Walt Disney Feature Animation
Encyclopedia
Walt Disney Animation Studios is an American animation studio
headquartered in Burbank, California
. The studio, founded in 1923 as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio by brothers Walt
and Roy Disney
, is the oldest subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company
. It is responsible for creating the company's well-known animated feature films and short subjects.
From 1926 to 1929 the studio was known as The Walt Disney Studio. In 1929 the company restructured and diversified under the name Walt Disney Productions, Ltd. The animation studio was then an integrated part of Walt Disney Productions which also included other divisions such as the live action film studio
. In 1986 the company again restructured, creating The Walt Disney Company as a separate parent company, and making the animation studio an official subsidiary, called at the time Walt Disney Feature Animation. The division took on its current name in 2007.
began the move into features in 1934, pulling selected animators away from the short subjects division
that had previously been the whole of Walt Disney Productions. The result was the first full-length animated feature in English and Technicolor
, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
. Snow White became an unprecedented success when it was released to theatres in February 1938, and it and many of the subsequent feature productions became film
classics. These first features were presented as being made in 'multiplane technicolor', since both the multiplane camera
and the full-color Technicolor process were still something new in the area of animation. The early high-water mark came with Fantasia
, an experimental film produced to an accompanying orchestral arrangement conducted by Leopold Stokowski
.
Production of features was temporarily suspended due to World War II
, between the releases of Bambi
and Cinderella
. This was partly because many of the animators got drafted, partly because the European market was cut off by the war, and partly because a huge amount of what the studio produced was for the army, especially propaganda films. From 1942 to 1943, 95 percent of the studio's animation was for the military. The next several features consisted of package films composed of short subjects, some already pre-existing. Two, Song of the South and So Dear to My Heart
, where a combination of animated and live-action footage. Production of original features resumed after World War II, leading to the 1950 release of Cinderella, proving the viability of the animated feature. Several hits followed throughout the 1950s.
Sleeping Beauty
provided a stylistic shift for the studio, leading to renewed interest through the 1960s. However, all these features were very expensive undertakings. Some of these films sustained losses and did not recoup their costs until decades after their original releases. In 1962, Walt Disney shut down the corporation's short subject department, focusing its attention mainly on television and feature film production, with the occasional short subject.
The expansion into television coincided with a decline in both revenue and quality of the department's output. The 1970s saw a decline in popularity that would spread to the 1980s. In 1979, Don Bluth
left Disney Animation and created his own studio, producing works that arguably surpassed Disney quality and, for a time, challenged Disney's economic dominance in the field. The proverbial "rock bottom" for Disney came in 1985 when The Black Cauldron
(the first animated Disney film to be PG-rated by the MPAA) failed to break even. It was so poorly received that it would not be released for home viewing more than a decade following its initial theatrical release.
But the administration of Michael Eisner
would see a shift in quality and style in Disney feature animation. Disney features soon became bombastic animated musicals, using music as well as high-quality animation to attract audiences. This coincided with the introduction of computer-aided animation techniques, the first of which was CAPS
in the late 1980s. Also playing a role was Who Framed Roger Rabbit
, a non-canon Disney-produced film with both live action and animated element that helped respark interest in Disney animation.
Beginning in 1988 with Oliver & Company
, Disney released a string of profitable and enduring blockbusters. The next five films–1989's The Little Mermaid
(the first Disney animated film as a fairy-tale for 30 years), 1991's Beauty and the Beast
, 1992's Aladdin, 1994's The Lion King
and 1995's Pocahontas
–would each win the Academy Award for Best Original Score
. Beauty and the Beast was nominated for Best Picture
of 1991. The Lion King still stands as the highest-grossing traditionally-animated feature ever made, being the top money-maker among all films in North America in 1994.
Competition from other studios drove animator salaries to a high level, making traditional animated features even more costly to produce. Beginning in 2000, massive layoffs brought staff numbers down to 600. Following a string of dismal performances, and the rise of studios that relied on 3D animation like Pixar Animation Studios
, DreamWorks Animation
and Blue Sky Studios
, Disney converted WDFA into a CGI studio, performing more layoffs and selling off its traditional animation equipment. The Paris studio was shut down in 2003, and the Orlando studio followed suit in 2004. The Orlando studio was turned into an attraction at a Disney theme park
. What was purported to be the final traditionally-animated feature by Disney was Home on the Range in 2004. The first 3D film in the Disney Animation Canon was Chicken Little
in 2005, followed by Meet the Robinsons
and Bolt.
The transition to CGI was not enough to renew interest in Disney animation as Disney's features were routinely outperformed by those of corporate partner Pixar, whom Disney had contracted to create CGI films originally. In response to this, Disney purchased Pixar in 2006. As part of the acquisition, Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios continue to maintain separate studios and release their films under separate banners, with former Pixar executives Edwin Catmull
and John Lasseter
serving as both studios' president
and Chief Creative Officer
, respectively.
In a change of strategy, Lasseter re-opened Disney as a traditional animation house. With CAPS dismantled and obsolete, hand-drawn animation moved to the Harmony software suite by DisneyToon Studios
. The Princess and the Frog, the first 2D-animated film for five years, was released in late 2009, and succeeded in renewing interest in the product.
In late 2009 DisneyToon Studios
, the former television animation satellite studio with previous operations in Australia, Paris and Burbank was rolled into Walt Disney Animation Studios as a division focussed on direct-to-video features based upon Disney Consumer Products franchises, television programs, and original properties.
In March 2010, Disney released a feature length documentary called Waking Sleeping Beauty
The film chronicles the events of Disney Animation Studios during the late 1980s to mid 1990s. It features topics such as the Disney Renaissance
, and it includes early footage of notables such as Tim Burton
, John Lasseter
, and Roy E. Disney
.
On November 24, 2010, Disney's 50th animated motion picture, Tangled, Disney's first 3D-animated fairy-tale, was released in late 2010. Shortly after the film's release, the Los Angeles Times
reported that Ed Catmull said the "princess" genre of films was taking a hiatus until, "someone has a fresh take on it … but we don't have any other musicals or fairytales lined up." He explained that they were looking to get away from the princess era due to the changes in audience composition and preference. However in the Facebook page, Ed Catmull stated that this was just a rumor.
, who exercised much influence within the division. Most decisions, however, were made by the WDFA President, who officially reported to Disney but who in practice also reported to the Disney's studio chairman as well as its corporate chairman and CEO, Michael Eisner
.
The Former Presidents of WDFA were Peter Schneider (1985-December 1999), Thomas Schumacher (January 2000-December 2002) and David Stainton (January 2003-January 2006).
As of May 2006, Ed Catmull serves as president of Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar Animation Studios
, and John Lasseter
serves as the studios' Chief Creative Officer. Catmull reports to Walt Disney Company President & CEO Bob Iger as well as Walt Disney Studios chairman Rich Ross. Lasseter, who has greenlight authority, reports directly to Disney's President & CEO Bob Iger.
Andrew Millstein has been named general manager of Walt Disney Animation Studios in September 2008. In this new position, Millstein is in charge of the day-to-day running of the studio facilities and products.
, across the street from the original Walt Disney Studios
in a specialized building completed in 1995. Satellite studios once existed at Disney's Hollywood Studios
in Lake Buena Vista, Florida
(1989–2003) and at Paris, France (1995–2002), but those studios were closed in an effort to revive lagging profits by restructuring and recentralizing the division to produce fully computer-animated features solely in Burbank.
, was released in 1937 and the most recent, Winnie the Pooh, was released in 2011.
, Walt Disney Animation France
, Walt Disney Animation Japan
, and DisneyToon Studios
to create attractions for various Disney theme parks around the world that requires the expertise of Disney animators. Among this select number of attractions are:
WDFA did the Sprites and backgrounds for the Sega Genesis, Commodore
, Amiga
and PC versions of the video game for Disney's Aladdin
, and the Super Nintendo, PC, Sega Mega Drive
/Genesis, Amiga versions of the video game adaptation of The Lion King
. Walt Disney Feature Animation also provided second-layering traditional animation for the Disney-produced film, The Nightmare Before Christmas
. In 2009, WDAS produced their first animated Christmas special, the CGI Prep & Landing for the self-owned over-the-air television entity, ABC
.
Among its significant achievements are:
Animation studio
An animation studio is a company producing animated media. The broadest such companies conceive of products to produce, own the physical equipment for production, employ operators for that equipment, and hold a major stake in the sales or rentals of the media produced...
headquartered in Burbank, California
Burbank, California
Burbank is a city in Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States, north of downtown Los Angeles. The estimated population in 2010 was 103,340....
. The studio, founded in 1923 as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio by brothers Walt
Walt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
and Roy Disney
Roy O. Disney
Roy Oliver Disney was, with his younger brother, Walt Disney, the co-founder of what is now The Walt Disney Company.-Early life:...
, is the oldest subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
. It is responsible for creating the company's well-known animated feature films and short subjects.
From 1926 to 1929 the studio was known as The Walt Disney Studio. In 1929 the company restructured and diversified under the name Walt Disney Productions, Ltd. The animation studio was then an integrated part of Walt Disney Productions which also included other divisions such as the live action film studio
Walt Disney Pictures
Walt Disney Pictures is an American film studio owned by The Walt Disney Company. Walt Disney Pictures and Television, a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Studios and the main production company for live-action feature films within the Walt Disney Motion Pictures Group, based at the Walt Disney...
. In 1986 the company again restructured, creating The Walt Disney Company as a separate parent company, and making the animation studio an official subsidiary, called at the time Walt Disney Feature Animation. The division took on its current name in 2007.
History
Although the animation studio was first established on October 16, 1923, Walt DisneyWalt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
began the move into features in 1934, pulling selected animators away from the short subjects division
Division (business)
A division of a business entity is a portion of that business that operates under a different name. It is the equivalent of a corporation or limited liability company obtaining a fictitious name or "doing business as" certificate and operating a business under that fictitious name...
that had previously been the whole of Walt Disney Productions. The result was the first full-length animated feature in English and Technicolor
Technicolor
Technicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937 film)
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is a 1937 American animated film based on Snow White, a German fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm. It was the first full-length cel-animated feature in motion picture history, as well as the first animated feature film produced in America, the first produced in full...
. Snow White became an unprecedented success when it was released to theatres in February 1938, and it and many of the subsequent feature productions became film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
classics. These first features were presented as being made in 'multiplane technicolor', since both the multiplane camera
Multiplane camera
The multiplane camera is a special motion picture camera used in the traditional animation process that moves a number of pieces of artwork past the camera at various speeds and at various distances from one another...
and the full-color Technicolor process were still something new in the area of animation. The early high-water mark came with Fantasia
Fantasia (film)
Fantasia is a 1940 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and released by Walt Disney Productions. The third feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, the film consists of eight animated segments set to pieces of classical music conducted by Leopold Stokowski, seven of which are...
, an experimental film produced to an accompanying orchestral arrangement conducted by Leopold Stokowski
Leopold Stokowski
Leopold Anthony Stokowski was a British-born, naturalised American orchestral conductor, well known for his free-hand performing style that spurned the traditional baton and for obtaining a characteristically sumptuous sound from many of the great orchestras he conducted.In America, Stokowski...
.
Production of features was temporarily suspended due to World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, between the releases of Bambi
Bambi
Bambi is a 1942 American animated film directed by David Hand , produced by Walt Disney and based on the book Bambi, A Life in the Woods by Austrian author Felix Salten...
and Cinderella
Cinderella (1950 film)
Cinderella is a 1950 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and based on the fairy tale "Cendrillon" by Charles Perrault. Twelfth in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, the film had a limited release on February 15, 1950 by RKO Radio Pictures. Directing credits go to Clyde Geronimi,...
. This was partly because many of the animators got drafted, partly because the European market was cut off by the war, and partly because a huge amount of what the studio produced was for the army, especially propaganda films. From 1942 to 1943, 95 percent of the studio's animation was for the military. The next several features consisted of package films composed of short subjects, some already pre-existing. Two, Song of the South and So Dear to My Heart
So Dear to My Heart
So Dear to My Heart is a 1948 feature film produced by Walt Disney, released in Chicago on November 29, 1948 and nationwide on January 19, 1949 by RKO Radio Pictures and Buena Vista Distribution. Like 1946's Song of the South, the film combines animation and live action...
, where a combination of animated and live-action footage. Production of original features resumed after World War II, leading to the 1950 release of Cinderella, proving the viability of the animated feature. Several hits followed throughout the 1950s.
Sleeping Beauty
Sleeping Beauty (1959 film)
Sleeping Beauty is a 1959 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and based on the fairy tale "La Belle au bois dormant" by Charles Perrault...
provided a stylistic shift for the studio, leading to renewed interest through the 1960s. However, all these features were very expensive undertakings. Some of these films sustained losses and did not recoup their costs until decades after their original releases. In 1962, Walt Disney shut down the corporation's short subject department, focusing its attention mainly on television and feature film production, with the occasional short subject.
The expansion into television coincided with a decline in both revenue and quality of the department's output. The 1970s saw a decline in popularity that would spread to the 1980s. In 1979, Don Bluth
Don Bluth
Donald Virgil "Don" Bluth is an American animator and independent studio owner. He is best known for his departure from The Walt Disney Company in 1979 and his subsequent directing of animated films such as The Secret of NIMH , An American Tail ,The Land Before Time , and All Dogs Go to Heaven ,...
left Disney Animation and created his own studio, producing works that arguably surpassed Disney quality and, for a time, challenged Disney's economic dominance in the field. The proverbial "rock bottom" for Disney came in 1985 when The Black Cauldron
The Black Cauldron (film)
The Black Cauldron is a 1985 American animated fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and originally released to theatres on July 24, 1985...
(the first animated Disney film to be PG-rated by the MPAA) failed to break even. It was so poorly received that it would not be released for home viewing more than a decade following its initial theatrical release.
But the administration of Michael Eisner
Michael Eisner
Michael Dammann Eisner is an American businessman. He was the chief executive officer of The Walt Disney Company from 1984 until 2005.-Early life:...
would see a shift in quality and style in Disney feature animation. Disney features soon became bombastic animated musicals, using music as well as high-quality animation to attract audiences. This coincided with the introduction of computer-aided animation techniques, the first of which was CAPS
Computer Animation Production System
The Computer Animation Production System is a proprietary collection of software programs, scanning camera systems, servers, networked computer workstations, and custom desks developed by The Walt Disney Company together with Pixar in the late-1980s...
in the late 1980s. Also playing a role was Who Framed Roger Rabbit
Who Framed Roger Rabbit
Who Framed Roger Rabbit is a 1988 American fantasy-comedy-noir film directed by Robert Zemeckis and released by Touchstone Pictures. The film combines live action and animation, and is based on Gary K. Wolf's novel Who Censored Roger Rabbit?, which depicts a world in which cartoon characters...
, a non-canon Disney-produced film with both live action and animated element that helped respark interest in Disney animation.
Beginning in 1988 with Oliver & Company
Oliver & Company
Oliver & Company is a 1988 American animated film in which a homeless kitten named Oliver joins a gang of dogs to survive on the 1980s New York City streets. The film was produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and became the twenty-seventh animated feature released in the Walt Disney Animated...
, Disney released a string of profitable and enduring blockbusters. The next five films–1989's The Little Mermaid
The Little Mermaid (1989 film)
The Little Mermaid is a 1989 American animated film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and based on the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale of the same name. Distributed by Walt Disney Pictures, the film was originally released to theaters on November 14, 1989 and is the twenty-eighth film in...
(the first Disney animated film as a fairy-tale for 30 years), 1991's Beauty and the Beast
Beauty and the Beast (1991 film)
Beauty and the Beast is a 1991 American animated fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. The thirtieth film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series and the third film of the Disney Renaissance period...
, 1992's Aladdin, 1994's The Lion King
The Lion King
The Lion King is a 1994 American animated film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It is the 32nd feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series...
and 1995's Pocahontas
Pocahontas (1995 film)
Pocahontas is the 33rd animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series. It was produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and was originally released to selected theaters on June 16, 1995 by Walt Disney Pictures...
–would each win the Academy Award for Best Original Score
Academy Award for Best Original Score
The Academy Award for Original Score is presented to the best substantial body of music in the form of dramatic underscoring written specifically for the film by the submitting composer.-Superlatives:...
. Beauty and the Beast was nominated for Best Picture
Academy Award for Best Picture
The Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to artists working in the motion picture industry. The Best Picture category is the only category in which every member of the Academy is eligible not only...
of 1991. The Lion King still stands as the highest-grossing traditionally-animated feature ever made, being the top money-maker among all films in North America in 1994.
Competition from other studios drove animator salaries to a high level, making traditional animated features even more costly to produce. Beginning in 2000, massive layoffs brought staff numbers down to 600. Following a string of dismal performances, and the rise of studios that relied on 3D animation like Pixar Animation Studios
Pixar
Pixar Animation Studios, pronounced , is an American computer animation film studio based in Emeryville, California. The studio has earned 26 Academy Awards, seven Golden Globes, and three Grammy Awards, among many other awards and acknowledgments. Its films have made over $6.3 billion worldwide...
, DreamWorks Animation
DreamWorks Animation
DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc. is an American animation studio based in Glendale, California that creates animated feature films, television program and online virtual worlds...
and Blue Sky Studios
Blue Sky Studios
Blue Sky Studios is an American CGI-animation studio which specializes in high-resolution, computer-generated character animation and rendering. It is owned by 20th Century Fox and located in Greenwich, Connecticut...
, Disney converted WDFA into a CGI studio, performing more layoffs and selling off its traditional animation equipment. The Paris studio was shut down in 2003, and the Orlando studio followed suit in 2004. The Orlando studio was turned into an attraction at a Disney theme park
Disney's Hollywood Studios
Disney's Hollywood Studios is a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort. Spanning 135 acres in size, its theme is show business, drawing inspiration from the heyday of Hollywood in the 1930s and 1940s...
. What was purported to be the final traditionally-animated feature by Disney was Home on the Range in 2004. The first 3D film in the Disney Animation Canon was Chicken Little
Chicken Little (2005 film)
Chicken Little is a 2005 computer-animated science fiction family comedy film loosely based on the fable The Sky Is Falling. It was the 46th animated feature produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation...
in 2005, followed by Meet the Robinsons
Meet the Robinsons
Meet the Robinsons is a 2007 American computer-animated family film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures on March 30, 2007. The forty-seventh animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics, the film was released in both the United States and the...
and Bolt.
Edwin Catmull
Dr. Edwin Earl Catmull, Ph.D. is a computer scientist and current president of Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar Animation Studios. As a computer scientist, Catmull has contributed to many important developments in computer graphics....
and John Lasseter
John Lasseter
John Alan Lasseter is an American animator, director and the chief creative officer at Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios. He is also currently the Principal Creative Advisor for Walt Disney Imagineering....
serving as both studios' president
President
A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
and Chief Creative Officer
Creative Director
A creative director is a position often found within the graphic design, film, music, fashion, advertising, media or entertainment industries, but may be useful in other creative organizations such as web development and software development firms as well....
, respectively.
In a change of strategy, Lasseter re-opened Disney as a traditional animation house. With CAPS dismantled and obsolete, hand-drawn animation moved to the Harmony software suite by DisneyToon Studios
DisneyToon Studios
DisneyToon Studios is an American animation studio owned by The Walt Disney Company, responsible for producing direct-to-video and occasional theatrical films for Walt Disney Studios....
. The Princess and the Frog, the first 2D-animated film for five years, was released in late 2009, and succeeded in renewing interest in the product.
In late 2009 DisneyToon Studios
DisneyToon Studios
DisneyToon Studios is an American animation studio owned by The Walt Disney Company, responsible for producing direct-to-video and occasional theatrical films for Walt Disney Studios....
, the former television animation satellite studio with previous operations in Australia, Paris and Burbank was rolled into Walt Disney Animation Studios as a division focussed on direct-to-video features based upon Disney Consumer Products franchises, television programs, and original properties.
In March 2010, Disney released a feature length documentary called Waking Sleeping Beauty
Waking Sleeping Beauty
Waking Sleeping Beauty is a 2009 American documentary film directed by Disney film producer Don Hahn and produced by Hahn and former Disney executive Peter Schneider, which documents the history of Walt Disney Feature Animation from the making of The Fox and the Hound in 1981 to the release of The...
The film chronicles the events of Disney Animation Studios during the late 1980s to mid 1990s. It features topics such as the Disney Renaissance
Disney Renaissance
The Disney Renaissance refers to an era beginning roughly in the late 1980s and ending in the late 1990s, during which Walt Disney Animation Studios returned to making successful animated films mostly based on stories that were known to many, restoring public and critical interest in Disney.The...
, and it includes early footage of notables such as Tim Burton
Tim Burton
Timothy William "Tim" Burton is an American film director, film producer, writer and artist. He is famous for dark, quirky-themed movies such as Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet...
, John Lasseter
John Lasseter
John Alan Lasseter is an American animator, director and the chief creative officer at Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios. He is also currently the Principal Creative Advisor for Walt Disney Imagineering....
, and Roy E. Disney
Roy E. Disney
Roy Edward Disney, KCSG was a longtime senior executive for The Walt Disney Company, which his father Roy Oliver Disney and his uncle Walt Disney founded. At the time of his death he was a shareholder , and served as a consultant for the company and Director Emeritus for the Board of Directors...
.
On November 24, 2010, Disney's 50th animated motion picture, Tangled, Disney's first 3D-animated fairy-tale, was released in late 2010. Shortly after the film's release, the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
reported that Ed Catmull said the "princess" genre of films was taking a hiatus until, "someone has a fresh take on it … but we don't have any other musicals or fairytales lined up." He explained that they were looking to get away from the princess era due to the changes in audience composition and preference. However in the Facebook page, Ed Catmull stated that this was just a rumor.
Management
From 1985 until his resignation in November 2003, Walt Disney Feature Animation was officially headed by Chairman Roy E. DisneyRoy E. Disney
Roy Edward Disney, KCSG was a longtime senior executive for The Walt Disney Company, which his father Roy Oliver Disney and his uncle Walt Disney founded. At the time of his death he was a shareholder , and served as a consultant for the company and Director Emeritus for the Board of Directors...
, who exercised much influence within the division. Most decisions, however, were made by the WDFA President, who officially reported to Disney but who in practice also reported to the Disney's studio chairman as well as its corporate chairman and CEO, Michael Eisner
Michael Eisner
Michael Dammann Eisner is an American businessman. He was the chief executive officer of The Walt Disney Company from 1984 until 2005.-Early life:...
.
The Former Presidents of WDFA were Peter Schneider (1985-December 1999), Thomas Schumacher (January 2000-December 2002) and David Stainton (January 2003-January 2006).
As of May 2006, Ed Catmull serves as president of Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar Animation Studios
Pixar
Pixar Animation Studios, pronounced , is an American computer animation film studio based in Emeryville, California. The studio has earned 26 Academy Awards, seven Golden Globes, and three Grammy Awards, among many other awards and acknowledgments. Its films have made over $6.3 billion worldwide...
, and John Lasseter
John Lasseter
John Alan Lasseter is an American animator, director and the chief creative officer at Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios. He is also currently the Principal Creative Advisor for Walt Disney Imagineering....
serves as the studios' Chief Creative Officer. Catmull reports to Walt Disney Company President & CEO Bob Iger as well as Walt Disney Studios chairman Rich Ross. Lasseter, who has greenlight authority, reports directly to Disney's President & CEO Bob Iger.
Andrew Millstein has been named general manager of Walt Disney Animation Studios in September 2008. In this new position, Millstein is in charge of the day-to-day running of the studio facilities and products.
Locations
Walt Disney Animation Studios is headquartered in Burbank, CaliforniaBurbank, California
Burbank is a city in Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States, north of downtown Los Angeles. The estimated population in 2010 was 103,340....
, across the street from the original Walt Disney Studios
Walt Disney Studios (Burbank)
The Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, California, United States, serve as the international headquarters for media conglomerate The Walt Disney Company. The Walt Disney Studio's house offices for each of the company's divisions along with creative spaces designed for movie production. The Walt Disney...
in a specialized building completed in 1995. Satellite studios once existed at Disney's Hollywood Studios
Disney's Hollywood Studios
Disney's Hollywood Studios is a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort. Spanning 135 acres in size, its theme is show business, drawing inspiration from the heyday of Hollywood in the 1930s and 1940s...
in Lake Buena Vista, Florida
Lake Buena Vista, Florida
Lake Buena Vista is a city in Orange County, Florida, United States. It is mostly known for being home to the Walt Disney World Resort. It is one of two Florida municipalities controlled by The Walt Disney Company, the other being Bay Lake....
(1989–2003) and at Paris, France (1995–2002), but those studios were closed in an effort to revive lagging profits by restructuring and recentralizing the division to produce fully computer-animated features solely in Burbank.
Feature films
Walt Disney Animation Studios has released 51 films in what is known as the "Disney Animation Canon". The first one, Snow White and the Seven DwarfsSnow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937 film)
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is a 1937 American animated film based on Snow White, a German fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm. It was the first full-length cel-animated feature in motion picture history, as well as the first animated feature film produced in America, the first produced in full...
, was released in 1937 and the most recent, Winnie the Pooh, was released in 2011.
Collaborations
Walt Disney Animation Studios has occasionally joined forces with Walt Disney ImagineeringWalt Disney Imagineering
Walt Disney Imagineering is the design and development arm of the Walt Disney Company, responsible for the creation and construction of Disney theme parks worldwide...
, Walt Disney Animation France
Walt Disney Animation France
Walt Disney Animation France was an animation studio located in Montreuil, Seine-Saint-Denis, France that worked on both feature length Disney films and television series...
, Walt Disney Animation Japan
Walt Disney Animation Japan
Walt Disney Animation Japan was an animation studio located in Japan that worked on both feature length Disney films and television series, founded by ex-employees of Tokyo Movie Shinsha. In contrast with Walt Disney Animation Australia, Walt Disney Japan's expertise was attention to action scenes...
, and DisneyToon Studios
DisneyToon Studios
DisneyToon Studios is an American animation studio owned by The Walt Disney Company, responsible for producing direct-to-video and occasional theatrical films for Walt Disney Studios....
to create attractions for various Disney theme parks around the world that requires the expertise of Disney animators. Among this select number of attractions are:
- Mickey's PhilharMagicMickey's PhilharMagicMickey's PhilharMagic is a 4-D film attraction found at the Magic Kingdom theme park in the Walt Disney World Resort, Hong Kong Disneyland and at Tokyo Disneyland. The film was directed by George Scribner, who is best known for directing Disney's 1988 animated film, Oliver and Company...
at the Magic KingdomMagic KingdomMagic Kingdom Park is one of four theme parks at the Walt Disney World Resort located near Orlando, Florida. The first park built at the resort, Magic Kingdom opened Oct. 1, 1971. Designed and built by WED Enterprises, the park's layout and attractions are similar to Disneyland in Anaheim, California...
and Hong Kong DisneylandHong Kong DisneylandHong Kong Disneyland is located on reclaimed land in Penny's Bay, Lantau Island. It is the first theme park located inside the Hong Kong Disneyland Resort and is owned and managed by the Hong Kong International Theme Parks. The park opened to visitors on 12 September 2005... - Stitch's Great Escape at the Magic Kingdom
- Stitch EncounterStitch EncounterStitch Encounter is an interactive show located in Tomorrowland at Hong Kong Disneyland. A similar attraction, under the name "Stitch Live!", is located inside Walt Disney Studios Park at Disneyland Paris....
at Hong Kong Disneyland - Stitch Live!Stitch EncounterStitch Encounter is an interactive show located in Tomorrowland at Hong Kong Disneyland. A similar attraction, under the name "Stitch Live!", is located inside Walt Disney Studios Park at Disneyland Paris....
at Walt Disney Studios ParkWalt Disney Studios ParkWalt Disney Studios Park is the second theme park to open at Disneyland Paris, owned and operated by Euro Disney S.C.A.. It is located to the west of the hub, next door to Disneyland Park at the heart of the resort in Marne-la-Vallée.... - WDAS and WDI also collaborated with the in-house entertainment studios at Disneyland, Disney's Hollywood StudiosDisney's Hollywood StudiosDisney's Hollywood Studios is a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort. Spanning 135 acres in size, its theme is show business, drawing inspiration from the heyday of Hollywood in the 1930s and 1940s...
, and Tokyo DisneySeaTokyo DisneySeais a 176-acre theme park at the Tokyo Disney Resort located in Urayasu, Chiba, Japan, just outside Tokyo. It opened on September 4, 2001. It is owned by The Oriental Land Company, which licenses the theme from The Walt Disney Company. Tokyo DisneySea attracted an estimated 12 million visitors in...
to develop the nighttime Fantasmic!Fantasmic!Fantasmic! is a Disney nighttime show at Disneyland in the Disneyland Resort, Disney's Hollywood Studios in Walt Disney World and Tokyo DisneySea in Tokyo Disney Resort. The show features fireworks, live actors, water effects, fire, music, several boats, decorated rafts and projections onto large...
show. - WDAS and Pixar Animation Studios joined Walt Disney Creative EntertainmentWalt Disney Creative EntertainmentWalt Disney Creative Entertainment is the theatrical and technical live entertainment production division of Walt Disney Imagineering, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Walt Disney Company.-Background:...
to create World of Color, a nighttime hydrotechnic show at Disney California Adventure Park.
WDFA did the Sprites and backgrounds for the Sega Genesis, Commodore
Commodore International
Commodore is the commonly used name for Commodore Business Machines , the U.S.-based home computer manufacturer and electronics manufacturer headquartered in West Chester, Pennsylvania, which also housed Commodore's corporate parent company, Commodore International Limited...
, Amiga
Amiga
The Amiga is a family of personal computers that was sold by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s. The first model was launched in 1985 as a high-end home computer and became popular for its graphical, audio and multi-tasking abilities...
and PC versions of the video game for Disney's Aladdin
Disney's Aladdin (video game)
Disney's Aladdin is a series of video games based on the 1992 motion picture of the same name. Unlike most cross-platform games, the five versions are each significantly different games rather than all being ports of a single source.-Mega Drive/Genesis version:The game from Virgin based on the 1992...
, and the Super Nintendo, PC, Sega Mega Drive
Sega Mega Drive
The Sega Genesis is a fourth-generation video game console developed and produced by Sega. It was originally released in Japan in 1988 as , then in North America in 1989 as Sega Genesis, and in Europe, Australia and other PAL regions in 1990 as Mega Drive. The reason for the two names is that...
/Genesis, Amiga versions of the video game adaptation of The Lion King
The Lion King (video game)
The Lion King is a video game based on Disney's popular animated film. The title was published by Virgin Interactive in 1994, and was released on SNES, NES, Game Boy, PC, Sega Mega Drive/Genesis, Amiga, Master System and Game Gear. The NES and Master System versions of the game were never released...
. Walt Disney Feature Animation also provided second-layering traditional animation for the Disney-produced film, The Nightmare Before Christmas
The Nightmare Before Christmas
The Nightmare Before Christmas, often promoted as Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas, is a 1993 stop motion musical fantasy film directed by Henry Selick and produced/co-written by Tim Burton. It tells the story of Jack Skellington, a being from "Halloween Town" who opens a portal to...
. In 2009, WDAS produced their first animated Christmas special, the CGI Prep & Landing for the self-owned over-the-air television entity, ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
.
Achievements
The Animation studio is noted for creating a number of now-standard innovations in the animation industry, including:- The multiplane cameraMultiplane cameraThe multiplane camera is a special motion picture camera used in the traditional animation process that moves a number of pieces of artwork past the camera at various speeds and at various distances from one another...
(for Snow White, but first used in the Academy-award winning short "The Old MillThe Old MillThe Old Mill is a 1937 Silly Symphonies cartoon produced by Walt Disney, directed by Wilfred Jackson, scored by Leigh Harline, and released to theatres by RKO Radio Pictures on November 5, 1937...
") - The realistic animation of special effects and human characters (for Snow White)
- Advanced composition processes to combine live-action and animated elements using color film (for The Three CaballerosThe Three CaballerosThe Three Caballeros is a 1944 American animated feature film, produced by Walt Disney and distributed by RKO Radio Pictures. The film premiered in Mexico City on December 21, 1944. It was released in the United States on February 3, 1945...
) - The use of xerographyXerographyXerography is a dry photocopying technique invented by Chester Carlson in 1938, for which he was awarded on October 6, 1942. Carlson originally called his invention electrophotography...
in animation to transfer drawings to cels as opposed to ink-tracing (developed for One Hundred and One DalmatiansOne Hundred and One DalmatiansOne Hundred and One Dalmatians, often abbreviated as 101 Dalmatians, is a 1961 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and based on the novel The Hundred and One Dalmatians by Dodie Smith...
, but first tested in a few scenes in Sleeping BeautySleeping Beauty (1959 film)Sleeping Beauty is a 1959 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and based on the fairy tale "La Belle au bois dormant" by Charles Perrault...
and first fully used in the Academy-award nominated short Goliath IIGoliath IIGoliath II is an animated short film, produced by Walt Disney Productions and was released on January 21, 1960. It was the first time the Xerox process was used in a Disney cartoon. Sterling Holloway narrates this cartoon film, starring Kevin Corcoran. It was released to theaters in the U.S.,...
) - The use of all-digital methods for painting, compositing, and recording animated features CAPS (Computer Animation Production System)
- The technique for rendering animations in a painterly style (Tangled)
Among its significant achievements are:
- The first animated feature in TechnicolorTechnicolorTechnicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
(Snow White and the Seven DwarfsSnow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937 film)Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is a 1937 American animated film based on Snow White, a German fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm. It was the first full-length cel-animated feature in motion picture history, as well as the first animated feature film produced in America, the first produced in full...
) - The first major motion picture in stereophonic sound (FantasiaFantasia (film)Fantasia is a 1940 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and released by Walt Disney Productions. The third feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, the film consists of eight animated segments set to pieces of classical music conducted by Leopold Stokowski, seven of which are...
),otherwise known as FantasoundFantasoundFantasound was a stereophonic sound reproduction system developed by the engineers of Walt Disney studios for its 1940 animated film Fantasia, the first commercial film to be released in stereo. Fantasound led to the development of what is known today as surround sound.-Origins:Walt Disney's...
. - The first animated feature in CinemaScopeCinemaScopeCinemaScope was an anamorphic lens series used for shooting wide screen movies from 1953 to 1967. Its creation in 1953, by the president of 20th Century-Fox, marked the beginning of the modern anamorphic format in both principal photography and movie projection.The anamorphic lenses theoretically...
(Lady and the TrampLady and the TrampLady and the Tramp is a 1955 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and released to theaters on June 22, 1955, by Buena Vista Distribution. The fifteenth animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, it was the first animated feature filmed in the CinemaScope widescreen...
) - The first theatrical cartoon to be released in 3-D (Melody)
- The first large formatLarge formatLarge format refers to any imaging format of 4×5 inches or larger. Large format is larger than "medium format", the 6×6 cm or 6×9 cm size of Hasselblad, Rollei, Kowa, Pentax etc cameras , and much larger than the 24×36 mm frame of 35 mm format.The main advantage...
animated film (the 70 mm Sleeping BeautySleeping Beauty (1959 film)Sleeping Beauty is a 1959 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and based on the fairy tale "La Belle au bois dormant" by Charles Perrault...
) - The first Disney animated feature to use computer-generated imagery (The Black CauldronThe Black Cauldron (film)The Black Cauldron is a 1985 American animated fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and originally released to theatres on July 24, 1985...
) - The first Disney animated feature making heavy use of CGI computer animation (Oliver & CompanyOliver & CompanyOliver & Company is a 1988 American animated film in which a homeless kitten named Oliver joins a gang of dogs to survive on the 1980s New York City streets. The film was produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and became the twenty-seventh animated feature released in the Walt Disney Animated...
) - The first Disney animated feature to use digital coloring (The Little MermaidThe Little Mermaid (1989 film)The Little Mermaid is a 1989 American animated film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and based on the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale of the same name. Distributed by Walt Disney Pictures, the film was originally released to theaters on November 14, 1989 and is the twenty-eighth film in...
, which introduced Disney's CAPS process) - The first feature film to be shot using a 100% digital process (The Rescuers Down UnderThe Rescuers Down UnderThe Rescuers Down Under is a 1990 American animated film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures and Buena Vista Distribution on November 16, 1990...
, CAPS) - The first animated feature to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best PictureAcademy Award for Best PictureThe Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to artists working in the motion picture industry. The Best Picture category is the only category in which every member of the Academy is eligible not only...
, and the only nominee for Best Picture to be traditionally-animated (Beauty and the BeastBeauty and the Beast (1991 film)Beauty and the Beast is a 1991 American animated fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. The thirtieth film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series and the third film of the Disney Renaissance period...
) - The first Disney animated feature to gross $200 million, and the highest-grossing film of 1992 (AladdinAladdin (1992 film)Aladdin is a 1992 American animated family film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. Aladdin was the 31st animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, and was part of the Disney film era known as the Disney Renaissance...
) - The highest grossing traditionally-animated (or hand-drawn) film of all time (The Lion KingThe Lion KingThe Lion King is a 1994 American animated film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It is the 32nd feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series...
) - The largest film premiere with over 100,000 viewers (PocahontasPocahontas (1995 film)Pocahontas is the 33rd animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series. It was produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and was originally released to selected theaters on June 16, 1995 by Walt Disney Pictures...
) - The most expensive animated film ever made costing $260m (Tangled)
See also
- Walt Disney TreasuresWalt Disney TreasuresThe Walt Disney Treasures is a two-disc DVD set of classic Disney works. They cover work from the studio's earliest days to their more recent work...
- Disney animated featurettes
- Pixar Animation StudiosPixarPixar Animation Studios, pronounced , is an American computer animation film studio based in Emeryville, California. The studio has earned 26 Academy Awards, seven Golden Globes, and three Grammy Awards, among many other awards and acknowledgments. Its films have made over $6.3 billion worldwide...
- DisneyToon StudiosDisneyToon StudiosDisneyToon Studios is an American animation studio owned by The Walt Disney Company, responsible for producing direct-to-video and occasional theatrical films for Walt Disney Studios....
- Silly SymphoniesSilly SymphoniesSilly Symphonies is a series of animated short subjects, 75 in total, produced by Walt Disney Productions from 1929 to 1939, while the studio was still located at Hyperion Avenue in the Silver Lake district of Los Angeles...
- 12 basic principles of animation12 basic principles of animationThe Twelve Basic Principles of Animation is a set of principles of animation introduced by the Disney animators Ollie Johnston and Frank Thomas in their 1981 book The Illusion of Life: Disney Animation. Johnston and Thomas in turn based their book on the work of the leading Disney animators from...