General

Why For?

In his patented long winded style, Jim Hill answers your questions about the Walt Disney Company.

Published

22 years ago

September 12, 2002

Theresa M. from Charlottesville, VA. writes:

Dear Jim:
Welcome back! I think that it’s great that you finally have a site of your very own on the web. Now I’ll always know where to go when I want to find your stuff (Until – of course – Jon & Fab finally decide to fire you 😉 ).
As for your debut “Why For” Q & A column, the Disney related question that I’ve always wanted to have answered is … In the song “Hakuna Matata,” isn’t there a verse missing? By that I mean, that song reveals that Pumbaa was a misfit was that he had a horrible gas problem. So what’s Timon’s problem? Why isn’t he out there spending time with his own kind (By that, I mean Meerkats) instead of hanging out with that wifty warthog?

Excellent question, Theresa. And – yes – Tim Rice did write a verse for “Hakuna Matata” that explained why Timon no longer associates with his friends and relations. It seemed that the little golden brown slacker had an aversion to authority & hard work.

Quoting now from the original screenplay of “The Lion King,” Timon turns to Simba and says:

TIMON: Kid, I was not always the calm cool meerkat that you see before you. No sirree. Why (Singing) When I was a young meerkat.

PUMBAA: (Singing) When he was a young meerkat.

TIMON: (Speaking) Very nice.

PUMBAA: (Speaking) Thanks.

TIMON: (Singing) I worked in the colony, paying my dues.

Accepting – without question – the prevailing views.

That a meerkat’s life was one long grind.

PUMBAA: (Speaking) Sounds rough.

TIMON: (Singing) Digging holes. Standing guard. Til it crossed my mind.

I was wrong.

PUMBAA: (Singing) He was wrong.

TIMON: (Singing) And all alone. And what I needed

PUMBAA: (Singing) What did you need?

TIMON: (Singing) Was to have heeded …

Hakuna Matata!

What a wonderful phrase …

From there, the song goes along as it usually does.

So why did Disney decide to drop this verse from “Hakuna Matata”? To be honest, it just wasn’t as strong as Pumbaa’s “When I was a young wart hog” stanza. It didn’t get a very big reaction from “Lion King” test audiences (Whereas Timon’s tagline for Pumbaa’s verse – “Not in front of the kids!” – got screams of laughter from people attending the test screenings).

So this was one of these situations where less really was more. The shorter “Hakuna Matata” was, the bigger a reaction it got from test audiences. So “Lion King”‘s directors – Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff – ended up just dropping Timon’s verse in the song. (Though – if I remember correctly – these lyrics were eventually used in a slightly mutated form in the comic book version of “The Lion King.”)

Anyway … Todd V. from Watertown, WI. writes:

I was just reading your “When Good Attractions Happen to Bad Movies” article and can’t help but wonder what went wrong with “Atlantis: The Lost Empire.” This was the sort of movie that the Walt Disney Company used to do so well. A Jules Verne type film adventure. So why didn’t this movie connect with movie-goers last summer? Was it because “A:TLE” was so poorly marketed or just because the Mouse doesn’t know how to make these sorts of movies anymore?

I actually have a different theory, Todd. I personally believe that “Atlantis: The Lost Empire” failed to connect with most movie-goers because the film-makers lost faith in the version of the movie that they originally started out to make.

You see, back when co-directors Kirk Wise & Gary Trousdale and producer Don Hahn initially conceived this project (supposedly over a giant plate of nachos at a Mexican restaurant), they wanted “Atlantis: The Lost Empire” to be the ultimate Ray Harryhausen movie. A film where – every few minutes – the crew of the “Ulysses” would have yet another encounter with another fearsome creature.

One of their more intriguing ideas for this project was that there would be a monster in the movie that was tied to each one of the four primal elements: earth, water, fire & air. The water beast, you already know about: The Leviathan, the giant mechanical lobster-thingy that destroyed the giant sub.

But – had Wise, Trousdale & Hahn actually stuck with this intriguing notion – the “Ulysses” would have survived its eventful encounter with the Leviathan … Only to have the sub be accidentally destroyed as a result of a battle that Captain Rourke and his crew had with some beasts from the air. And what sort of monsters were these ? A vicious swarm of Squid Bats. (What’s a Squid Bat? Just what it sounds like, kids. A horrible slimy flying thing that would swoop down and grab up its victim in its tentacles.)

Over the next 20 minutes or so in the movie, the surviving members of the sub’s crew would have encountered even more harrowing beasts as they journeyed deeper into the bowels of the earth. For example: What they think is a land bridge across a boiling pool of magma turns out to be a Lava Whale. What’s a Lava Whale? An enormous earth based beast that suddenly rises up out of the lava and attacks the ill-fated adventurers … killing a fourth of the surviving crew members in the course of the battle.

And then – of course – there were the Fire Flies that set most of the expedition’s remaining equipment ablaze. (That sequence did actually manage to make it into the finished version of “Atlantis: The Lost Empire” without being too severely cut.)

So why did Kirk, Gary and Don eventually decide not to go forward with the ultimate Ray Harryhausen film that they had originally envisioned? There are three reasons, actually. One is that the Squid Bat & Lava Whale battle scenes – while they would have undoubtedly been great fun to watch once they were completed – would have also been prohibitively expensive to animate. (And – given that “A:TLE” was one of the films that WDFA actually had in production while “Hercules” and “Dinosaur” were out in theaters, failing to meet their box office projections – “Atlantis” was one of the very first Disney Feature project to undergo a “reduction in scope.” I.E., to have several of its more-expensive-to-produce sequences get cut for cost reasons during the film’s pre-production phase.)

Secondly, early test screenings of “Atlantis: The Lost Empire” revealed that audience members were actually pretty anxious to finally get to see the fabled underground city. So anything that slowed Milo & the other adventurers down – even if it was something as exciting as the crew’s encounter with the Lava Whale – seemed to lessen these folks’ enjoyment of the movie. So – to help speed the story along – four monster scenes (Actually five monster scenes. Milo was originally supposed to encounter Kida when he accidentally got in the way of an Atlantean hunting party that was pursuing a caterpillar that was the size of a school bus) ended up being reduced to two.

And the third (and final) reason that Wise, Trousdale and Hahn eventually decided to cut back on “A:TLE”‘s monsters was perhaps the most controversial. You see, early test screenings of the movie revealed that audiences – while being vastly entertained during “Atlantis”‘s action sequences – weren’t really emotionally involved with the movie’s characters. In other words, they thought that the film lacked heart.

So – in order to given “Atlantis” a heart transplant – some radical surgery was in order. The first thing to go was “A:TLE”‘s original prologue, where a bunch of fortune seeking Vikings lost their lives at the hands … er …claws of the Leviathan. In its place, WDFA created a sequence that actually showed the destruction of Atlantis (Which – it was hoped – would whet the audience’s appetite for seeing even more of the fabled city later on in the movie) as well as setting up Kida’s emotional arc. It was also hoped that – by showing that the Atlantean princess had suffered such a cruel hardship at the very start of the story (having Kida’s mother, the Queen, mysteriously snatched away as that massive tidal wave bore down on the city) – this would somehow make movie-goers care even more about this character.

Did all of this extra effort eventually pay off? In the end, as a result of all these cuts, was Disney’s “Atlantis: The Lost Empire” ultimately a more-affordable-to-make and (more importantly) a more-emotionally-engaging motion picture? Given the film’s lackluster performance at the box office last summer (as well as the deep discounts that retailers had to offer in order to finally move all that “A:TLE” merchandise off their shelves), it doesn’t seem so.

So- in the end – maybe it would have been wiser to go forward with Wise, Trousdale and Hahn’s original vision for “Atlantis: The Lost Empire.” The ultimate Ray Harryhausen tribute film. The movie that the project’s designer – “Hellboy”‘s Mike Mignola – described as being an endless “monster parade.”(For further information on the monster scenes that you missed out in “Atlantis : The Lost Empire,” check out the additional features on the Special Edition version of the “A:TLE” DVD. You’ll find leica reel versions of the film’ proposed Squid Bat & Lava Whale sequences as well as the film-makers’ commentary about why Gary & Kirk & Don ultimately decided to cut these scenes.)

And – finally – Brian8871 (Also writing in reference to this week’s “When Good Attractions Happen to Bad Movies” article) posted this angry item as part of that story’s discussion board. Brian – it seems – was somewhat steamed by my “Sorry, but that would be telling” comment in that article. Which is why he wrote:

What the hell? If the attraction isn’t going to get built, then for whom would it be a spoiler? If you don’t know, Jim, then just say so!

Actually, Brian8871, I DO know what was supposed to happen next in the storyline of Disneyland’s proposed “Atlantis Expedition” attraction. The problem is … Sometimes it’s just not wise for me blow all of the info that I know about a particular subject in a single story.

Why for? Well – for one thing – most of my stories are too damned long already. So sometimes I hold things back just for the sake of brevity.

But the rest of the time – if I’m holding back info – it’s usually because I’m deliberately trying not to hurt a source that I’ve got at Walt Disney Feature Animation and/or inside WDI.

You see, the more specific I am about the information that I use in my articles, the easier it is for Imagineering or Disney Studio management to chase down the actual source of that info. And – as much as I like bringing you folks seldom told tales of the Walt Disney Company’s history – I’m just not willing to end someone else’s career over what is ultimately just a well sourced piece of gossip.

Think I’m being over dramatic? Then let me tell you the sad story of one of the top talents over at Universal Creative. This guy shared a few relatively innocent stories with the folks over at Screamscape.com a few years back. Universal’s response? They fired him. For reportedly revealing company secrets.

So that’s why I have to sometimes hold stuff back, Brian8871. Not because I’m out to tease my readers. But – rather – because I don’t want to start a witch hunt at WDI or Walt Disney Feature Animation. Where clueless Mouse House executives begin to badger their subordinates, demanding to know who’s vital leaking info to “that fat *** Hill.”

When was the last time this happened? Last week, actually. I’m told that a lot of people at WDFA management weren’t very happy that I revealed that Dave Thomas and Rick Moranis were doing voices for “Bears.” Evidently, these folks thought that the whole Rutt & Tuke / Bob & Doug McKenzie thing would be a great promotional hook for the film … Provided (of course) that they were actually able to keep this story under wraps ’til “Bears” finally got released in November 2004.

These folks were also reportedly very unhappy that I talked about all the problems that the “Bears” team was having trouble with Griz, the character that Michael Clark is voicing for the film. (Just to be fair, I should point out that – according to the numerous phone calls that I’ve received this week in response to last Thursday’s story – the Griz character is STILL in the picture. Though supposedly in a somewhat reduced role.)

So – again – Brian8871, I’m not deliberately trying to be a tease here. I’m just constantly in the middle of this very delicate balancing act. Trying to deliver the best possible story loaded with inside info for all you folks … while still making sure that whatever I write doesn’t end up costing someone their job.

Besides, Brian8871 … I mean, think about it. You’re on a Disney theme park attraction. Supposedly trapped inside a submarine that’s being crushed by the claw of a giant lobster-thingy? If you were an Imagineer (particularly who had been raised watching Disney’s “20,000 Leagues Under the Seas” and Irwin Allen’s “Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea” TV series), how would YOU go about resolving this story point?

Would you – perhaps – send a little electricity coursing through the outside of the hull? How about launching a few torpedoes at extremely close range? Of course, that might cause even more pinhole leaks to sprout on the inside of your vessel. Which means – in order to avoid sinking – you’d probably have to get to the surface ASAP, right?

Does that sound like a fairly likely way for this proposed addition to Disneyland’s Tomorrowland to come to a close, Brian8871? Glad you think so, Bri … But – then again – you never heard this from me, okay?

Anywho … That’s it for the first edition of “Why For?,” gang. Here’s hoping that you guys enjoyed it.

By the way, we’re looking for a really compelling visual to use with this new regular feature here at JimHillMedia.com. If any of you artistic types out there would like to take on this project, I’m offering up a copy of the original screenplay for Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast” to the person who delivers the very best logo.

The deadline for this very first JimHillMedia.com contest is 11 p.m. EST on Thursday, September 19th. So let’s see what you got!

Talk to you Monday,

jrh

General

Seward Johnson bronzes add a surreal, artistic touch to NYC’s Garment District

Published

9 years ago

June 23, 2015

Jim Hill

Greetings from NYC. Nancy and I drove down from New
Hampshire yesterday because we'll be checking out
Disney Consumer Products' annual Holiday Showcase later today.

Anyway … After checking into our hotel (i.e., The Paul.
Which is located down in NYC's NoMad district), we decided to grab some dinner.
Which is how we wound up at the Melt Shop.

Photo by Jim Hill

Which is this restaurant that only sells grilled cheese sandwiches.
This comfort food was delicious, but kind of on the heavy side.

Photo by Jim Hill

Which is why — given that it was a beautiful summer night
— we'd then try and walk off our meals. We started our stroll down by the Empire
State Building
…

Photo by Jim Hill

… and eventually wound up just below Times
Square (right behind where the Waterford Crystal Times Square New
Year's Eve Ball is kept).

Photo by Jim Hill

But you know what we discovered en route? Right in the heart
of Manhattan's Garment District
along Broadway between 36th and 41st? This incredibly cool series of life-like
and life-sized sculptures that Seward
Johnson has created.

Photo by Jim Hill

And — yes — that is Abraham Lincoln (who seems to have
slipped out of WDW's Hall of Presidents when no one was looking and is now
leading tourists around Times Square). These 18 painted
bronze pieces (which were just installed late this past Sunday night / early
Monday morning) range from the surreal to the all-too-real.

Photo by Jim Hill

Some of these pieces look like typical New Yorkers. Like the
business woman planning out her day …

Photo by Jim Hill

… the postman delivering the mail …

Photo by Jim Hill

… the hot dog vendor working at his cart …

Photo by Jim Hill

… the street musician playing for tourists …

Photo by Jim Hill

Not to mention the tourists themselves.

Photo by Jim Hill

But right alongside the bronze businessmen …

Photo by Jim Hill

… and the tired grandmother hauling her groceries home …

Photo by Jim Hill

… there were also statues representing people who were
from out-of-town …

Photo by Jim Hill

… or — for that matter — out-of-time.

Photo by Jim Hill

These were the Seward Johnson pieces that genuinely beguiled. Famous impressionist paintings brought to life in three dimensions.

Note the out-of-period water bottle that some tourist left
behind. Photo by Jim Hill

Some of them so lifelike that you actually had to pause for
a moment (especially as day gave way to night in the city) and say to yourself
"Is that one of the bronzes? Or just someone pretending to be one of these
bronzes?"

Mind you, for those of you who aren't big fans of the
impressionists …

Photo by Jim Hill

… there's also an array of American icons. Among them
Marilyn Monroe …

Photo by Jim Hill

… and that farmer couple from Grant Wood's "American
Gothic."

Photo by Jim Hill

But for those of you who know your NYC history, it's hard to
beat that piece which recreates Alfred Eisenstaedt's famous photograph of V-J Day in Times Square.

Photo by Jim Hill

By the way, a 25-foot-tall version of this particular Seward
Johnson piece ( which — FYI — is entitled "Embracing Peace") will actually
be placed in Times Square for a few days on or around August 14th to commemorate the 70th
anniversary of Victory Over Japan Day (V-J Day).

Photo by Jim Hill

By the way, if you'd like to check these Seward Johnson bronzes in
person (which — it should be noted — are part of the part of the Garment
District Alliance's new public art offering) — you'd best schedule a trip to
the City sometime over the next three months. For these pieces will only be on
display now through September 15th.

General

Wondering what you should “Boldly Go” see at the movies next year? The 2015 Licensing Expo offers you some clues

Published

9 years ago

June 10, 2015

Jim Hill

Greeting from the 2015 Licensing Expo, which is being held
at the Mandalay Bay
Convention Center in Las
Vegas.

Photo by Jim Hill

I have to admit that I enjoy covering the Licensing Expo.
Mostly becomes it allows bloggers & entertainment writers like myself to
get a peek over the horizon. Scope out some of the major motion pictures &
TV shows that today's vertically integrated entertainment conglomerates
(Remember when these companies used to be called movie studios?) will be
sending our way over the next two years or so.

Photo by Jim Hill

Take — for example — all of "The Secret Life of
Pets" banners that greeted Expo attendees as they made their way to the
show floor today. I actually got to see some footage from this new Illumination
Entertainment production (which will hit theaters on July 8, 2016) the last time I was in Vegas. Which
was for CinemaCon back in April. And the five or so minutes of film that I viewed
suggested that "The Secret Life of Pets" will be a really funny
animated feature.

Photo by Jim Hill

Mind you, Universal Pictures wanted to make sure that Expo
attendees remembered that there was another Illumination Entertainment production
coming-to-a-theater-near-them before "The Secret Life of Pets" (And
that's "Minions," the "Despicable Me" prequel. Which
premieres at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival next week but
won't be screened stateside 'til July 10th of this year). Which is why they had
three minions who were made entirely out of LEGOS loitering out in the lobby.

Photo by Jim Hill

And Warner Bros. — because they wanted "Batman v
Superman: Dawn of Justice" to start trending on Twitter today — brought
the Batmobile to Las Vegas.

Photo by Jim Hill

Not to mention full-sized macquettes of Batman, Superman and
Wonder Woman. Just so conventioneers could then see what these DC superheroes
would actually look like in this eagerly anticipated, March 25, 2016 release.

Photo by Jim Hill

That's the thing that can sometimes be a wee bit frustrating
about the Licensing Expo. It's all about delayed gratification. You'll come
around a corner and see this 100 foot-long ad for "The Peanuts Movie"
and think "Hey, that looks great. I want to see that Blue Sky Studios production
right now." It's only then that you notice the fine print and realize that
"The Peanuts Movie" doesn't actually open in theaters 'til November
6th of this year.

Photo by Jim Hill

And fan of Blue Sky's "Ice Age" film franchise are in for an even
longer wait. Given that the latest installment in that top grossing series
doesn't arrive in theaters 'til July
15, 2016.

Photo by Jim Hill

Of course, if you're one of those people who needs immediate
gratification when it comes to your entertainment, there was stuff like that to
be found at this year's Licensing Expo. Take — for example — how the WWE
booth was actually shaped like a wrestling ring. Which — I'm guessing — meant
that if the executives of World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. didn't like
the offer that you were making, they were then allowed to toss you out over the
top rope, Royal Rumble-style.

Photo by Jim Hill

I also have to admit that — as a longtime Star Trek fan —
it was cool to see the enormous Starship Enterprise that hung in place over the
CBS booth. Not to mention getting a glimpse of the official Star Trek 50th
Anniversary logo.

Photo by Jim Hill

I was also pleased to see lots of activity in The Jim Henson
Company booth. Which suggests that JHC has actually finally carved out a
post-Muppets identity for itself.

Photo by Jim Hill

Likewise for all of us who were getting a little concerned
about DreamWorks Animation (what with all the layoffs & write-downs &
projects that were put into turnaround or outright cancelled last year), it was
nice to see that booth bustling.

Photo by Jim Hill

Every so often, you'd come across some people who were
promoting a movie that you weren't entirely sure that you actually wanted to
see (EX: "Angry Birds," which Sony Pictures Entertainment / Columbia
Pictures will be releasing to theaters on May 20, 2016). But then you remembered that Clay Kaytis —
who's this hugely talented former Walt Disney Animation Studios animator — is
riding herd on "Angry Birds" with Fergal Reilly. And you'd think
"Well, if Clay's working on 'Angry Birds,' I'm sure this animated feature
will turn out fine."

Photo by Jim Hill

Mind you, there were reminders at this year's Licensing Expo
of great animated features that we're never going to get to see now. I still
can't believe — especially after that brilliant proof-of-concept footage
popped up online last year — that Sony execs decided not to go forward
with production of Genndy Tartakovsky's
"Popeye" movie. But that's the
cruel thing about the entertainment business, folks. It will sometime break
your heart.

Photo by Jim Hill

And make no mistake about this. The Licensing Expo is all
about business. That point was clearly driven home at this year's show when —
as you walked through the doors of the Mandalay
Bay Convention Center
— the first thing that you saw was the Hasbros Booth. Which was this gleaming,
sleek two story-tall affair full of people who were negotiating deals &
signing contracts for all of the would-be summer blockbusters that have already
announced release dates for 2019 & beyond.

Photo by Jim Hill

"But what about The Walt Disney Company?," you
ask. "Weren't they represented on the show floor at this year's Licensing
Expo?" Not really, not. I mean, sure. There were a few companies there hyping
Disney-related products. Take — for example — the Disney Wikkeez people.

Photo by Jim Hill

I'm assuming that some Disney Consumer Products exec is
hoping that Wikkeez will eventually become the new Tsum Tsum. But to be blunt,
these little hard plastic figures don't seem to have the same huggable charm
that those stackable plush do. But I've been wrong before. So let's see what
happens with Disney Wikkeez once they start showing up on the shelves of the
Company's North American retail partners.

Photo by Jim Hill

And speaking of Disney's retail partners … They were
meeting with Mouse House executives behind closed doors one floor down from the
official show floor for this year's Licensing Expo.

Photo by Jim Hill

And the theme for this year's invitation-only Disney shindig? "Timeless
Stories" involving the Disney, Pixar, Marvel & Lucasfilm brands that
would then appeal to "tomorrow's consumer."

Photo by Jim Hill

And just to sort of hammer home the idea that Disney is no
longer the Company which cornered the market when it comes to little girls
(i.e., its Disney Princess and Disney Fairies franchises), check out this
wall-sized Star Wars-related image that DCP put up just outside of one of its
many private meeting rooms. "See?," this carefully crafted photo
screams. "It isn't just little boys who want to wield the Force. Little
girls also want to grow up and be Lords of the Sith."

Photo by Jim Hill

One final, kind-of-ironic note: According to this banner,
Paramount Pictures will be releasing a movie called "Amusement Park"
to theaters sometime in 2017.

Photo by Jim Hill

Well, given all the "Blackfish" -related issues
that have been dogged SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment over the past two years, I'm
just hoping that they'll still be in the amusement park business come 2017.

Your thoughts?

General

It takes more than three circles to craft a Classic version of Mickey Mouse

Published

9 years ago

June 9, 2015

Jim Hill

You know what Mickey Mouse looks like, right? Little guy,
big ears?

Truth be told, Disney's corporate symbol has a lot of
different looks. If Mickey's interacting with Guests at Disneyland
Park (especially this summer, when
the Happiest Place on Earth
is celebrating its 60th anniversary), he looks & dresses like this.

Or when he's appearing in one of those Emmy Award-winning shorts that Disney
Television Animation has produced (EX: "Bronco Busted," which debuts
on the Disney Channel tonight at 8 p.m. ET / PT), Mickey is drawn in a such a
way that he looks hip, cool, edgy & retro all at the same time.

Looking ahead to 2017 now, when Disney Junior rolls out "Mickey and the
Roadster Racers," this brand-new animated series will feature a sportier version
of Disney's corporate symbol. One that Mouse House managers hope will persuade
preschool boys to more fully embrace this now 86 year-old character.

That's what most people don't realize about the Mouse. The
Walt Disney Company deliberately tailors Mickey's look, even his style of
movement, depending on what sort of project / production he's appearing in.

Take — for example — Disney
California Adventure
Park's "World of Color:
Celebrate!" Because Disney's main mouse would be co-hosting this new
nighttime lagoon show with ace emcee Neil Patrick Harris, Eric Goldberg really had
to step up Mickey's game. Which is why this master Disney animator created
several minutes of all-new Mouse animation which then showed that Mickey was
just as skilled a showman as Neil was.

Better yet, let's take a look at what the folks at Avalanche Studios just went
through as they attempted to create a Classic version of Mickey & Minnie.
One that would then allow this popular pair to become part of Disney Infinity
3.0.

"I won't lie to you. We were under a lot of pressure to
get the look of this particular version of Mickey — he's called Red Pants
Mickey around here — just right," said Jeff Bunker, the VP of Art
Development at Avalanche Studios, during a recent phone interview. "When
we brought Sorcerer Mickey into Disney Infinity 1.0 back in January of 2014,
that one was relatively easy because … Well, everyone knows what Mickey Mouse
looked like when he appeared in 'Fantasia.' "

"But this time around, we were being asked to design
THE Mickey & Minnie," Bunker continued. "And given that these Classic
Disney characters have been around in various different forms for the better
part of the last century … Well, which look was the right look?"

Which is why Jeff and his team at Avalanche Studios began watching hours &
hours of Mickey Mouse shorts. As they tried to get a handle on which look would
work best for these characters in Disney Infinity 3.0.

"And we went all the way back to the very start of Mickey's career. We began
with 'Steamboat Willie' and then watched all of those black & white Mickey shorts
that Walt made back in the late 1920s & early 1930s. From there, we
transitioned to his Technicolor shorts. Which is when Mickey went from being
this pie-eyed, really feisty character to more of a well-behaved leading
man," Bunker recalled. "We then finished out our Mouse marathon by
watching all of those new Mickey shorts that Paul Rudish & his team have
been creating for Disney Television Animation. Those cartoons really recapture
a lot of the spirit and wild slapstick fun that Mickey's early, black &
white shorts had."

But given that the specific assignment that Avalanche Studios had been handed
was to create the most appealing looking, likeable version of Mickey Mouse
possible … In the end, Jeff and his team wound up borrowing bits & pieces
from a lot of different versions of the world's most famous mouse. So that
Classic Mickey would then look & move in a way that best fit the sort of
gameplay which people would soon be able to experience with Disney Infinity
3.0.

"That — in a lot of ways — was actually the toughest
part of the Classic Mickey design project. You have to remember that one of the
key creative conceits of Disney Infinity
is that all the characters which appear in this game are toys," Bunker
stated. "Okay. So they're beautifully detailed, highly stylized toy
versions of beloved Disney, Pixar, Marvel & Lucasfilm characters. But
they're still supposed to be toys. So our Classic versions of Mickey &
Minnie have the same sort of thickness & sturdiness to them that toys have.
So that they'll then be able to fit right in with all of the rest of the
characters that Avalanche Studios had previously designed for Disney Infinity."

And then there was the matter of coming up with just the
right pose for Classic Mickey & Minnie. Which — to hear Jeff tell the
story — involved input from a lot of Disney upper management.

"Everyone within the Company seemed to have an opinion
about how Mickey & Minnie should be posed. More to the point, if you Google
Mickey, you then discover that there are literally thousands of poses out there
for these two. Though — truth be told — a lot of those kind of play off the
way Mickey poses when he's being Disney's corporate symbol," Bunker said.
"But what I was most concerned about was that Mickey's pose had to work
with Minnie's pose. Because we were bringing the Classic versions of these
characters up into Disney Infinity 3.0 at the exact same time. And we wanted to
make sure — especially for those fans who like to put their Disney Infinity
figures on display — that Mickey's pose would then complement Minnie.

Which is why Jeff & the crew at Avalanche Studios
decided — when it came to Classic Mickey & Minnie's pose — that they
should go all the way back to the beginning. Which is why these two Disney icons
are sculpted in such a way that it almost seems as though you're witnessing the
very first time Mickey set eyes on Minnie.

"And what was really great about that was — as soon as
we began showing people within the Company this pose — everyone at Disney
quickly got on board with the idea. I mean, the Classic Mickey that we sculpted
for Disney Infinity 3.0 is clearly a very playful, spunky character. But at the
same time, he's obviously got eyes for Minnie," Bunker concluded. "So
in the end, we were able to come up with Classic versions of these characters
that will work well within the creative confines of Disney Infinity 3.0 but at
the same time please those Disney fans who just collect these figures because
they like the way the Disney Infinity characters look."

So now that this particular design project is over, does
Jeff regret that Mouse House upper management was so hands-on when it came to
making sure that the Classic versions of Mickey & Minnie were specifically
tailored to fit the look & style of gameplay found in Disney Infinity 3.0?

"To be blunt, we go through this every time we add a new character to the
game. The folks at Lucasfilm were just as hands-on when we were designing the
versions of Darth Vader and Yoda that will also soon be appearing in Disney
Infinity 3.0," Bunker laughed. "So in the end, if the character's
creators AND the fans are happy, then I'm happy."

This article was originally posted on the Huffington Post's Entertainment page on Tuesday, June 9, 2015