In honor of the Disney 100 anniversary celebration, Once Upon A Studio, is an animated short that features many favorite characters! It is a nine minute short that aired on ABC as the Wonderful World of Disney: Disney’s 100th Anniversary Celebration. It aired before the showing of Encanto (2021) last night and also after the film. The short currently streams on Disney+. The company began today, October 16th, when the Disney Brothers Studio opened its doors.
Its founders were Walt Disney and his brother, Roy O. Disney. The company became Walt Disney Productions and then in its current conglomerate form as the Walt Disney Company. The celebration continues at the parks, theatrical re-releases, and other events. Once Upon A Studio is written and directed by Dan Abaham and Trent Correy. Abraham co-directed the short, Once Upon a Snowman (2020) that premiered on Disney+. Correy was the co-director for and also co-directed the Zootopia+ series.
It is the end of the work day with a College Intern (Renika Williams) remarking about the 100 years to animation veteran, Burny Mattison. His last film was the animated movie, Strange World (2022). A prestigous run as “the longest-serving employee”, 70 years!, Mattison was made a Disney Legend in 2008. He passed away six months after the filming and the short is dedicated to Mattison. They pause at the doors and Burny notes, “Yup, if these walls could talk.”
This pans to a wall with many of the animation greats; Floyd Norman, the Nine Old Men, and finally an animation cell of Mickey’s Birthday Party (1942). Mickey (Chris Diamantopoulos) wakes and calls for Tinkerbell who zooms past an Eyvind Earle painting of the castle from Sleeping Beauty (1959). She shakes her head at Mickey’s question that the building is empty. Then, he pops out of the cel with Minnie (Kaitlyn Robrock), she is the voice of Minnie for the Mickey Mouse Funhouse show.
Minnie calls the others. Tiana leaps out of her mounted Princess and the Frog (2009) cel voiced by Anika Noni Rose. She says that it is picture time and Pinocchio (Griffen Campbell) pops out his cel. Next, Ginnifer Goodwin returns as Judy Hopps following by Jason Bateman’s Nick Wilde from Zootopia (2016). Mickey is in a hall calling over Peter Behn’s Thumper, dialogue from the achives, along with the skunk, Flora’s laugh provided by Vena Felton from Bambi (1942).
Thumper also has dialogue by Ian R’Mante. They call over the Rescuers (1977) with clumsy Albatross crashing down voice from the archives by Jim Jordan. Minnie watches them with Bolt and others as Peter Pan (Bobby Driscoll, archived from the 1953 film) appears. She asks him to get the characters upstairs and we get the familiar Peter Pan flight with Wendy, John, and Michael. Sisu (Awkwafina) runs by with a laugh. The mixing of hand drawn and CG animated characters somehow perfectly meshes together.
Jim Hawkins (Joseph Gordon Levitt, archives) rockets around a corner on his solar surfer. Then, we get Dwayne Johnson’s Maui transforming into his hawk form. I love the returning, archived, and new voices mixed from different eras. Aladdin (Scott Weinger) slides down a stair rail, Vanellope (Sarah Silverman, archives) zooms in with Oliver from Oliver and Company (1988), and Elliot, Pete’s Dragon (1977), carries Cody (Adam Ryen, archives) from Rescuers Down Under (1990). It is a zoetrope of characters with different art styles, but perfectly meshing.
Moana (Auli’i Cravalho) splashes down and then Flounder (Luke Lowe) splats in her hand calling for water! Merlin (Jim Meskimen) from Sword and the Stone (1963) comes to the rescue! From 2013's Frozen, there is Anna (Kristen Bell) and Elsa pass by an angry Stromboli and a Litwak’s Family Fun Center sign. Donald Duck gets into an elevator with Carl the Robot (Harlan Williams) from Meet the Robinsons (2007) at the controls. There are portraits of more Disney animators including Ub Iwerks. Donald (Tony Anselmo) holds the elevator for Flash (Raymond S. Persi), always funny!
Disney Screening Theatre, Walt Disney Studios, 2013, author’s photo.
At an animator’s office, Timon (Nathan Lane) calls Olaf (Josh Gad) as he is working on a drawing.
Out of the drawing board bursts Robin Williams’ Genie! Williams put in his will that he didn’t want his dialogue outtakes to be used in a new Aladdin movie. Producer, Yvett Merino in a Polygon interview said that permission was given by Williams’ estate. There are many great moments in the short. I like Christopher Robin and friends pulling Winnie the Pooh (Jim Cummings) from the cel of Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree (1966)! Mickey regards a portrait of Walt Disney. He gives Oswald the Lucky Rabbit the front row of the picture.
Goofy clumsily climbs a ladder to take the picture and it ends in a heartwarming moment. A fun cameo of Ariel with Jodie Benson. A cameo by the first Disney princess (Natalie Babbitt Taylor), Mulan (Lea Salonga), and Asha (Ariana DeBose) from the upcoming Wish. Nani and David from Lilo & Stitch (2002) are modestly dressed, I almost didn’t recognize them. It feels like the ending of Who Framed Roger Rabbit? I didn’t see Jessica Rabbit, she must be in the group picture somewhere. There’s a thanks to the audience at the end. Once Upon a Studio is full of a who's who of Disney characters including villains, tributes to animators, and the memories of great animation!
Five Photographs+ out of Five!
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