Category Archives: Disney

Soaring with the Stars of Dumbo

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Soaring with the Stars of Dumbo

By Jonelle

*We were invited as media to cover the press conference. All thoughts & opinions remain our own.*

On March 10th I drove out to the Beverly Hills Hilton to sit in a Disney magical ballroom with Tim Burton, one of my favorite directors of all time, to listen to him talk about his latest project, Dumbo. Believe it or not, I’ve never seen the entire 1941 original, which comes in at only 64 minutes. My thought going in to this film was, how are they going to make a full-length movie about an elephant?

Journalist Grae Drake, our moderator for the day, dressed as a ringmaster, introducing her “circus”, and what a circus it was. First up we heard from Screenwriter Ehren Kruge, Producers Justin Springer, Derek Frey, Katterli Frauenfelde, Production Designer Rick Heinrichs, Costume Designer Colleen Atwood and Composer/Oingo Boingo founder Danny Elfman.

I remember taking a film music class in college where we analyzed the music of various film composers. Danny Elfman was one of the composers we studied, a composer that I greatly admire, and he’s worked with Tim Burton on 17 films. Come on, it wouldn’t be a Tim Burton film without an Elfman score. For Elfman, working with Burton, isn’t as simple as working with other directors. Burton’s mind is both strange and interesting. Just like the way audiences see the amazing characters that Burton creates.

Burton making a movie about a traveling circus is very fitting. Producer Derek Frey said that, Tim Burton’s films “are populated with outsider characters” and that “Dumbo was the original Disney outsider” in a world full of beautiful Disney Princesses.  Burton took on this very simple, sweet story. You have a band of outsiders who make their own sweet, simple family. Burton himself, never liked the circus, but liked the idea of running away with the circus.

The Costumes created by designer Colleen Atwood were beautiful and magnificent. They had to represent both hardship and extravagance. She made the 1920’s heyday of the traveling circus come to life. Samples of these gorgeous costumes were on hand to admire. The red feather dress worn by Eva Green in the film was just breathtaking. All of her costumes were beautiful. As the trapeze artist, her costumes were delicate and flowy, similar to that of an elegant bird soaring through the sky.

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Going Higher, Further, Faster with the Cast & Crew of “Captain Marvel” 

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Going Higher, Further, Faster with the Cast & Crew of “Captain Marvel”

By Melanie Gable

*I was invited as media to attend the press junket for “Captain Marvel.” All thoughts and opinions are my own.*

The Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, CA, was even more star-studded than usual on Feb. 22 when the cast and filmmakers behind Marvel Studios’ “Captain Marvel” held a press conference to talk about the new movie. Captain Marvel herself, Brie Larson, shared production stories and insights, along with Samuel L. Jackson (Nick Fury), Jude Law (Yon-Rogg), Producer Kevin Feige, Co-directors Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck, and more. Erin Miller invited me to cover the event for her, and I was thrilled to learn more about the film from the stars themselves.

“Captain Marvel,” which opens March 8 (International Women’s Day), is the first Marvel Studios film to feature a solo female lead. The story centers on U.S. Air Force pilot Carol Danvers, who gains awe-inspiring super powers under mysterious circumstances. Set in the 1990s, the movie acts as a prequel of sorts to the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and is one of the most highly anticipated films of the year.

Marvel Studios' "Captain Marvel" Global Junket Press Conference

Kevin Feige, Lashana Lynch, Jude Law,  Brie Larson, Samuel L. Jackson, Gemma Chan, Clark Gregg, Anna Boden, & Ryan Fleck

Rotten Tomatoes Editor Jacqueline Coley moderated the discussion, which featured the aforementioned talent, along with Clark Gregg (Agent Coulson), Lashana Lynch (Maria Rambeau), and Gemma Chan (Minn-Erva). Coley began with Feige, asking him about the process of selecting the directors for “Captain Marvel.” Boden and Fleck, a married couple and creative partners known for character-driven indie films, were an unconventional choice for a big-budget superhero movie. Feige explained the decision to hire Boden and Fleck for “Captain Marvel,” saying, “It’s their body of work, and it’s their focus on character…our belief that they wouldn’t have lost the character amongst the spectacle and the fun and the effects.”

Boden and Fleck, who are also writers, cinematographers, and editors, met on the set of a student film and worked together on “Mississippi Grind,” “It’s Kind of a Funny Story,” “Sugar,” and “Half Nelson,” for which lead actor Ryan Gosling received an Academy Award nomination. The duo were at one point considered to direct “Guardians of the Galaxy,” but “Captain Marvel” turned out to be the right fit. Feige was particularly swayed by Boden’s pitch, adding that she spoke “very eloquently” about Carol Danvers and convinced the studio that she and Fleck were the right team for the job. During the film’s production, Boden even went up in a U.S.A.F. jet, as did Lynch and Larson, which Feige said was “super impressive” and joked, “I wouldn’t do it for a million dollars.”

President of Marvel Studios/Producer Kevin Feige

Kevin Feige & Lashana Lynch

For Larson, who trained every day for months to play Carol Danvers, even pushing a 5,000 pound Jeep for 60 seconds (as seen in a video she shared on her Instagram page), the experience of preparing for the role was both emotional and inspirational. “When we’re talking about Carol’s strength and we’re talking about what I learned from her, it’s that I’m stronger than I realized,” shared Larson, who was able to dead-lift 225 pounds and hip-thrust 400 pounds during her training. “So this concept, when it comes to gender norms or what the human body is capable of, or in particular maybe what a female body is capable of, it’s capable of a lot.”

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Diving into the 30th Anniversary Edition of “The Little Mermaid” at Walt Disney Animation Studios

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Diving into the 30th Anniversary Edition of “The Little Mermaid” 

By Melanie Gable

*I was invited as media to visit Walt Disney Animation Studios to learn more about the Walt Disney Signature Collection edition of “The Little Mermaid.” All thoughts and opinions are my own.*

It’s hard to believe that it’s been nearly 30 years since Ariel first swam into theaters, but the fandom for Disney’s lovable mermaid princess has continued grow as each new generation experiences the magic of “The Little Mermaid.” This month the classic film will be joining the Walt Disney Signature Collection with both digital (available Feb. 12) and Blu-ray (Feb. 26) editions packed with all-new bonus features.

To celebrate the 30th anniversary of “The Little Mermaid” and take a look back at the film’s legacy, Walt Disney Animation Studios hosted a media event featuring Director Ron Clements, Animation Supervisor Mark Henn, and The Little Mermaid herself, Jodi Benson! Erin invited me to cover the event for her, and I jumped at the chance to learn more about one of my favorite movies from the talented people who brought it to life.

We first met with Co-head of Animation Kira Lehtomaki, who gave us background on the revitalizing impact that “The Little Mermaid” had on the studio. “At the time that ‘The Little Mermaid’ was being made, we weren’t sure if the animation studio was going to close or not,” said Lehtomaki. “It wasn’t quite at the pinnacle of what animation had been, and it wasn’t until The Little Mermaid came along that she really revitalized the studio and launched a whole new renaissance for Disney animation.”

Hans Christian Andersen’s fish-out-of-water story had been on the studio’s list of potential fairy tale adaptations since the 1930s, but it wasn’t until 1989 that Disney was finally able to bring “The Little Mermaid” to theaters. The studio had been in a creative and box office slump, at least compared to its early films, but “The Little Mermaid” was a hit with critics and audiences alike, receiving a Golden Globe nomination for Best Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical, and winning Oscars for both Best Original Song (“Under the Sea”) and Best Original Score.

It's been 30 years since Ariel first swam into theaters, but the fandom for Disney’s lovable mermaid princess has continued grow as each new generation experiences the magic of “The Little Mermaid.” This month the classic film will be joining the Walt Disney Signature Collection with both digital (available Feb. 12) and Blu-ray (Feb. 26) editions packed with all-new bonus features. 

Ariel inspired legions of kids to long for mermaid tails and scarlet hair, and I was one of them. (I pity my poor mom, who had to endure me begging her to dye my hair red like The Little Mermaid on a nearly-daily basis after we saw the movie. Sorry, Mom!) The film also sparked the ambitions of a new generation of artists, many of whom dreamed of becoming Disney animators. “I knew at a very early age that I wanted to be part of this world,” confessed the charming Lehtomaki, who wanted to be a Disney “drawer” starting at age five, and even shared one of her childhood drawings of Ariel.

Lehtomaki led the team that brought all of the Disney princesses together, and designed their iconic loungewear, in “Ralph Breaks the Internet,” and she is particularly drawn to Ariel. “One of the reasons why I deeply connect to Ariel is because she’s a collector. She has ‘gadgets and gizmos a plenty,’ and I, too, am a collector. I’m kind of known around here as the resident Disney hoarder,” she joked. Lehtomaki used her personal collection of Disney princess figurines to remember the placement of each princess when she was animating their scene with Vanellope in “Ralph Breaks the Internet.”

She also formed a friendship with Ariel herself, actress Jodi Benson, who voiced the headstrong mermaid in the original film and subsequent Disney projects, including “Ralph Breaks the Internet.” Lehtomaki gushed about Benson, saying, “Jodi was so valuable in the information she gave us, but the other part was we got to watch her in the recording studio, and if you watch her you will see she IS Ariel. She embodies her.” Benson was kind enough to talk with us over video web chat about what “The Little Mermaid” has meant to her over the years and her memorable experiences during production.

The Little Mermaid Dinglehopper

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