Step inside the Disney Animation Research Library for a look back at Pinocchio
In 1937, Walt Disney changed cinema forever with the release of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the first ever full-length animated film. Snow White‘s box office success paved the way for a slate of animated features. While Disney himself initially planned Bambi as the studio’s followup, production challenges would end up giving 1940’s Pinocchio that honor. This week, the story of the little wooden boy and his quest to be human returns from the Disney Vault in the form of a Signature Edition Blu-ray that boasts all new archival special features. CS got a first-hand look at how Disney cherishes the past with a visit to the Disney Animation Research Library. Home to roughly 65 million pieces of original animation artwork, the ARL’s archives stretch back even further than Snow White with archival material from Walt’s early Alice and Oswald the Lucky Rabbit shorts!
In the player below, you can check out our visit to the Disney Animation Research Library and meet two key figures who are helping to keep history alive. J.B. Kaufman is a film historian and author who has written and lectured on Disney animation, American silent film, and related topics. Among his numerous books is the recent Pinocchio: The Making of the Disney Epic, which goes in-depth on Walt’s creative process. You’ll also get to meet Disney’s own Fox Carney, who serves as Manager, Research at the Disney Animation Research Library. A 24-year veteran of the Walt Disney Company, Fox has spent nearly 21 of those years, assisting in providing access to the ARL’s collection.
On store shelves tomorrow, the Pinocchio Walt Disney Signature Collection Blu-ray release offers hours of classic bonus material and exclusive features, including a reinvented rendition of “When You Wish Upon a Star” created and performed by music influencers from Disney’s Maker Studios; never-before-seen artwork from the film’s Pleasure Island sequence; archival recordings of Walt himself during Pinocchio production; and a recently-restored and scored 1927 short featuring Oswald the Lucky Rabbit.
Click here to order the Pinocchio Walt Disney Signature Collection at Amazon.