‘Once Upon a Studio’ is Pure Disney Magic.
Disney’s all-new short film Once Upon a Studio is something special. It’s the perfect love letter to 100 years of the Walt Disney Animation Studios, and something that’ll tug on the heartstrings of anyone who grew up on Disney. We both found it really moving–Disney magic in its purest form–and wanted to take a minute to highlight the short and why it gives us hope.
For those who are unfamiliar with it, Once Upon a Studio is now streaming on both Disney+ and Hulu as part of Disney’s 100 Years of Wonder anniversary celebration. The short film has also aired on ABC, Disney Channel, Freeform, FX, and other Disney networks; Once Upon a Studio will also play in front of the Disney100 special engagement of Moana, in select theaters through October 26, 2023. So you should have no trouble finding it if you’re a “real” Disney fan. (There’s a more than decent chance you’ve already seen it!)
Featuring 543 Disney characters from more than 85 feature-length and short films, Walt Disney Animation’s Once Upon a Studio assembles heroes and villains, princes and princesses, sidekicks and sorcerers to celebrate 10 decades of storytelling, artistry, and technological achievements. In so doing, it melds all-new hand-drawn and CG animation, along with famed actors returning to voice their characters.
Mickey Mouse leads the emotional and joyful reunion of beloved Disney characters as they come together for a group photo to mark Disney’s 100th anniversary. Once Upon a Studio is written and directed by Dan Abraham and Trent Correy and is produced by Yvett Merino and Bradford Simonsen.
Once Upon a Studio takes place at the end of the work day at Walt Disney Animation Studios in Burbank, California. The short film starts right as the artists and storytellers are heading home after a long workday is ending. Disney Legend Burny Mattinson—who worked at The Walt Disney Company for 70 years, longer than any other employee—is the last person to leave.
When the coast is clear, Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse step out of a picture on the wall and ask their animated friends to take an official 100th anniversary portrait. Hand-drawn characters, such as Oswald the Lucky Rabbit and Merlin, intermingle with CG characters, such as Baymax and Rapunzel, as they comically scramble to assemble for the group photo.
Ever since watching Once Upon a Studio for the first…and second…and etc…times, we’ve been reading everything we can about it to learn more–how Disney did it, the little hidden nods in there, etc. Rather than regurgitating what we’ve read, here are a few articles that the Walt Disney Company has released about Once Upon a Studio:
How a Secret Passion Project Transformed into Once Upon a Studio – From a pitch meeting that brought Jennifer Lee, Chief Creative Officer of Walt Disney Animation Studios, to tears to rallying artists and technicians to revisit some of the studio’s most beloved characters, here’s the story of how Abraham and Correy’s passion project was fast-tracked into production.
Celebrating the Artistry and Technology Behind Disney Animation’s Once Upon a Studio – Eric Goldberg served as head of hand-drawn animation, with Andrew Feliciano serving as head of CG animation. The two worked with Abraham and Correy to ensure they honored each character’s style—and that when they interacted with one another, it looked seamless.
Plus, the filmmakers recount the process of shooting live-action plates in the Roy E. Disney Animation Building, recording with more than 40 original voice actors, and more. (Spoiler for those who haven’t seen Once Upon a Studio–they crushed it!)
Richard Sherman Revisits Walt Disney’s Favorite Song in Once Upon a Studio – This is the touching story of how, at age 94, Disney Legend Richard Sherman returned to Walt Disney’s office in Burbank, California, to rerecord “Feed the Birds” from the classic film Mary Poppins (1964).
It was the same place Richard and his late brother, Disney Legend Robert Sherman, would regularly perform the song for Walt on Friday afternoons. Abraham, Correy, Merino, and Simonsen share how a nod to that special tradition made its way into Once Upon a Studio. (We have seen Richard Sherman at a number of D23 events over the last decade, but he’s been absent the last few years. It’s so great to hear that this true embodiment of the Disney spirit and legacy helped with Once Upon a Studio.)
Honoring Disney Legend Burny Mattinson’s Legacy – Once Upon a Studio begins with the artists, storytellers, and technologists at Walt Disney Animation Studios heading home for the day—and Disney Legend Burny Mattinson, The Walt Disney Company’s longest-serving employee, is the last person to walk out the door. Clark Spencer, President of Disney Animation, says Mattinson was the perfect person to make such a cameo in the short film given his depth of experience and his continued influence.
Meet Two Disney Animation Apprentices Behind Once Upon a Studio – Five hand-drawn animation apprentices were chosen from over 2,000 applicants, representing the first new hand-drawn animator hires at Disney in over a decade. These apprentices made a major mark on the studio when they were invited to contribute to Once Upon a Studio. In this Q&A, program supervisor Goldberg and two of the former apprentices, Tyler Pacana and Austin Traylor—both of whom are now full-time Disney animators—recount their experiences and share hopes for the future of Disney’s hand-drawn animation department.
Turning to commentary, it’s no secret that Disney has had a rough few years. If you’re first and foremost a fan of Walt Disney World or Disneyland, the ways this is happening are obvious–price increases, erosion of guest benefits, nickel & diming, maintenance woes, and other things I’m probably forgetting.
The studios have had their own problems, and everyone certainly has their own ‘diagnosis’ for the cause of Disney’s commercial and critical bombs. For us, it comes down to a lot of content–and that term is chosen deliberately as opposed to films or stories–that cannot justify their own existence. CGI-heavy sequels with zero stakes, unnecessary live-action remakes that can’t hold a candle to the originals, and a bunch of other creatively bankrupt content that lacks heart and earned emotion.
Granted, we haven’t watched everything due to disinterest, but the only movie we really loved was Turning Red. (Don’t hate me, but I only liked Encanto. I’m glad other fans and families loved it, though, and I’m also happy that an original animated musical has become another modern classic.) And that’s just of the animated movies. Don’t even get me started on the (supposedly) live action content, which has become the movie equivalents of McDonald’s.
There are all these fears about Apple buying Disney, but quite frankly, Apple TV+ has a better and more creative track record than Disney over the last couple years. Even if you’re a diehard fan who has somehow been pleased with Disney’s recent output, there’s no denying that the company’s reputation has taken a hit with the general public and the brand isn’t what it once was.
Once Upon a Studio illustrates that Disney’s still got the magic touch when they lead with heart and creativity. It’s such a simple premise, and one that could’ve easily been phoned-in fan-service or superficial emotional manipulation. Yet it very much is not.
Instead, it’s a true love letter to the history of Walt Disney Animation Studios, with a ton of work put in to making the short a seamless and sweet tribute to so many beloved stories. The characters that appear–and there are many of them–are all thoughtfully introduced, and the way they interact and appear alongside one another is clever and meaningful at times.
I can’t say enough positive things about Once Upon a Studio. It really tugged at both of our heartstrings, and we’re clearly not alone. (Sarah cried for pretty much the entirety of Once Upon a Studio, although that’s probably not just due to the short!) This has garnered nearly universal acclaim from critics and fans, and Disney knows it’s something special. The short is now being played in the Main Street Opera House at Disneyland, and hopefully it’s coming soon to Walt Disney Presents at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, too.
They’re obviously two very different things, but Once Upon a Studio and Wondrous Journeys are my two favorite things to come out of Disney100 thus far. It’s probably not a coincidence that those are the two things from the celebration that pay tribute to 100 years of the Walt Disney Animation Studios.
Other than that, I can’t really think of much from the 100 Years of Wonder celebration that’s been memorable or worthy of such a milestone. Frankly, it’s unfortunate that two of Disney’s biggest anniversaries–this and Walt Disney World’s 50th–have been underwhelming.
I can completely understand why Disney100 has been an afterthought in Florida and is basically just a ribbon on top of the EPCOT transformation–as Walt Disney World fans have “anniversary fatigue” after 18 months of the underwhelming World’s Most Magical Celebration.
It’s weird that more wasn’t done at Disneyland, though. That’s Walt Disney’s original magic kingdom and the park where history is a really big deal with fans. Not to mention the international parks, one of which got a bench and another got a single-day character celebration. But I’m not complaining too much–Wondrous Journeys should long outlast Disney100 and is arguably the best anniversary entertainment in decades. (Possibly since ‘Remember… Dreams Come True’ back for Disneyland’s 50th.)
With that said, Disney’s 100th Anniversary isn’t over yet. The last big thing on the horizon is Wish, the latest movie from Walt Disney Animation Studios that opens in theaters on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, November 22, 2023.
Wish is the tentpole of Disney100, and the company is billing it as a story that’s a century in the making. The epic animated musical is inspired by the legacy of films from the studio and asks the question: “How did the famous Wishing Star, upon which so many Disney characters have wished, come to be?”
Wish is set in Rosas, the kingdom of wishes where wishes can literally come true. The movie introduces 17-year-old Asha—an optimist with a sharp wit who cares endlessly about her community. In a moment of desperation, Asha makes an impassioned plea to the stars, which is answered by a cosmic force, a little ball of boundless energy called Star.
Together, Asha and Star confront a most formidable foe—the ruler of Rosas, King Magnifico—to save her community and prove that when the will of one courageous human connects with the magic of the stars, wondrous things can happen.
I’ve been trying not to get too excited about this, but I can’t help myself. Wish looks incredible.
The story itself, the setting, watercolor animation style, the characters–everything. It looks like the perfect recipe for a heartwarming animated film that only Disney could deliver, perfect for Disney100. Oh, and the biggest star of the whole movie is a goat?!?! Sign me up!
There’s a lot in Wish that reminds me of the Walt-era films, which I absolutely love. (More on that in a minute.) It also has Frozen, Moana, and Coco vibes–three of our favorite four (plus Inside Out) movies from Walt Disney Animation Studios or Pixar in the last decade.
I would imagine that many of you already saw the trailer for Wish, but that you might’ve seen it on social media in a lower resolution, which made the visual style look weird. I’d encourage you to rewatch this version, making sure that 4K is turned on. It looks so much better:
Not to get too carried away, but I’d also encourage you to watch the international trailer, which has some minor and major differences that make it better as a whole:
What I really like about this is that it’s an original story that also doubles as a love letter to the technical and storytelling legacy of Walt Disney Animation Studios. Now, I’m hardly an animation expert, but even in the trailer, there were little nods that I noticed to Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Pinocchio, and Sleeping Beauty.
This also isn’t just fan-service in the form of Easter Eggs or hidden references–we’re talking things like shots inspired by the multiplane camera. There’s a lot that’ll be lost on mainstream audiences, but Disney fans will truly appreciate.
More than anything else, I’m happy that it’s an ambitious original story (and one with an actual villain again!), and not another heartless “live action” (is that even accurate given that 95% of those movies are manufactured by computers?) remake, origin story that no one asked for, or paint-by-numbers cash grab sequel (that somehow still manages to lose money because it inexplicably cost hundreds of millions of dollars to make).
Suffice to say, I am really looking forward to Wish. Disney already seems confident in its quality, with a stronger marketing campaign for this than we’ve seen for the last several animated movies. Here’s hoping that Wish is every bit as good as the trailers make it look, that it makes a boatload of money at the box office, and reminds the executives just why fans started falling in love with the Walt Disney Animation Studios 100 years ago. I’d love to see the second 100 years start with a new renaissance, and a renewed focus on original storytelling, creativity, and passion projects.
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YOUR THOUGHTS
Have you watched Once Upon a Studio? What did you think about the short film? What about Wish? Have you been watching the trailers? Notice the nods to Walt-era animated classics? Excited for the movie, and hope it marks a return to creative, original storytelling for Disney? What do you think of the streaming series and movies from the Live Action, Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios in the last couple of years? Agree or disagree with our take? Any questions? We love hearing from readers, so please share any other thoughts or questions you have in the comments below!
I originally skipped over “Once Upon a Studio” not knowing it was a short. But now that I’ve watched it, that scene with Walt and Mickey is amazing. Pure Disney magic right there. So very well done.
The short is lovely. But it’s also a stark reminder of all the magic Disney has lost…or thrown away…
Will check this out but I assume it will just be depressing knowing the garbage they churn out now lol
I enjoyed the “short” but I feel that Disney can do way better to celebrate 100 years of an enduring legacy. There should be a lot more tributes to the history of Disney. I’m very underwhelmed and it just goes to show Disney doesn’t make quality, family entertainment any more.
Just finished watching.
I laughed out loud at the 101 dalmatians watching Night On Bald Mountain scene and then got teary eyed twice. All in 15 minutes. That”s great movie making.
This short is the best thing Disney has done in a very long time. It’s absolutely fabulous.
Walt and Mickey brought me to tears and then of course the finale.
It doesn’t seem fair to compare a 15 minute short with a full length feature, but some of them have been so bad they don’t come close to hitting the Disney mark set by Walt, whereas Once Upon a Studio is a bullseye.
NO! It’s Two bulls eyes, back to back, dead center…like only Walt and Davy Crockett could achieve.
Next time Disney sends out anything that won’t fit directly into a mailbox without bending or mangling it, they should put a sticker or stamp it “Do Not Bend!”
Sorry but “Do not Bend.” just encourages them.
Head to LOWES and buy their BIGGEST mailbox.
Mine is huge and it pisses USPS off.
In one of your other blog renderings I mentioned that Wish looks to be a great one and I’ll be first online to buy tickets to see it in the theaters. I think the last animated Disney film I took members of my family to see opening night was Fantasia 2000 in Manhattan for a special giant simax screen with special audio on Broadway. PS If you’re wondering. I have been back to the movies since then.
PSS I said I’d be first online to buy tickets for Wish and I was, this evening (Oct 20) I bought 7 tickets for Nov 28th. It opens on the 22nd but we go on Tuesdays when my AMC membership gets me seats for $7 and online fees are waived, but FYI Wish is $11 not $7.
The short was beautifully done! Made me cry in a couple of places.
I would be really interested in a good quality print of the “group photo” at the end! I’ve looked all over and just found screenshots people have taken of the video. Does anyone know, does this exist?
Cast Members actually received a lithograph of the photo! At least at DLR.
I would love a print, also!
Everyone would, including me, who only cried twice during the 15 minute short.
BUT it would seem I’m the only one who’s heard about this new thing called ebay. It’s like a black market where people can sell things they got for free for for unholy amount of cash.
I’ve seen those free magic band sliders Disney once gave us, out of the goodness of their hearts, selling on this ebay for $40 a piece. Yeah folks that’s the Disney spirit.
Well guess what you can pick up for between $500 and $10,000 ?!?!?!?
Yes it’s that fabulous litho.
But here’s the good news., When Disney sees the demand for those prints they’ll be available at a much lower price, so just hold your horses and cling even tighter to your wallets, because they’ll be coming or my names’s not Scrooge McDuck!
For those interested in getting a poster I’ve done some homework and there are 4 spots that I’ve found selling it. All 4 of these websites look very much alike and operate the same system.
There are three different sizes (16 x 12 – $19.95) (24 x 16 – $21.95) and (36 x 24 – $23.95) now those prices are for posters on 200 gsm paper. You can also spend more and get them on canvas framed or unframed on 300 gsm. Bigger isn’t always better. 200 gsm will be fine for a quality poster.
They have the one you see at the end of the short and they also have one which is just the “photo” without the words at the bottom of the poster. Check it out, you’ll see what I mean.
Each site also has other Disney items.
Not sure how they can do this, supposedly they’re authorized.
FYI I have no connection to any of them.
I found them by searching out Once Upon a Studio and I’m sharing what I found because I know a lot of folks would like a quality picture to hang on their wall.
I also bought a shirt (Steamboat Willie) for $40 that sells on rsvlts for $70. Prices are pretty good but the legitimacy of the items I bought and the quality…?
I’ll follow up when I receive my stuff or if there are problems. Personally I spent about $132 for 4 posters and a shirt. If I was scammed it’s not the end of the world but like I say I will follow up as soon as I have something to report.
The site I bought from is mugteeco.com the other three sites I found selling the picture in question are horusteez.com / binteez.com (which has a rug with the picture on it as well as the posters / kaiteez.com which I noticed has a Wish tee shirt and poster too
Good Luck and if anyone out there already knows something about these websites please add your voice here for the rest of us.
I’ve researched these companies. I am going to try and stop payment. I have a bad feeling about what I’m seeing. There’s very little known about them because they are about 10 months old BUT still there should be more info. I would say stay away. Disney should eventually make this poster available. I also sent an email to RSVLTS asking them about these companies that are selling some of their shirts. If I hear from them I will reprot it here.
Saturday Oct 21st Once Upon A Studio POSTER HUNT UPDATE!
Mugteeco has a phone number but it doesn’t work. Strike one.
They do have an online support system and I spoke for over an hour with someone named “Hannah”. She was delightful and didn’t back down to any of my tough questions. So ball one.
For instance my shirt that normally sells at RSVLTS for $70 but they sell for $40 is being made in China and it’s a dup. I asked dup like duplicate? Like a fake rolex or a copy of a Dooney & Bourke bag? And she replied honestly, “Yes.” I’m gonna say that’s like a foul ball and also a pitch clock violation on the pitcher making it 2 balls and 2 strikes.
The posters are made in the USA. I should have a tracking number for them by Wed or earlier and the posters might arrive as early as next week. Ball 3 for a full count.
Those other three company websites she says are not connected to them but they are aware of them and they are copying mugteeco. Hmmm? Another foul ball, count is still full.
Monday I hope to hear from RSVLTS who I also contacted but they are closed for the weekend. I will let you know what they tell me. They can’t be pleased about someone duplicating their shirts in China. RSVLTS is a legit co that sells really nice clothing and some of their Disney stuff is sold at shopDisney.
Meantime hold onto your hard earned money and I’ll keep you updated.
As for me, to be on the safe side, I’m going to get a new Disney VISA card and have them open a case vs mugteeco. If the posters arrive we’ll drop it and I told all of this to “Hannah”. which I doubt is her real name. She did send me a selfie and a bunch of places to check out customer reports but there are only a few of them. Another foul ball. Stay tuned.
Mickey 1928,
Did the prints ever come in? I found this website as well and want to order the poster, but will wait and see if its legit and wondering if you have an update yet?
The news you’ve been waiting for regarding the great Once Upon A Studio POSTER HUNT!
First for SHECK. I hope you see this.
They promised me I’d get a tracking number by Wednesday October 25th, I did. The tracking number was real and the posters arrived October 30th.
They’re great.
I had ordered two of the one seen in the short and a couple of other Disney posters.
They’re absolutely beautiful. As to authenticity, I doubt they are connected to Disney in any way but I don’t know that for a fact. They look fantastic and that’s the bottom line. If you’re wondering, I went for the largest available.
I also ordered a shirt which they were up front with me about. It was being made in China, would take awhile and is a “copy”.
I heard from RSVLTS, who sell great Disney shirts. I know as I own a few of them.
They told me they have no connection to this company and were unaware of them. They thanked me for the heads up and said there were a lot of companies out there copying them.
I suspect the shirt will eventually show up. They said it would take longer than it would to invade Taiwan. OK they didn’t say that BUT they did say it could take as long as two months. As to it’s quality, that’s wait and see. To be honest, the total for four posters and one shirt has been completely satisfied by the posters alone. So if I never get the shirt or if after one washing it shrinks to the size of a hand puppet, it’s ok, I’m good. The purchase was worth it.
Now my 1st recommendation would be to pay for them using something like paypal. I had used my Disney Visa card, as I do with all things, for the points. After a discussion with Visa I decided to cancel my card in case, down the road, someone at the company tried to use it. Maybe I was being overly cautious but VISA told me they still had the special metal Disney 100 cards so I had no reason not to.
My second recommendation is to contact them via live customer support. Tell them a friend bought some posters and was very happy but you’re concerned since they are such a new company without a lot of feedback. Get them to give you some guarantees, like when you’ll be given a tracking number.
If you love this picture this is currently the only way to get it without paying a fortune for an original cast member print. Remember it’s not a real print, it’s a poster, but you frame this thing behind glass and you’ll be ecstatic.
I hope this helps all the Shecks out there. I will post one more time, after the shirt comes in.
This is my last communication on the matter of the great ONCE UPON A POSTER HUNT.
The posters are great but I also ordered a shirt which arrived today.
You may recall the shirt I ordered was Steamboat Willie and it looked exactly like the one which the wonderful company known as RSVLTS sells. So much so that I thought Mugteeco must be affiliated with them.
First, the shirt looks fine.
It’s the same exact pattern but Mickey st al appear to be a bit larger, which is ok by me.
The RSVLTS background is a bright white, Mugteeco is a slightly tinted white perhaps because the material is a satin.
RSVLTS is $70 whereas I paid $40 so I assume the quality of the material used for mine is not as good BUT here’s an interesting point, generally speaking an expensive shirt, like say a Tommy Bahama, the pocket lines up with the pattern of the shirt.
Now when I ordered the shirt they asked if I wanted a pocket ($4 more) so I said sure but I was expecting the usual slapped on pocket that you see on any shirt under $120.
To my surprise, Mugteeco lined the pocket up with the pattern and did a superb job. Looks terrific and I did not expect that for the price I paid.
The real shocker is that RSVLTS doesn’t line the pocket up with the pattern at all, so you get things like Half of Mickeys body above the pocket and a steering wheel where his legs should be.
There is no label in my shirt, just a tag with the size on it. I haven’t tried it on but I know it fits and whatever the material is, it feels nice to the touch.
I have no complaints.
Will your experience be the same? I certainly hope so.
Remember I was so happy to find the poster at a reasonable price that I ordered everything rather quickly. Afterwards I had some concerns, contacted the company and spoke with a person for over an hour.
They knew I had contacted my credit card company, was cancelling my card, sent an email to RSVLTS, would contact the authorities if necessary and was reporting this to a popular blog so maybe I got special treatment. I hope not. I hope they’ll be the next RSVLTS and that you have the same success I had.
I loved the short, and your post about the short, as always, is well written and a lovely read. I wanted to thank you for sharing the links to the various Disney articles about the short, which were excellent and very meaningful reads.
I did not share my congratulations on the prior post, so I shall do them here: Congratulations to the Bricker family!! Megatron is so lucky to have the two of you as parents. 🙂
I felt the exact same way! For all of their mistakes and flaws, a lot of us Disney fans still feel a ton of affection and nostalgia for their films, characters and parks. Once Upon A Studio was the perfect celebration of what makes these things so special. I loved seeing characters from every single animated canon film, even the lesser known ones, in one place. And the moment where Mickey looks at Walt’s picture and we hear his favorite song was truly special. This was clearly a labor of love and it paid off! I was also relieved to see that marvel and Star Wars characters were NOT included. Those have their fans, but this short is a celebration of the animation studio and they clearly understood that.
thanks for the information about “Once Upon a Studio” I haven’t watched it yet but am more excited now. And this might just be me, but I’m happy to see it looks like they used the more traditional animation style for Mickey and Minnie instead of the most recent style like on Mickey’s Runaway Railroad (I’m not a fan of the newest look)
and thanks for the international trailer for Wish. I was looking forward to it and it was nice to see the new scenes included in that one
Dana, it isn’t just you. My husband and I both remarked on how glad we were not to see the latest iteration of Mickey et al., which we refer to as Cursed Mickey, or just Ugly Mickey. Once upon a Studio got it right all around, and it will make you tear up or at least snuffle a little.
Did this article make me go watch the short again? Maybe. Did I cry again? Maaayyybeee.
I am so excited for Wish! My 4 yo is already somehow obsessed with Asha so it’s a good thing I already snagged an Asha dress from Walmart for Christmas.
She is also obsessed with Once Upon a Studio and I don’t mind one bit!