Go Behind the Scenes of Disney’s NEW ‘Once Upon a Studio’ Short!
We love a good Disney short. Who doesn’t?!
Disney+, Disney’s streaming platform, is packed full of unique and creative shorts. Some introduce us to new stories, while others reunite us with characters we already know and love. And Disney’s new original short, Once Upon a Studio, puts beloved characters in a fun predicament. Check it out!
Once Upon a Studio
Once Upon a Studio takes audiences to the end of a workday over at Walt Disney Animation Studios in Burbank, California. After everyone has left, Mickey and Minnie jump into the studio and ask their friends to join the 100th-anniversary portrait. Of course, it’s a difficult task to bring everyone together for the photo. Take a look at the short’s trailer:
The short will premiere on ABC during The Wonderful World of Disney: Disney’s 100th Anniversary Celebration on October 15th.
The Making of Once Upon a Studio
The Walt Disney Company shared a look behind the scenes of this new short, which was directed by Dan Abraham and Trent Correy, after pitching it in 2021. They both knew how complicated the short would be to create, but saw that the outcome would be worth the risk.
They brought Brad Simonsen and Yvett Merino on as producers to get the ball rolling, quickly. They turned storyboard panels into rough cuts as their first step and then had to plan out how to bring 40 original voices back.
They recorded in-person and on Zoom, in order to capture the countless voices they needed. Each voice actor’s involvement was a testament to their experience with the studio, as they were only told that there would be a Disney100-themed short, and they could provide a line if they’d like to be involved.
Eric Goldberg was brought on as head of hand-drawn animation, who had a team of experts like Mark Henn and Randy Haycock. Directors told them to provide hand-drawn animation, when applicable, in order to keep everyone as true-to-character as possible. That led to 80% of the characters being hand-drawn.
There are scenes–like the one with Moana and Flounder–where there are CG and hand-drawn characters within the same shot. This required animators to be in constant communication. To design the group shot–which included 543 characters–they had to use heat maps to determine where each character would be placed.
This short is the best way to celebrate 100 years of the studio! Don’t forget to catch it when it premieres on ABC on October 15th at 8PM ET/PT. And we’ll keep updating you with the latest in all things Disney, so stay tuned to MickeyBlog.com!
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