Disney Animation's Golden Era Explained
Summary
TLDRDisney's golden era, spanning the late 1930s to early 1940s, revolutionized animation with groundbreaking films like 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'. Despite high costs and mixed reception with films like 'Pinocchio' and 'Fantasia', the era pushed artistic boundaries with innovative techniques and storytelling. 'Dumbo' and 'Bambi', though simpler and less profitable, continued the legacy of artistic excellence, setting the stage for future Disney classics.
Takeaways
- π¨ Walt Disney's ambition in the late 1930s and early 1940s led to the creation of the Golden Era of Disney Animation.
- π Mickey Mouse and Silly Symphonies brought Walt Disney success and Oscar nominations, but he sought to push animation further.
- π¬ Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was the first full-length drama film made through hand-drawn animation, taking three years to develop.
- π° Snow White's budget was initially estimated at $250,000 but ended up costing $1.5 million, a significant financial risk for Disney.
- π Snow White was a critical and financial success, grossing over $6.5 million and becoming the highest-grossing film at the time.
- π Pinocchio, Disney's second full-length animation, was more artistically ambitious but less financially successful, costing nearly $2.3 million.
- πΌ Fantasia was an innovative musical experience with visual animations, utilizing a new sound system called Fantasound, considered an early form of surround sound.
- π Dumbo was a simpler, more cost-effective film that was completed within the same year and was both a critical and commercial success.
- π¦ Bambi was an artistic masterpiece with impressionistic backgrounds and lifelike character movements but was less successful with audiences.
- π World War II affected international film releases and the availability of animators, impacting Disney's ability to produce blockbuster hits.
- π The Golden Era's innovations in animation techniques and storytelling laid the foundation for future Disney success and the evolution of the medium.
Q & A
What is considered the beginning of Disney Animation's golden era?
-The beginning of Disney Animation's golden era is marked by the success of Mickey Mouse in 1928 and the subsequent introduction of Silly Symphonies in 1929.
What was the first full-length animated drama film produced by Walt Disney?
-The first full-length animated drama film produced by Walt Disney was 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs,' which began development in 1934.
How long did it take to animate 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'?
-Animating 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs' took over three years to complete.
What was the original estimated budget for 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'?
-The original estimated budget for 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs' was $250,000.
What was the final cost of producing 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'?
-The final cost of producing 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs' was $1.5 million.
Why was 'Pinocchio' considered a financial disappointment despite its artistic achievements?
-'Pinocchio' was considered a financial disappointment because it only grossed over $1 million at the box office, which was not as high as expected and took years to recoup its production costs.
What technological innovation was used in 'Fantasia' to enhance the viewing experience?
-The multi-plane camera and the Fantasound sound system, which is considered one of the first surround sound systems, were used in 'Fantasia' to create a more immersive viewing and listening experience.
How much did the production of 'Fantasia' cost, and what was its financial outcome?
-The production of 'Fantasia' cost $2.2 million, and despite initial success, it eventually resulted in a financial loss due to the high costs of installation for the Fantasound system.
What was the budget for 'Dumbo', and how did its financial performance compare to previous Disney films?
-The budget for 'Dumbo' was $950,000, which was significantly lower than the budgets of 'Pinocchio' and 'Fantasia'. It was financially successful, grossing $1.6 million and receiving critical acclaim.
What factors contributed to the financial and critical failure of 'Bambi'?
-The financial and critical failure of 'Bambi' was due to its high production costs of $1.7 million, its less fantastical and dramatic story, and the fact that it was released during a time of international turmoil caused by World War II.
How did World War II impact Disney Animation's ability to release successful films after the golden era?
-World War II caused problems with international film releases and led to many animators going to war or going on strike, resulting in a long period without another critical and financial blockbuster for Disney.
Outlines
π¨ The Dawn of Disney's Golden Era
This paragraph delves into the inception of Disney Animation's golden era, a transformative period in the late 1930s and early 1940s. It highlights Walt Disney's vision to elevate animation beyond mere entertainment, introducing the Silly Symphonies and pioneering full-length animated features like 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.' The paragraph details the risks and innovations involved, including the use of color, realistic human animation, and the multi-plane camera effect. Despite initial skepticism and a ballooning budget, 'Snow White' emerged as a critical and commercial success, setting the stage for Disney's future endeavors.
πΌ The Evolution and Challenges of Disney's Artistic Ambitions
The second paragraph explores the evolution of Disney's artistic ambitions with films like 'Pinocchio,' 'Fantasia,' 'Dumbo,' and 'Bambi.' It discusses the challenges faced in terms of budget constraints and public reception, as well as the innovative techniques used to enhance storytelling and visual artistry. 'Pinocchio,' while beautiful, did not achieve the same success as 'Snow White,' leading to financial struggles for the studio. 'Fantasia,' an ambitious musical experiment, introduced the Fantasound system, precursor to modern surround sound, but also resulted in significant financial losses. 'Dumbo,' with its simpler approach and lower budget, was a commercial success, contrasting with the more dramatic and less successful 'Bambi.' The paragraph concludes by reflecting on the legacy of Disney's golden era and the impact of external factors like World War II on the studio's future.
Mindmap
Keywords
π‘Golden Era
π‘Walt Disney
π‘Silly Symphonies
π‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
π‘Pinocchio
π‘Fantasia
π‘Dumbo
π‘Bambi
π‘Multi-plane Camera
π‘Innovation
π‘Risk
Highlights
Disney Animation's golden era was a period of groundbreaking and innovative moviemaking in animation.
Walt Disney's ambition in the late 1930s and early 1940s led to the creation of full-length animated dramas.
The Silly Symphonies series showcased Disney's early experiments with color and sound in animation.
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was the first full-length animated feature film, pushing artistic boundaries.
Snow White's budget was significantly higher than typical Mickey Mouse cartoons, leading to financial risk.
The film's release in 1937 was met with rave reviews and became the highest-grossing film at the time.
Pinocchio, produced after Snow White, introduced new effects and the multi-plane camera for a 3D effect.
Fantasia was a unique venture, combining orchestrated music with visual animations.
Fantasia's production involved a new sound system, Fantasound, considered an early surround sound system.
Dumbo was a cost-effective film that was both a critical and commercial success.
Bambi was an artistically impressive film but did not achieve the same success as Dumbo.
The golden era films were artistically innovative but faced challenges in audience reception and financial success.
World War II impacted international film releases and the availability of animators.
The golden era's legacy is fondly remembered for its risk-taking and innovation in animation.
The era's films set the stage for future Disney animation, blending artistry, comedy, drama, and Disney magic.
The golden era's films, despite their challenges, were critical in the evolution of animation as an art form.
Transcripts
Disney Animation's golden era was the
first era of Disney animation not only
would it go on to change what animation
could be but also put Walt Disney in his
studio years ahead of their time taking
place over the span of just a few short
years in the late 1930s and early 1940s
the golden era holds up as
groundbreaking innovative moviemaking so
let's explore it after years of hard
work in the success of Mickey Mouse in
1928 Walt Disney had finally found his
mark on the Hollywood scene but that
wasn't enough for an ambitious man in
his late 20s he didn't settle on just
having the most popular cartoon
character while most people who saw
cartoons as nothing more than five
minutes that played prior to films at
local cinema Walt saw the potential and
animation as moving artwork with the
debut of his Silly Symphonies in 1929 he
played with the idea of artwork
eventually adding color to go with his
sound cartoons Mickey Mouse and Silly
Symphonies were getting him Oscar
nominations and recognition around the
world but he thought the medium could be
pushed even further instead of creating
short five-minute jokes while was going
to make a full-length drama film made
entirely through hand-drawn animation
Disney's golden era consists of his
first five films each of which push
boundaries artistically in their own way
with the first being the catalysts to
see if the experiment would even work
that was Snow White in the Seven Dwarfs
beginning with the development in 1934
animating the eighty-three minute film
took over three years Hollywood in the
larger media considered Snow White to be
Disney's downfall he had announced the
film in 1934 but continued to have
nothing to show for it but a larger and
ever-increasing budget originally he had
estimated to make the film for two
hundred and fifty thousand dollars but
it would end up costing 1.5 million
comparatively the average Mickey Mouse
cartoon cost around 25,000
to make and what many consider the
greatest film of all time 1941 Citizen
Kane cost eight hundred and forty
thousand dollars the overly inflated
budget came at the cost of coloring the
animation cells animating humans to have
realistic flowing movements changing the
story to have some gags rewrites to keep
the story moving forward and making sure
the background and character artwork
felt artistic and charming
despite being ridiculed for spending as
much as he did on such a risky film Walt
Disney and his staff were dedicated to
the project and it would eventually pay
off the release of the film in December
of 1937 saw the film get rave reviews
and by the end of its original
theatrical run in 1939 it had grossed
over 6.5 million dollars the
highest-grossing film to that date
Disney knocked it out of the park with
Snow White and now he needed to follow
it up with something that pushed the
envelope even further Pinocchio was put
into production in 1938 with a budget
that went above and beyond Snow White
and the Seven Dwarfs eventually costing
the company nearly 2.3 million dollars
the Disney Animation team took what they
learned on Snow White and applied the
color is sound in realistic movements to
their second film wanting to top Snow
White
they pushed themselves to add in new
effects making smoke moving objects in
water feel realistic for example the
scenes taking place in the water are
drawn with lots of details on the
up-close waves but not as many in the
background giving a natural atmospheric
effect a technique often used by many
skilled artists to mimic the way the
human eye sees and focuses in real life
similar effects were created with the
studio's new multi-plane camera giving
background foreground and character
artists the ability to combine their
efforts with one snap of the camera the
multi-plane camera not only give a 3d
effect but could also give the feel of
the camera panning across the screen
just like a major live-action movie
could despite all of the hard
and innovation with animation Disney's
second full-length animation film
Pinocchio wasn't the crowd-pleasing
encore that Disney wanted it to be the
film is beautiful and artistically
wonderful but it wasn't as funny as his
Mickey Mouse cartoons and it wasn't as
groundbreaking as Snow White was
Pinocchio only managed to gross over 1
million dollars at the box office and it
would take years before eventually
making its money back well nokia was in
production another venture and
groundbreaking animation was also in the
works Walt wanted to create an
orchestrated musical experience with
visual animations that didn't have
boundaries
after meeting composer Leopold Stokowski
in 1937 they planned to work on a Mickey
Mouse short which would eventually end
up becoming sorcerer Mickey but the
shorts budget quickly rose in Walt's
brother Roy insisted on minimizing the
production while instead opted to
maximize it by not just doing the short
but a series of shorts that would create
a full-length feature film Fantasia
would eventually be a traveling music
production wall in a small crew invested
$200,000 in a new sound system called
Fanta some think of Fanta sound as the
first surround sound system something we
all know when we go to the theaters
today each theater that Fantasia
traveled to was updated with 85,000
dollars in upgrades over a thousand
artists worked on Fantasia and it's
different elements with the picture not
having a singular narrative but instead
letting the music drive the film forward
adding visuals that felt natural to the
musical piece Walt would make over 1
million dollars in the first couple of
cities that played in but the
installation for Fanta soda and the
hybrid action costs of 2.2 million
dollars eventually lost the company more
money than Pinocchio did Walt Disney
needed revenue to keep his company
afloat he'd struggled once but had spent
too much money on a new production
studio and two features that were
artistic but not what the public wanted
from the Disney name Dumbo would be
Disney Animation's fourth full-length
animated film with
$950,000 budget it would be under half
the cost of Pinocchio or Fantasia and
would also be Disney's shortest animated
feature clocking in at 64 minutes while
asked his animators to keep the costs
down and keep things simple character
designs backgrounds and the story were
simpler with the animation feeling more
cartoonish than any of the previous
films of that era the simplicity paid
off as well allowing for the film to be
started and finished within the same
year in 1941 and the film would gross
1.6 million dollars with critics
praising the film as charming endearing
and above all else the best cartoon to
come out from Disney yet while Dumbo is
a major success partially due to its
simplicity and cost-cutting another film
was in production that would continue
the soaring costs of disease previous
films eventually costing the company 1.7
million dollars
Bambi would be the last film of Disney's
golden era but would fall short of the
comeback Dumbo tried to recreate like
Pinocchio Bambi is a beautifully artsy
film the background paintings feeling
impressionistic and the characters of
the forest studied to perfection feel
lifelike in their movements and actions
where Dumbo felt cartoonish Bambi felt
like an artistic masterpiece its take on
man being the villain the loss of
Bambi's mother and the fire that engulfs
the forest all live on and infamy but
the entire film failed with critics as
it was nearly the exact opposite of
Dumbo the charm and endearing features
of Dumbo are lost with Bambi's less
fantastical and quite dramatic story of
forest creatures
come
my son
today we look back at Disney's golden
era fondly
however the innovative risk-taking
animation team at Disney had failed to
create something spectacular outside of
Snow White's groundbreaking achievement
and with World War two causing problems
with international film releases and
with many of the animators either going
to war or going on strike would be a
long time until Disney would have
another critical and financial
blockbuster on his hands but the war
would bring another chance for his team
to innovate an experiment even further
eventually leading to the perfect
mixture of artistry comedy drama and
Disney magic tell us in the comments
below what your favorite film from the
golden era is and if you haven't already
check out the previous disney animation
eras video which gives an overview of
all the films Disney has put out to date
and subscribe to this channel because in
the next Disney Animation's era video we
cover the wartime era which takes place
from 1943 to 1949 and if you need even
more animation history in your life we
here at network 1901 also have a Pixar
animation era's explained video thank
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