Tara Nicole Whitaker has contributed to the animation of titles such as “Gravity Falls” and “DuckTales,” illustrated books like “Shady Baby” and the “My Baby Loves” series, and is a director on the upcoming “Proud Family” reboot. Now, she’s set to helm her first film. Variety reports Whitaker will co-direct animated pic “Pierre the Pigeon-Hawk,” marking her feature directorial debut.
The source describes Whitaker’s hiring as “a glass-ceiling shattering moment”: “She is one of the first Black women to direct a major animated movie, an important milestone for representation behind-the-camera.” Research from the Inclusion Initiative shows that only four women served as directors across the top 120 animated films from 2007-2018. Jennifer Yuh Nelson was the sole woman of color.
Featuring the voices of Whoopi Goldberg, Jennifer Coolidge, Jennifer Hudson, and more, “Pierre the Pigeon-Hawk” is a musically-driven ode to diversity and inclusion. The pic “unfolds in NYC, and centers on a bird named Pierre (will.i.am) who is the product of forbidden love between a hawk (Goldberg) and a pigeon (Howie Mandel),” Variety details. “Pierre is rejected by both communities. Tired of not fitting in, Pierre sets out on a mission to discover where he truly belongs. During his adventure, he unites with a band of unlikely friends including a recently escaped bear from the Central Park Zoo, Ophelia the owl (Hudson), whose genius is outweighed only by her madness, and a pair of rag tag, pop-cultured city squirrels, Scratch (Snoop Dogg) and Sniff (Kenan Thompson). Amidst a journey of self-discovery, Pierre finds the courage to inspire animals from all backgrounds to change their ways and open their minds to a new way of thinking. It will take a hybrid bird to unite a hybrid world.”
Hudson is also among the executive producers.
“I am beyond delighted to join this incredible team of artists, musicians, and storytellers to explore Pierre’s world and bring this wonderfully vibrant and inspiring tale of self-discovery to life,” Whitaker stated.
“We are thrilled to have Tara coming onboard,” said the film’s co-director and producer, John D. Eraklis. “She is an incredibly talented artist, animator, and director, whose voice was the missing piece of our puzzle.”
Whitaker’s most recent projects include Disney+’s “The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder” and books “The World is Yours (Disney Princess)” and “The Square Root of Possible: A Jingle Jangle Story.”
“I wish I had realized sooner that comparing myself to others as much as I was and imagining where I thought I should be, was not working in my favor,” Whitaker wrote for Women in Animation. “Letting go of the feeling that I didn’t belong was difficult, but it happened when I stopped comparing myself to everyone else, and only to how far I had come since I was eight! I just think back to that little girl and I am reminded why I wanted to work in our field. Women and girls of color are still lacking in representation in TV and film, and I have always wanted to play a part in changing that. Creating art and bringing more diversity to animation has always been my goal, and focusing on what was truly important to me helped me overcome my insecurities!”
