Happy New Year’s Eve! This is the fifth and last post of the Animated Film Anniversaries series since beginning next year the major anniversaries (every 5 and 10 years) will repeat. 2021 celebrated the most anniversaries and included two years with two movies each.
14) Encanto: Premiere
Disney’s newest animated film was released just over a month ago on November 24. Even though it’s the 14th film on this list, it’s Disney’s 60th animated feature film overall. What a big achievement! Encanto means enchant or charm, though it’s also used as a pet name similar to sweetheart. This film takes place in Colombia.
13) Raya and the Last Dragon: Premiere
Another film to premiere this year was Raya and the Last Dragon, which is also Disney’s latest Princess movie. Raya is Disney’s first Southeast Asian princess. The film was originally titled Dragon Empire. Keep a look out for Hei Hei who makes an Easter egg appearance!
12) Moana: 5th Anniversary
Hei Hei also celebrated an anniversary as Moana came out 5 years ago. For animating the sky, astronomers researched what the Pacific Island night looked like 2000 years ago. Maui’s Fishhook is a constellation in the Southern Hemisphere which is also known as Scorpius. The shape of this constellation inspired the design of Maui’s hook in the film.
11) Zootopia: 5th Anniversary
2016 was also the year Zootopia premiered. This film is home to 64 different animal species and has throwbacks to many past Disney characters. Mayor Lionheart was inspired by Mufasa from The Lion King and Assistant Mayor Bellwether was inspired by lambs from classic shorts such as Lambert the Sheepish Lion and from Make Mine Music. Flora and Fauna is the name of a flower shop in the film. The popularity of Zootopia led to the creation of a new theme park land which is currently under construction in Shanghai Disneyland.
10) Winnie the Pooh: 10th Anniversary
Winnie the Pooh was Disney’s last traditionally, meaning hand-drawn, animated film. Despite Disney having created many Winnie the Pooh films over the decades, this is only the second to be made by the Disney Animated Studios (after 1977’s The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh). The other films were made by either DisneyToon Studios or Walt Disney Television Animation. Many of them were direct to video.
9) Atlantis: The Lost Empire: 20th Anniversary
Atlantis: The Lost Empire was inspired by Jules Verne’s novels with its steampunk exploration vibe. There was a rumor the Disneyland Submarine Voyage, which closed in 1998, would reopen with an Atlantis theme. Instead it reopened with a Finding Nemo theme in 2007, most likely due to the underperformance of Atlantis. When the submarine in the film, the Ulysses, is diving, some of the same lines from the original Submarine Voyage attraction can be heard. The score from the film, which is one of my favorites, is part of the background music loop in Tokyo DisneySea’s Port Discovery.
8) The Hunchback of Notre Dame: 25th Anniversary
The Hunchback of Notre Dame premiered in New Orleans in 1996 and the event included a parade through the French Quarter. It was the first feature film to be produced in the new animation building at the Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, California. There was also an animation unit in Paris working on the film, and they were located very close to where Victor Hugo, author of the original story, lived in the 1800s.
7) Beauty and the Beast: 30th Anniversary
Composer Alan Menken and lyricist Howard Ashman wanted the film to feel and flow like a Broadway musical. They did their casting in New York instead of Los Angeles, and Beauty and the Beast became the first Disney Broadway musical when it was adapted for the stage in 1994. The Beast has characteristics of many different animals. He’s made up of wild boar, gorilla, wolf, lion, bison, and bear, but has human eyes. Some of the beastly-looking gargoyles in the castle are early versions of the Beast
6) The Great Mouse Detective: 35th Anniversary
The Great Mouse Detective was the debut of directorial duo Ron Clements and John Musker. They went on to direct The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Hercules, Treasure Planet, The Princess and the Frog, and Moana. When this film was originally released in theatres, it included the Mickey Mouse short Clock Cleaners from 1937. Perhaps foreshadowing the Big Ben fight at the end of The Great Mouse Detective?
5) The Fox and the Hound: 40th Anniversary
The Fox and the Hound is known as the film that “passed on the baton.” This was the last animated movie any of the Nine Old Men worked on and was one of the first for many up and coming animators such as Ron Clements, John Musker, Tim Burton, Glen Keane, Brad Bird, and John Lasseter. This was reflected in the film as Copper replaces Chief as the number one hunting dog. It was also the last film to be produced by Wolfgang Reitherman. The composer of the song “Best of Friends” was Richard O. Johnston, the son of animator Ollie Johnston, a member of the Nine Old Men.
4) One Hundred and One Dalmatians: 60th Anniversary
In the original One Hundred and One Dalmatians story, Roger and Anita have the last name Dearly. Disney changed their name to Radcliffe because of recent similar sounding character names like George and Mary Darling from Peter Pan, and Jim Dear and Darling from The Lady and The Tramp. The voice of Cruella de Vil, Betty Lou Gerson, also voices the gentle narration at the beginning of Cinderella, a complete contrast to the frightening villain of One Hundred and One Dalmatians. She also plays the homeless lady in Mary Poppins.
3) Alice in Wonderland: 70th Anniversary
Alice in Wonderland was promoted on Disney’s very first show on TV. It was called One Hour in Wonderland and aired on Christmas Day in 1950. Characters and settings from the film can be found in every Fantasyland around the world. The only dark ride, though, is in the original Disneyland. In this attraction Rule 42 is “The Queen always wins” but in the film and the original book by Lewis Carroll, Rule 42 is “All persons more than a mile high must leave the court.”
2) Make Mine Music: 75th Anniversary
The only Package Film on this list, Make Mine Music was released in 1946. “The Blue Bayou” segment was originally created to accompany the song “Clair de Lune” for Fantasia in 1940. The “Casey at the Bat” segment received a sequel in 1954 as a stand-alone short called Casey Bats Again. On Main Street, USA in the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World and at Disneyland Paris, there’s a quick service restaurant called Casey’s Corner inspired by the segment.
1) Dumbo: 80th Anniversary
Dumbo, the oldest film on this list, was released in 1941. This was the first Disney film, and still one of few to this day, that was both set in America and set in the present time. As the present time was during World War II, all of background newspaper articles have war references. The name of the circus in the film is the WDP Circus: Walt Disney Productions Circus.
Happy Anniversary to these films! Have you seen both of the new Disney animated films from 2021? Did any of your favorite classics celebrate an anniversary this past year?
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