DisneyToon Studios
Division[1] | |
Industry | Motion pictures |
Founded | 1988 |
Headquarters | Glendale, CA[2], US |
Key people |
|
Products | Animated films |
Number of employees | 44 (2014)[2] |
Parent |
Walt Disney Animation Studios (The Walt Disney Studios) |
Website | DisneyToon Studios |
DisneyToon Studios, originally Disney MovieToons[4] and was also Disney Video Premieres,[5] is an American animation studio which creates direct-to-video and occasional theatrical animated feature films. The studio is a division of Walt Disney Animation Studios, with both being part of The Walt Disney Studios itself a Division of The Walt Disney Company.[6] The studio has produced 47 feature films, beginning with DuckTales the Movie: Treasure of the Lost Lamp (1990), and its most recent film being Tinker Bell and the Legend of the NeverBeast (2015).[2]
History
Disney MovieToons
Disney MovieToons' first feature production was in 1990 with DuckTales the Movie: Treasure of the Lost Lamp with animation from Walt Disney Animation France.[4] Disney Television Animation hired a director of specials, Sharon Morrill, in 1993.[7]
Disney began producing direct-to-video sequels of Walt Disney Feature Animation films: the first of which was the Aladdin (1992) sequel The Return of Jafar (1994). When Aladdin was selected as a possible candidate as an animated TV series (before the film's release), as with many animated series, the first three episodes were one multi-part story which Disney used as a potential 'family movie special' for the Friday night before the series' premiere. With work handed out to both the Australian and Japanese animation units, the opening story was instead green lit for a direct-to-video release. Thus with The Return of Jafar and its success, the direct-to-video unit started. Then a second sequel, Aladdin and the King of Thieves (1996), assign work to both the Australian and Japanese animation units.[8]
Morrill was in charge of the above first Aladdin DTV film launching Disney Video Premiere.[5] Morrill expanded the DTV market[5] making it more important for Disney thus the overseas Disney studios were increasing assigned to these features.[9] Morrill was promoted to vice president of Direct to Video by November 1997.[9]
The Disney Television group, upon the departure of its president Dean Valentine in September 1997, was split into two units: Walt Disney Television (WDT) and Walt Disney Network Television (WDNT), reporting to the Disney Studios chair Joe Roth. WDT would be headed by Charles Hirschhorn as president and consist of Disney Telefilms and Disney TV animation group including DisneyMovieToons and Disney Video Premieres.[10][11]
The unit released a short in 1997, Redux Riding Hood, under the WDTA name that was nominated for an 1998 Academy Award.[7] More direct-to-video sequels followed, among them Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas (1997), Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World (1998), The Lion King II: Simba's Pride (1998), and Cinderella II: Dreams Come True (2002).[9] By April 1998, MovieToons was folded in with Disney Video Premiere films and network TV specials of Disney TV Animation as Morrill was promoted to executive vice president over her existing unit of Disney Video Premiere films, network TV specials and Movietoons.[7]
DisneyToon Studios
In a January 2003 Disney reorganization, Disney MovieToons/Disney Video Premieres unit was transferred from Walt Disney Television Animation to Walt Disney Feature Animation and renamed DisneyToon Studios (DTS) in June. Morrill continued to lead the division as executive vice president.[5] With the split, both DisneyToon and Disney Television Animation were issuing direct to video features.[8]
Disney closed Disney Animation Japan, one of the two remaining internal overseas studios DisneyToon worked with, in early June 2004 with Pooh's Heffalump Movie (2004) to be its final DTS work.[12][13][14] By March 2005, Morrill was promoted to president of DisneyToon.[8] On July 25, July 25, 2005, Disney announced that it was closing DisneyToon Studios Australia in October 2006, after 17 years of existence, with its final feature being Cinderella III: A Twist in Time.[15]
In the early 2000s, DisneyToon joined Disney Consumer Products (DCP) as their internal Disney conglomerate video partner in developing the new Disney franchises then only consisting of Disney Princess and Disney Fairies. While DCP eyed other potential franchises, DTS looked to the Seven Dwarfs for a male centric franchise to counterbalance the female centric Fairies by 2005.[16]
John Lasseter joining Disney with the purchase of Pixar Animation Studios made it clear that he disliked DisneyToon's undercutting the value of the feature animated films with the sequel and prequel. Following complications relating to the production of Tinker Bell (2008), the debut film of DCP's Fairies franchise, lead to discussion over the focus of the division. Thus, Sharon Morill, president of the studio, moved to a new position in the company. On June 22, 2007, management of DisneyToon Studios was turned over to the control of Alan Bergman, president of Disney Studios, with input from Ed Catmull and Lasseter. As chief creative officer, Lasseter called for the cancellation of all future films in production or development at DisneyToon Studios. As a result, planned or in-progress sequels to Chicken Little, Meet the Robinsons and The Aristocats were all cancelled, among other projects. Tinker Bell's animation was scrapped and was restarted while two project DCP formed franchised projects were canceled, "Disney's Dwarfs" and the Disney Princess Enchanted Tales line after the first DVD. The release of The Little Mermaid 3 was put on hold.[1][17] Disney Studios President Alan Bergman took oversee of day-to-day operation of DTS.[17] Thus DTS was out of sequel and prequel production with it originally indicated that the division would shift to supporting various Playhouse Disney/Disney Junior franchises with direct to home videos.[17]
Meredith Roberts transferred over from Disney TV Animation to head the division as senior vice president and general manager in January 2008.[3] At the April unveiling of Disney's animated feature line up, it was announced that DisneyToon Studios would no longer produce future sequels to Disney animated films, but will instead focus on spin-offs. Also, the division was under the banner of renamed Feature Animation studio, now called Walt Disney Animation Studios, led by Catmull and Lasseter.[18]
Filmography
Feature films
# | Title | Release type | Release date | Franchise |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | DuckTales the Movie: Treasure of the Lost Lamp | Theatrical[2][4] | August 3, 1990 | DuckTales |
2 | The Return of Jafar | Direct-to-video[8] | May 20, 1994 | Aladdin |
3 | A Goofy Movie | Theatrical | April 7, 1995 | Goofy |
4 | Aladdin and the King of Thieves | Direct-to-video[8] | August 13, 1996 | Aladdin |
5 | Pooh's Grand Adventure: The Search for Christopher Robin[9][19] | Direct-to-video | August 5, 1997 | Winnie the Pooh |
6 | Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas | Direct-to-video[9] | November 11, 1997 | Beauty and the Beast |
7 | Beauty and the Beast: Belle's Magical World | Direct-to-video | February 17, 1998 | Beauty and the Beast |
8 | Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World | Direct-to-video[9] | August 25, 1998 | Pocahontas |
9 | The Lion King II: Simba's Pride | Direct-to-video[9] | October 27, 1998 | The Lion King |
10 | Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas | Direct-to-video | November 9, 1999 | Mickey Mouse |
11 | Seasons of Giving | Direct-to-video | November 9, 1999 | Winnie the Pooh |
12 | The Tigger Movie[1][20] | Theatrical[13] | February 11, 2000 | Winnie the Pooh |
13 | An Extremely Goofy Movie | Direct-to-video | February 29, 2000 | Goofy |
14 | The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea | Direct-to-video[16] | September 19, 2000 | The Little Mermaid |
15 | Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp's Adventure | Direct-to-video[16] | February 27, 2001 | Lady and the Tramp |
16 | Return to Never Land | Theatrical[5] | February 15, 2002 | Peter Pan |
17 | Cinderella II: Dreams Come True | Direct-to-video[16] | February 26, 2002 | Cinderella |
18 | The Hunchback of Notre Dame II | Direct-to-video[8] | March 19, 2002 | The Hunchback of Notre Dame |
19 | A Very Merry Pooh Year | Direct-to-video | November 12, 2002 | Winnie the Pooh |
20 | 101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure | Direct-to-video[21] | January 21, 2003 | 101 Dalmatians |
21 | The Jungle Book 2 | Theatrical[5] | February 14, 2003 | The Jungle Book |
22 | Piglet's Big Movie | Theatrical[5][13] | March 21, 2003 | Winnie the Pooh |
23 | Atlantis: Milo's Return | Direct-to-video | May 20, 2003 | Atlantis: The Lost Empire |
24 | The Lion King 1½ | Direct-to-video[5] | February 10, 2004 | The Lion King |
25 | Springtime with Roo | Direct-to-video[5] | March 9, 2004 | Winnie the Pooh |
26 | Mickey, Donald, Goofy: The Three Musketeers | Direct-to-video[5] | August 17, 2004 | Mickey Mouse |
27 | Mickey's Twice Upon a Christmas | Direct-to-video[5] | November 9, 2004 | Mickey Mouse |
28 | Mulan II | Direct-to-video[5] | February 1, 2005 | Mulan |
29 | Pooh's Heffalump Movie | Theatrical[1] | February 11, 2005 | Winnie the Pooh |
30 | Tarzan II | Direct-to-video[8] | June 14, 2005 | Tarzan |
31 | Lilo & Stitch 2: Stitch Has a Glitch | Direct-to-video[8] | August 30, 2005 | Lilo & Stitch |
32 | Pooh's Heffalump Halloween Movie | Direct-to-video[22] | September 13, 2005 | Winnie the Pooh |
33 | Kronk's New Groove | Direct-to-video[8] | December 13, 2005 | The Emperor's New Groove |
34 | Bambi II | Direct-to-video[8] | February 7, 2006 | Bambi |
35 | Brother Bear 2 | Direct-to-video[1] | August 29, 2006 | Brother Bear |
36 | The Fox and the Hound 2 | Direct-to-video | December 12, 2006 | The Fox and the Hound |
37 | Cinderella III: A Twist in Time | Direct-to-video[8] | February 6, 2007 | Cinderella |
38 | Disney Princess Enchanted Tales: Follow Your Dreams | Direct-to-video[17] | September 4, 2007 | Disney Princess |
39 | The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning | Direct-to-video | August 26, 2008 | The Little Mermaid |
40 | Tinker Bell | Direct-to-video[1] | October 28, 2008 | Disney Fairies |
41 | Tinker Bell and the Lost Treasure | Direct-to-video | October 27, 2009 | Disney Fairies |
42 | Tinker Bell and the Great Fairy Rescue | Direct-to-video | September 21, 2010 | Disney Fairies |
43 | Secret of the Wings | Theatrical (limited release) | October 23, 2012 | Disney Fairies |
44 | Planes | Theatrical[2] | August 9, 2013 | Cars |
45 | The Pirate Fairy[2] | Theatrical (limited release) | April 1, 2014 | Disney Fairies |
46 | Planes: Fire & Rescue | Theatrical[2] | July 18, 2014 | Cars |
47 | Tinker Bell and the Legend of the NeverBeast | Theatrical (limited release)[23] | March 3, 2015 | Disney Fairies |
48 | The Aristocats II | Direct-to-video | 2016 | The Aristocats |
49 | Dumbo II | Direct-to-video | 2016 | Dumbo |
50 | Back to the Conscience | Theatrical | 2017 | Pinocchio |
51 | Alice in Wonderland 2 | Theatrical | 2017 | Alice in Wonderland |
52 | Chicken Little 2: Mission to Mars | Direct-to-video | 2018 | Chicken Little |
53 | Meet the Robinsons 2: First Date | Direct-to-video | 2018 | Meet the Robinsons |
54 | Tresure Planet 2 | Theatrical | 2019 | Tresure Planet |
55 | Robin Hood 2: The Mistery Dinosaurs | Theatrical | 2019 | Robin Hood |
Short films
Title | Release type | Release date | Franchise |
---|---|---|---|
Redux Riding Hood | August 5, 1997 | Totally Twisted Fairy Tales[7][24] | |
The Three Little Pigs[25][26][27][28] | Festival | 1998 | Totally Twisted Fairy Tales |
The Cat That Looked at a King | Direct-to-video: DVD extra | December 14, 2004 | Mary Poppins 40th Anniversary DVD[21] |
Pixie Hollow Games | Television special | November 18, 2011 | Disney Fairies |
Pixie Hollow Bake Off | Television special | October 20, 2013 | Disney Fairies |
Vitaminamulch: Air Spectacular | Direct-to-video | November 4, 2014 | Cars |
See also
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Baisley, Sarah (June 21, 2007). "DisneyToon Studios Prexy Morrill Steps Down". Animation World Network. Retrieved April 19, 2012.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Graser, Marc (August 11, 2014). "Layoffs Hit 'Planes' Producer DisneyToon Studios". Variety. Retrieved August 12, 2014.
Of the 60 employees on staff at the Glendale, Calif.-based division of Walt Disney Animation Studios, 16 are being affected by the layoffs and started to be told of the reductions last week, individuals close to the situation confirmed to Variety.
- 1 2 Ball, Ryan (January 30, 2008). "Disney Snags Nick Exec Coleman". Animation Magazine. Archived from the original on August 25, 2013. Retrieved June 13, 2015.
- 1 2 3 Harrington, Richard (August 7, 1990). "'DuckTales: The Movie'". Washington Post. Retrieved 27 February 2013.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Baisley, Sarah (June 16, 2003). "DisneyToon Studios Builds Slate Under New Name and Homes for Needy". Animation World Network. Retrieved 26 February 2013.
- ↑ "DisneyToon Studios: Job Description" (PDF). The Walt Disney Company. DisneyToon Studios. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
Disneytoon Studios is a part of Walt Disney Animation Studios...
- 1 2 3 4 Olson, Eric (April 27, 1998). "Disney ups TV animation duo". Variety. Retrieved September 16, 2015.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Strike, Joe (March 28, 2005). "Disney's Animation Cash Crop — Direct-to-Video Sequels". AnimationWorld. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Hoffman, Ilene (November 1997). "Buena Vista Home Entertainment: A Very Lucky Accident Indeed". Animation World Magazine. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
- ↑ Hofmeister, Sallie (September 17, 1997). "Disney Splits Television Group Into 2 Units". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 28, 2014.
- ↑ "Executive Profile: Charles Hirschhorn". bloomberg.com. Bloomberg Business. Retrieved December 30, 2015.
For the TV and TV animation group, he was responsible for the Disney Telefilms, including all live-action films airing on "The Wonderful World of Disney" - which he re-launched on ABC in 1997, and also animated series and specials for Disney Video Premieres and Movietoons.
- ↑ Kilday, Gregg (September 23, 2003). "Dis To Shut Japan Ani Unit". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 25, 2011.
- 1 2 3 Ball, Ryan (September 23, 2003). "Pencils Down at Walt Disney Animation Japan". Animation Magazine. Retrieved September 8, 2015.
- ↑ "Disney to close Japan animation studio in June". Asia Times Online. April 9, 2004. Retrieved December 25, 2011.
- ↑ Grimm, Nick (July 27, 2005). "Disney cans Australian animation operation". Australian Broadcasting Company. Retrieved April 19, 2012.
- 1 2 3 4 Armstrong, Josh (August 14, 2013). "Mike Disa and The Seven Dwarfs: How the Snow White prequel became a Dopey movie". Animated Views.com. Animated Views. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
- 1 2 3 4 Hill, Jim (June 20, 2007). "Say "So Long !" to direct-to-video sequels : DisneyToon Studios tunes out Sharon Morrill". Jim Hill Media. Retrieved April 19, 2012.
- ↑ Hayes, Dade (2008-04-08). "Disney unveils animation slate - Entertainment News, Film News, Media". Variety. Retrieved 2012-01-03.
- ↑ "Pooh's Grand Adventure: The Search for Christopher Robin (1997) Production Credits". New York Times Movies. New York Times. Retrieved September 8, 2015.
- ↑ "The Tigger Movie (2000) Full Production Credits". New York Times Movies. New York Times. Retrieved September 8, 2015.
- 1 2 Desowitz, Bill (October 27, 2004). "Japan's New Answer Studio Builds on Animation's Past and Future". VFXWorld. Retrieved December 25, 2011.
- ↑ "Pooh's Heffalump Halloween Movie (2005)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved September 8, 2015.
- ↑ Alexander, Bryan (October 21, 2014). "Ta-da! Ginnifer Goodwin turns into Tinker Bell's best friend (fairy exclusive)". USA Today. Retrieved October 23, 2014.
- ↑ "Redux Riding Hood (film)". D23: Disney A to Z. The Walt Disney Company. Retrieved September 16, 2015.
- ↑ "26th Annual Annie Award Nominees and Winners (1998)". Annie Awards. Retrieved September 16, 2015.
- ↑ "The Three Little Pigs". Annecy. Retrieved September 16, 2015.
- ↑ Plume, Ken (September 18, 2007). "Interview: Frank Conniff". A Site Called Fred. Retrieved September 16, 2015.
Yeah, and I wrote a script for Disney TV Animation, a thing that was supposed to be for home video called Twisted Fairy Tales, and I wrote a Three Little Pigs script.
- ↑ Simon, Ben (September 15, 2004). "Home On The Range". Animated Views. Retrieved September 16, 2015.
In the mid-1990s, Disney sponsored a series of Totally Twisted Fairytales – three modern takes on classic stories, similar to Jay Ward's Fractured Fairytales series of the 1960s. One of these was a re-imagining of Walt's short The Three Little Pigs (the other two were Little Redux Riding Hood and Jack And The Beanstock),...