Susan Carol Maciorowski (née Nichols; June 10, 1965 – September 1, 2020) was an American artist best known for her work with Walt Disney Animation Studios predominantly during the Disney Renaissance and Post-Renaissance.[1]

Sue C. Nichols
Nichols as she appeared c. 2016
Born
Susan Carol Nichols

(1965-06-10)June 10, 1965
DiedSeptember 1, 2020(2020-09-01) (aged 55)
East Longmeadow, Massachusetts, U.S.
Resting placeMassachusetts Veterans Memorial Cemetery, Agawam, Massachusetts, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
OccupationArtist
Years active1986–2019
SpouseChester "JR" Maciorowski
Children2

Early life and education

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Susan Carol Nichols was born to parents Brian and Julie. She graduated from East Longmeadow High School in 1983 before going on to study visual animation at the California Institute of the Arts where she later lectured, graduating in 1987.

Personal life

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She married Chester "JR" Maciorowski and had two children, Stephanie and Jonathan.[2]

Death

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In 2015, she was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer. She received treatment at D'Amour Center for Cancer Care in Springfield, Massachusetts. She died on September 1, 2020, and was buried in Massachusetts Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Agawam, Massachusetts.[3]

Disney released a statement announcing her death in the same month with a long thread celebrating her work. Eric Goldberg said, "She will be sadly missed by those of us who had the good fortune to work with her, but her influence on those films will be there forever."[4] On the first anniversary of her death, her husband published one final entry on her personal website on a page she used to document her life living with cancer, detailing what happened between her last post on the page on January 16, 2020, and her death.[3]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Credits Notes
1991 Beauty and the Beast Visual development artist
1992 Aladdin Story
1994 The Lion King Character designer, visual development artist
1994 The Pagemaster Storyboard artist
1996 The Hunchback of Notre Dame Story, character designer, visual development
1997 Hercules Production stylist
1998 Mulan Character designer, visual development
1999 Fantasia 2000 Storyboard artist
2000 The Emperor's New Groove Additional visual development artist
2001 Atlantis: The Lost Empire Additional visual development
2002 Lilo & Stitch Visual development supervisor
2003 Piglet's Big Movie Storyboard artist
2004 Mulan II Additional storyboard artist Direct-to-video
2006 Bambi and the Great Prince of the Forest Storyboard artist Direct-to-video
2007 Enchanted Visual development
2009 The Princess and the Frog Visual development artist, color and design artist
2016 Moana Character design
2019 UglyDolls Storyboard artist

Television

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Year Title Credits Notes
1986-1989 Muppet Babies Model designer 58 episodes
1986 My Little Pony 'n Friends Designer Special
1989 McGee and Me! Character modeler 5 episodes
1989 Blondie & Dagwood: Second Wedding Workout Modeler Television film

Awards and nominations

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Year Award Category Work Result Ref.
1993 Hugo Awards Best Dramatic Presentation Aladdin Nominated
2020 Winsor McCay Award Won

References

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  1. ^ "Sue C. Nichols". BFI. Archived from the original on February 2, 2018. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  2. ^ "Susan C. Maciorowski". Archived from the original on December 10, 2022. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  3. ^ a b "MBC Diary". MotherNichols.com. Archived from the original on October 27, 2021. Retrieved September 30, 2023.
  4. ^ Perrine, Aaron (September 3, 2020). "Disney Artist Sue Nichols Macriowski Passes Away". Comic Book. Archived from the original on June 4, 2024. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
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