Frozen Fever: Meet the Snowgies

Frozen Fever, the new short based on the massively popular Disney's Frozen, will be in US theaters in three days with Kenneth Branagh's Cinderella; but Yahoo! Movies didn't want to wait any longer to introduce us to some new characters, the snowgies.

Watch: First Trailer for Frozen Fever

ABC's Good Morning America just revealed the first trailer for Disney's upcoming Frozen Fever. The team that brought us Frozen is back for a short film set in Arendelle and it looks like Elsa, Anna Olaf and Kristoff are not the only characters from the feature film to return, as many familiar faces appear in the trailer. You can also catch some notes from the new song Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez have written for the short.
But enough talking. Watch the trailer after the break.

First Teaser for Disney's Cinderella!

The first trailer for the new adaptation of Cinderella found its way online a few days ago! Check it out below.

Live-Action News From D23 Expo

We all got pretty excited about the news from the D23 Expo on Day 1, so you can imagine how thrilled we were with more, live-action-y, updates from Day 2 yesterday.

Disney's Cinderella and Untitled Marvel Film Get Release Dates

It seems Disney are rolling out release dates for films that haven't been made yet, every week! Their live-action Cinderella has now been slated for a 13th March, 2015 release while another Marvel film has a date for 2016.

New Story Details on The Good Dinosaur, Big Hero 6, Captain America 2 and More!

JoBlo recently exclusively announced, via "a trusted and reliable source from a recent marketing event", a horde of Disney film news directly concerning at least four projects that we here at A113Animation are very excited about.

Munir's Disney Retrospective -- Animated Classic #12: Cinderella (1950)

By Munir Abedrabbo.

Make Sure You've Read: Munir's Disney Retrospective -- Silver Age (Part 1) Introduction

Cinderella represented a huge gamble for the Disney studio. After a decade that didn't turn a profit, Walt desperately needed a hit to keep the studio afloat. In order to do so, he returned to fairy tales (something that proved successful with Snow White) and, as usual invested a lot of his own talent and funds to make it. The result was not only a huge hit at the time, but a movie that is still fondly remembered even now. Cinderella is pure Disney formula: a damsel in distress, a heinous villain, a handsome prince, cute animals aides and a little magical help. Many cynics have scorned this and criticised the film for not being remarkable enough, but I think what's remarkable about it is how well executed all these traditional elements are. This film proves once more that Walt Disney was a master storyteller and it's another bright spot in his enormous legacy. Rating: 4.5/5.

Next Week: Animated Classic #13 Review: Alice in Wonderland (1951)

Related posts: Animation Essays - Disney at War, and the Importance of Cinderella

Munir's Disney Retrospective -- Silver Age (Part 1) Introduction

By Munir Abedrabbo.

Silver Age (1950-1977)

The 50s

Overview

After a very difficult decade, Walt Disney returned to the feature-length animated form, which he hadn't visited since Bambi in 1942. What followed was a decade of great expansion, not only in the animation department, but also in the introduction of television, - which brought forth a new area of interest for Walt. Also, the culmination of his largest undertaking yet, Disneyland - a long gestating dream which can easily be called the peak of the decade for Walt. But, even with Walt's interests in other areas, the animation department produced five films that can arguably be called classics by today's standards. From the studio-saving Cinderella, to the ambitious and one of a kind Sleeping Beauty, the 50s was a return to form for Walt and his studio and another achievement in his illustrious career.

Tomorrow: Animated Classic #12 Review: Cinderella (1950)

Related posts: Animation Essays - Disney at War, and the Importance of Cinderella

Animation Essays - Disney at War, and the Importance of Cinderella

At the start of the year, I said that we were going to diversify here at A113Animation, namely, through more features. We've launched our Bitesized Biographies and Classic Cartoons features, and post the odd Editorial too (free time permitting of course), but as of late I've had an itching to try something else as well. Animation history being a paramount passion of mine, I thought it may be prudent to launch this intended-as-occasional feature: Animation Essays. Check out our first one - about Disney during and immediately after World War II, and the effect Cinderella had on, effectively, saving the, once-fledgling, now dominant, company - below!

Cinderella's Out on Blu-ray - A Sneak Peak at Special Features

Cinderella's been released from the Disney vault, in high-definition, on Blu-ray, as well as on DVD, and is accompanied by an assortment of exciting new special features. Walt Disney Studios UK's YouTube channel has released some clips from some of these special features.

   

Included amongst the special features are a recently discovered alternate opening (above, left), an intro by Dianne Disney Miller (above, right), a look at the film's iconic castle and a few very interesting mini-videos, called "The Real Fairy Godmother".

These videos tell the story of Disney artist, Ken O'Connor, and his kind-hearted wife, Mary Alice O'Connor, who served as the inspiration for the Fairy Godmother. You can check out one part of the featurette above, and the rest ("Opposites Attract", "Creating The Coach" and "Drawing From Her Spirit") on YouTube.

The wealth of engrossing, never-before-seen special features, the gorgeous visuals and timeless stories make these Blu-ray Disney classics a great buy! Cinderella will be released on Blu-ray in the US on 2nd October, and those of us in the UK can get it right now!

And be sure to vote in our polls, to the right, and on Facebook, for the second round of our "A113 Ten Years" voting!

Are We in The Third Golden Age?

Disney. The word that embodies animation. When you think animation you think Disney and vice versa. Yet, Disney hardly has the best track record when it comes to animated films, sure when you think of Disney animated films, you'll think of the classics; The Lion King, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, The Jungle Book, Dumbo, Beauty and the Beast etc..., but since the end of the second Golden Age (or Renaissance) Disney has been a bit down in the dumps. Particularly in the majority of the 2000s we've had a lot of flunks (in terms of critical consensus and box office revenue), with Chicken Little, Brother Bear, Home on the Range and Atlantis (among others) with some exceptions i.e. Lilo and Stitch.

Through all of the turbulence, there's been so much speculation about when - if ever - the third Golden Age of Disney will begin.