Disney Animation is closing the book on fairy tales

[Melanie]

Disney Animation is closing the book on fairy tales

'Tangled' will be the last such movie it makes for the foreseeable future. The studio is aiming for wider appeal.

By Dawn C. Chmielewski and Claudia Eller, Los Angeles Times
November 21, 2010

Once upon a time, there was a studio in Burbank that spun classic fairy tales into silver-screen gold.

But now the curtain is falling on "princess movies," which have been a part of Disney Animation's heritage since the 1937 debut of its first feature film, "Snow White." The studio's Wednesday release of "Tangled," a contemporary retelling of the Rapunzel story, will be the last fairy tale produced by Disney's animation group for the foreseeable future.

"Films and genres do run a course," said Pixar Animation Studios chief Ed Catmull, who along with director John Lasseter oversees Disney Animation. "They may come back later because someone has a fresh take on it … but we don't have any other musicals or fairy tales lined up." Indeed, Catmull and Lasseter killed two other fairy tale movies that had been in development, "The Snow Queen" and "Jack and the Beanstalk."

To appreciate what a sea change this is for the company, consider that a fairy tale castle is a landmark at Disney theme parks around the world and is embedded in the Walt Disney Pictures logo. Fairy tale characters from Disney's movies populate the parks, drive sales of merchandise and serve as the inspiration for Broadway musicals.

Alas, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Ariel, Jasmine and the other Disney royals were all born in the 20th century. Now, different kinds of Disney characters are elbowing their way into the megaplexes and toy aisles, including Pixar's "Toy Story" buddies Buzz Lightyear and Woody, Capt. Jack Sparrow from "Pirates of the Caribbean" and a platoon of superheroes from the recent acquisition of Marvel Entertainment.

Over the decades, Disney has benefited from the ticket sales and licensing revenue generated by such princess-driven properties as "The Little Mermaid," "Beauty and the Beast" and "Aladdin." The studio's most recent offering, however, was a clear disappointment. Although critically acclaimed, last year's "The Princess and the Frog" was the most poorly performing of Disney's recent fairy tales.

In the age of mega-franchises when movies need to appeal to a broad audience to justify a sizable investment, Disney discovered too late that "Princess and the Frog" appealed to too narrow an audience: little girls. This prompted the studio to change the name of its Rapunzel movie to the gender-neutral "Tangled" and shift the lens of its marketing to the film's swashbuckling male costar, Flynn Rider.

Disney hopes "Tangled" will draw boys, teenagers and adults to the theater, succeeding where its frog-prince saga failed. But it's taking no such chances in the future. Its current animation roster includes "Winnie the Pooh," a return to the Hundred Acre Wood, and "Reboot Ralph" — itself a restart of an older project titled "Joe Jump" — about an outdated video game character who's been left behind by the march of technology.

Catmull said he and Lasseter have been encouraging filmmakers to break with safe and predictable formulas and push creative boundaries.

"If you say to somebody, 'You should be doing fairy tales,' it's like saying, 'Don't be risky,'" Catmull said. "We're saying, 'Tell us what's driving you.'"

So why has the clock struck midnight for Disney's fairy tales?

Among girls, princesses and the romanticized ideal they represent — revolving around finding the man of your dreams — have a limited shelf life. With the advent of "tween" TV, the tiara-wearing ideal of femininity has been supplanted by new adolescent role models such as the Disney Channel's Selena Gomez and Nickelodeon's Miranda Cosgrove.

"By the time they're 5 or 6, they're not interested in being princesses," said Dafna Lemish, chairwoman of the radio and TV department at Southern Illinois University and an expert in the role of media in children's lives. "They're interested in being hot, in being cool. Clearly, they see this is what society values."

MGA Entertainment, the maker of Bratz dolls, knocked the toy industry's blond bombshell off her stilettos by recognizing how little girls' interests have morphed.

"You've got to go with the times," MGA Chief Executive Isaac Larian said. "You can't keep selling what the mothers and the fathers played with before. You've got to see life through their lens."

Other filmmakers have been grappling with this evolving sensibility.

Bonnie Arnold, an animation veteran who most recently produced DreamWorks Animation's "How to Train Your Dragon," said animated films must vie in the cineplex with effects-laden action films that a generation ago might have been considered more mature fare.

"You see elementary school kids standing in line to see 'Iron Man' or 'Transformers,' " Arnold said. "To be honest, that's who we're all competing with on some level."

In an effort to give the Rapunzel story a more contemporary feel, Catmull and Lasseter pushed the reset button in 2008 and brought in a new directing duo who had both worked on Disney's animated movie "Bolt." The Rapunzel film underwent a "total restart," Catmull said: All the prior work was scrapped and the movie was reconceived as a musical with five songs by Disney's veteran, multiple-Oscar-winning composer Alan Menken.

The only surviving elements, Catmull said, were "the hair, the tower and Rapunzel."

Directors Nathan Greno and Byron Howard blended the hallmarks of the classic Disney tale — including sweeping musical numbers and a happily-ever-after ending — with fast-paced action and witty banter associated with more modern animated films.

"If we were told we would one day grow up and direct the 50th animated feature from Disney, it would blow our minds. It's such a great honor," Greno said. "At the same time, it comes with some challenges.... We love classic Disney, but we wanted to invent fresh, new and exciting ideas."

For example, instead of the requisite prince, the directors designed the romantic male lead as a wise-cracking thief who mixes it up with bandits and beer-swilling thugs. The villain, Mother Gothel, isn't the enchantress of the Grimm tale. She's an incarnation of "Mommie Dearest."

In one of the film's musical numbers, "Mother Knows Best," Mother Gothel tells Rapunzel she's "getting kind of chubby" — a line lifted directly from a real-life mother-daughter exchange recounted during a story brainstorming session.

Disney instructed Menken to depart from the heavy Broadway musical-type scoring he made famous in "The Little Mermaid" and "Beauty and the Beast." So the composer borrowed from leaner singer-songwriters of the late 1960s, including Joni Mitchell.

"It's more like handmade music rather than too over-produced," Howard said. "You'll hear a lot of guitar music, especially when Rapunzel is singing.... That was a nice way to break away from what [Menken] had done."

Catmull acknowledges that Disney has a lot riding on the success of "Tangled." The film faces several challenges, not the least of which is that it opens five days after what is expected to be the biggest family event movie of the season, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1." The stakes are particularly high for "Tangled," which by some estimates cost more than $260 million to produce, including six years of development costs.

"On an emotional and morale level," Catmull said. "We really want this to do well and really want the public to like it."


Copyright © 2010, Los Angeles Times

[TheRustyScupper]

{Up On Soapbox & Flame Proof Suit On}
1) If you can't make millions and millions, no movie.
2) So much about tradition and more modest profits.
3) I am sorry, but to heck with you, Catmull !!!
{Down From Soapbox, Flame Proof Suit Still On}

[vilewmn]

I post very infrequently, but just have to say: Rustyscupper, you have a way of getting to the heart, or lack there of, of the matter. More and more of the Disney tradition is being eaten away. If it doesn't meet marketing standards, the story doesn't get told. Sad.

[Tekneek]

Hmmm. I have little desire to debate this, but I am definitely on the disappointed side and concur with the views already expressed.

Disney is continuing to make it easier for me to not think about them. I should be glad, since it will save me money. So, thank you Disney for helping me save some extra money (that I would've sent your way)!

[BrerGnat]

Honestly...maybe this is a good decision. The "fairy tale" market is already over saturated. These stories just don't carry the same impact as they used to. Perhaps after a break, it will again become something people are interested in.

I think Disney has done an excellent job in retelling fairy tales up to this point (with the exception of a couple "flop" movies...). More and more, I enjoy the unique stories created by, for example, Pixar.

The classic Disney fairy tales have stood the test of time. They will continue to endure. No harm done, as far as I'm concerned.

[cetacean01]

just because those traditions are the reason you fell in love with Disney does not mean those traditions are timeless........The classics WILL endure.....but ladies and gentlemen it is time to recognize that we are in a new era....If Walt were alive, he would be evolving his vision as well....he was, after all, a businessman.


Now........fire away!!

[BellesRose]

"By the time they're 5 or 6, they're not interested in being princesses," said Dafna Lemish, chairwoman of the radio and TV department at Southern Illinois University and an expert in the role of media in children's lives. "They're interested in being hot, in being cool. Clearly, they see this is what society values."

I'm sorry, WHAT?! Is that true? By the time a little girl is 5, she's no longer interested in princesses? I know I'm still in love with fairy tales at age 22.

The second part just scares me to death. If they are going to start making stuff that is "hot" for 5-6 year olds, my children will not ever know Disney (Or current Disney, anyways...they'll be raised on "old-fashioned" Disney.)

[Melanie]

Now I'm seeing reports that this story is being refuted.

[I LoveJack]

I understand that the name of the game is to make a profit, but I still love fairy tales and I am 40 something. And being of mother of 2 girls, I don't want them to be "hot" before the reach the appropriate age. They both love the princesses and fairies and all the magic that the fairytales bring. Surely there could be a compromise between the 2 worlds.

[Aurora]

Here's what Walt Disney Animation Studios posted on Facebook today:

A headline in today’s LA Times erroneously reported that the Disney fairy tale is a thing of the past, but I feel it is important to set the record straight that they are alive and well at Disney and continue this week with Tangled, a contemporary retelling of a much loved story. We have a number of projects in development with new twists that audiences will be able to enjoy for many years to come. - Ed Catmull

[DizneyRox]

Why For do they need to develop more stories when they can just release a Diamond/Titanium/Gold Pressed Latinum Edition and reap the profits without the development costs.

The problem with Disney movies lately has been story, and unless they can come up with a good story, it doesn't matter what the theme is, it's going to flop. 2D, 3D or whatever, that doesn't matter. You can put lipstick on a pig, it's still a pig...

[Brer Robert]

Personally, if Disney were to ever quit with fairy tales, I think it'd be smart for them to come up with more original stories, like they did with "Lilo & Stitch", or at least turn to more novel-like books for ideas.

[Ian]

This story stinks on so many levels I don't even know where to begin.

So I won't.

[NotaGeek]

From Disney's Facebook Page:

A headline in today’s LA Times erroneously reported that the Disney fairy tale is a thing of the past, but I feel it is important to set the record straight that they are alive and well at Disney and continue this week with Tangled, a contemporary retelling of a much loved story. We have a number of projects in development with new twists that audiences will be able to enjoy for many years to come. - Ed Catmull

[DizneyRox]

I really don't see the blog post as a denial. They mention Tangled which is too late to cancel. There is no mention as to what these other projects are, fairy tale or otherwise.

Wordsmithing to me...

[magicofdisney]

First, I don't think the Princess Frog movie flopped because it was aimed primarily at girls.

Second, my girls are 10 and they're still not allowed to have Bratz dolls.

Third, you absolutely can sell what the mothers and fathers enjoy. Because my MIL was a pack-rat, my husband has classic toys from his youth that our kids still enjoy today. Is it too far fetched to think kids will enjoy movies their parents enjoy? I'm sick of what I'm seeing in society where kids and their parents interact on different levels. For example, I often see statements from parents saying their kids would never "friend" them on FB. What kind of relationship are they developing with their children in which that would be an issue? Strong family units share values and interests. It's sad to me that Disney thinks it's market should be sexualized tweens.

[AgentP]

"By the time they're 5 or 6, they're not interested in being princesses...They're interested in being hot, in being cool.

Kindergarten teacher and mother of a four year old daughter here. This statement is absolutely wrong. 5 and 6 year olds are absolutely interested in being princesses. They also play house, pretend they are puppy dogs and hide stuffed animals in their backpacks. The world may have changed, but for the most part kids are still kids as long as we allow them to be. It worries me that Disney execs don't realize this. Maybe they should visit a classroom.

[Tinkerfreak]

I had 20 teenage girls at my house this weekend for a sweet 16 party for my DD. We have a wide variety of movies and you know what they wanted to watch?

Mulan
Cinderella
Beauty and the Beast

and they did watch a horror film.

My daughter wore her princess crown all night and they had a blast. They are your average normal teenagers.

[Tekneek]

This is another moment where we see that Disney execs, even Lasseter himself, are not as in touch with their demographic as we would hope to believe. The FB post looks like damage control when the backlash was worse than they ever imagined it would be.

[JPL]

Funny how they retracted the statement and twisted around the wording in the retraction. Does Disney actually think it's fans are that stupid?