ALFRE WOODARD (Plio) gives heart and soul to the matriarch of the Lemur clan who teaches Aladar the values of kindness and working together.
"Watching this film come together has been magical," says Woodard. "When they first brought me in and gave me a tour of the animation studio, I was
completely amazed. The people start with nothing but a blank slate and their imaginations. The technology is remarkable and allows the animator to create something wonderful. It's like the animation people and the filmmakers took the advice of the guidance counselor, 'Do what you enjoy.' There's a spirit of youth around there that makes you glad to come to work no matter how old you are. When I visit, it's sort of like I've gone into a Never Never Land.
"Plio is a very nurturing character," she explains. "I would like to think that she has the best of those motherly qualities. She takes care of business. She can take care of a lot of people's needs at once and she thinks of those needs at the same time as her own. It is the Lemur way to live as a community and she teaches that to Aladar.
"My children are heavily into dinosaurs and they love them. With my role in 'Dinosaur,' I think they are impressed with me for the first time in my career and I'm looking forward to them seeing the movie. I was never really a dinosaur fan myself. But with this film you feel as if you've stepped back in time and watching the animation I have become a dinosaur person."
The three-time Emmy Award-winning actress most recently starred in Lawrence Kasdan's "Mumford." Before that she starred opposite Wesley Snipes in "Down in the Delta," directed by Dr. Maya Angelou. She received four acting awards for her performance in the HBO production of "Miss Evers' Boys" which aired February 1997; she received a Golden Globe Award, a CableACE Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award and an Emmy Award — for Best Actress in a television miniseries or movie. She appeared in the USA cable telefilm "The Member of the Wedding" and was previously seen onscreen in "Star Trek: First Contact" and in the thriller "Primal Fear."
She starred in the ensemble feature "How to Make an American Quilt" and Spike Lee's "Crooklyn." She co-starred in the television adaptation of "Gulliver's Travels" for NBC. Woodard's starring performance in the Hallmark Hall of Fame production of August Wilson's play "The Piano Lesson" earned her a Best Actress Award from the Screen Actors Guild and an Emmy Award nomination. In 1984, she received an Academy Award® nomination for her performance in "Cross Creek."
Her other film credits include John Sayles' "Passion Fish," Morgan Freeman's drama "Bopha!" Bruce Beresford's "Rich in Love," "Blue Chips," "Hearts and Soul," "Grand Canyon," "Scrooged" and "Miss Firecracker."
Woodard was first honored in 1984 for her performance in the hit television series "Hill Street Blues." Her second and third Emmy nominations followed in consecutive years for the PBS production ''Words by Heart'' and for her continuing role on "St. Elsewhere."
She earned an Emmy Award for her role in the pilot for "L.A. Law," and that same year was also nominated for her performance in "Unnatural Causes." In 1988, she again received an Emmy nomination for her work on "St. Elsewhere" and a nomination for "A Mother's Courage: The Mary Thomas Story." In addition, she was honored with an ACE Award for her portrayal of Winnie Mandela in HBO's "Mandela."
On stage, she has appeared in the New York Shakespeare Festival production of "Map of the World," "A Winter's Tale," "A Christmas Carol," "Leander Stillwell," "Horatio," "Saved," "Me and Bessie," "Split Second," the longest-running Los Angeles production of "Love Letters" and "East Texan Hot Links," on which she served as executive producer.
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