The Ballad of Nessie

OK. It's not exactly a fairy tale but it is a myth and there are fairy tales with 'loch monsters' so I'm exerting my Fairy Tale News Editor prerogative here and including note of it at Once Upon A Blog. :D

Disney is working on a traditionally animated (ie. hand-drawn) short, presumably for theatrical release but as of this date no decision has been made as to what film to show it with (that's been released to the media anyway).

This little film will be a Disney take on the origin of Nessie , a.k.a. The Loch Ness Monster. The directors are Steve Wermers and Kevin Deters and the film is rumored to have completed animation in 2008 with the plan to release it some time during this year. (Steve Wermers, referenced on Wikipedia as Stevie Wermers-Skelton, and Regina Conroy are credited for the writing.) The completion of production was halted to work on a short called "Tic Tock" to release with "The Princess and the Frog" but then apparently things got switched around and "The Ballad of Nessie" will now be the short film shown before the fairy tale when it comes to theaters. (See? I worked it into fairy tale news after all!)

From the Walt Disney Animation Studios site:

With art direction evocative of the 1940s and 50s, "The Ballad of Nessie" is the honest to goodness true tale of Loch Ness and its most famous resident.

On a similar topic, in case you're not aware, there is a fairly new fairy tale story, written about Sleeping Beauty's daughter, called "Alinda of the Loch" which blends the legend of the monster with the fairy tale we know and love. You can find more information, including a chapter preview and an audio book preview, HERE.