“Family Guy” creator Seth MacFarlane Thursday night received the Writers Guild of America, West Animation Writers Caucus’ 2015 Animation Writing Award for lifetime achievement.
MacFarlane’s “unique talent has completely changed the form and raised the profile of the animation writer,” WGAW Vice President David A. Goodman, a writer on “Family Guy,” said before the ceremony at the Writers Guild Theater in Beverly Hills.
MacFarlane began his career studying animation and design at the Rhode Island School of Design, where he created the animated short film, “The Life of Larry.” Impressed executives at Hanna-Barbera encouraged MacFarlane to move to Los Angeles in 1995 to create and direct a short film for them.
After moving to Los Angeles, MacFarlane went on to work on numerous animated series, including “Ace Ventura, Pet Detective” and “Johnny Bravo.”
MacFarlane also created the animated comedy “American Dad,” which ran on Fox from 2005-2014, when it moved to TBS, which still airs original episodes.