Search results for "disney"

All of Walt Disney World literally sparkles with magic and whimsy, but the Disney Magic Kingdom is certainly the most special part of the Disney World complex. While many refer to the entire Disney resort as the Magic Kingdom, indeed, there is one special park that bears the name. The Disney Magic Kingdom was the very first park to open at the Orlando, Florida resort. Modeled after the original Disneyland Park, which opened in Anaheim, California in 1955, Florida's Disney Magic Kingdom arrived in 1971 boasting new and better attractions, a larger castle, and much, much more. When the pa...

Tinkerbell was the jealous pixie/fairy who glowed brightest for Peter Pan. Her voice sang like a tinkling bell and a sprinkle of her pixie dust could make you fly. Tinkerbell is traditionally staged as a flying point of light beamed from offstage. She was called Tinker Bell because she mended the pots and kettles, a tinker is a tin worker, and with her magic wand led Peter Pan through the ins and outs of Never Never Land reminding us of a time in everyone's childhood when danger and adventure lured us into the possibilities of the imagination to believe in Fairies, to this day she is one o...

Beast is, in my opinion, one of the very finest pieces of Disney character animation. A complex and interesting character, he was bought into being by Glen Keane, a Supervising Animator who has since worked on the characters of Aladdin and Pocahontas, and is currently scheduled to do lead animation for the forthcoming Tarzan. So why do I reckon that Beast is such a great example of Keane's work? Well, great animation is largely about emotion - evoking and building that emotional response in an audience. When you see a piece of animation for the first time, you have no earlier referen...

While Glen Keane was deliberately kept from seeing Robby Benson during his work on Beast, Dave Pruiksma studied Angela Lansbury in order to create the character of Mrs Potts - although, apparently, he never actually met her. He was impressed by her subtle mannerisms, and incorporated many of them into the final character. While Mrs Potts is very much an interpretation of Angela Lansbury, her teacup-son emerged from the shadows thanks to Bradley Pierce, the boy who provided his voice. Jeffrey Katzenburg liked his performance so much that he insisted Chip's role (initially minor) was stren...

A self-confessed love of the 'British deadpan character' (hehheh), Finn was perfectly suited to Cogsworth, as was David Ogden-Stiers, who provided the supercilious character with the ideal voice. As with all the 'enchanted objects', it was a problem to make the animation look natural - as if the characters really could move in the way they did. (One trick I'm glad they didn't use was 'Hell, we can't draw that. Just make 'em fly or something.') The model sheets in The Art of Animation show how the anatomies of all the objects were carefully analysed and...

The self-styled 'ideal man' for Belle underwent some changes during Deja's development of him. Early loutish charicatures went (along with a dubious moustache) and in came a smoother, more handsome village braggart. Apparently research for the Gaston physique (and the attitude too, perhaps) came from visits to an LA gym - where real-life counterparts of the character worked out... Deja sums up Gaston: 'God, I know such people; Los Angeles is full of them.' After joining Disney in 1980, Deja was one of the team who worked on The Black Cauldron. Later credits include...

Belle, the go-it-alone, independent heroine and salvation of Beast was animated by James Baxter. Receiving a series of 'battlefield promotions' during production on Who Framed Roger Rabbit and later on Beauty and the Beast, this moved Baxter into the animation of a major character. Belle's appearance was developed from a sketch by story man Roger Allers, slightly modified to give her 'a more European look' - the shape and angle of her eyes, in particular, were intended to give her a more mature appearance than earlier heroines. Inspiration for angle and perspective - cruc...

Featuring the voices of: Paige O'Hara, Robby Benson, Jerry Orbach, David Ogden Stiers, Angela Lansbury, Richard White, Jesse Corti, Bradley Michael Pierce, Rex Everhart Directors: Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise Producer: Don Hahn Screenplay: Linda Woolverton Music: Alan Menken Lyrics: Howard Ashman U.S. Distributor: Walt Disney Pictures Walt Disney's 1991 instant classic, BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, is not only the finest animated movie ever made, but deserves a prominent position on any list of all-time greats. Although not the highest grossing Disney production, nor the best-remembered by...

Tinker Bell is the jealous pixie who glows brightest for Peter Pan. Her voice sings like a tinkling bell and a sprinkle of her pixie dust can make you fly. But this sprite can turn spiteful if she suspects that Peter's attentions are diverted to anyone but herself. It's bad enough that she has to compete with Never Land's other adoring females (the mermaids and Princess Tiger Lily), but now Peter's brought back this Wendy person from London. Tink would lay down her life for Peter, but he's too busy playing Wendy's hero to care. Somehow she'll find a way to settle th...

Peter Pan is back, courtesy of Disney Television Animation, in a new theatrical feature film as part of Disney's quest to turn its classics into animated sequels. While most animated sequels go direct to video, Disney is giving some -- like Peter Pan: Return to Never Land -- a widescreen release first. For this rendition of the story, Wendy is all grown up with children of her own, and as the Blitzkrieg rages, she calms them with tales of Peter Pan, the boy who refused to grow up. Wendy's stubborn 12-year-old daughter, Jane, has no patience for such nonsense… until Captain Hook hims...

In 1992, Disney's animated film "Aladdin" opened to great critical acclaim and boffo box office biz (as they say in the industry). "Aladdin" has since become one of the most successful animated movies of all time. Success breeds success, so it should come as no surprise that Disney has opted to turn "Aladdin" into a Broadway-style musical. But, unlike the wildly popular "Beauty and the Beast" that become a favorite on the Great White Way, Disney has ignored Broadway in favor of a new locale: Disney's California Adventure. That's right. Disney's "Aladdin-a Musical Spectacula...

Jafar is a fictional character, voiced by Jonathan Freeman, in the Disney film Aladdin and its sequel, The Return of Jafar. He is an evil sorcerer and the former Grand Vizier of the Sultan of Agrabah. Jafar is tall and thin, and almost always depicted in flowing robes of black, dark red and other moody colors. Jafar has a pet parrot named Iago, who switched sides in The Return of Jafar. Jafar carries a cobra-head staff, which he uses for his sorcery. He tries to use Genie's powers to take over Agrabah, first wishing to become the sultan, and then the most powerful sorcerer in the world....

Aladdin is one of the classic Disney heroes: born and raised among a den of villains, yet brave, intelligent, clean, steadfast, and quick-witted, even if he happens to be a street thief at the moment. In short, he's a diamond in the rough. The animators' portrayal of Aladdin is not typical of Disney; his eyes are large, like those of a Disney heroine, and the lineaments of his body are freer-flowing and more rounded than is usual for Disney heroes. The biggest difference from the norm is that, unlike most youthful Disney heroes, he's a doer rather than a passive character; in th...

Tawny-haired mermaid Ariel was one of Disney's most immediately popular animated heroines. Ariel is a girl in the process of becoming an attractive woman. One of her attractive qualities is that she is very definite about what she is doing and very confident about her own ability to succeed. Of course, a good deal of that confidence is ill-placed, as she is just a teenager. Although she is warned by her father, King Triton, that humans are dangerous, Ariel stubbornly believes otherwise and has an insatiable curiosity about them. She explores human artifacts (sunken ships, etc.) and is cons...

Mark Mancina is a Grammy Award-winning composer, who was assigned to write the bold scores in Disney's Tarzan. He has written scores for such motion pictures as Con Air, Twister, Money Train, Assassins, Bad Boys and Speed. Other Disney films include The Lion King, where he arranged, produced and provided vocal arrangements for several of the songs, and went on to compose the continueing album Rhythm of the Pride Lands. He's Grammy awards were for the excellent scores in The Lion King, both the animated film and the broadway musical stage version where he wrote additional songs and s...

Actress Glenn Close is best known for her Disney role as Cruella De Vil in the live action movie, 101 Dalmations. Providing the tender and loving voice of Kala, the gorilla who adopts Tarzan, was a new and rewarding experience for Close. "What's lovely about Kala is that she's a strong mother figure," she explains. "The twist here is that the child is an aberration, but she still protects him and teaches him that his worth is on the inside. That's a beautiful message for any child."

Simba is a rowdy, independent little cub who likes to romp and play. When Simba's father dies, it leaves Simba unsure about who he is. Then Rafiki shows Simba his reflection in a pool and the young lion understands that his father's courage and wisdom are a part of him, too. Simba is the only son of Mufasa, the King of the Pride Lands and ruler of Pride Rock. His mother is the Queen Sarabi, and he is the nephew of the King's brother Scar, who sees a political opportunity in the young cub's trust in him. Working to his disadvantage as well as defining his character is Simba&#...

The artists who made the creation a reality and the movie a memory. Walt Disney Pictures Tarzan is the biggest Box Office success Disney's animation team has seen since The Lion King. What is it about this movie that is captivating children and adults? The majority of success can be placed with the entire animation team and the great job they did at bringing the story of Tarzan to life… at merging two worlds. From the daring decision to cut back on characters singing to the implementation of a new "deep canvas" technique, all the artists joined forces with one common focus – the creati...