101 DALMATIANS

1961

One Hundred and One Dalmatians is Disney's 17th animated feature, and as many of Disney's movies had done before, this one used new technologic applications that changed the way animated movies were done. But 101 Dalmatians wasn't only innovative for its technological advances, it was a huge change in Disney animated movies in many aspects.

Based on the novel written by Dodie Smith in 1956, the whole adaptation was done by Bill Peet, who wrote the script, did all the storyboard for the film and was even a character stylist. He envisioned the movie so well that when the story adaptation was finished Smith said that Pete's version was even better than her own book.

SLEEPING BEAUTY

1959

Sleeping Beauty is Walt Disney's 16th animated feature, and it's first attempt at a movie in 70mm film. This format was much larger than previous ones used by the studio and the sets took longer to finish. This was only one of the many reasons why the movie was the most expensive production to date by Disney.

The first version of the script, an adaptation of Pierrault's tale (written in 1697 and reinterpreted by the Brothers Grimm in 1812), was presented in 1952, but as many other Disney projects, was put on stan-by by Walt Disney. The main reason for putting the movie on hold was that Walt felt that the story bared to many similarities to Snow White and Cinderella, and although both films had been tremendously successful, he wanted to deliver something new.

LADY AND THE TRAMP

1955

Lady and the Tramp is Disney Animated Features' 15th movie, but more importantly, the first animated movie ever made for Cinemascope. Created in 1953, the CinemaScope lens allowed movies to be filmed and projected in wide screen, up to three times as long as previous formats. So the screen would actually be placed in a semicircle instead of having it flat, giving the projection a more surrounding effect.

The film was originally produced as a widescreen film, but with the increasing popularity of CinemaScope, Walt Disney decided to adapt it so it could be played both on widescreen and CinemaScope. So the team at Disney Studios had to work on two different versions of the film. Backgrounds were expanded and the characters had to be positioned further apart from each other to fit the CinemaScope format.

PETER PAN

1953

In 1904, The boy who would not grow up, a play by Scottish novelist  James Matthew Barrie, was first played at the Duke of York's Theatre in London, and in 1913, Walt Disney saw it for the first time and was amazed by it. Shortly after, he would even participate in a school version of the play along his brother Roy.

The first Peter Pan Movie was a black and white, silent feature released in 1924. As the previous versions of the play, the role of Peter was played by a woman, actress Bettie Bronson. The film featured many technological advances, such as having a live action Tinker Bell, and other special effects.

In 1939, Disney bought the screen rights, and in 1940 the studio began producing a feature length film. But the Walt would have to wait 14 years to release his 14th feature film called Peter Pan. For me, one of the top 5 movies in Walt Disney history.

ALICE IN WONDERLAND

1951

Alice in Wonderland, adapted from the novel by Lewis Carroll, is the 13th film by Disney Animated Studios.
Lewis Carroll's book was a great inspiration to Walt Disney who produced several short films based on several segments of the original story. Since the days of the Laugh O Grams, Disney worked on several  animated segments called Alice Comedies, which combined live action with classic animation.

In 1936 he also released a short film, starring Mickey Mouse, called "Thru the mirror" which finds Mickey having a strange dream after reading Alice through the looking glass. Although the film is very loosely based on the original story, there are some nice gags, and the animation is really great.

After this production, the studio worked on several other adaptations of the story, none of which would be released.

CINDERELLA

1950

Cinderella is the 12th animated feature in the Disney Animated Classics, and the return to full length films after the production of 6 package films (films made up of several shorts). 

Even though many of their features had been critically acclaimed, up to this point Snow white had been the only real economic success for Disney. By the end of the 1940s the company's future was in doubt. So when Walt Disney decided to make a new full length feature film, the idea of reimagining a classic story was probably the safe way to go. 

ADVENTURES OF ICHABOD AND MR. TOAD

1949

The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad is the last package film in a series of 6, made by Disney Animated Studios through the 1940s. 

As the title sugests, this feature film is made up of two stories, both based upon popular tales. The first one, Mr Toad is a character from The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame, a classic tale from English literature. The second one is an adaptation of the Legend of Sleepy Hollow, a tale written by American writer Washington Irving.