DVD Review: Dream On Silly Dreamer

On March 25, 2002, Walt Disney Feature Animation president Thomas Schumacher announced that he was killing the legendary animation unit. He laid off nearly 1,300 employees and shut down facilities in Paris, Tokyo, Orlando and the original animation studio in Burbank.

Eight years earlier, Peter Schneider, then the president of that same unit, held a massive party celebrating the The Lion King, which had earned $100 million at the box office and won 3 Golden Globe awards. At the party, he said, "When the art works, the business will follow."

What Happened?

That's the story in Dan Lund's 2005 documentary Dream On Silly Dreamer, which recounts the sudden rebirth and rapid fall of Walt Disney Feature Animation. In it, he interviews 24 artists, to show what caused Disney's "animation renaissance" and how that rebirth was killed.

Life in the Animation Unit

Tucked away in their trailer park, animators honed their craft. The work was grueling. Artists put in 80-hour weeks, working from 6 am until midnight. Many animators slept at their desks.

"No one could do laundry," laughed in-betweener Jacquie Sanchez. "People were going to K-Mart to buy new underwear!"

Others faced disintegrating relationships and the threat of tendinitis. But they all felt a great sense of responsibility. They were making movies that would be watched several decades down the road, and they wanted to get it right. Besides, Disney animators had worked similar hours when they produced Snow White. It was all part of the tradition.

They also loved the work. They all grew up with Disney animation and were thrilled to be working for the same company that produced such classic films.

The Little Mermaid to The Lion King

The Little Mermaid was a commercial hit, and so was Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin. All three movies were hailed as classics and they made a lot of money.

The high point came with 1994's The Lion King. It made nearly $313 million for the Mouse House in North America. Animators became celebrities, and were well paid.

"You could buy a car with a single bonus check," said visual effects staffer Sean Ramirez. "You could put a down payment on a house."

Every Movie Must be a Blockbuster

That success also sowed the seeds of WDFA's downfall.

"Management said, 'We shouldn't measure our future box office in connection with The Lion King,'" sighed Deja. "But they did."

Animators couldn't produce their movies in peace. Every film had to meet or beat The Lion King's gross. The animation unit moved to the despised Blue Hat Building, and their work was under greater scrutiny by studio executives looking for "The Wow," as CEO Michael Eisner put it.

"Suddenly, somebody who went to school for Accounting or Business Management is taking over your job," said writer Sue Nichols.

Dreck to Video

Michael Eisner split WDFA in two. WDFA produced the "event" movies, while Disney Toon Studios made direct-to-video sequels. They were cheaply made films, cranked out overseas, and bore little resemblance to the classic originals.

"The turning point was a lady coming up to me saying, 'I didn't like Aladdin II,'" said painter David Karp. "I said, 'There's an Aladdin II?'"

With declining box office came more executive second-guessing, and a colder atmosphere in the animation unit.

Finally, there came the infamous "Tom Meetings" of 2002. CGI movies like Fox's Ice Age had made a box office splash, and Disney felt that cel animation was dead. Nearly 1,300 employees were shown the door.

Dream On Silly Dreamer is a cautionary tale for Disney, and other animated studios, about how easy it is for greed to get in the way of greatness. WDFA had managed to find that elusive middle ground between art and commerce. Unfortunately, heightened commercial expectations, and a lack of appreciation for the Disney brand, destroyed that balance. In searching for the quick buck, Eisner literally killed the goose that laid the golden egg.

"We were being run by people who don't love the business of animation," said animator Merry Clingen, "and who don't love Disney."

Is It Worth It?

It's well worth a rental if you are a fan of Disney animation (and who isn't?). Dream on Silly Dreamer profiles people who, for a while, managed to make a very good living doing what they loved. And their love for animation, and Disney, spills into every word they say.

image from Dream On Silly Dreamer

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