animated and co-wrote the segment "March" in the comedy anthology movie Holiday Road. [6]

Star vs. the Forces of Evil

Nefcy first pitched an early version of the character Star Butterfly to Disney about four years before the show first aired. [7] Her initial concept was Star as a young child with imaginary super powers. [7] When one of the television executives suggested that Star should be a teenager with real magical powers, Nefcy came up with the idea of turning her into a foreign exchange student from another dimension where she is a princess. [7] Nefcy worked on Star vs. the Forces of Evil for about three years before it first aired; following a one-year pilot phase, producing the first 13-episode season took two more years. [7]

Her animated series debuted in 2015 and continued for four seasons, yielding top ratings for Disney, with an avid social media fan base, and spin-off books and online games. [8]

Other projects

Nefcy directed an episode of We the People (2021), an animated TV series educating children about civics, produced by Barack and Michelle Obama. [9]

Selected publications

YearTitleOriginal publisherISBNNotes
2018The Magic Book of Spells Disney Press ISBN   978-1368020503 Co-written with Amber Benson, Dominic Bisignano, Devin Taylor and Laura Catrinella.

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References

  1. "Daron Leah Nefcy, Born 11/26/1985 in California | CaliforniaBirthIndex.org". californiabirthindex.org. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  2. McLean, Tom (July 2015). "Toasting the Toon Sisterhood". Animation. Vol. 29, no. 6. p. 36. Retrieved 31 December 2023 via EBSCOHost.
  3. 1 2 Barker, Andrew (10 March 2015). "Daron Nefcy". Variety. Vol. 327, no. 6. p. 59. Retrieved 31 December 2023 via EBSCOHost.
  4. Idelsen, Karen (January 2019). "Drawn to Female Empowerment". Vol. 33, no. 1. Retrieved 31 December 2023 via EBSCOHost.
  5. "CalArts alumni (Character Animation)". California Institute of the Arts.
  6. 1 2 3 "Rising Stars of Animation". Animation. Vol. 27, no. 9. 1 October 2013. pp. 20–26. Retrieved 31 December 2023 via EBSCOHost.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Milligan, Mercedes (March 2015). "No Time for Tea Parties". Animation. Vol. 29, no. 3. pp. 20–21. Retrieved 31 December 2023 via EBSCOHost.
  8. Dickson, Jeremy (8 March 2019). "How Daron Nefcy is ending Star vs. The Forces of Evil". Kidscreen. Retrieved 31 December 2023.
  9. Nolfi, Joey (2 June 2021). "Barack and Michelle Obama will teach kids about government with new animated Netflix series". Entertainment Weekly.com. Retrieved 31 December 2023 via EBSCOHost.