Fantasia (1940)

A collection of animated interpretations of great works of Western classical music.

Directors:

James Algar (uncredited), Samuel Armstrong (uncredited)

Writers:

Joe Grant (story direction), Dick Huemer (story direction)

Stars:

Leopold Stokowski, Deems Taylor, Corey Burton

8 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Leopold Stokowski	...	Himself - Conductor of The Philadelphia Orchestra
Deems Taylor	...	Himself - Narrative Introductions

Storyline

Disney animators set pictures to Western classical music as Leopold Stokowski conducts the Philadelphia Orchestra. "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" features Mickey Mouse as an aspiring magician who oversteps his limits. "The Rite of Spring" tells the story of evolution, from single-celled animals to the death of the dinosaurs. "Dance of the Hours" is a comic ballet performed by ostriches, hippos, elephants, and alligators. "Night on Bald Mountain" and "Ave Maria" set the forces of darkness and light against each other as a devilish revel is interrupted by the coming of a new day.

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Plot Keywords:

classical music | disney | mouse | orchestra | apprentice | 

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Taglines:

Fantasia Will Amazia! (1942 re-release)

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Genres:

Animation | Family | Fantasy | Music

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Certificate:

G

Details

Official Sites:

official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 July 1941 (UK)

Also Known As:

Bach to Stravinsky and Bach

Filming Locations:

Walt Disney Studios, 500 South Buena Vista Street, Burbank, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$2,280,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$980,798, 10 February 1985, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$76,408,097

Company Credits

Production Co:

Walt Disney Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

124 min (2000 roadshow restoration) 125 min (original 1940 roadshow release) 80 min (1942 cut) 120 min (VHS release) 115 min (1946 cut)

Sound Mix:

3 Channel Stereo (RCA Sound System) (as Fantasound)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Bela Lugosi served as a live-action model for Chernabog, the demon named after the god of evil in Slavonic mythology in "Night on Bald Mountain". Lugosi spent several days at the Disney studios, where he was filmed doing evil, demon-like poses for the animators to use as a reference. However, Bill Tytla, the animator in charge of Chernabog, was dissatisfied with Lugosi's performance, and had sequence director Wilfred Jackson pose for the cameras. Thus it was Jackson, not Lugosi, who appeared on-screen as Chernabog. Tytla supervised the animation of both him and the sorcerer in "The Sorcerer's Apprentice", whose name Yen Sid (Disney spelled backwards) was originally going to be used for Chernabog. The animators modeled sorcerer after Nigel De Brulier but secretly added in some elements of their boss, Walt Disney. The raised eyebrow was regarded as a dead giveaway.

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Goofs

Two of the dancing mushrooms in the "Nutcracker Suite" inexplicably change size and shape (from wide and medium height to skinny and tall) when the angle changes.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Deems Taylor: How do you do? Uh, my name is Deems Taylor, and it's my very pleasant duty to welcome you here on behalf of Walt Disney, Leopold Stokowski, and all the other artists and musicians whose combined talents went into the creation of this new form of entertainment, "Fantasia". What you're going to see are the designs and pictures and stories that music inspired in the minds and imaginations of a group of artists. In other words, these are not going to be the interpretations of trained ...

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Crazy Credits

The roadshow cut of the film features no credits or title music, just the Art Deco title card placed at the intermission. The general release cut (the one shown most often) places the title card at the beginning, as on most films.

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Connections

Referenced in Robot Carnival (1987)

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Soundtracks

The Nutcracker Suite, Op. 71a
(1892)
(features the compositions "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy", "Chinese Dance", "Dance of the Reed Flutes", "Arabian Dance", "Russian Dance", and "Waltz of the Flowers")
Composed by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Played by The Philadelphia Orchestra
Conducted by Leopold Stokowski

User Reviews

Beautiful Combination of Classical Music and Animation

In 1940, Walt Disney released "Fantasia", the third feature of his studio and maybe his most ambitious project, with a beautiful combination of classical music conducted by Leopold Stokowski and animation. The result is a movie that has been worshiped by every generation.

Yesterday I saw "Fantasia" again, now on the Special 60th Anniversary Edition DVD, restored and remastered with audio in THX inclusive with intermission. The program, for those that have eventually never seen or want to recall, is composed by the following:

(1) Toccata and Fugue in D Minor by Johann Sebastian Bach.

(2) Nutcracker Suite by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.

(3) The Sorcerer's Apprentice by Paul Dukas.

(4) Rite of Spring by Igor Stravinsky.

(5) Intermission/Meet the Soundtrack.

(6) The Pastoral Symphony by Ludwig van Beethoven.

(7) Dance of the Hours by Amilcare Ponchielli.

(8) Night on Bald Mountain by Modest Mussorgsky.

(9) Ave Maria by Franz Schubert.

My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Fantasia"