It’s December 21st, 1937, and in America, there is a change in the air across all the local cinemas. At the time it was seen as something completely new, completely different and something that changed the way cinema’s were seen forever. Animation had entered the big leagues, and not just that but it was the first time that the name Disney had entered a new cultural touchstone, one that is still around today, over 80 years later! It was Snow White and the Seven Dwarves that kicked things off and it was the first of many, many films to come from the House of Mouse.
The animation wasn’t completely new, there were animated shorts being played before films and there were stop-motion shows on the television, but it wasn’t until Walt Disney came along until the genre became more mainstream. In fact in this day and age animation is so common that it isn’t considered a genre anymore, it is its own medium. It was Disney who paved the way for companies such as Dreamworks and Pixar to help transform cinema, and it all could have easily failed. Disney could have lost a lot of money and might have had to go back to the drawing board, but each film, one after another, were making a lot of money for everyone involved and the quality was next to faultless.
In those early years, we were treated to a bevy of films that included Pinocchio, Dumbo, Bambi and Cinderella. All of which have been remade in live-action or will shortly be turned into full length live-action feature films. The fact that they’re remaking these films prove their significance to the culture of cinema. Unfortunately, success doesn’t last forever and over time there were some films that were considered less successful such as Dinosaur, The Emperor’s New Groove, Bolt and Brother Bear. These films however can all be seen as cult hits nowadays, but at the time they all struggled to bring in the crowds.
That brings us to today. Ever since the release of Wreck-It Ralph back in 2012, Walt Disney Animation Studios has seen another Golden Age of cinema, one that includes huge hits such as Frozen, Moana and Zootropolis. There is an assortment of fairy tales out there that are yet to be turned into Disney films too, but originality seems to be the key driving force for these creative pieces of cinema. In the last year we had Raya and the Last Dragon and Encanto released by Disney, one was a fantasy epic and the other being a family based musical. When it comes to Disney there appears to be no limits as to where the story will go.
Emotion, heart and family are some of the key elements that go into the making of a Disney film and the protagonist’s are becoming more diverse and are beginning to defy stereotypes and become people of the modern world. It is because of this that Disney is still relevant. Their music are ballads of escapism, the animation is becoming more and more unparalleled and with more films in the works it appears like the studio is still going strong with their next film, Strange World, releasing later this year. As Disney continues to explore unique and ancient worlds, it is important to remember where the studio came from. What was considered a risk turned into a milestone in cinematic history. Thank you Disney for all the memories you have given us over the years!
Thanks for reading today’s blog!
Alex Murray, the Head of Eyesight Productions
Comments