The long, long, long development process that has plagued Disney’s animated interpretation of Hans Christian Andersen’s 1845 tale The Snow Queen might actually have an end in sight. Now tagged with the “hip and edgy” moniker Frozen, the computer-animated adaptation is slated for release November 27, 2013. The film has been in development, on and off, for more than a decade, and was previously intended to be a hand-drawn animated release.
Details of the film announced this week include the casting of Tony Award winning actress Idina Menzel (Wicked, Rent) as the titular Snow Queen. Menzel joins actress Kristen Bell (the always-great Veronica Mars), who was announced as part of the cast earlier. Disney described the film’s plot in a new press release:
In “Frozen,” a prophecy traps a kingdom in eternal winter, so Anna (voice of Bell) must team up with Kristoff, a daring mountain man, on the grandest of journeys to find the Snow Queen (voice of Menzel) and put an end to the icy spell. Encountering Everest-like extremes, mystical creatures and magic at every turn, Anna and Kristoff battle the elements in a race to save the kingdom from destruction.
Also announced was the songwriting team for the movie, husband and wife duo Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez. Lopez is a two-time Tony winner for Avenue Q and The Book of Mormon; the couple also wrote the songs for last year’s Winnie the Pooh as well as Finding Nemo: The Musical at Disney’s Animal Kingdom park.
Frozen (that title… so terrible) is directed by Chris Buck, who previously directed two animated films about surfing: Surf’s Up and Disney’s Tarzan. Peter Del Vecho (Winnie the Pooh, The Princess and the Frog) is producing.
In other… news, Disney announced yesterday that the first Pixar-derived direct-to-video project, the Cars spinoff Planes, has been pushed back to a Fall 2013 DVD and Blu-ray release. Could this have anything to do with rumors that Mr. Lasseter is pushing for a theatrical release for his spinoff? I don’t know. But work on a sequel is already underway…
From across the aether this week come the voices of myself and Beacon Joe thanks to the fine folks at WEDWay Radio. The first, briefer piece is a news update about the death last week of Ray Bradbury, science fiction icon and friend of Walt Disney. We discuss an interview I conducted with Bradbury in 2010 about his time working with WED Enterprises on Spaceship Earth.
The other show we appeared on this week is episode 117 of WEDway Radio. The topic of discussion is the best and worst years in Disney history. Hear us remember things! Hear us talk about things! Hear us pay homage to Ducktales for the NES, midnight showings of Dick Tracy, and the ridiculous jingle for the Disney Cruise Line!
And all for the low, low price of your sweet, precious time.
Fantastic news emerged yesterday for fellow Disney history buffs and Fans of Walt (TM). It turns out that Jeff Kurtti, prolific (to say the least) author, historian, former adviser to the Walt Disney Family Museum, producer of fabulous DVD content back when Disney actually released DVDs worth buying, and general all-around swell guy has signed on to do a weekly (for the time being) column for Disney Insider.
For his first essay, Kurtti ties in Disney’s new musical Newsies to Walt’s own paper-delivery past in Kansas City. This was a very formative time in Walt’s life, and as you’ll see it affected him for decades to come.
It’s incredibly exciting that we’ll now be getting weekly essays from Kurtti, so be sure and bookmark the site and check in regularly.
Now, feel free to use the comments section to demand that Disney Editions publish an updated release of Kurtti’s Since the World Began! Heaven knows I hear people asking for it all the time…
Update: In the comments below Nate Parrish points out something I meant to mention. There does not appear to be an RSS feed on the Disney site for these articles, nor a “homepage” where all of Kurtti’s “Wonderful World of Walt” articles are aggregated. I know that Disney’s web presence has, historically, tended to be a little “last generation” in its approach, but if they want to drive readership and keep it consistent they really, really need to add the little things like an RSS feed. That’s just a given anymore; every tween’s Tumblr has one. Hopefully it’s something they’ll get around to doing sooner rather than later – that way they won’t be relying on social media to get the word out every single time they publish something!
Sorry things have been dead around here for what, I see, is a surprisingly long time. What’s ironic is that during this period of silence there has been a remarkable flurry of activity and news in all corners of the Disney empire. The head of the motion picture division, Rich Ross, got canned and just yesterday was replaced by former Warner Brothers President Alan Horn. This was a huge, enormous upgrade and we’ll talk more about it soon.
Films have been greenlit, canceled, and announced; Glen Keane left Walt Disney Feature Animation. The Fantasyland remodel in Florida has been slowly revealed, with surprisingly impressive results, and Epcot’s Test Track closed (yay!) for a remodel that will give it an aesthetic that is “TRON but not TRON.” Yesterday, Snow White’s Scary Adventures closed forever to make way for a princess meet and greet area. Plans for Downtown Disney continue to founder, and get kicked up and down the corporate ladder, continuing an embarrassing saga that has gone on for years now.
But most of the news is good, and a lot of the spotlight is going to California Adventure, which is finally emerging from its five-year makeover. When the park is re-dedicated later this month, guests will find a park with a remarkably different vibe than they did in 2001. It has, amazingly, become a habitable environment that’s pleasant to visit.
Most exciting is the new entrance area themed to 1920s Hollywood. Buena Vista Street will revive the classic Los Angeles Red Car Trolleys, and bring back to life the long-defunct Carthay Circle Theater. I’m not really happy that they’re using the theater for a restaurant and bar, but at least it looks nice. With the new architecture, water features, and background music, the difference between new DCA and old is like night and day.
I took a trip down to Anaheim the other week to check out the changes; I hadn’t been in a long while and the difference amazed me. I took the following brief video of the construction that continues on Buena Vista Street as they try to meet their opening day deadline. Now, a caveat – first, this was taken on my (terrible) cellphone, so it isn’t spectacular. Also it was impromptu filming on a blustery day, so it’s not exactly Toland-grade cinematography. Nevertheless, I think you’ll get an idea of how things are progressing.
Looks good. I can’t wait to see it all finished. While the remodel won’t solve all of DCA’s problems, at least it will now have a fighting chance. There are still areas within the park that need major remodeling, and most of all the park needs ride capacity. Lots of ride capacity. When there’s always a massive queue for the slight and nonessential Monsters Inc. ride, you know you need more for the family to do. More people-swallowers like Pirates or Mansion in Disneyland; more animatronic theater shows like Carousel of Progress or the Tiki Room; more transportation like the Disneyland Railroad or the Red Cars.
Still, it’s looking good so far – now they just have to get it open on time!
I thought I’d drop in to make note of today’s deal of the day on Amazon. They’re bundling four Blu-ray Disneynature titles – African Cats, Crimson Wings, Oceans, and Earth – for the low, low price of $48 (or 55% off their regular price). For those of you who might have been thinking about checking these nature documentaries out, this would be a great time to pick them up. I’ve seen three of the four and they’re quite spectacular and well worth your time. The sale just lasts through today (Friday), and you can order here.
From the Progress City archives comes this collection of 33 tall tales and true from Disney history. Available in paperback, hardback, and ebook formats.
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