Walt Disney Animation Studios facts for kids
![]() |
|
Subsidiary of The Walt Disney Studios Division of Walt Disney Pictures |
|
Industry | Animation Motion pictures Traditional animation CGI animation Flash animation |
Founded | October 16, 1923 | (as Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio)
Founder | Walt and Roy Disney |
Headquarters | 2100 W Riverside Dr Burbank, California U.S. |
Key people
|
Ed Catmull, President John Lasseter, Chief Creative Officer Andrew Millstein, General Manager |
Products | Animated films |
Parent | Walt Disney Pictures |
Divisions | Disney Television Animation DisneyToon Studios |
Walt Disney Animation Studios (often called Disney Animation) is a famous American animation studio. It creates amazing animated movies and short films for The Walt Disney Company. You might recognize its logo, which shows a scene from its very first cartoon with sound, Steamboat Willie (1928).
This studio was started on October 16, 1923, by two brothers, Walt Disney and Roy O. Disney. It is the oldest animation studio still running in the world! Today, it's part of Walt Disney Studios and is located in Burbank, California. Since it began, the studio has made 62 feature films. These include classics like Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) and newer movies like Wish (2023). They've also made hundreds of short films.
Contents
The History of Disney Animation
How Did Disney Animation Start?
Walt and Roy Disney, who were from Kansas City, Missouri, started their company in Los Angeles in 1923. It was first called Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio. They began by making silent short films called Alice Comedies. These films mixed a real child actress with animated characters.
Later, the studio made another cartoon series called Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. In 1926, the studio changed its name to Walt Disney Studio. By 1929, it became a bigger company known as Walt Disney Productions.
The Birth of Mickey Mouse and Sound Films
The first two Mickey Mouse cartoons, Plane Crazy and The Galloping Gaucho, were shown in 1928. But for the third Mickey cartoon, Disney added sound! They worked with musician Carl Stalling and businessman Pat Powers.
This third cartoon, Steamboat Willie, was Disney's first cartoon with synchronized sound. It was a huge hit when it came out in November 1928. The Mickey Mouse cartoons with sound quickly became super popular across the United States. In 1929, Disney also started another series of sound cartoons called Silly Symphonies, beginning with The Skeleton Dance.
From Short Films to Feature Films
For many years, the studio focused on making short films. But in 1934, they decided to make a full-length movie. This led to Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in 1937. It was one of the very first full-length animated movies ever made and the first one in the U.S.
In 1986, the company changed a lot. Walt Disney Productions, which had grown into a huge international media company, was renamed The Walt Disney Company. The animation studio then became Walt Disney Feature Animation to show it was different from other parts of the company. Its current name, Walt Disney Animation Studios, was chosen in 2006 after Disney bought Pixar.
The Disney Animation Logo
How the Studio Logo Changed Over Time
Before 2007, Walt Disney Animation Studios didn't have its own special logo. It just used the regular Walt Disney Pictures logo. But starting in 2007, they added a new logo based on Steamboat Willie.
This logo shows Mickey Mouse in his classic look, being drawn on a beige paper background. As the pages flip like a flip book, Mickey starts whistling, just like in the Steamboat Willie cartoon. The camera then zooms out to a yellow-gold background, and the studio's name appears below the scene.
Where You Can See the Logo
This logo has been shown on every film since Meet the Robinsons (2007). For special movies, they sometimes change the logo a bit. For example, Tangled (2010) and Encanto (2021) had text saying "50th Animated Motion Picture" and "60th Animated Motion Picture." Mickey's whistling was also muted in some films, like Frozen (2013) and Moana (2016), so that the movie's opening music could play.
Even though Steamboat Willie became available for everyone to use (entered the public domain) on January 1, 2024, the studio still uses this logo.
Where is Disney Animation Located?
Since 1995, Walt Disney Animation Studios has been based in the Roy E. Disney Animation Building in Burbank, California. This building is right across from the main Walt Disney Studios.
The lobby of the Disney Animation Building has a huge version of the famous hat from the "Sorcerer's Apprentice" part of Fantasia (1940). Because of this, people sometimes call it the "hat building."
Other Important Disney Animation Locations
Before the mid-1990s, Disney Animation worked out of old airplane hangars and offices in Glendale, California. The Disneytoon Studios unit was also located there.
Disney Animation also has a special place called the Animation Research Library (ARL) in Glendale. This library holds over 64 million pieces of animation artwork dating back to 1924! It's so important that visitors have to agree not to tell anyone its exact location.
In the past, Disney also had animation studios in Paris, France, and near Orlando, Florida. The Paris studio closed in 2002, and the Florida studio closed in 2004.
In 2014, the main Roy E. Disney Animation Building in Burbank got a big upgrade. It took 16 months to make the inside better and more open for all the employees.
Filmography: Disney's Animated Movies
Since 1937, Walt Disney Animation Studios has made many movies with Walt Disney Pictures. The first one, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, came out in 1937. The most recent film, Wish, was released in 2023.
Released Films by Walt Disney Animation Studios
# | Film | Release date | Director(s) | Writer(s) | Based on/Inspired by | Producer(s) | Composer(s) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs | December 21, 1937 | Supervising Director:David HandSequence Directors:Billy Cottrell, Wilfred Jackson, Larry Morey, Perce Pearce, & Ben Sharpsteen | Dorothy Ann Blank, Richard Creedon, Merrill De Maris, Otto Englander, Earl Hurd, Dick Rickard, Ted Sears & Webb Smith | Snow Whiteby Brothers Grimm | Walt Disney | Frank Churchill, Paul Smith and Leigh Harline |
2 | Pinocchio | February 7, 1940 | Supervising Directors: Hamilton Luske & Ben Sharpsteen
Sequence Directors:Norman Ferguson, Jack Kinney, Wilfred Jackson, T. Hee, & Bill Roberts |
Aurelius Battaglia, Billy Cottrell, Otto Englander, Erdman Penner, Joseph Sabo, Ted Sears & Webb Smith | The Adventures of Pinocchioby Carlo Collodi | Harline and Smith | |
3 | Fantasia | November 13, 1940 | James Algar, Samuel Armstrong, Ford Beebe, Norm Ferguson, David Hand, Jim Handley, T. Hee, Wilfred Jackson, Hamilton Luske, Bill Roberts, Paul Satterfield, & Ben Sharpsteen | See segments | The Sorcerer's Apprenticeby Johann Wolfgang von Goetheinter alia | Walt Disney & Ben Sharpsteen | Various |
4 | Dumbo | October 23, 1941 | Supervising Director: Ben Sharpsteen
Sequence Directors:Samuel Armstrong, Norman Ferguson, Wilfred Jackson, Jack Kinney, & Bill Roberts |
Joe Grant & Dick Huemer | Dumbo, the Flying Elephant by Helen Aberson and Harold Pearl | Walt Disney | Churchill and Oliver Wallace |
5 | Bambi | August 13, 1942 | Supervising Director:David Hand
Sequence Directors:James Algar, Samuel Armstrong, Graham Heid, Bill Roberts, Paul Satterfield, & Norman Wright |
Chuck Couch, Carl Fallberg, Larry Morey, Mel Shaw, Vernon Stallings & Ralph Wright | Bambi, a Life in the Woodsby Felix Salten | Churchill and Edward H. Plumb | |
6 | Saludos Amigos | February 6, 1943 | Norm Ferguson, Wilfred Jackson, Jack Kinney, Hamilton Luske, & Bill Roberts | Homer Brightman, Joe Grant, Dick Huemer, Harold Reeves, Roy Williams & Ralph Wright | Various Disney staff members' expedition through Latin America, via goodwill funding | Smith and Plumb | |
7 | The Three Caballeros | February 3, 1945 | Supervising Director:Norm Ferguson
Sequence Directors:Clyde Geronimi, Jack Kinney, Bill Roberts, & Harold Young |
James Bodrero, Homer Brightman, Del Connell, Billy Cottrell, Bill Peet, Elmer Plummer, Ted Sears, Ernest Terrazas, Roy Williams & Ralph Wright | Plumb,Smith and Charles Wolcott | ||
8 | Make Mine Music | April 20, 1946 | Clyde Geronimi, Jack Kinney, Hamilton Luske, Joshua Meador, & Robert Cormack | James Bodrero, Homer Brightman, Erwin Graham, Eric Gurney, T. Hee, Sylvia Holland, Dick Huemer, Dick Kelsey, Dick Kinney, Jesse Marsh, Tom Oreb, Cap Palmer, Erdman Penner, Dick Shaw, John Walbridge & Roy Williams | Casey at the Bat by Ernest Thayer & Peter and the Wolf by Sergei Prokofievinter alia | Eliot Daniel, Ken Darby, Wolcott, Wallace and Plumb | |
9 | Fun and Fancy Free | September 27, 1947 | Jack Kinney, Hamilton Luske, William Morgan, & Bill Roberts | Homer Brightman, Eldon Dedini, Lance Nolley, Tom Oreb, Harry Reeves & Ted Sears | Little Bear Bongo by Sinclair Lewis & Jack and the Beanstalk by Benjamin Tabart | Wallace, Smith, Daniel and Wolcott | |
10 | Melody Time | May 27, 1948 | Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, Jack Kinney, & Hamilton Luske | Ken Anderson, Homer Brightman, Billy Cottrell, Winston Hibler, Jesse Marsh, Bob Moore, Erdman Penner, Harry Reeves, Joe Rinaldi, Ted Sears, Art Scott & John Walbridge | The life of Johnny Appleseed, Little Toot by Hardie Gramatky, Trees by Joyce Kilmer& Pecos Bill | Daniel, Smith and Darby | |
11 | The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad | October 5, 1949 | James Algar, Clyde Geronimi, & Jack Kinney | Homer Brightman, Winston Hibler, Erdman Penner, Harry Reeves, Joe Rinaldi & Ted Sears | The Wind in the Willowsby Kenneth Grahame & The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving | Wallace | |
12 | Cinderella | February 15, 1950 | Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, & Hamilton Luske | Ken Anderson, Homer Brightman, Winston Hibler, Bill Peet, Erdman Penner, Harry Reeves, Joe Rinaldi & Ted Sears | Cinderella by Charles Perrault | ||
13 | Alice in Wonderland | July 28, 1951 | Milt Banta, Del Connell, Billy Cottrell, Joe Grant, Winston Hibler, Dick Huemer, Dick Kelsey, Tom Oreb, Bill Peet, Erdman Penner, Joe Rinaldi, Ted Sears & John Walbridge | Alice's Adventures in Wonderland& Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll | |||
14 | Peter Pan | February 5, 1953 | Milt Banta, Billy Cottrell, Winston Hibler, Bill Peet, Erdman Penner, Joe Rinaldi, Ted Sears & Ralph Wright | Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie | |||
15 | Lady and the Tramp | June 22, 1955 | Don DaGradi, Erdman Penner, Joe Rinaldi & Ralph Wright | Joe Grant's pet English Springer Spaniel Lady, Happy Dan, the Cynical Dog & Lady and the Tramp: The Story of Two Dogs by Ward Greene | |||
16 | Sleeping Beauty | January 29, 1959 | Supervising Director:Clyde Geronimi
Sequence Directors: Les Clark, Eric Larson, & Wolfgang Reitherman |
Erdman Penner | Sleeping Beauty by Charles Perrault, Little Briar Rose by Brothers Grimm & The Sleeping Beauty by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky | George Bruns | |
17 | One Hundred and One Dalmatians | January 25, 1961 | Clyde Geronimi, Hamilton Luske, & Wolfgang Reitherman | Bill Peet | The Hundred and One Dalmatiansby Dodie Smith | ||
18 | The Sword in the Stone | December 25, 1963 | Wolfgang Reitherman | The Sword in the Stone by T. H. White | |||
19 | The Jungle Book | October 18, 1967 | Ken Anderson, Larry Clemmons, Vance Gerry & Ralph Wright | The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling | |||
20 | The Aristocats | December 24, 1970 | Ken Anderson, Larry Clemmons, Eric Cleworth, Vance Gerry, Julius Svendsen, Frank Thomas & Ralph Wright | The Secret Origin of The Aristocats by Tom McGowan & Tom Rowe | Winston Hibler & Reitherman | ||
21 | Robin Hood | November 8, 1973 | Ken Anderson, Larry Clemmons, Eric Cleworth, Vance Gerry, Dave Michener, Julius Svendsen & Frank Thomas | The legend of Robin Hood | Reitherman | ||
22 | The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh | March 11, 1977 | John Lounsbery & Wolfgang Reitherman | Ken Anderson, X Atencio, Ted Berman, Larry Clemmons, Eric Cleworth, Vance Gerry, Winston Hibler, Julius Svendsen & Ralph Wright | Winnie-the-Pooh book series by A. A. Milne | Walt Disney & Reitherman | Buddy Baker |
23 | The Rescuers | June 22, 1977 | John Lounsbery, Wolfgang Reitherman, & Art Stevens | Ken Anderson, Ted Berman, Larry Clemmons, Vance Gerry, Fred Lucky, Burny Mattinson, David Michener, Dick Sebast & Frank Thomas | The Rescuersbook series by Margery Sharp | Reitherman and Ron W. Miller | Artie Butler |
24 | The Fox and the Hound | July 10, 1981 | Ted Berman, Richard Rich, & Art Stevens | Berman, Larry Clemmons, Vance Gerry, Steve Hulett, Earl Kress, Burny Mattinson, David Michener & Peter Young | The Fox and the Hound by Daniel P. Mannix | Ron W. Miller, Wolfgang Reitherman & Stevens | Baker |
25 | The Black Cauldron | July 24, 1985 | Ted Berman & Richard Rich | Berman, Vance Gerry, Joe Hale, David Jonas, Roy Morita, Rich, Art Stevens, Al Wilson & Peter Young | The Chronicles of Prydain book series by Lloyd Alexander | Joe Hale & Ron W. Miller | Elmer Bernstein |
26 | The Great Mouse Detective | July 2, 1986 | Ron Clements, Burny Mattinson, David Michener & John Musker | Clements, Vance Gerry, Steve Hulett, Mattinson, Michener, Bruce M. Morris, Musker, Matthew O'Callaghan, Melvin Shaw & Peter Young | Basil of Baker Streetbook series by Eve Titus | Mattinson | Henry Mancini |
27 | Oliver & Company | November 18, 1988 | George Scribner | Jim Cox, Timothy J. Disney & James Mangold | Oliver Twistby Charles Dickens | Kathleen Gavin | J. A. C. Redford |
28 | The Little Mermaid | November 17, 1989 | John Musker & Ron Clements | The Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen | Howard Ashman & Musker | Alan Menken | |
29 | The Rescuers Down Under | November 16, 1990 | Hendel Butoy & Mike Gabriel | Jim Cox, Karey Kirkpatrick, Byron Sampson & Joe Ranft | The Rescuersbook series by Margery Sharp | Thomas Schumacher | Bruce Broughton |
30 | Beauty and the Beast | November 22, 1991 | Gary Trousdale & Kirk Wise | Linda Woolverton | Beauty and the Beast by Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont | Don Hahn | Menken |
31 | Aladdin | November 25, 1992 | John Musker & Ron Clements | Clements, Musker, Ted Elliott & Terry Rossio | Aladdin and the Magic Lamp from One Thousand and One Nights | Musker & Clements | |
32 | The Lion King | June 24, 1994 | Roger Allers & Rob Minkoff | Irene Mecchi, Jonathan Roberts& Linda Woolverton | Africananimals & Hamlet by William Shakespeare | Don Hahn | Hans Zimmer |
33 | Pocahontas | June 23, 1995 | Mike Gabriel & Eric Goldberg | Carl Binder, Susannah Grant& Philip LaZebnik | The lives of Pocahontasand John Smith | James Pentecost | Menken |
34 | The Hunchback of Notre Dame | June 21, 1996 | Gary Trousdale & Kirk Wise | Story: Tab Murphy
Screenplay:Murphy, Irene Mecchi, Bob Tzudiker, Noni White & Jonathan Roberts |
Notre Dame de Paris by Victor Hugo | Don Hahn | |
35 | Hercules | June 27, 1997 | John Musker & Ron Clements | Clements, Musker, Donald McEnery, Bob Shaw & Irene Mecchi | The Greek myth of Heracles | Alice Dewey, Musker & Clements | |
36 | Mulan | June 19, 1998 | Barry Cook & Tony Bancroft | Story: Robert D. San Souci
Screenplay: Rita Hsiao, Chris Sanders, Philip LaZebnik, Raymond Singer & Eugenia Bostwick-Singer |
Ballad of Mulan by Guo Maoqian | Pam Coats | Jerry Goldsmith |
37 | Tarzan | June 18, 1999 | Kevin Lima & Chris Buck | Tab Murphy, Bob Tzudiker & Noni White | Tarzan of the Apes by Edgar Rice Burroughs | Bonnie Arnold | Mark Mancina |
38 | Fantasia 2000 | December 16, 1999 | James Algar, Paul & Gaëtan Brizzi, Hendel Butoy, Francis Glebas, Eric Goldberg, Don Hahn, & Pixote Hunt | See credits | The Steadfast Tin Soldier by Hans Christian Andersen & Noah's Arkinter alia | Roy E. Disney & Donald W. Ernst | Various |
39 | Dinosaur | May 19, 2000 | Ralph Zondag& Eric Leighton | Story: John Harrison, Robert Nelson Jacobs, Thom Enriquez & Zondag
Screenplay:Harrison & Jacobs |
an original screenplay by Walon Green | Pam Marsden | James Newton Howard |
40 | The Emperor's New Groove | December 15, 2000 | Mark Dindal | Story: Chris Williams & Dindal
Screenplay:David Reynolds |
Inca mythology & the cancelled original version Kingdom of the Sun by Roger Allers and Matthew Jacobs | Randy Fullmer | John Debney |
41 | Atlantis: The Lost Empire | June 15, 2001 | Gary Trousdale & Kirk Wise | Story: Wise, Trousdale, Joss Whedon, Bryce, Jackie Zabel & Tab Murphy
Screenplay:Murphy |
The legend of Atlantis | Don Hahn | Howard |
42 | Lilo & Stitch | June 21, 2002 | Chris Sanders & Dean DeBlois | An unpublished children's book by Sanders | Clark Spencer | Alan Silvestri | |
43 | Treasure Planet | November 27, 2002 | John Musker & Ron Clements | Story: Clements, Musker, Ted Elliott & Terry Rossio
Screenplay:Clements, Musker & Rob Edwards |
Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson | Roy Conli, Musker & Clements | Howard |
44 | Brother Bear | November 1, 2003 | Aaron Blaise & Robert Walker | Tab Murphy, Lorne Cameron, David Hoselton, Steve Bencich & Ron J. Friedman | Inuit cultures | Chuck Williams | Mancina |
45 | Home on the Range | April 2, 2004 | Will Finn & John Sanford | Story: Finn, Sanford, Michael LaBash, Sam Levine, Mark Kennedy & Robert Lence
Screenplay: Finn & Sanford |
The original version Sweating Bullets by Mike Gabriel | Alice Dewey Goldstone | Menken |
46 | Chicken Little | November 4, 2005 | Mark Dindal | Story: Dindal & Mark Kennedy
Screenplay:Steve Bencich, Ron J. Friedman & Ron Anderson |
Henny Penny | Randy Fullmer | Debney |
47 | Meet the Robinsons | March 30, 2007 | Stephen J. Anderson | Jon A. Bernstein, Michelle Spritz, Don Hall, Nathan Greno, Aurian Redson, Joe Mateo & Anderson | A Day with Wilbur Robinson by William Joyce | Dorothy McKim | Danny Elfman |
48 | Bolt | November 21, 2008 | Chris Williams & Byron Howard | Dan Fogelman & Williams | The cancelled original version American Dog by Chris Sanders | Clark Spencer | John Powell |
49 | The Princess and the Frog | December 11, 2009 | John Musker & Ron Clements | Story: Clements, Musker, Greg Erb, & Jason Oremland
Screenplay:Clements, Musker & Rob Edwards |
The Frog Princess by E. D. Baker& The Frog Prince by Brothers Grimm | Peter Del Vecho | Randy Newman |
50 | Tangled | November 24, 2010 | Nathan Greno & Byron Howard | Dan Fogelman | Rapunzel by Brothers Grimm | Roy Conli | Menken |
51 | Winnie the Pooh | July 15, 2011 | Stephen J. Anderson & Don Hall | Anderson, Clio Chiang, Don Dougherty, Hall, Kendelle Hoyer, Brian Kesinger, Nicole Mitchell & Jeremy Spears | Winnie-the-Pooh book series by A. A. Milne | Peter Del Vecho & Clark Spencer | Henry Jackman |
52 | Wreck-It Ralph | November 2, 2012 | Rich Moore | Story: Moore, Phil Johnston & Jim Reardon
Screenplay:Johnston & Jennifer Lee |
Various video and arcade games, including Donkey Kongand Pac-Man | Clark Spencer | |
53 | Frozen | November 27, 2013 | Chris Buck & Jennifer Lee | Story: Buck, Lee & Shane Morris
Screenplay: Lee |
Scandinavian and Sámi cultures & The Snow Queen by Hans Christian Andersen | Peter Del Vecho | Christophe Beck |
54 | Big Hero 6 | November 7, 2014 | Don Hall & Chris Williams | Robert L. Baird, Dan Gerson & Jordan Roberts | Big Hero 6by Man of Action | Roy Conli | Jackman |
55 | Zootopia | March 4, 2016 | Byron Howard & Rich Moore | Story: Howard, Moore, Jared Bush, Jim Reardon, Josie Trinidad, Phil Johnston & Jennifer Lee
Screenplay:Bush & Johnston |
Buddy cop films | Clark Spencer | Michael Giacchino |
56 | Moana | November 23, 2016 | John Musker & Ron Clements | Story: Clements, Musker, Chris Williams, Don Hall, Pamela Ribon, Aaron & Jordan Kandell
Screenplay:Jared Bush |
Polynesian cultures & the Hawaiian myth of Māui | Osnat Shurer | Mancina |
57 | Ralph Breaks the Internet | November 21, 2018 | Rich Moore & Phil Johnston | Story: Moore, Johnston, Jim Reardon, Pamela Ribon & Josie Trinidad
Screenplay:Johnston & Ribon |
eBay, YouTube, BuzzFeed, & Disney Consumer Productsinter alia | Clark Spencer | Jackman |
58 | Frozen II | November 22, 2019 | Chris Buck & Jennifer Lee | Story: Buck, Lee, Marc E. Smith, Kristen Anderson-Lopez & Robert Lopez
Screenplay: Lee |
Scandinavian and Sámi cultures & The Snow Queen by Hans Christian Andersen | Peter Del Vecho | Beck |
59 | Raya and the Last Dragon | March 5, 2021 | Don Hall & Carlos López Estrada | Story: Paul Briggs, Hall, Adele Lim, López Estrada, Kiel Murray, Qui Nguyen, John Ripa & Dean Wellins
Screenplay:Nguyen & Lim |
Southeast Asian cultures and mythology | Osnat Shurer & Peter Del Vecho | Howard |
60 | Encanto | November 24, 2021 | Jared Bush & Byron Howard | Story: Bush, Howard, Charise Castro Smith, Jason Hand, Nancy Kruse & Lin-Manuel Miranda
Screenplay:Smith & Bush |
Colombian culture | Yvett Merino& Clark Spencer | Germaine Franco |
61 | Strange World | November 23, 2022 | Don Hall | Qui Nguyen | Pulp magazines | Roy Conli | Jackman |
Upcoming Films from Disney Animation
# | Film | Release date | Director(s) | Writer(s) | Based on/Inspired by | Producer(s) | Composer(s) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
62 | Wish | November 22, 2023 | Chris Buck & Fawn Veerasunthorn | Jennifer Lee | 100th anniversary of Disney | TBA | Julia Michaels |
Franchises: Disney's Popular Worlds
This section lists the popular movie worlds (franchises) created by Walt Disney Animation Studios. It does not include movies made directly for video or TV by other Disney animation groups.
Titles | Release dates | Movies | TV Seasons |
---|---|---|---|
Mickey Mouse & Friends | 1928–present | 7 | 15 |
Donald Duck | 1934–present | 3 | |
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs | 1937–present | 1 | 2 |
Fantasia | 1940–present | 4 | 0 |
Dumbo | 1941–2019 | 2 | 1 |
Bambi | 1942–present | 1 | 0 |
Saludos Amigos | 1943–2018 | 2 | 1 |
Make Mine Music | 1946–1954 | 1 | |
Cinderella | 1950–2015 | 2 | 0 |
Alice in Wonderland | 1951–present | 3 | 5 |
Peter Pan | 1953–present | 2 | 4 |
Lady and the Tramp | 1955–2019 | 0 | |
Sleeping Beauty | 1959–present | 3 | |
101 Dalmatians | 1961–present | 4 | 3 |
Winnie the Pooh | 1966–present | 6 | 10 |
The Jungle Book | 1967–present | 4 | 3 |
The Rescuers | 1977–1990 | 2 | 0 |
The Fox and the Hound | 1981–2006 | 1 | |
The Little Mermaid | 1989–present | 1 | 3 |
Beauty and the Beast | 1991–present | 2 | 2 |
Aladdin | 1992–present | 3 | |
The Lion King | 1994–present | 6 | |
Pocahontas | 1995–1998 | 1 | 0 |
The Hunchback of Notre Dame | 1996–present | ||
Hercules | 1997–present | 2 | |
Mulan | 1998–present | 2 | 0 |
Tarzan | 1999–2005 | 1 | 2 |
The Emperor's New Groove | 2000–2008 | ||
Atlantis: The Lost Empire | 2001–present | 0 | |
Lilo & Stitch | 2002–present | 2 | |
Brother Bear | 2003–2006 | 0 | |
Bolt | 2008–2009 | 1 | |
The Princess and the Frog | 2009–present | 0 (1 planned) | |
Tangled | 2010–2020 | 3 | |
Wreck-It Ralph | 2012–present | 2 | 0 |
Frozen | 2013–present | ||
Big Hero 6 | 2014–present | 1 | 4 |
Zootopia | 2016–present | 1 | |
Moana | 0 (1 planned) |
Amazing Achievements and Innovations
Walt Disney Animation Studios is known for inventing many new things in the animation world. Here are some of their cool achievements:
- Multiplane Camera: This camera made cartoons look more realistic by adding depth. It was first used in the short film "The Old Mill" and then for Snow White.
- Realistic Animation: They were pioneers in making special effects and human characters look very real, starting with Snow White.
- Combining Live-Action and Animation: They found advanced ways to mix real actors and animated characters using color film, as seen in The Three Caballeros.
- Xerography in Animation: This process allowed drawings to be transferred directly to animation cels (clear sheets) using a copier, instead of being traced by hand. It was used for 101 Dalmatians.
- All-Digital Production: They developed the CAPS (Computer Animation Production System) to paint, combine, and record animated films completely digitally.
Here are some of their other big achievements:
- First Technicolor Animated Feature: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was the first animated movie made in full color.
- First Major Film with Stereophonic Sound: Fantasia was a groundbreaking film that used advanced surround sound, called Fantasound.
- First Animated Feature in CinemaScope: Lady and the Tramp was the first to use this wide-screen film format.
- First Large Format Animated Movie: Sleeping Beauty was made in 70mm, a very large film size.
- First Use of Computer-Generated Imagery (CGI): The Black Cauldron was the first Disney animated film to use some computer graphics.
- Heavy Use of CGI: Oliver & Company was the first Disney animated movie to use a lot of CGI animation.
- First Digital Coloring: The Little Mermaid was the first Disney film to be colored digitally using the CAPS process.
- First 100% Digital Film: The Rescuers Down Under was the first feature film made entirely with digital processes.
- Oscar Nomination for Best Picture: Beauty and the Beast was the first animated film ever nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture.
- First to Gross $200 Million: Aladdin was the first Disney animated film to earn over $200 million and was the highest-earning movie of 1992.
- Highest-Grossing Hand-Drawn Movie: The Lion King is the highest-earning traditionally animated (hand-drawn) movie of all time.
- Largest Movie Premiere: Pocahontas had a huge premiere with over 100,000 viewers.
- Most Expensive Animated Movie: Tangled was the most expensive animated movie ever made at the time, costing $260 million.
- Most Original Characters: Wreck-It Ralph created the highest number of original characters for an animated movie (188 characters).
Documentary Movies About Disney Animation
- A Trip Through the Walt Disney Studios (1937, a short film)
- The Reluctant Dragon (1941, a fun "mockumentary" about the studio)
- Frank and Ollie (1995, about two famous Disney animators)
- Dream On Silly Dreamer (2005)
- Waking Sleeping Beauty (2010, about the studio's comeback in the 1980s and 90s)
Related Pages
- The Walt Disney Company
- Disney's Nine Old Men
- Pixar
- Blue Sky Studios
- 20th Century Animation
- Disney Television Animation
Images for kids
-
Walt Disney introduces each of the Seven Dwarfs in a scene from the original 1937 Snow White theatrical trailer.
-
Roy E. Disney (Chairman, 1985–2003), nephew of Walt Disney, was a key figure in restructuring the animation department following the reorganization of the Disney company in 1984.
-
John Lasseter (Chief Creative Officer, 2006–18, left) and Edwin Catmull (President, 2006–18, right) came to Disney following its acquisition of Pixar and dedicated themselves to revitalizing Walt Disney Animation Studios after the studio's unsuccessful early 2000s period.
See also
In Spanish: Walt Disney Animation Studios para niños