Don Peri

This untold history collection chronicles the progression of the animation director role during the 1920s through the 1970s. For students of filmmaking and management, this book serves as go-to resource for a complex and sometimes technical role that demanded precision. For all Disney fans, these personal portraits of Walt's closest creative leaders offer a fuller picture behind the stories, characters, and magical realms in Disney's beloved and respected animated films. When the very first animated films appeared, there were no directors. With no actors, sets, costumes, or sound, what appeared onscreen was simply decided and drawn by an animator. Since early films were usually made by only one or two artists, there was little need for planning. Organization was loose. When Walt Disney started animating on shorts and advertising projects in Kansas City, Missouri, he followed that process, along with fellow artist and friend Ub Iwerks. Walt found that his strength was in story and character. He began writing outlines, describing what would appear scene by scene. Soon the text was accompanied by a sketch previsualizing the layout, giving all animators working on a film a clear vision of how their parts fit into the whole. Ultimately, Walt shepherded stories from their inception through every revision and gag. He approved every camera angle. He dictated what happened in every shot, sometimes every frame, obsessing over every detail. While not credited as such onscreen, Walt was the first Disney director. As the Disney studio grew, Walt organically evolved the role of director, reflecting the amount of trust he had in those he worked with, his interest in a specific project, and what other projects he had on his plate. Walt expected his directors to follow his instructions--and to improve the work at every turn. Directing at Disney: The Original Directors of Walt's Animated Films offers the little-known history behind Walt's foundational directors, such as Wilfred Jackson, Clyde Geronimi, and Dave Hand. These talents directed some of the most beloved films in existence--Snow White and Seven Dwarfs, Pinocchio, Peter Pan, One Hundred and One Dalmatians--yet virtually no one has heard of them . . . until now.

In this volume Don Peri expands his extraordinary work conducting in-depth interviews with Disney employees and animators. These recent interviews include conversations with actors and performers rather than solely animators. This book offers Peri's extensive interviews with Marc Davis, Frank Thomas, and Ollie Johnston, three of Walt Disney's famed ""Nine Old Men of Animation."" Peri interviewed two Disney Mouseketeers-Bobby Burgess and Sharon Baird-from the original Mickey Mouse Club Show, providing valuable perspectives on how the Walt Disney Company worked with television. Lou Debney, a Disney television producer, discusses the company's engagement with television and live-action film. Walter Lantz talks about his work in the animation business, especially with Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. And Dave Hand discusses his legendary work on Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Taken together, the interviews in Working with Disney create an enlightening perspective on the Walt Disney Company as it grew from its animation roots into a media powerhouse.

This book includes interviews with Ken Anderson, Les Clark, Larry Clemmons, Jack Cutting, Don Duckwall, Marcellite Garner, Harper Goff, Floyd Gottfredson, Dick Huemer, Wilfred Jackson, Eric Larson, Clarence Nash, Ken O'Connor, Herb Ryman, and Ben Sharpsteen. Walt Disney created or supervised the creation of live-action films, television specials, documentaries, toys, merchandise, comic books, and theme parks. His vision, however, manifested itself first and foremost in his animated shorts and feature-length cartoons, which are loved by millions around the world. Working with Walt: Interviews with Disney Artists collects revealing conversations with animators, voice actors, and designers who worked extensively with Disney during the heyday of his animation studio. The book includes fifteen interviews with artists who directed segments of such classic animated features as Dumbo and Fantasia. Some interviewed were part of Disney's famed team dubbed ""The Nine Old Men of Animation,"" and some worked closely with Disney on Steamboat Willie, his first cartoon with sound. Among the subjects the interviewees discuss are the studio's working environment, the high-water mark of animation during Hollywood's Golden Age, and Disney's mixture of childlike charm and hard-nosed business drive. Through these voices, Don Peri preserves an account of the Disney magic from those who worked closely with him.

A collection of revealing conversations with animators, voice actors, and designers who worked extensively with Walt Disney during the heyday of his animation studio preserves an account of the Disney magic. Simultaneous.