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Lima most recently directed Walt Disney Pictures' phenomenally successful animated feature Tarzan. The film was both a worldwide critical hit and one of Disney's most successful animated features of all time.

Born and raised in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, Lima first became interested in animation at the age of five when he was given a book on the subject. For eight years this interest manifested itself in the art of puppetry. Eventually he enrolled in the animation program at the California Institute of the Arts.

After graduating from the Institute, Lima worked briefly for Disney on the Sport Goofy project before designing the characters and animation for the independently produced feature The Brave Little Toaster. In 1987 he returned to Disney to animate the character of Fagin in Oliver & Company. He has been with the company ever since and has become one of Disney's most respected creative talents.

Since Oliver & Company, Lima has worked in some capacity on every Disney animated feature. This incredible testament to his work means that his artistic influence can be seen in every film from The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast through to Aladdin. For instance, in The Little Mermaid, Lima helped design Ursula, Flounder and many other characters. One of Lima's other great achievements was the creation of the character of Lumiere in Disney's hugely successful 1991 animated feature Beauty and the Beast.

In 1992 he was offered the chance to direct A Goofy Movie. Not since Oliver & Company had Disney assigned a solo director to an animated feature. A Goofy Movie debuted to critical praise and Lima was applauded for breathing new life into a character that had previously resided in the shadow of his more successful counterparts.