Disney studios are acknowledged today as the pioneers of animation, having made some of the greatest animated films of all time. However, even the greats can go through a slump. Waking Sleeping Beauty is the story a period between Disney’s golden age and the modern era (which began with The Little Mermaid) where Disney was in a rut. This documentary talks about how they pulled themselves out of that low period and recreated themselves for a new generation, despite competition from new animation studios.
Walt Disney came on the scene in the 1930s and quickly established himself as an innovator in the field of animation. He created some of the most iconic cartoon characters ever made and, as the head of Disney Studios; he oversaw the making of such animated masterpieces as Snow White & the Seven Dwarves, Fantasia, Cinderella, Pinocchio, and many others. Disney was the unquestioned king of the animation heap for decades.
In the sixties, the state of animated films started changing (With films like Yellow Submarine) and the mastermind behind the studio, Walt Disney, passed away in 1966. Many of the ‘old guard’ from the early years were retiring. This was the beginning of a slow decline in quality for the studio which had once defined animation at its best.
By the time the 1970s rolled around, Disney was in a genuine slump. The glory days seemed to be gone. Most of the films they produced during this period were unexceptional and not overly well received either by fans or critics. The Aristocats, Pete’s Dragon and others did not meet people’s expectations about what a Disney movie should be. No one seemed to be sure what to do about it. There was talk about mothballing the animation department of Disney and focusing on live action films.
Roy Disney, son of Walt, was the new Chairman of Disney Studios and decided to bring in some new blood. Don Bluth was brought in to run the animation department. Immediately, he had a polarizing effect on the other animators. The remaining old guard from the Walt years saw him as a semi-talented wanna-be Walt. The younger artists saw him as the new Walt and the future of animation. There was quite a lot of friction and politics behind the scenes. After a time, Bluth left to start his own studio, taking many of the Disney animators with him. Bluth went on to have a successful career in animated films on his own, but he left Disney in dire straights.
Michael Eisner was brought in as the man who would pull Disney back from the brink, going into the eighties. To do this, he lured Jeffery Katzenberg away from Paramount to run the animation division. These two Hollywood businessmen were charged with saving the studio. Many of the established Disney artists weren’t crazy about the invasion of the businessmen. They were appalled when Katzenberg said that the goal of the studio was to make money, not to pander to the audience. It was Katzenberg who spoke the famous quote, “We’ve got to wake up sleeping beauty”.
Things started off rough for the duo. The film that the animation department was working on, The Black Cauldron was deemed far too dark for kids and had to undergo heavy editing to make it more family friendly, which infuriated the creative talent. The film flopped, continuing Disney’s unlucky streak. Katzenberg continued to feud with his rebellious animators who didn’t think he was qualified to run an animated studio. His insistence on renaming the film “Basil of Baker Street” as The Great Mouse Detective became the epitome of corporate mentality interference to the creative crew.
More problems came when Steven Spielberg opened rival animation studio Amblin, who defeated Disney at the box office with An American Tail. Soon after, Pixar came on the scene. The three minds in charge of the studio—Roy Disney, Michael Eisner and Jeffery Katzenberg—were having a clash of egos. Was Disney old news? Their current project, Oliver And Company, was not a ground-breaking piece of film.
A turning point came when Disney collaborated with Amblin to make Who Framed Roger Rabbit? (1988) which was a critical and box office hit. This led to a change in the thinking by the studio to a more out-of-the-box type of feature. They remembered Walt Disney’s philosophy of “If you’re not doing something that hasn’t been done before, then it isn’t worth doing”. People inside Disney started pitching new ideas, backed by a more modern, computerized style of animation. This led to the Little Mermaid, (1989) which started the string of Disney Mega-hits, including Beauty and the Beast (The first animated film to be nominated for Best Picture), Aladdin and the Lion King.
Walt Disney’s old mantra of “Tell a great story, have interesting characters and push the boundaries of animation technology” was reborn for a new generation and Disney came back from the brink to entertain the children and grandchildren of the kids who grew up with Disney films. Sleeping Beauty had reawakened.
DVD Bonus Features:
There are several featurettes on the DVD, including the short “Why Wake Sleeping Beauty?”, deleted scenes, a feature on the men behind the studio, a studio tour, a feature about Walt Disney, a commentary tract by director Don Hahn ad Producer Peter Schneider.
"Waking Sleeping Beauty" is on sale December 7, 2010 and is rated PG. Documentary. Directed by Don Hahn. Written by Patrick Pacheco. Starring Bette Midler, Robin Williams.
