Disneyland Is About To Get Hairy

CONCEPT ART OF THE TANGLED EXTERIOR LOCATION AT DISNEYLAND

(Yes - it's a preview thanks to Photoshop - not yet built)

Starting October 15 Disney's Rapunzel and Flynn Rider (from the coming-soon-feature-animation Tangled) will be greeting guests at Disneyland Park in Anaheim. According to this announcement HERE, it looks like they'll be meeting-and-greeting in Magic Kingdom in Orlando too. (See the link for details of what's getting bumped to make room for the 'Tangled Experience'.)

From Disney.com's First Look:

Rapunzel will be greeting guests in the location that currently houses Gepetto’s Sweet Shoppe.

[THIS IS CONCEPT ART FOR THE INTERIOR]

We’re sharing a first glimpse of concept art created for Rapunzel’s new meet-and-greet location in Fantasyland. As you can see in the image above, Rapunzel’s 70-feet of golden locks will drape luxuriously around the room. Flynn Rider, Rapunzel’s love interest, will also be on hand to meet and greet guests throughout the day.

What? No hair salon? ;)

Zachary Levi Quotes "The Little Mermaid"

This one is for Disney fairy tale fans.

Zachary Levi (who is the voice of Flynn in Disney's upcoming fairy tale film Tangled) talks about what to expect on the 3rd Season of ABC's Chuck and ends up quoting The Little Mermaid...

(Note: email subscribers, you will need to go to the website to see the video)

Cinderella Gets A Live-Action 'Reboot' (& More)

The writer of The Devil Wears Prada recently had her live-action Cinderella pitch bought by Disney.

From The Wrap:

Using the working title "Cinderella," the film is expected to deviate from the original fairy tale, although it's unclear how, or whether the new version will be released in 3D like the studio's reimagining of "Alice in Wonderland," which has grossed more than a billion dollars since it was released in March.

(You can read the whole article HERE.)

Amanda Seyfried-Raymond (of Mama Mia, who is currently at work with Twilight director on another fairy tale, The Girl with the Red Riding Hood) is rumored to be the star. (see article HERE and IMDB's article HERE).

You'll also see rumors in the articles linked to above regarding Angeline Jolie's rumored attachment to play the lead in Disney's other live-action fairy tale revisit, Maleficent - a live-action Sleeping Beauty.

But that's not all. Snow White is looking at a live-action revisit with the seven dwarves being cast as robbers once again, plus a dragon (not by Disney but a company called Relativity Media). The Wizard of Oz is looking at a revisit too by both Warner Brothers and Disney once again.

[Sidenote: if you enjoy speculating on actresses playing other Disney princesses and why they may - or may not - fit, have a look at this faux casting couch HERE.]

And yes - this is all due to Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland, so you can thank (or blame) him. ;)

Re Disney's "Tangled": Stop Worrying. It's Good.

Since Tangled was already on my radar today I was reminded of some old news (from the end of May) about how the movie is turning out.



From a Disney forum, the post was titled: "I just saw Tangled! Stop worrying. It's good."

Here are a few little excerpts from the post and replies (there are pages of them):

Even in this rough form, it is a VERY entertaining movie, and the audience was laughing their butts off at the gags (even the ones still on storyboard) and was very engrossed in the exciting stuff...



There are some GORGEOUS set-pieces in the works. We had to use our imaginations, but we could tell where they were going. They're gonna be stunning, especially this one thing near the end that I refuse to spoil for you.



Those who were disappointed in the musical numbers in The Princess and the Frog ... Get ready, cause they're about to make it up to you. WONDERFUL songs. At least two of them are Oscar worthy IMHO. One in particular, which involves a tavern full of assorted dangerous scoundrel-types singing about their secret dreams in life, has the potential to be a personal favorite of mine, not to mention a stone-cold classic. It is hee-larious!... it is a crowd-pleaser, fun for all ages and all sexes (yes, boys too, so FORCE them to go see it), lots of laughs, wonderful music, and potentially fabulous art direction. I absolutely can't wait to see the finished product.



Especially where in the heck they're going to put all that dang hair in each scene.



>>A dear friend told me that humor isn't à la Shrek or à la Princess and the Frog (for Princess, humor was too slapstick and there is too toilet humor) and in Tangled humor is intelligent... Do you agree?<<



Not exactly. There's a LOT of slapstick. Rapunzel herself swings a mean frying pan.You can't generalize about the humor too much - there's a variety here. Nothing particularly scatological that I can recall. But there is a lot of slapstick. Very funny slapstick. I enjoyed it, and I'm not much of a Three Stooges or Tom and Jerry fan.



I failed to mention that R has a pet chameleon (non-talking). He's the source of a lot of the gentler humor, and is one of the least obnoxious Disney sidekicks ever (the non-talking thing has a lot to do with that IMHO). There's also this horse that I think is going to be a big hit.



There's a little bit of pop culturism related to the ruffians in the tavern - nothing too distracting IMHO. Certainly nothing Shrekkish. They play the fairy tale vibe pretty straight, although the plot bears only superficial resemblance to the original Rapunzel story.Romantic? Yes, but I don't recall the mushy stuff getting as much screen time as in the Menkin-Ashman flicks. This movie is heavier on the action.



>>would you say the overall storyline follows the fractured fairy tale idea, or is it more like Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland, which takes existing characters and creates a new (albeit entirely appropriate for the characters and situations) story around them, much like a sequel might?<<



I'd say it's a whole new story that uses elements from the Rapunzel fairy tale as a jumping off point. It's a straight fairytale-style adventure - not a satire.

You can read the whole discussion board HERE.



Disney Feature Animation is obviously a lot further a long in production right now and remains on target for the Thanksgiving release (note the 'date' on new teaser poster in the previous post) so fingers crossed.

New "Tangled" Teaser Poster from Disney + Some Development Art

Lots of hair...

(click image for a larger view):

The vibe is 'mischievous'. Think it will grab the boys attention? Personally I'd like to see more of the fencing horse, as in, a horse with a sword (artwork below).

Here's a reminder of the synopsis:And below is some uncredited development art that's been released (though much of it it looks like Glen Keane's work). I'm just posting a small selection. You can see a whole lot more HERE. I see a "lather, rinse, repeat" regarding some of the motifs (most of which I did not include here) - I'll leave you to discover what I mean by that - but I'm guessing it's supposed to be a tribute to the classics.Looking forward to seeing what they do with the chameleon. I hope he still doesn't talk by the time it gets to the big screen.This one below is lovely, although again a 'tribute' sort of piece to the classics and yes, there's a book for the beginning too - at least in the development art. That makes me happy. :) The mosaic is gorgeous.Again, you can see a whole lot more behind-the-scenes art HERE.

In case you missed it on the SurLaLune Blog, here's a behind-the-scenes featurette recently released by Disney on creating Tangled.


Sources for poster HERE and development artwork HERE.

Saving Spring - A Scandinavian Folktale

There is a lovely story I recently discovered which is perfect for Spring and Easter celebrations, called "Saving Spring". It's a Scandinavian story and has Old Man Winter, a man being turned into a tiger, talking animals, tattoos, an ice prison and a valiant rescue (Illustrators: grab your pencils!).

Here's an excerpt of the story, retold by Ilil Arbel, from Encyclopdia Mythica:

After a while, Oscar (having transformed into a tiger) knew he lost the rabbit, and sat down on the rough ground. Confusion and uncertainty mingled in his mind, and slowly, his memory returned and his own actions horrified him. Tears filled his eyes, and he hid his huge head between his paws, shaking with sorrow and shame. "It's all right, my friend" the rabbit's small voice reached him from a niche in the wall, where it was well protected from the tiger's rage, should it rise again. "This is what Old Man Winter does to people when they come here to save Spring. He turns them into animals and they forget their humanity."

You can read the whole story, beautifully told with rich imagery, HERE.
When Spring is freed, her steps cause flowers to bloom and new plant growth to sprout everywhere, which reminds me of the Spring Sprite from Fantasia 2000, one of the most beautiful pieces of animation ever to come out of Disney.


And if you're after more Spring themed fairy tales, don't miss "The Enchanted Castle, A Book of Fairy Tales from Flowerland" with full text and illustrations at Project Gutenberg. (Click on the image below to go there.)
Note: I haven't been able to find the artists to credit for the illustrations posted today, though they've been used on a lot of sites. If you know who they're by, please let me know so I can correct this.

Jack Zipes to Speak on "De-Disneyfying the Fairy-Tale Film"

Hans Christian Andersen's 200th Anniversary: The Fairy Tales DVD Collection

(9 Discs, 30 Animated Tales by A. Film A/S -winner of Hans Christian Andersen Award 2005)

Professor Jack Zipes, a well known and respected powerhouse in fairy tale studies, is set to speak in Vancouver on March 24th on the subject of fairy tales and film makers, specifically Disney's versions vs other treatments.

From The Grapevine:

Our contemporary concept and image of a fairy tale has been shaped and standardized by Disney so efficiently through the mechanisms of the culture industry that our notions of happiness and utopia are and continue to be filtered through a Disney lens, even if it is myopic. It seems that myopia has come to dominate both reality and utopia, thanks to Disneyfication, or that we are conditioned to view reality and fairy tales through a myopic pseudo-utopian lens. Despite the domination of the fairy-tale film by the Disney Corporation, however, it would be misleading to consider the Disney productions as constituting a monopoly of fairy-tale films, or that they have totally twisted our views of reality and utopia, for there have always been competing films that offer a different vision of fairy tales and social conditions. In this talk Professor Zipes will explore the different endeavors of filmmakers to develop fairy-tale films which essentially propose alternatives to the standard Disney fairy-tale film.

Event details are HERE.

Tangled Official Teaser Trailer Released

Hot on the heels of the unofficial trailer leak is an official Disney 'teaser trailer'. We learn one important thing from this trailer: "Once it's cut, it loses it's power..." We also hear part of the famous Rapunzel story line: "..let down your hair..." Glad they're including that.

Found via Zachary Levi's blog (who's the voice for Flynn Rider). Enjoy!

"Rinse. Rescue. Repeat." - Tangled Trailer Gets Leaked

I was going to save this for tomorrow but just in case this disappears I thought I'd share it right away: HERE!
I heard a couple of days ago (thank you Ms. Mantchev the Marvelous!) that a trailer-in-progress for "Tangled" got leaked to YouTube. By the time I got there (within an hour of the message) it had already been removed. I have been hunting since in case it reappeared and sure enough, turns out somebody caught it before it disappeared and now we can share it - at least until that gets removed too. I'm including all the info I've found just in case.

Please note: this is not an official trailer. It's basically a mock-up of a trailer-to-be and includes pencil storyboard sketches, not-final-rendered animation and more. The images only give you an idea of the action and staging and look nothing like the end product will, so try not to judge the visuals.

The new logo is in evidence in gold along with additional lines: "It takes two to get... Tangled... Rinse. Rescue. Repeat." Underneath the images, a remake of "Girls Just Want To Have Fun" is playing to accent the action, which - don't worry- is temp music only. There's far more footage of the rogue hero, Flynn, than Rapunzel, but that's not really a surprise.

From ohnotheydidnt:

Keep in mind that the trailer is mostly in storyboard and rough animation, so it will give you an idea of the animation, but since all the animation is unrendered we won't know much about the actual look of the film until the finished trailer or teaser is released (which is rumored to happen with the release of the "Princess and the Frog" dvd). The trailer does offer us our first look at new characters Pascal, Rapunzel's sidekick pet chameleon and her white horse Maximus.

Here's what Latino Review has to say about the contents:

Up until today, we were only able to show you early concept art with few story details but today we have quite the reverse. As the trailer mostly relies upon storyboards and the animations are still in their earliest stages, this isn't so much about the look as it is about the tone. While Tangled does mark Disney's return to its fairytale roots, it's with a decidedly modern interpretation that's more Road to El Dorado and Pixar than Snow White or Sleeping Beauty.

Here are some the select highlights from the trailer: Rapunzel has an anthropomorphized gekko/lizard of sorts, the male lead relies upon his charms and wiles to steal hearts and money but is captured by Rapunzel who seems immune to everything he can throw at her -- especially since she weilds a frying pan as her defense.

Overall, it seems like Disney is going for humor with this film and is trying to undermine its self-perceived princess problem by making the story every bit about the male lead as it is about Rapunzel escaping from her tower and letting down her golden hair.

Rapunzel can also apparently manipulate her hair as a weapon, though perhaps not with quite the 'cowgirl' feel that Shannon Hale's Rapunzel's Revenge heroine does.

I also want to mention that despite the marketing changes, the story will not likely have changed significantly to reflect the new 'boy-friendly' tack. One of the perceived problems with "Princess and the Frog" is that there is very little actual "princess" content and much more adventure/boy-friendly content than pro-princess girls were wanting/expecting. Despite recent Disney marketing being very pro-princess and girly the (animation) films do tend to strive for a balance of pretty vs gritty. They can be marketed either way. I'm curious to see if they can temper the pendulum swing before it goes from the extreme-princess marketing we just had to extreme-adventure-boy marketing.

Now, if you haven't already, go HERE to see the trailer (at the bottom of the article) before it vanishes!

Logo Released for "Tangled"

Disney released the new logo for "Tangled", the renamed Rapunzel film yesterday. Let the marketing begin.

Rapunzel Now "Tangled"

Remember my post announcing all sorts of changes at Disney feature animation last week? One of them has been publicly confirmed:

Rapunzel's new title is now, officially, Tangled.

Here's the announcement by the film's producer, Roy Conli, on Facebook:

"Hey everyone, I'm Roy Conli, producer of Disney's next animated film. I have some exciting news to share, and it was important to me that YOU guys – the Disney fans – hear it first. I want to tell you about Walt Disney Animation Studio's 2010 release, Tangled. It’s a really fresh, smart take on the Rapunzel story.

In our film, the infamous bandit Flynn Rider meets his match in the girl with the 70 feet of magical golden hair. We're having a lot of fun pairing Flynn, who's seen it all, with Rapunzel, who's been locked away in a tower for 18 years.

I’m so proud of the crew working on this film – they’re doing a fantastic job creating an awesome story with great characters and a stunning world – and it's all going to look amazing in 3D. All of us here at the studio are incredibly excited for you to see Tangled when it comes out in theaters this November."

(The comments below his announcement reflect the general sentiments I've been hearing about the name change too, by the way.)Why the change? Here's what First Showing is reporting:

So why get rid of a very recognizable title? For marketing purposes of course. Read on!

Blue Sky Disney goes on to explain that, after the mediocre-to-good success of The Princess and the Frog ($101 million in US box office), Disney is rethinking their marketing strategies for upcoming animated movies. They (meaning the execs and John Lasseter and so on) think that boys don't want to go see "girlie" movies and Rapunzel is instantly perceived as female because it's a story about a girl with the long hair. So by changing the name they give it some new life. Apparently it's not that girlie of a story either, so boys will still enjoy it. Other title considerations include the original Unbraided and The Thief in the Tower, too.

You can read the rest of the report HERE.

So what do you think?

"Waking Sleeping Beauty" Documentary

Even if you don't like or follow Disney (or animation) I thought the poster for this documentary film was still a must see. You must admit, dynamite is a unique approach to the problem... (probably not great for Beauty's hair though).

It should be noted that the age-old argument about Disney and fairy tales ("we should" vs "we shouldn't") can't help but be part of this film, even though fairy tales won't be the focus. It should also be noted that this documentary is causing quite a buzz in both the animation community and amongst Disney-philes.

Here's a little about it via First Showing:

Waking Sleeping Beauty is directed by Disney producer Don Hahn and features a behind-the-scenes look at Disney Animation during that 10 year period and what they had to go through to make movies. Beyond that, it has a fascinating look at the power struggle between then-Disney execs Jeffrey Katzenberg, Michael Eisner and Roy E. Disney (who passed away recently). This is, hands down, a must see documentary for anyone that loves Disney or anyone that wants to see a honest and intimate look at the world of Disney Animation. I'm glad to see that Disney is releasing it in theaters; we'll be supporting it through its release and beyond!

You can read more about it HERE.

For those interested in this, there will be limited public screenings happening in New York, LA, Chicago and San Francisco on March 26th.

Fairy Tale News Catch-Up - Mid February '10

There have been a few stories crop up I simply haven't had time to write posts for so, rather have you miss out, I'm doing a quick headliner post to catch you up and will link you to all the fairy tale goodness.

Just click on the headline to be taken to the story.

A straw-bale café and three little pigs?"Give me that straw to build me a house" by Leslie Brook

Energy efficient straw construction planned for Sutton in the UK, along with a permit for three little pigs to visit during the opening to continue the fairy tale theme.

Disney World expanding to add new fairy tale attractions & story interactions

Concepts for Gaston's Tavern

Guests will experience new rides including, an indoor Little Mermaid Attraction, and an expansion of Dumbo's Flying Circus. Fantasyland will also be more interactive. Guests will be able to train to be a knight, dine with princesses or have dinner in Gaston's Tavern from Beauty and The Beast. "Not only will it immerse guests into story lines of their favorite princesses, but it's actually going to make guests part of the stories," said Walt Disney Imagineer Diego Parris.

(More additions detailed in the article. Video promo included from announcement at the link. Older concept pics for the new additions at this link HERE.)

Nightmare reality for real life 'Sleeping Beauty' Louisa BallLouisa Ball suffers from sleeping illness

Fifteen year old girl (& family) come forward to highlight her contraction of rare illness Kleine-Levin Syndrome, also known as 'Sleeping Beauty Syndrome' (sort of an extreme version of narcolepsy). Seen mostly in teens, it is hoped she will be 'cured' (outgrow it?) in 10-12 years. Additional coverage HERE.

New "haunting erotic fairy tale" Sleeping Beauty film in the worksSleeping Beauty illustration by Gustav A. Tenggren

Actress Emily Browning to play a narcoleptic prostitute that caters to those with a 'certain fetish'. (I kid you not.) This won't be a kiddie film (obviously!) but it's not supposed to be an 'adult' film either. I wonder if the girl's name will be Talia?


Original draft images of Beauty & the Beast by Walter Crane going up for auction

2 Beauty & the Beast images by Walter Crane up for auction

The pictures, which illustrate the most famous scenes from the French love story, are estimated to make £200-£300 when they go up for auction on February 20.

Hansel & Gretel online flash game featured as 'game of the day' in LA TimesTitle graphic from Hansel & Gretel flash game-of-the-day

The aim is to collect all the stones. Interesting graphics that aren't at all cutesy. There's also a 'how to play' on YouTube HERE.

Tech-ed students building witch's house from Hansel & Gretel in Bookworm GardensScreen capture from Bookworm Gardens website

Bookworm Gardens, (is) a 2-acre fantasy garden based on children's literature located on the campus of the University of Wisconsin-Sheboygan. The gardens mix paths, shrubs, trees and environmentally friendly structures with a series of about 10 reading-themed areas based on 74 different children's books, including "Charlotte's Web," the classic story about a talented pig and spider.

... The centerpiece of Bookworm Gardens is the Hansel & Gretel Administration Building, an A-frame cottage-style structure with a curvy roofline to resemble the famous house of the classic children's tale. It will include a classroom, offices, gift shop, restrooms and a small kitchen.

Other buildings include the barn from Charlotte's Web and "Little House in the Big Woods". The gardens are due to open in October later this year.

********

There are a few more stories (there's always more fairy tale news than I can cover!) but I hope to cover a couple more fun ones in the next few days. :)

King of the Elves Canceled, Snow Queen Canceled, Rapunzel Getting A Name Change - What's Happening at Disney?

Looks like Disney Feature Animation is having second thoughts about a lot of things right now. Here's a summary:

"King of the Elves", a CG feature that's been on the Disney Animation projects' site for a while, quietly disappeared at the end of last year. (See HERE for a discussion on KotE - there's also discussion on the "Snow Queen" thread linked to below.)

Rumors of "Snow Queen" getting the axe (again) surfaced on February 3rd and seem to be confirmed now (see this enormous forum discussion - lots pages/entries - following the announcement of SQ getting greenlit, then cut HERE, as well as the TAG blog HERE, though I can't find the reference in a quick search.) This is despite a very recent public confirmation in early December 2009 by Disney Producer Peter del Vecho that "Snow Queen" was to be the next hand-drawn feature after the Pooh movie (see my post HERE).

And, also surfacing on February 3rd, it appears "Rapunzel" may be about to have (another) name change, though it should be noted, insiders are quick to say "Rapunzel" has always been a working title. See above for the initial change. (See HERE for the article.)

No official sword from the Mouse House on any of these yet but we're unlikely to hear anything official about the cancellations. Regarding the name change we should know in the next few months.

You, like many others, may be asking why? (Or: "WHY?!") Because there's no official, announcement reasons are vague and can only be considered rumors at this stage (even when information seems to be coming from the inside).King of the Elves disappeared very quietly and as not much information was released about the project in the first place there doesn't seem to be much discussion on the subject.

Snow Queen, on the other hand, has been getting a lot of attention by Disney watchers. From what I'm reading, many people picked up Hans Christian Andersen's story to read for the first time when Disney announced it was the next 2D project less than two months ago. Skepticism turned to excitement in the potential of the story, especially for animation, so the main rumor that Disney couldn't settle on a story approach have left people with their jaws dropped in shock. (Stay tuned for some glimpses at past attempts in the next few posts.)

The "Rapunzel" name change seems to be a reaction to 'too many girly pictures' and an attempt to attract more boys to the film/Disney product. Initially titled "Rapunzel Unbraided" then changed to just "Rapunzel" the proposed names take a different approach. The current possibilities are: "The Thief and the Tower", "The Hidden Tower" or perhaps even "Tangle" or "The Switch", though the last name may something else altogether.
There seems to be concern about Disney only being about fairy tales (again) and that there are already too many 'Princess pictures' in a row. The other factor, especially in SQ's cancellation, seems to be how "Princess and the Frog" 'underperformed' at the box office (read, it wasn't a blockbuster like "Avatar", though the current earnings would be considered an outstanding success by most film companies).

So what's next?

The answer to that is barely anything. "Rapunzel" will still be released and after that is a "Winnie the Pooh" feature. "Ramayana" has been bandied about for a while as a possible project and I read that it's mentioned in the introduction of the book "The Art of the Princess and the Frog", something I can't confirm as I haven't read the book yet myself. After that, nothing is confirmed or even rumored anymore. "The Ballad of Nessie" still remains on the shorts project list but this means not only are no more fairy tales planned and no more 2D but that a whole lot of people just lost their jobs. If Enchanted 2 wants animators (see my post earlier in the week HERE) there are a LOT to choose from this week!

Ramayana Concept Art
by Hans Bacher

Regarding the future of animated fairy tale films, not just by Disney, the response to "Rapunzel" will be telling but possibly not as much as when Pixar release their first fairy tale "The Bear and the Bow" (see my post on the exciting sounding movie HERE), which has a very different approach (ie. not a musical princess film).

If I find out any updates you can be certain I will post them.