LibGuides: Disney Animation: Introduction

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Cinderella Cinderella has faith her dreams of a better life will come true. With help from her loyal mice friends and a wave of her Fairy Godmother's wand, Cinderella's rags are magically turned into a glorious gown, and off she goes to the Royal Ball. But when the clock strikes midnight, the spell is broken, leaving only a single glass slipper, the only key to the ultimate fairy-tale ending! Bonus features included.
Finding Dory When Dory, the forgetful blue tang, suddenly remembers she has a family who may be looking for her, she, Marlin, and Nemo take off on a life-changing quest to find them, with help from Hank, a cantankerous octopus; Bailey, a beluga whale who's convinced his biological sonar skills are on the fritz; and Destiny, a nearsighted whale shark! Dive into the movie overflowing with unforgettable characters, dazzling animation, and gallons of fun!
Finding Nemo The fretful Marlin and his young son Nemo become separated from each other in the Great Barrier Reef. Nemo, a clown fish, is unexpectedly taken from his home and thrust into a fish tank in a dentist's office overlooking Sydney Harbor. Buoyed by the companionship of a friendly fish named Dory, Marlin embarks on a dangerous trek and finds himself the unlikely hero.
Frozen When the newly-crowned Queen Elsa accidentally uses her power to turn things into ice to curse her home in infinite winter, her sister Anna teams up with a mountain man, his playful reindeer, and a snowman to change the weather condition.
The Incredibles Former crime fighters Bob and Helen are now living "normal" lives with their children Violet, Dash, and Jack-Jack. But then Bob gets a chance to get back into action when a mysterious communication summons him to a remote island for a top secret assignment, and it takes the whole family to rescue the world from total destruction.
Incredibles 2 Bob Parr, Mr. Incredible, has unwittingly demonstrated repeated that Supers can cause as much damage as villains while protecting the world, which causes his wife -- Elastigirl -- to be chosen as the face of a movement to make Supers legal again. Still, it will take the entire gang to take down a new supervillain bent on mind-controlling the entire world!
The Lion King A Lion cub crown prince is tricked by a treacherous uncle into thinking he caused his father's death and flees into exile in despair, only to learn in adulthood his identity and his responsibilities.
Moana Moana, the strong-willed daughter of a Polynesian chief sets out from her island home across the ocean in search of Maui, a demigod, to save her people from a curse.

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Deconstructing Disney Demonising Disney is nothing new. Disney films have long been synonymous with a certain conservative, patriarchal, heterosexual ideology, occupying a centre-stage position at the heart of the evil empire. Deconstructing Disney takes issue with knee-jerk polarities, overturning classical oppositions and recognising that, just as the Disney 'text' has changed, so too must the terms of critical engagement.This book is a sharply focused deconstruction of the political culture - and the cultural politics - of the Disney canon in the years since the emergence of the so-called New World Order. Eleanor Byrne and Martin McQuillan offer a critical encounter with Disney which alternates between readings of individual texts and wider thematic concerns such as race, gender and sexuality, the broader context of American contemporary culture, and the global ambitions and insularity of the last great superpower. The movies discussed include The Little Mermaid, The Lion King, Pocohontas, Snow White, Bedknobs and Broomsticks, Dumbo, Peter Pan, The Jungle Book, Hercules and Mulan.
Disney's Most Notorious Film : Race, Convergence, and the Hidden Histories of Song of the South The Walt Disney Company offers a vast universe of movies, television shows, theme parks, and merchandise, all carefully crafted to present an image of wholesome family entertainment. Yet Disney also produced one of the most infamous Hollywood films, Song of the South. Using cartoon characters and live actors to retell the stories of Joel Chandler Harris, SotS portrays a kindly black Uncle Remus who tells tales of Brer Rabbit, Brer Fox, and the "Tar Baby" to adoring white children. Audiences and critics alike found its depiction of African Americans condescending and outdated when the film opened in 1946, but it grew in popularity--and controversy--with subsequent releases. Although Disney has withheld the film from American audiences since the late 1980s, SotS has an enthusiastic fan following, and pieces of the film--such as the Oscar-winning "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah"--remain throughout Disney's media universe. Disney's Most Notorious Film examines the racial and convergence histories of Song of the South to offer new insights into how audiences and Disney have negotiated the film's controversies over the last seven decades. Jason Sperb skillfully traces the film's reception history, showing how audience perceptions of SotS have reflected debates over race in the larger society. He also explores why and how Disney, while embargoing the film as a whole, has repurposed and repackaged elements of SotS so extensively that they linger throughout American culture, serving as everything from cultural metaphors to consumer products.
Emerson Goes to the Movies : Emerson Goes to the Movies : Individualism in Walt Disney Company's Post-1989 Animated Films Emerson Goes to the Movies: Individualism in Walt Disney Company's Post-1989 Animated Films traces the theme of Emersonian individualism in the Walt Disney Company's post-1989 animated films, to reveal that the philosopher's influence extends not only over American literature, but also over American popular culture, in this case Disney cartoons. It proves that individualism in its Emersonian formulation of self-reliance, even if questionable in late 20th and 21st century literature, is still very much alive in popular culture. Disney films are heavy with ideology and American national myths, and, because of their educational role, it seems relevant to acknowledge this dimension and discuss the sources of the Disney worldview. This book, instead of focusing on Disney's influence upon its audience, concerns rather what influences Disney, how Disney reflects the American mentality, and how the idea of individualism is depicted in the Company's particular films. The principal way of reading particular Disney films is the Cultural Studies approach. Thus, the book presents Romantic individualism with reference to such categories as race, gender, class, and imperialism. The idea behind such an approach is to see how various cultural fields intersect with individualism: whether individualism means the same for men and women; whether, as an American ideology, it succeeds at erasing differences when applied to exotic and non-individualist cultures; whether the individual turns out to be stronger than all social divides; and whether individualism can be seen as informing the American mentality on a national scale.
Good Girls and Wicked Witches : Women in Disney's Feature Animation In Good Girls and Wicked Witches, Amy M. Davis re-examines the notion that Disney heroines are rewarded for passivity. Davis proceeds from the assumption that, in their representations of femininity, Disney films both reflected and helped shape the attitudes of the wider society, both at the time of their first release and subsequently. Analyzing the construction of (mainly human) female characters in the animated films of the Walt Disney Studio between 1937 and 2001, she attempts to establish the extent to which these characterizations were shaped by wider popular stereotypes. Davis argues that it is within the most constructed of all moving images of the female form_the heroine of the animated film_that the most telling aspects of Woman as the subject of Hollywood iconography and cultural ideas of American womanhood are to be found.
Handsome Heroes and Vile Villains : Men in Disney's Feature Animation From the iconic Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) to Tangled, the 2010 retelling of Rapunzel, Handsome Heroes and Vile Villains looks at the portrayal of male characters in Disney films from the perspective of masculinity studies and feminist film theory. This companion volume to Good Girls and Wicked Witches places these depictions within the context of Hollywood and American popular culture at the time of each film's release.
The Idea of Nature in Disney Animation : From Snow White to Wall-E In the second edition of The Idea of Nature in Disney Animation, Whitley updates his 2008 book to reflect recent developments in Disney and Disney-Pixar animation such as the apocalyptic tale of earth's failed ecosystem, WALL-E. Beginning with his examination of Snow White, Whitley compelling study complicates our understanding of the classic Disney canon and demonstrates the crucial role the films' depictions of the natural world play in shaping children's understanding of contested environmental issues.
Mouse Morality : The Rhetoric of Disney Animated Film In this book, Annalee Ward uses a variety of analytical tools based in rhetorical criticism to examine the moral messages taught in five Disney animated films The Lion King, Pocahontas, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Hercules, and Mulan. Taking the films on their own terms, she uncovers the many mixed messages they purvey: for example, females can be leaders but male leadership ought to be the norm; stereotyping is wrong but black means evil; historical truth is valued but only tell what one can sell. Adding these messages together, Ward raises important questions about the moral ambiguity of Disneys overall worldview and demonstrates the need for parents to be discerning in letting their children learn moral values and life lessons from Disney films.
The Mouse That Roared : Disney and the End of Innocence Today, cultural practices and institutions shape nearly every aspect of our lives. Giroux takes up this issue by looking at the world's most influential corporation. He explores the diverse ways in which the Disney Corporation has become a political force in shaping images of public memory, producing children as consuming subjects, and legitimating ideological positions that constitute a deeply conservative and disturbing view of the roles imparted to children and adults alike. Giroux shows how Disney attempts to hide behind a cloak of innocence and entertainment, while simultaneously exercising its influence as a major force on both global economics and cultural learning. Disney is among several corporations that not only preside over international media, but also outstrip the traditional practices of schooling in shaping the desires, needs, and futures of today's children. Written by one of the nation's leading cultural critics, this book is important reading for anyone interested in education, society, and political culture.
The Queens of Animation: The Untold Story of the Women Who Transformed the World of Disney and Made Cinematic History A BEST BOOK OF 2019 Library Journal and Financial Times From the bestselling author of Rise of the Rocket Girls, the untold, "richly detailed" story of the women of Walt Disney Studios, who shaped the iconic films that have enthralled generations (Margot Lee Shetterly, New York Times bestselling author of Hidden Figures) From Snow White to Moana, from Pinocchio to Frozen, the animated films of Walt Disney Studios have moved and entertained millions. But few fans know that behind these groundbreaking features was an incredibly influential group of women who fought for respect in an often ruthless male-dominated industry and who have slipped under the radar for decades. In The Queens of Animation, bestselling author Nathalia Holt tells their dramatic stories for the first time, showing how these women infiltrated the boys' club of Disney's story and animation departments and used early technologies to create the rich artwork and unforgettable narratives that have become part of the American canon. As the influence of Walt Disney Studios grew---and while battling sexism, domestic abuse, and workplace intimidation---these women also fought to transform the way female characters are depicted to young audiences. With gripping storytelling, and based on extensive interviews and exclusive access to archival and personal documents, The Queens of Animation reveals the vital contributions these women made to Disney's Golden Age and their continued impact on animated filmmaking, culminating in the record-shattering Frozen, Disney's first female-directed full-length feature film.
Walt Disney : The Triumph of the American Imagination From Neal Gabler, the definitive portrait of one of the most important figures in twentieth-century American entertainment and cultural history. Seven years in the making and meticulously researched—Gabler is the first writer to be given complete access to the Disney archives—this is the full story of a man whose work left an ineradicable brand on our culture but whose life has largely been enshrouded in myth. Gabler shows us the young Walt Disney breaking free of a heartland childhood of discipline and deprivation and making his way to Hollywood. We see the visionary, whose desire for escape honed an innate sense of what people wanted to see on the screen and, when combined with iron determination and obsessive perfectionism, led him to the reinvention of animation. It was Disney, first with Mickey Mouse and then with his feature films—most notably Snow White, Pinocchio, Fantasia, Dumbo, and Bambi—who transformed animation from a novelty based on movement to an art form that presented an illusion of life. We see him reimagine the amusement park with Disneyland, prompting critics to coin the word Disneyfication to describe the process by which reality can be modified to fit one’s personal desires. At the same time, he provided a new way to connect with American history through his live-action films and purveyed a view of the country so coherent that even today one can speak meaningfully of “Walt Disney’s America.” We see how the True-Life Adventure nature documentaries he produced helped create the environmental movement by sensitizing the general public to issues of conservation. And we see how he reshaped the entertainment industry by building a synergistic empire that combined film, television, theme parks, music, book publishing, and merchandise in a way that was unprecedented and was later widely imitated. Gabler also reveals a wounded, lonely, and often disappointed man, who, despite worldwide success, was plagued with financial problems much of his life, suffered a nervous breakdown, and at times retreated into pitiable seclusion in his workshop making model trains. Gabler explores accusations that Disney was a red-baiter, an anti-Semite, an embittered alcoholic. But whatever the characterizations of Disney’s personal life, he appealed to the nation by demonstrating the power of wish fulfillment and the triumph of the American imagination. Walt Disney showed how one could impose one’s will on the world. This is a masterly biography, a revelation of both the work and the man—of both the remarkable accomplishment and the hidden life
Working with Disney : Interviews with Animators, Producers, and Artists In this volume Don Peri expands his extraordinary work conducting in-depth interviews with Disney employees and animators. These recent interviews include conversations with actors and performers rather than solely animators. This book offers Peri's extensive interviews with Marc Davis, Frank Thomas, and Ollie Johnston, three of Walt Disney's famed "Nine Old Men of Animation." Peri interviewed two Disney Mouseketeers-Bobby Burgess and Sharon Baird-from the original Mickey Mouse Club Show, providing valuable perspectives on how the Walt Disney Company worked with television. Lou Debney, a Disney television producer, discusses the company's engagement with television and live-action film. Walter Lantz talks about his work in the animation business, especially with Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. And Dave Hand discusses his legendary work on Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Taken together, the interviews in Working with Disney create an enlightening perspective on the Walt Disney Company as it grew from its animation roots into a media powerhous
Working with Walt : Interviews with Disney Artists Includes interviews with Ken Anderson, Les Clark, Larry Clemmons, Jack Cutting, Don Duckwall, Marcellite Garner, Harper Goff, Floyd Gottfredson, Dick Huemer, Wilfred Jackson, Eric Larson, Clarence Nash, Ken O'Connor, Herb Ryman, Ben Sharpsteen. Walt Disney created or supervised the creation of live-action films, television specials, documentaries, toys, merchandise, comic books, and theme parks. His vision, however, manifested itself first and foremost in his animated shorts and feature-length cartoons, which are loved by millions around the world. Working with Walt: Interviews with Disney Artists collects revealing conversations with animators, voice actors, and designers who worked extensively with Disney during the heyday of his animation studio. The book includes fifteen interviews with artists who directed segments of such classic animated features as Dumbo and Fantasia . Some interviewed were part of Disney's famed team dubbed The Nine Old Men of Animation, and some worked closely with Disney on Steamboat Willie, his first cartoon with sound. Among the subjects the interviewees discuss are the studio's working environment, the high-water mark of animation during Hollywood's Golden Age, and Disney's mixture of childlike charm and hard-nosed business drive. Through these voices, Don Peri preserves an account of the Disney magic from those who worked closely with him. Don Peri of Davis, California, first gained the confidence of Disney insiders through his work with animator, director, and producer Ben Sharpsteen. He has written and published extensively on Walt Disney's productions.

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