Walt Disney the Pioneer in Entertainment Film

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Walt Disney the Pioneer in Entertainment Film

During a 43-year Hollywood career, which spanned the development of the motion picture medium as a modern American art, Walter Elias Disney was a pioneer and innovator, and the possessor of one of the most fertile imaginations the world has ever known. His creations set forth a foundation in the realm of animated entertainment through the use of modern applications and ingenious techniques.

As an ambitious animator, Walt Disney began his career making animated commercials for the Kansas City Film Ad Company in 1919, in which they were previewed at local theatres (Jackson 6). Years later, he then moved on to opening his own animation firm producing Laugh-o-Grams. These animated shorts allowed him to begin experimenting with cartoon animation and eventually involving live action into his project. The first of this type of production was a combination of cartoon and live action reel called ALICE‘S WONDERLAND, which is Disney‘s first attempt using “special effects“. He integrated his funny cartoon characters with the actions of a live girl (played by Virginia Davis) filmed against a white backdrop (Thomas 37). Disney produced a series of 56 Alice shorts before his firm financially collapsed. In an attempt to recover from his misfortune, Disney moved to Los Angeles, California where he conceived a concept that would later become the icon of his legacy, a cartoon character named Mickey Mouse.

Walt Disney was inspired to create a new cartoon character with a personality that was different and more likeable than any other cartoon character ever made. In explaining Mickey’s appeal, Disney observed, “Mickey is so simple and uncomplicated, so easy to understand, that you can’t hel...

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...ofound effect on American mass media and pop culture. Disney is best remembered for pioneering the art of the animated film. Leonard Maltin notes, “He did not invent the medium, but one could say that he defined it” (75). Disney provided the world with a cornucopia of entertainment unparalleled in the twentieth century. His work has already survived him, and stood the test of time. It’s likely that people will continue to derive pleasure from Walt Disney’s creations for many yeas to come.

Bibliography:

Works Cited

Jackson, Kathy. Walt Disney: A Bio-Bibliography. Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1993. Malitin, Leonard. The Disney Films. New York: Hyperion, 1995.

Thomas, Bob. Disney’s Art of Animation: From Mickey Mouse to Beauty and the Beast.

New York: Hyperion, 1991. This paper is the property of MyTermPapers.com Copyright © 1999-2002

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