Table of contentsThe Golden Age (1937-1942)The Era of War (1943-1949)The Silver Age (1950- 1959)The Bronze Age (1970-1988)The Golden Age Age (1937-1942)The Golden Age created a new genre of cinema. Until now, animation was generally considered a novelty aimed at children. It was comical, with shorts initially having no sound or color, they relied on heavy character expressions as well as animated backgrounds to express emotions and advance the plot. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay Because of this, people found animation sometimes childish and superficial. Disney experimented a lot with what it could do with animation during this time, an example of which was how the company created the first animated short film with its title Steamboat Willie. This started the trend of sound and music in animation, as Disney later created a series of short films called Silly Symphonies. Disney had competitors, with other studios introducing famous pop culture icons like Tom & Jerry and the Looney Tunes characters, but with Disney's sound innovation as well as the technology known as Technicolor (a new way of coloring which made it more detailed). , complex and realistic), it really propelled the popularity of the company. The Disney company was experimental, following Walt's leadership, they were not afraid to try new ideas even if they weren't sure audiences would be receptive and this manifested itself in the creation of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. No one had ever tried to create a feature-length animated film before this, because no one thought it would be successful with the technology available. This would be even more expensive than some live-action films of the time. Disney executives worried that the payoff would be too small to offset the risks and costs of it all. That the media, even before the release of the said film, titled it “Disney Madness”. Yet Disney was completely convinced that it was possible and that it would be a success. As we mentioned, Snow White had an initial budget of €250,000 and ended up with an unpaid cost of €1.5 million, which Disney himself had to mortgage his house for. What made Disney so passionate about this project was that he wanted to show a film that live-action films couldn't produce, and perhaps that's why he has such an affinity with fairy tales, stories with other beings in the world, elements of the mystical and fantastic. And why he had an affinity for talking animal films like Bambi, which would later become a trend in Disney films. He wanted to portray what live-action films dream of doing. Being the first era of Disney animation, the focus of the films was not to rely on character development like those in the films we see today, but rather to showcase the art of animation. 'animation. This is how Disney can get away with a five minute scene where the dwarves literally wash their hands, or any scene from the movie Fantasia. The goal was not necessarily to draw us into the story, but to amaze and entertain us with the beautiful images we see on screen. Regarding the content found in these films, The Golden Era has also been dubbed the Dark Era of Disney is not in the sense that it did not make money for the company, but some films failed . But the themes and events that take place during the film are very dark anddramatic; Scenes from the Evil Queen in Snow White, with Bambi's mother killed in the first few minutes of the film. In Pinocchio you have kids smoking cigars and drinking alcohol, not to mention one of the plot points about how bad boys who run away from home eventually turn into donkeys and are sold as slaves. Even today, these films can frighten children. Maybe in Walt's mind it was a way to teach children what not to do, not to take food from strangers or to listen to their parents and not run away from home. Me. If the kids love watching the latest Disney movie so much, why not educate them on morality while you're at it. This could also be because Walt really wanted to break the stereotype of childish and comedic animated films. Through the use of these darker scenes sandwiched between the light musical scenes, the film would be more dynamic overall and would entertain people other than children. The War Era (1943-1949) As the title of this section suggests, this was the time when Disney Studios was heavily hit and caught up in World War II, which was reflected in their movies. Besides the devastation and destruction, the war led to a small decline in the economy and a lack of male animators working in the studios due to recruitment to go to the battlefield. Another thing worth mentioning was the blatant racism and anti-Nazi propaganda that Disney incorporated into its movie plots and characters. With these four major factors and World War II, a lot changed in the style and quality of Disney films. As such, this caused tension at Disney Studios, as they lost most, if not all, of their male animators to fight in the world. war. This led to fewer film releases and, therefore, fewer profits. With most of the male animators leaving, meaning fewer ideas and manpower, there was less consistency, if any, in the films produced. Not only that, there was also a lower budget on the films: among the six films produced, there were several short films compiled together comprising each film and with considerably lower visual quality compared to its forebears. Disney was also heavily involved in war propaganda from an American perspective, even using Mickey Mouse, one of the main and original Disney Studios characters, for a flyer promoting patriotism and support for the participating American military. to war. The image below is one of the flyers released publicly by Disney around this time. As previously mentioned, Disney had racism and anti-Nazi propaganda in their films. An example of a film from this era with implicit, even blatant, racism was Fantasia. One specific scene in which this racism was apparent was the scene where light-skinned centaurs are served by a smaller, dark-skinned centaur by polishing their nails and running after them whenever they needed something. This clearly relates to African Americans being seen as an inferior being compared to whites as this was still the time when blacks and whites were segregated when it came to public facilities like restrooms and sections on buses. It was that way until the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed, erasing the physical boundaries between the two races. One film that is clearly dedicated to anti-Nazi propaganda is Der Fuehrer's Face featuring Donald Duck waking up inNazi Germany. Throughout the film his actions are closely monitored to make sure he says Heil Hitler enough and basically follows a certain lifestyle with even food regulated and it ends with him waking up in the United States, dreaming of all this. , and feeling relieved and privileged to be an American citizen. The Silver Age (1950-1959) By the end of World War II, Disney had decided to bring back big-budget films and aim high in the film industry. The advent of the Silver Age and its films are what Disney is generally known for, as this age includes Cinderella, Peter Pan, Sleeping Beauty, etc. When you think of Disney, especially old Disney, these movies are what usually pop into someone's mind. This eventually gave rise to one of its very well known rebrandings as what Disney really is with some original Disney princesses as the faces of this rebranding. This era is also known for talking animal films like Lady and the Tramp, etc. and we will see this trend of talking animals as the main characters blossom into later ages. Disney is also emphasizing that animation is not so superficial that people should overlook it, but rather that it can achieve what live-action films, which were popular at the time, cannot achieve. Animated films used to be aimed at children, but Disney has changed the way they make films so that everyone can enjoy them. In terms of art style, it is the opposite of the war era as the quality is better due to Disney adjusting the budget for well-designed and well-thought-out films. it is very similar to the golden age as the fantasy element is present in both ages, but what is different is that this age seems to have a more fairytale and less dark aesthetic unlike the golden age. The backgrounds of the films appear to be hand painted from watercolor and practically redefined the word "fairy tale" as Disney chose it and created fictionalized backgrounds for their films. This age focuses less on moral lessons and more on being a "damsel in distress" like in Sleeping Beauty, half of the movie Aurora, the main protagonist, spends her sleep and waits for someone put an end to the curse imposed on him. The most active roles that moved the story forward in terms of plot were those of Prince Philip and his three fairy godmothers: Flora, Fauna and Merryweather. Meanwhile in Cinderella, those who made her dress were first Jaq and Gus, then the Fairy Godmother who encouraged her to go to the ball organized by the kingdom, even giving her a carriage and a beautiful dress. It's the same in Cinderella where her fairy godmother, Prince Charming, along with Jaq and Gus were the key characters in progressing towards a happily ever after life. Throughout the film, she was helped by her animal friends and her fairy godmother. Only in later sequels does she play a more active role in the plot. Although his animal friends were not the main protagonists, they still carry this trend that Disney films of this era often contain talking animals. The end of the Silver Age marks the death of Walt Disney, as The Jungle Book was the last one he personally worked on before passing away. The Bronze Age (1970-1988) The 1980s were a difficult time for the Disney animation company. Most of their films barely made money at the box office, and they even struggled to recoup the initial capital invested in the films. Examples of this are films like “The Black Cauldron” which was a”.