Pst! Disney's Just Announced 100-ish Projects: Here Are the Fairy Tale-Related Ones To Watch For

Not "1001",  just around 100, which is still incredibly huge, but then so is the Disney reach these days with all the recent company acquisitions of the past few years.  Thursday, December 10, was Disney Investor Day so there were project announcements from every entertainment arm of the company, which includes Disney Animation, Pixar,  Marvel Studios, Lucasfilm and Lucasfilm Animation, National Geographic, Disney+, 21st Century Fox, ESPN, Hulu, FX Networks, and of course, the Walt Disney Studios. All the projects are set to air over the next few years, with a good portion of them appearing in 2021.

You can read the sequential tweet-announcements that occurred over 6 hours about "the big ones" (about 50 of them) HERE, but we thought we'd list the higher-profile projects likely to be of most interest to fairy tale and folktale fans (as well as some folklore). Read, there will likely be more but these are expected to cause a buzz.

Raya and the Last Dragon - Disney Feature Animation - March 5, 2021 in theaters and Disney+ (more characters were revealed).

The Handmaid's Tale - returns for Season 4 in 2021 and has also been renewed for Season 5. (The Handmaid's Tale series makes great use of fairy tale motifs, with Red Riding Hood being the most obvious, but the last episode of last season also made heavy and effective visual references to The Pied Piper, Snow White, the Dying Swan some Hansel and Gretel, some Bluebeard, as well as the Exodus story.)

Mandolorian-adjacent series, among them: Ahsoka and Rangers of the New Republic. here are about 10 new Star Wars properties on the way which, if they're hoping to grab the same audience, will include those fairy tale doses that keep appearing in the currently-airing The Mandolorian. (Seriously: errant knight, chosen child, a quest/search, talismans, castles, even dragons - it has a lot. Be on the lookout for scholarship papers being written right now, that will prove it to you!)

Willow - a new original series, based on the film, including Warwick Davies starring. Coming 2022 to Disney+.

Children of Blood and Bone (20th Century Film & Lucasfilm) based on the best-selling novel of the same name by Tomi Adeyemi. (Quote) "This coming-of-age adventure follows a young African girl’s quest to restore magic to her forsaken people, the Maji."

Hocus Pocus 2 - a sequel to the original Halloween classic coming to Disney+.

The Little Mermaid - Disney's live-action film based on the Disney animated classic, with Halle Bailey (Ed. - NOT Halle Berry - typo corrected with apologies to the actress! 3-18-21) as Ariel, directed by Rob Marshall (production has yet to restart on this film after stopping due to Covid19, as far as we know, so the release date is currently December 2022).

Pinocchio - live-action movie, based on the Disney animated classic, starring Tom Hanks, directed by Robert Zemeckis, coming to Disney+.

Peter Pan & Wendy - live-action coming to Disney+. Starring Yara Shahidi as Tinkerbell and Jude Law as Captian Hook.

Disenchanted - live-action sequel to Enchanted, coming to Disney+, with Amy Adams returning as Giselle.

Tiana - original animated series by Disney Animation for Disney+ (from the world of the animated feature film The Princess and the Frog). 2022. Tiana as a new princess in a country she's never been to before, with Prince Naveen at her side. Musical series.

Moana - original animated series by Disney Animation for Disney+ (from the world of the feature animated film Moana). 2023 Musical series -drawing on storytelling traditions of Oceania and Polynesia.

Iwájú - (Quoted)"In a first-of-its-kind collaboration, @DisneyAnimation and Pan-African entertainment company Kugali will team up to create an all-new, science fiction series coming to @DisneyPlus in 2022: Iwájú. Check out a first look at visual development art from the series." Not a lot is known about this one yet but with Gigantic having failed to move forward, we expect some fairy tale echoes in this one.

Encanto - Feature Animation, Fall 2021. (Quoted) "Encanto takes you to Colombia, where a magical family live in a magical home. Directed by Byron Howard and Jared Bush, co-directed and co-written by Charise Castro Smith, and music written by Lin-Manuel Miranda."

Turning Red - Pixar short film. (Quoted) "Director of the Academy Award-winning short Bao, Domee Shi, brings us Turning Red. Meet Mei: she experiences the awkwardness of being a teenager, with an added twist: when she gets too excited, she transforms into a giant red panda. Turning Red comes to theaters March 11, 2022"

Untitled Beauty and the Beast, Live-Action Prequel with Gaston and Lefou - 6-part musical live-action limited series, with Luke Evans and Josh Gad reprising their roles, concentrating on the backstory of the two antagonists.  (They have GOT to include some fairy tale notes in this to keep fans happy!) Heading to Disney+. Alan Menken will write new music and songs.

Lots to watch for,

and you know there will be many more things bubbling up too. ;)

Disney's "Raya and the Last Dragon" Pays Tribute to Diverse Cultures of Southeast Asia (Teaser Trailer)

It's clear there has been a deliberate shift to properly represent diversity in Disney's upcoming animated feature, Raya and the Last Dragon, and we are so here for this!

THE TRAILER:

Take a look at the just-released teaser-trailer:

Official description: Long ago, in the fantasy world of Kumandra, humans and dragons lived together in harmony. But when an evil force threatened the land, the dragons sacrificed themselves to save humanity. Now, 500 years later, that same evil has returned and it’s up to a lone warrior, Raya, to track down the legendary last dragon to restore the fractured land and its divided people. However, along her journey, she’ll learn that it’ll take more than a dragon to save the world—it’s going to take trust and teamwork as well.

REPRESENTATION:

People are already very excited about seeing real diversity in this teaser. Here are just a few of the many comments:

As for the specific efforts in representation during development and production, here are some examples of how the film's focus has shifted for this to become a major priority. From insidethemagic (August 2020):

"...it is clear that representation has become a major focus of the project.

Raya will be Disney’s first animated feature film to be inspired by Southeast Asia, and filmmakers Don Hall and Carlos López Estrada, and Producer Osnat Shurer, told Entertainment Weekly they’re working hard to accurately celebrate the influential cultures. They are making efforts to send creative teams on research trips to several Southeast Asian countries such as Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam, and collaborate with linguists, dancers, Gamelan musicians from Indonesia, and a Laos visual anthropologist who is said to review every design before it is finalized.

Adele Lim, the screenwriter behind Crazy Rich Asians, and Qui Nguyen are penning the script. Nguyen said that both his and Lim’s life experiences are being used to write this film and that it has meant a lot, personally to see their cultures represented in costumes and martial arts, as well as references to his Asian American Identity.

“When you’re telling a story and you’re just doing it based on research, you end up always having to do it from the high end,” he said. “To have the artists who represent those cultures in there to be able to give the subtleties of what our families are actually like, what our relationships are actually like, has given a lot of nuances to this great adventure.

“To be able to have some [heroes] that look like me and my kids,” he added, “it’s gonna matter to a lot of folks.”

(Note: poster shown above is from the Disney Lunar New Year collection, for Disney China.)

NOT AN AUTO-ENTRY INTO PRINCESS FRANCHISE?

There is an important rumor about this representation though, and one that might be worth keeping in mind. It's being said that because Raya is not a musical the main character won't automatically enter the Disney Princess franchise. It's going to depend on numbers and how "successful" the film is (by Disney Executive standards). So, if it's safe by the release date, bring your feet into the theater, and if it's not, pay the extra for "movie theater streaming at home". We need to underscore how important this effort at representation is, and give all those millions of kids around the world the merchandise they could greatly benefit from, to help them continue the experience of seeing themselves in this story, with a princess that looks like them.

THE FOLKLORE/FAIRY TALE/LEGEND COMPONENT:

As for the fairy tale and folklore elements of the movie, we've only seen a small amount to date but it's clear this will delve more into the realms of legends and allude to Southeast Asian folklore along the way. That doesn't mean there won't be fairy tale elements though. For the moment, the standout touchstone for folklore is the Last Dragon of the title (from Why Southeast Asians Should Be Excited About Raya and the Last Dragon):

The titular dragon is named Sisu and is voiced by actress/rapper/comedian Awkafina. She is the last of her kind and the goal of Raya’s adventure is to find out what happened to the dragons that used to inhabit the land. Sisu herself is able to change into a more human-like form, and is based on the naga, the mythical water serpent that permeates all of Southeast Asian culture.

This deity can be found in Laos, Malaysia, Cambodia, Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines, with varying depictions of the dragon between cultures, but its general form and function as a water deity is preserved throughout. Evidently, Sisu isn’t going to be as tame as Mulan’s Mushu, and might just be a force to be reckoned with - like Maleficent’s dragon form.

We're very much looking forward to seeing the joy of exploring the diversity of Southeast Asian cultures in a Disney film, and seeing how it also represents the Southeast-Asian-American community as well, not to mention the stories, folklore, legends, and yes, the fairy tales, that are channeled in this film.

Disney's official posters for English and Japanese shown above.

"The Wound and The Gift" - A Film Screening @Home MAY 16, 2020 w/Illustrations by Victo Ngai

HAPPENING TODAY!!

A special film suitable for all ages, about an animal rescue program inspired by an ancient Japanese fable of a wounded crane.

From artist and illustrator Victo Ngai (all images in this post are by her):

Verified

I created artwork for a very special project back in 2014 called “The Wound and The gift” - a documentary exploring the relationship between animals and humans directed by Linda Hoaglund and narrated by Vanessa Redgrave. 

The narrative spine of the film is an animated ancient Japanese Fable about a wounded crane, saved by a couple of peasants, and attempts to express her gratitude with a gift. Scenes from the folklore are woven into real-life footage of rescued animals. As the fable and the film unfold, the question begs to be asked is - “who is saving who?” 

The @nikkeimuseum in Vancouver is hosting an online screen of the film throughout this week with a Zoom Q&A session this Sat (May 16). 

The link to the tickets ($5 suggested donation) is (below), 100% of the sales will benefit the museum’s activities. Please spread the word!

LINK:

Film screening @Home - The Wound and The Gift

by Nikkei National Museum & Cultural Centre

Here is the lovely trailer with sneak peeks of how the folktale and illustrations are woven in:

The Wound and the Gift - Trailer from Linda Hoaglund on Vimeo.

It's suitable for ALL ages (no worrisome footage to be concerned about!) and has lovely reviews regarding the cinematography, animation and the weaving together of stories. Here's one review, to give you an idea of the tone and how the project and folktale are woven together:

Saw this... at the Vancouver Film Festival, and it is spectacular. The cinematography is what drew me in from the trailer and I was not disappointed, and the stories unfold within the animated story of the Crane perfectly. And I really appreciated that it wasn't cluttered with information and stats. The film breathes slowly and elegantly. Highly recommended. (review by Saints Rescue)

About this Event

Film: Available for viewing at your leisure online May 9-17, 2020

Meet the director Linda Hoaglund online presentation of stunning still images from filming in beautiful Hokkaido, and a moderated Q&A session.

Saturday, May 16, 2pm PST | 5pm EST

The Wound and The Gift is a film about the animal rescue inspired by ancient Japanese fable about a wounded crane, saved by peasants, that attempts to express her gratitude with a gift - 鶴の恩返し. The fable is illustrated by Victo Ngai. The film is suitable for viewers of all ages. (83 minutes).

The film will be available on Vimeo, and the talk will be hosted on Zoom. 

Official Website: http://www.thewoundandthegift.com/

Director: Linda Hoaglund

Narrator: Vanessa Redgrave

Ceinematographer: Kirsten Johnson

Animation Artist: Victo Ngai

Editor: William Lehman

Music: Satoshi Takeishi & Shoko Nagai

Animation: Joe Wu

Producer: Hashimoto Yoshiko & Maryanne Culpepper

Assistant Director: Takaaki Okada

See HERE for full illustrations, some storyboards & an animated scene preview.

Puppet Film: 'Vasilisa' - Complete with Spooky Doll & Lots of Bones

Frequent readers know we're happy to chat Baba Yaga stories any day of the year, but we don't think we've yet shared this spooky little amateur puppet film, by Justine Hanchar, which tells the story of Vasilisa the Fair, almost in entirety, and it's perfect for the 'Halloween' season.

It's a little dark on the lighting side of things, and an older film so expect it to be a little murky in places and somewhat grainy but it adds to the spookiness if you're watching it as a story.

Puppet films tend to be endearing but, to give you a heads-up, we got Little Otik vibes from Vasilisa's doll, which, interestingly, made that little magical creature a perfect match to foil the cannibalistic tendencies of Baba Yaga.


While it's still a family-friendly little film, it's definitely spooky and you may wish to preview it specifically for when Vasilisa gives her mother's doll food; the doll feeding is... unforgettable.

We especially like that the end of the tale includes the vengeance of the flaming skull on the step-family and Vasilisa burying the skull before it can cause more damage!

Note: The horsemen, who are three of the many servants of Baba Yaga, appear in this film in the wrong order. After walking all night the first horseman Vailisa sees in the story is the white, not the red. The white horseman signifies the liminal pre-dawn ("My Bright Dawn"), the red represents day or sunrise or midday* ("My Red Sun") and the black, the descent of night ("My Dark Midnight"). The fact that there are two horsemen that ride so closely together is interesting. The grey between night and daybreak (the twilight before daytime) is important enough a time to have its own servant/horseman.

Enjoy! (And Happy Halloweek!)

One word of caution: we did attempt to find out more about the creator and animator but she appears to have only made this one film, and there are suspicious links and weird dead-ends in searching for further information. It's a pity. A lot of thought and effort went into making this film and we'd love to see more work using fairy and folktales by her (and her family, who appeared to have jumped in to help her in many aspects, according to the credits).

* Depending on which source you use.

Animation Short: "Iron Hans" by Xun Wang (& Comparison of the Prince with Finn of "Adventure Time")

Since #FolkloreThursday is due to talk about wild men, wild women and wild places on August 22, 2019, we thought it was high time we posted this animated short, telling the fairy tale of Iron Hans.

It was created by animation student Xun Wang (aka Bunnyisgood) for her MFA thesis project, with posts on her process still able to be seen on a dedicated blog HERE. Finished in 2013, it was beautifully designed in collaboration with illustrator Eleanor Davis, and the narrator (Jon Avner) did a wonderful job, with his rough, mature voice.

The short film animates approximately half of the fairy tale, up to when the prince joins the wild man and runs into the dangerous woods, but make sure to continue to watch, as still scenes decorating the credits tell the rest of the story through to the end.

Enjoy!

About:

Iron Hans (2013) by Xun Wang adapts traditional animation techniques to retell a classic Grimm Brothers fairy tale of the same name. In collaboration with the illustrator Eleanor Davis, Wang’s poetic animation of flowing 2D drawings transports the viewer to the comfortable dream-like ritual of the nightly bedtime story.

We were not surprised to learn the film did well critically, becoming an Official Selection for The Melbourne International Animation Festival, and garnering another Official Selection for the Golden Orchid International Animation Festival, a semi-finalist for an Adobe Design Achievement Award, and two international student animation wins. All were well deserved!

Some scenes from this animated film have also been used in a short contemporary video, with lots of other clips, discussing Robert Bly's book Iron John - A Book About Men. It includes the reading of some extracts, explaining how Bly sees the fairy tale as a mirror for the maturation boys must undergo to become balanced men - a key part of which is accepting and becoming comfortable with his inner 'wild man'. It's an interesting video, worth the watch and the book is recommended.

We've included the video, "Iron John by Robert Bly - What's Missing in Modern Man", below. It's entertaining yet clear and full of contemporary references, and a quick 8-ish minutes worth your time (there are some other fairy tale references in there too):

We have to mention one very important pop culture tie in that we couldn't help but be reminded of while rewatching the animated short, and that is of the character of Finn in the long-running, fantastic cartoon series Adventure Time.

Adventure Time touches on many myths and fairy tales over the course of the series, sometimes very obviously, sometimes obliquely, but it's clearly telling fables for a purpose, and part of that purpose is the "hero-boy named Finn" a.k.a. "Finn the Human" finding his way in the world and growing into a man.

Clearly, there is no coincidence that Finn has the name he does (think Fionn mac Cumhaill, also known as Finn McCool), and it does require that he succeed at extraordinary and heroic feats for him and his friends to survive. While there are many episodes of Adventure Time that could be paralleled to the Prince's journey in Iron Hans, and it could be extrapolated that, instead of a golden ball, Finn has his golden (yellow) magical dog, (we checked, the parallel holds up!), there is one aspect of Finn that almost broadcasts his journey to manhood and that is of Finn's long golden hair.

Like the prince in Iron Hans, whose hair becomes golden when he accidentally lets it dip into the Wild Man's special spring water (a "no-no", with the results just as telling as the bloody key in Bluebeard, though the punishment is almost the opposite... another subject for another time!) Finn hides his hair under a white eared-cap for much of the series, revealing his long golden locks only at specific moments. Though there are times when it's used like the princess does in the Goose Girl - for distraction - Finn's hair is usually a symbol of taking responsibility or successfully overcoming (yet another) rite of passage. The importance of a moment isn't ever in doubt when Finn's hair appears. Just as in fairy tales, it's clear that hair is a very important symbol in the storytelling. The first glimpse of Finn's hair, doesn't happen until the second season, thirty-six episodes in, and it's a very dramatic reveal:

During the course of the series, there is even a "wild extension" of Finn that eventually splits off from him into a separate person, then-called Fern, that's nature-like, wild and acts like an alternate Finn with a more instinctively destructive nature. Fern struggles with identity issues once he appears and is separated from the original Finn, but clearly remains an external aspect of him. It's a pretty interesting exploration of growing up.

After ten+ seasons over eight and a half years, the widely-loved Adventure Time recently had its series finale (September 2018), something of a challenge with the "winding path (that) led us from small-scale whimsy to intergalactic adventure, building up dense layers of mythology, making for hours worth of wiki-reading", to quote Forbes, but it wrapped up the main thrust of the show well; that of a boy searching the wilds of the world, and himself, to figure out who he was and where his place was to be, as he grew from boy to man. The final episode even delivered a symbolic resolution for Fern, Finn's doppleganger, by using him to bookend the beginning of the series in an unexpected, unique and very satisfying way. Even more interesting, the finale didn't 'finish', exactly, except to imply that they (as the character BMO says) "lived their lives" and the adventure continues -  a very fairy tale ending indeed.

For a contemporary equivalent of the Iron Hans tale, Adventure Time - and the character of Finn in particular - makes for a fascinating case study.

Animation Short: Rescuing Rapunzel (2019)

A short film and different take on Rapunzel is currently a Vimeo Staff Pick (August 2019) and an Official Selection for the Shivers International Film Festival, 2019. Watching it, we can see why.

Animator Juan Pablo Machado looks at Rapunzel from a different point of view and, not surprisingly, since it's in the Shivers Festival, things get a little dark.

What might not be at first apparent though, is that Machado - whether intentionally or not - also asks us to redefine the age-old idea of "rescue". Machado's opening scene follows a knight, who, just like Sleeping Beauty's prince, bravely climbs the tower past corpses of past would-be rescuers, and must navigate the towers own 'maze of brambles' before he can find the trapped girl.

Following this adventure from the (initially heroic) knight's point of view, it's made clear that even well-intentioned knights (perhaps especially those) need to seriously consider their motives before rushing in.

Machado does all this at a wonderful pace, with succinct storytelling and characters explored just enough to get a wider sense of the story beyond this episode. It even makes us reconsider just what a tower might be.

Enjoy!

Knights climb the tower to find Princess Rapunzel and deliver her from a monster in this new interpretation of Rapunzel by Juan Pablo Machado, student at Emile Cohl.

You can find Juan Pablo Machado's website with portfolio and much more HERE.

Stop-Motion Animation: A Creaky Artist's Studio and a Little Clay Girl "On the Other Side of the Woods"

A small clay girl is lost in a creaky artist's studio, meets a wolf... and it's exactly as "fairy tale" as it sounds.

Gypsy shared this on Twitter the other day and we realized we had never posted it on OUABlog, which we should have. It's possibly our favorite stop-motion animated fairy tale short film.

"On the Other Side of the Woods" is "a beautifully realized stop-motion fairy tale about a small clay girl lost in a creaky painter’s studio."* It's a tale of art retelling a folktale, using the fourth-wall of an artist's space, commenting on itself & its story. Created, shot and directed by Estonian director Anu-Laura Tuttelberg (with animator Olga Bulgakova), it's the sort of film that stays with you and continues to delight, long after seeing it. It's not only beautifully done but it comments so well on the art of storytelling, on fairy tales, and on those who tell them & the resulting new tale variations.

It's short, sweet and beautifully shot.

Take a look:

One of the beautiful things about this film is that the deceptively simple presentation gives the viewer lots of room to consider different things it could be commenting on: the confusion, naïveté, and vulnerability of childhood; the artist's process and the life the creation has separate from its maker; the monsters of wolves and also of time; the nostalgia and inevitable passing of childhood; seeing our stories in our creations; the wilds of the creative process and the struggle to make a work that survives it; the contrast versus the interconnectedness of fantasy and reality; the different paths retelling an old tale can take...

“I didn't want to separate the two worlds,” says Tuttleberg, “but to make them fit together instead. I wanted to unify them all into one world and atmosphere. The black and white photography is very graphic and I like that kind of character of a visual, plus I started my studies in art with photography, with black and white analog photography and I find it beautiful and intriguing.” (source)

The description - and appreciation - below of the film, while focusing on the materials used, shows yet another aspect of this lovely film. This is from the Dragonframe website (Dragonframe is the industry-standard software used for stop-motion film):

Directed by Anu-Laura Tuttleberg, “On the Other Side of the Woods” is the story of a little girl made of clay who awakens and brings everything she touches to life. The films aesthetic is special because of its unique use of materials for its sets and puppets. The textures are extremely satisfying to watch. Wet clay becomes hardened, pools of water evaporate and replenish, and light slides across every scene . Shot using only natural lighting, both time and the animators touch are very present throughout the piece. “On the Other Side of the Woods” is a great example of what is so special about stop motion. It is a true labor of love and an enchanting and thoughtful film.

We love how the materials for each set and character are very specific and form part of the commentary on, not just the characters but the story itself, as well as being a commentary on the artistic process. Director Anu-Laura Tuttelberg writes:

"“Teisel pool metsa” / On the Other Side of the Woods is a poetic fairytale shot in an old house in the centre of my hometown Tallinn. The atelier where the story takes place used to be the working space for a famous Estonian painter Ants Laikmaa and is now giving inspiration for my works. The film studies different materials for puppet making and sets using such contrasting materials as wood and clay to bring out the differences in the film characters.  

The materials for puppets were chosen to express their characteristics. The girl for example is made of moist clay to express her dynamic and free personality. She is always flowing along with any event that she comes across in life. I used real clay for making her, and asked the animator to move the surface of her body in every frame so that it is visible that she is made of soft wet clay. The technique was quite time consuming as the clay deforms easily while animating and I had to make a new puppet for each shot.

The film is shot with natural light which makes the viewer aware of the stop motion technique and also shows the passing of time in the film."

If you think about the character of Little Red Riding Hood as you read the above description. doesn't it feel like subtext for this classic fairy tale character?

There's so much contained in this little gem!

And now, ever since seeing this film, we fully expect to stumble across other little characters living out their artistically-fairy tale lives in other busy ateliers, don't you?

* Quoted from a review by This Is Colossal
- Additional source: Anu-Laura Tuttleberg portfolio -https://anulaura.com/on-the-others-side-of-the-woods/