Cody's Fairy Tale Cocktails

Cody Winfrey - creator of the (Disney inspired) Fairy Tale Cocktails - pictured with his 'Glass Slipper'

The importance of food and drink in fairy tales is a topic that comes up fairly often and for good reason. There's something about internalizing a symbol of one's decision, commitment, choice (even if an unaware one) that makes it more real - makes it a part of you.

Cody Winfrey is a "mixologist" who specializes in creating unique drink "recipes" with cocktails. Although he's created cocktails on a variety of themes, it's the Disney-inspired ones that have gone viral and people can't get enough of. He's created over forty to date and is still creating.

"Cinderella is whipped cream vodka, blueberry vodka and cream. Maleficent is black vodka, grape schnapps and apple pucker. Tinkerbell is honey vodka, triple sec and sparkling cider, topped with a dusting of edible glitter. 

"I always try to match the character to the look of the drink and the taste as much as possible," says Cody Winfrey, whose cocktails inspired by Disney movie characters have found an insatiable audience of fans online.

Although what this mixologist is doing is mainly for fun (and profit), creating drinks on the theme of fairy tale characters inspired by Disney has had an interesting side effect. Although it started as a whim and a fun thing to do one boring evening, the more requests he got about characters, the more he started studying these characters - not just their looks but their story lines, character traits, motifs and tendencies in an effort to figure out how to create a unique drink. In the end, he's realized that he's actually attempting to capture the essence of these characters and creatures in an 'ingestible formula", ie. a drink.

It makes for fascinating reading of the ingredients list for each one and in seeing how each are put together. It's almost like recipes for types of fairy tale people, or... a potion! Makes me think of The Evil Queen making her hag transformation spell...

I've included some 'archetypal' characters (that Disney used and gave their own name too) here as well, because, if you substitute them for other fairy tale villains - like the Cat & the Fox or the evil uncle in Aladdin etc the 'recipe' actually works really well. I included some others too: the character who is exceptionally in tune with nature, the Deathless/Underworld character, the somewhat mad advisor.. you get the idea.

Here's a few excerpts from an interview with Mr. Winfrey by inlander:

"The great thing about Disney is that everyone has an almost spiritual connection with some character," he says. "Everyone has a favorite movie, everyone has a favorite character, everyone has a favorite world. So I knew that it would resonate with people in some way." 

Realizing his drinks might also attract the attention of Disney lawyers, Winfrey gave himself a crash course on the legal aspects and makes sure to always say he owns the drink recipes, not the characters. The e-book he's finishing with Wells titles the recipes as "fairy tale" cocktails to avoid unnecessary trouble. 

To date, he's done about 40 Disney-inspired drinks, requiring an increasingly crowded personal collection of liquor bottles to have just the right ingredients on hand. Some movies have proved to be more challenging — The Lion King and Pocahontas, for example — so he'll watch clips to see what he can pull from the color palette or characters' personalities. 

"Alice in Wonderland was also tough, because it's such an abstract, out-there kind of movie that I wasn't sure how to do the film justice with drinks," he says.

As far as we're concerned, he's like a fairy tale bartender who creates characters in the form of a drink. The only question is: does the drink cause that particular character to manifest in the drinker? It makes for an interesting storyline for a modern day warlock. ;)

I definitely recommend going to Cody's Facebook page or Tumblr for more recipes. Apart from the curious character ruminations, some of them just sound delicious! I'm going to call it 'research'. Happy Weekend all!

A Smorgasbord of Maleficent "Fan Art" (& Link-y Love)

Maleficent & Diablo by Travis Lewis

There's always been a lot of fan art for the Disney character Maleficent, especially since social media took off. The character has been one of Disney's most popular to draw and speculate on and create stories about with fans. (Heck, there's even a Darth Maleficent out there.)

With the live action movie release just around the corner, more and more is appearing every day. So much, in fact, it's difficult to keep up! 

A Forest of Thorns Shall Be His Tomb by Xiao wei Li

Being a regular on Pinterest for some time now I often come across Maleficent art, and since she's a subject-du-jour for us, I thought I'd share just a few of the stand out pieces that, while still obviously being Maleficent aren't specifically animation-spin-offs, nor scenes from the various trailers being released.

Maleficent by Angela Rizza

The first pic was supposed to be a drawing in progress but I think it's perfect as is. The second is a graphic design made for a t-shirt competition at Threadless. I really love the concept and would happily don said printed 't'. Unfortunately, I don't think it made the cut... Immediately above is an original deisng created by Angela Rizza who, while inspired by the trailers for the movie, wanted to create something that combined the different aspects of Maleficent we're being shown are in the movie. (Note: You have to check out this woman's art. It's so fairy tale-esque and you'll probably recognize her Snow White, which has been floating around for a while.)

Maleficent by the-crazy-spork

Unlike a lot of amateur fan art, which uses stills for inspiration, the rest of the pieces are their own scenes and designs, though clearly still based on the movies. The one above is based on the classic animated film, while the one below is based on the Maleficent trailers that have recently been released. There are such talented people out there!

Maleficent by Josh Burns

I wish there was another, less deprecating name for this sort of art than "fan art". The term always puts me in mind of kids and amateurs copying movie stills and various shots with a less-than-professional touch. But fan art these days is done as much by professional artists as amateurs. In fact, Disney is now making a habit of commissioning professional artists to create "fan art" to sell as Disney exclusive and approved fine art, like the one below. (And it ain't cheap!) I have to say, much of it, I actually prefer to the "real thing", although, in Maleficent's case, I adore her animation design. We need a better description of this type of art, don't you think?

Dark Side of the Moon by David Ho

There's much, MUCH more to explore - from sexy (and sometimes adult-rated) to cartoon- cute, to baby Maleficents to downright nightmarish versions, and you've seen the historical Maleficent, right? (She's HERE if you haven't.) There are many boards on Pinterest dedicated solely to her and, if you like the character and are intrigued by her story possibilities, from her demon-affiliations to her fairy side, be sure to go explore. I also really love the Disneyland Paris version of Maleficent as well - which is completely different to anything you might imagine. Check her out HERE.

By the way - did you count how many Maleficent art pieces I hid links to in the paragraph above? If you're at work, you may want your lunch hour to find them all... ;) Enjoy!

New 'Maleficent' TV Spot Emphasizes Fantasy Creatures (Dobby, Is That You?)

I always worry about fantasy films, especially big budget ones in which the creators/directors seem to feel the need to show you  every bit of magic (which, ironically, usually lessens the wonder*). As gorgeous as certain recent large fantasy films have been (are) the storytelling/translation to big screen of the importance and "solid necessity" of 'other'-like creatures tends to get lost. Either it becomes all about the amazing effects and the writing suffers, or the writing is ok but the visuals are cringe-worthy.

Maleficent is looking pretty (damn) great overall to date but I still worry that we're going to be able to watch all these creatures - fairies, sprites, trolls, tree-people and more - without dismissing aspects.

With this latest TV spot, which puts a lot of the magical creatures side-by-side my effects-are-king concerns are rising again. My big concern: does this story REALLY need ALL of that?

I'm really hoping the answer to that is that it does, that all this effort in creating new creatures adds depth and scope to this world of Sleeping Beauty and Maleficent. Unfortunately we really won't know until we see it all in context.

Here's the spot:

 One thing that's been really interesting about the huge - and highly successful - live action Cinderella preview this week is that one thing is clear: though the effects are coming, they are not what will be holding Branagh's Cinderella together. Despite the preview being largely effects-free and not even having final footage for some of the scenes shown, the response has been ecstatic! And yes, I'm a little surprised by that. While a live action version of the animated classic is a shoe-in for a certain built-in fan base, it's not the hard-core Disney fandom-people who are most excited. It's the (usually very jaded) critics.

But I'm rooting for Maleficent. Ms. Jolie has shown some very savvy thinking and is clearly smart about all aspects of filmmaking these days. Gone are the days of signing on to an 'easy film' for her. It's now apparent that she wants all her efforts - whether on screen or off - to be excellent, and to make a positive difference. My thumbs are still up for this one.

Here's the updated and official synopsis:

Crow's Nest Jewelry Maleficent Poster

Maleficent is the untold story of Disney's most iconic villain from the 1959 classic Sleeping Beauty. A beautiful, pure-hearted young woman, Maleficent has an idyllic life growing up in a peaceable forest kingdom, until one day when an invading army threatens the harmony of the land. Maleficent rises to be the land's fiercest protector, but she ultimately suffers a ruthless betrayal—an act that begins to turn her pure heart to stone. Bent on revenge, Maleficent faces an epic battle with the invading king's successor and, as a result, places a curse upon his newborn infant Aurora. As the child grows, Maleficent realizes that Aurora holds the key to peace in the kingdom—and perhaps to Maleficent's true happiness as well.

*Although it may lessen the wonder, the merchandising opportunities abound! 

(I admit it: one of my favorite things is a tavern mug from The Prancing Pony.) 

And Maleficent is just getting started. 

There's already a cosmetics line, costumes for kids created by Stella McCartney in collaboration with Angelina Jolie, new Funko Pop! figurines and Halloween costumes in the works. 

Today we also got our first look at these jewelry pieces being released from Crow's Nest Jewelry - starting at the tidy price of $5k a piece and ranging up to $20k...!


Source: HERE 

"Jupiter Ascending" New Trailer, New Posters, TONS of Action

This is possibly the most action-packed Snow White story to-date. The new trailer for Jupiter Ascending, released yesterday (at writing) makes it pretty clear: this is an action movie, sci-fi style, complete with big budget and beautiful people.

Take a look:

The new posters are... nothing like I expected. My main impression is an attack of the Photoshop for both of them but the Mila Kunis one is a bit unfortunate. The disconnect between her outfit, her "face-styling" (with all the Photoshop, I'm just going to call it a thing now) and the background and graphic elements just doesn't work for me. In addition the shirt is so clean and pressed-perfect... it's just weird. Her all-blue cleaning outfit, complete with rubber gloves and some daily grime would have worked much better IMHO. But we shall see what the masses think.

The new trailer is very... big. This should go down really well with sci-fi fans. I'm curious what people will think of the Snow White storyline - or if they'll even recognize it. We shall see...

Jupiter Ascending is scheduled for release on July 18, 2014.

Japanese Trailer Focuses On the 'Sleeping' Side of Maleficent (also, New Footage!)

The poster from CinemaCon, revealed today (at time of writing) this week

It's not difficult to see a certain mentality behind the Japanese trailer for Maleficent that's aimed at Asian audiences. Rather than the gaining of power and seeing the good heart that was the person Maleficent used to be, being challenged (and woken up?) by the innocent princess, we see a tragic past, malevolence, revenge and the interconnectedness of it all (with a slight glimmer of possible redemption - maybe...).

Props (& costumes below) from the movie at the D23 Member Maleficent event in Portland this last week

The fact that Aurora and Maleficent are both, in a way, each other's shadow is highlighted in this trailer, as is the connected web of everyone's actions, past, present and possible futures. Maleficent's own actions and reactions get larger and larger, while all the time, it's the smallest, most fragile thing, the glimmer of an alive heart within the rest that's turned to stone, that may be the saving grace of them all. Aurora herself is the symbol of that still-human/alive sliver of Maleficent's heart.

Did you notice the floating princess following Maleficent
as she strides through the (heart of the) fairy forest?
Metaphor, metaphor... :)

It's always interesting to see one film get very different trailers for different countries. These sorts of themes appear a lot in Japanese stories, so it's no wonder they're highlighted here. What's left unsaid, however, is that such differently emphasized/slanted trailers say as much about the maker's impressions of that country as they do about the culture it's aimed at.

I do enjoy seeing what media and other's sharing their opinions have to say when such a different marketing strategy surfaces. The questions people pose in response are often fascinating. I, too, like seeing the difference emphasis; it has the good effect of shaking me awake regarding a film I've been getting over saturated in seeing images of, making me use my brain again.

The bonus for everyone interested, no matter where you live, is, of course, that we get to see lots of new footage.

In case you haven't seen it yet, here's the Japanese trailer for Maleficent, which is where those gifs came from a few posts ago:

Reading this post quickly over before setting it free to the interwebs, it reads as if Aurora is a "sleeper agent" for forcing Maleficent's heart to beat with life again. It's as if Maleficent cursing this little she was not only a harsh but true way to save the princess (and the land?) but, even as she was forcing people to see her as more evil than ever, she subconsciously set the possibility in motion of finding a way to save herself. (Can you tell it's late and my brain obviously likes thinking about all this too much?) Nevertheless, I like it! :)

Note: If there was a star for quickest response to a "where did this come from" question posed on the blog, it would go to Fadlilatu Amalin, who was very quick off the mark in alerting me to the Japanese trailer before it caught on with the main Hollywood news sources! (Unfortunately I was unable to jump on that straight away due to my commitments this week but it was very much appreciated.) Thank you so much!! You rock. :)

Branagh's "Cinderella" Wows CinemaCon (& Blanchett Channels Evil Stepmother Perfectly, Complete With Cat On a Leash!)

Maleficent is going to have to battle for headlines shortly as Disney's live action I has already caught hearts and minds with her grand entrance today, Wednesday, aka preview at CinemaCon. (I'm sure Disney, owning both, doesn't mind too much at all.)

There are no, that's right, NO new images. (Boo. :( ) Yet. But with a teaser/preview like this we should be seeing something by Fall or Christmas at the latest to whet out appetites even more.

In the meantime, enjoy the live action reference photos from the animated movie I've scattered throughout the post.

Here's the (much edited) scoop from an iO9 writer and CinemaCon attendee who is clearly newly besotted with what she just saw (warning: some of this may be considered spoilerish. Read at your own discretion):

Note: THIS IS NOT THE WHOLE REPORT.

I have left HUGE chunks out for you to go and mine on your own. :)

Disney's live action Cinderella movie is so wonderfully beholden to the animated source material, it will make your heart swell. And we've seen a large chunk of it, including the Evil Stepmother, Cate Blanchett — who makes her grand entrance with A CAT ON A LEASH. 

...The footage opened as all good fairy tales should, a woman's voice says "Once Upon A Time there was a Child named Ella." 

... Fast forward... Evil Stepmother Cate Blanchett enters, wearing a stunning dress black with gold embroidered details, a black veil wrapped tightly across her face, and topped off with a massive, black victorian hat. But more importantly, she is escorting in her pet cat who is being led in on a leash. SHE HAS A CAT ON A LEASH!!!!!! THE EVIL STEP MOTHER HAS A CAT ON A LEASH. A CAT. ON. A. LEASH. It is, amazing. We can only assume that this charcoal tabby, who totally flicks his paw like he's rubbing his litter in Cinderella's face, is named Lucifer (like in the the animated movie). How I even managed to watch a thing after the "cat on a leash" reveal, I will never know — but I'm still freaking out about it. And the footage only got better. 

...Someone announces there's going to be a Royal Ball! ... They are all ready and Cinderella descends the stairs in a dress they didn't see coming, "It was my Mother's dress!" And, of course, the Evil Stepmother rips it to pieces. A PAIR OF CG MICE WITH VESTS LOOK ON FROM THE STAIRS. The mice have clothing, and it works, because this movie is literally a complete literal translation of the animated classic with additional Robb Stark scenes. How could there not be mice! 

...Cinderella will NOT go to the ball. She's crying on the balcony watching her dreams die when suddenly a haggard old woman appears in their house. Which is weird because that would mean that she broke into their house and that is illegal. But wait it's actually Helena Bonham Carter in old lady face and she says, "I'm your Fairy Godmother of course." And then bippity bop pity boo, she turns into a gorgeous, blonde Helena Bonham Carter (note she never actually utters that classic turn of phrase, but we assume it's coming). She looks stunning and almost exactly like Glina from Oz but without the down and gigantic sleeves. 

Full disclosure: I was not on board with HBC being cast as the fairy godmother, but I was wrong. She is sensational. She has this little angelic charm and together they root through the green house looking for a sizable vegetable that she can transform into a carriage...  

... We all know where this is going — nothing I've reported on here is new for Cinderella, but that's the point! The absolute dedication to the source material hits right in the Disney sweet spot... Sure there are plenty of new scenes that were hinted at... Plus it's gorgeous and some how they may just make mice with vests work. 

Fingers crossed for this one: It looks really, really good.

Read the whole, entertaining and highly enthusiastic report HERE. (I recommend it - it's not like you don't know the story, right? And you know Branagh/Disney is saving the real live-action departure-goodness for the full show.)

Some additional notes from CinemaBlend who also attended CinemaCon:

While we were told before the footage that some of the special effects had yet to be completed and that the movie is still very much a work in process, I was definitely impressed by what I saw. There is an interesting mix of tones at work, as heavy drama is lightened by some funny dialogue and rapport, and the film looks gorgeously shot. Of course, this is the footage that Disney wanted us to see in order to get us excited for the film, but my interest is definitely piqued. 

Wondering what the release date is, with such a large teaser already shown? March 15, 2015. 

Most of the visual effects are still in the works and clearly they have plans for a lot more in post as well so we shall see. 

Though live action fairy tales have had a recent resurgence in Europe in the last few years in particular (and there are some beautiful looking films out there if you search!) it looks like the revival of the live-action fairy tale, which, honestly, has stumbled a little in the US to date, is well underway now in the House of Mouse as well.

PS Wondering if Into the Woods has made an appearance at CinemaCon yet? It did, but not in the form of footage. Just headshots for now, so Into The Woods news is just a footnote compared to the rest of the 'fairy tale news'. :)

Yeh-Shen & The Crane Wife by Amy Parrish

Yeh-Shen by Amy Parrish

I stumbled across these midweek for the first time while researching the "Chinese Cinderella", though they are nearly three years old now. While I've seen a lot of Amy Parrish's work - so beautiful! - I had missed these entirely. (Note: the website auto-plays music.)

I had no idea she loved Yeh-Shen. Here are her comments about it from her website:

If you’re not already familiar with the title reference of “Yeh-Shen”, this is a tale, extremely similar to Cinderella, but a thousand years older and originating in China. 

Instead of a fairy godmother, Yeh-Shen’s magical gifts come from the remains of her friend; a fish. 

I’ve had an adaption of this sitting on my bookshelf for nearly a decade since first discovering it in my Children’s Lit course at Otterbein. There was something even more mystical about this version than the European tale I was already familiar with, thanks to Walt Disney. If you have children (or even if you don’t), I definitely recommend reading this fairytale for yourself.

You can see the whole lovely photo shoot HERE.

There was another part to this series, creating images for another fairy tale, this time a Japanese one and fairly well known to fairy tale readers. It's the lovely and tragic story of The Crane Wife.

The Crane Wife by Amy Parrish

There are a few more photos for this one and additional commentary too (both of which we love). Here are some excerpts:

As oral tradition typically goes, there are a few versions of this Japanese fable. One of them weaves a story of a poor man who rescues an injured crane. Shortly thereafter, a beautiful young woman knocks at his door seeking shelter. They marry and come upon even worse times than the poor man had experienced alone. His wife told him that she could make a magic sail to sell along the harbor. Only, the husband was not, under any circumstance, to watch her toiling at the loom. After weaving for more than a day, the sail was ready and the wife came out from behind her screen looking extremely exhausted.... 

...Some versions I’ve read have changed dramatically around here; Was it the husband who demanded that his wife weave another magic sail or was it reluctantly suggested? I’d like to think it was the latter, but regardless of how it occurred, an opportunity came about in which a wealthy captain had offered a lifetime’s gold for one of these magic sails he had heard so much about. This time, while the wife was toiling away for a few days, her husband could not take it anymore. Some stories attribute this to an innocent, yet uncontrollable, curiosity and others to cold greed…the husband pulled back the screen, and what he saw was not his wife, as he knew her, at all. The same crane he had rescued so long ago sat behind the loom, trembling and weak as she had woven her very own feathers filled with the sea wind into the sails. 

Terrified and unable to speak, the crane flew away and was never seen again.

See the whole of the photo shoot, read all of Ms. Parrish's comments, hear her inspiration and see some additional artwork inspired by the tale, HERE.

I hope Ms. Parrish is inspired to do shoots representing some other lesser known folktales in future! It's one of the best ways to get people reading them again.