Fantasia 2000 (1999)
Trivia
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Director Cameo (1)
The Broadway ending sequence of "Rhapsody in Blue" contained so many different colors (over 200) that the CAPS system had trouble rendering it, causing delays in the production of Tarzan (1999).
The first feature length animated film to be presented in IMAX. IMAX had to agree to Disney's terms and conditions to gain the exclusive first showings of the film. These included a limited engagement of 4 months and 50% of the box office receipts. It was for this reason that, when Fantasia 2000 (1999) had its first run, not all IMAX cinemas showed it as not all of them were prepared to accept Disney's terms. The California Science Center in Los Angeles was one such venue who refused to meet these terms so Disney built a purpose-built IMAX theatre for the 4 month run, costing them $4 million, and demolished it afterwards.
When Eric Goldberg first approached cartoonist Al Hirschfeld about adopting his visual style for the "Rhapsody in Blue" segment, Hirschfeld told him that if he was 50 years younger he would have been on a train the next day to come work on the project. Eric Goldberg showed "Rhapsody in Blue" to Al Hirschfeld shortly before the artist's 96th birthday. Hirschfeld's wife Louise called it the best birthday present he could have received.
George Gershwin himself features in the "Rhapsody in Blue" segment. He's the slender man seen playing the piano through his apartment window, above Rachel and her piano lessons.
The "Carnival of the Animals" segment with the yo-yo-playing flamingo was originally conceived with ostriches in mind by Joe Grant, 91-year-old head of story on Fantasia 2000 (1999) and one of the only crew members to have worked on the original Fantasia (1940).
Director Eric Goldberg animated the entire "Carnival of the Animals" segment himself. He had just finished co-directing Pocahontas (1995) and wanted to get back to the drawing board. The whole process took him about 9 months.
In the original IMAX release, this film incorporated a multi-channel and multi-layer stereo system for the soundtrack. This was put into amusing use during the introduction of "Pomp and Circumstance", when Mickey Mouse went in search of Donald Duck. The sound was processed to give the illusion that Mickey was running about the theatre, behind the audience's seats.
Walt Disney Pictures already had Igor Stravinsky's "The Firebird Suite" under license. They had acquired it along with "The Rite of Spring" during the planning stage of the original Fantasia (1940).
Although never mentioned, the main characters of the "Rhapsody in Blue" segment all have names. The construction worker is named Duke. The man who needs a job is, appropriately, named Jobless Joe. The little girl is named Rachel, named and modeled after Eric Goldberg and Susan Goldberg's youngest daughter. (Rachel's real-life sister Jenny was the model for a character in Rachel's scenes, the girl with blue hair that can perform all the actions that Rachel cannot. At the time the segment was being produced, the real Jenny had blue hair.) The portly fellow is named John, sometimes referred to by the animators as "Flying John", and he is named after animation historian John Culhane, who was also the inspiration for the character Mr. Snoops in The Rescuers (1977). (He was originally based on Al Hirschfeld's caricature of writer Alexander Woollcott.) Duke is appropriately named after legendary jazz musician Duke Ellington. Jobless Joe is not named or inspired by any particular individual.
Outside of the Pixar films, the "Steadfast Tin Soldier" segment is the first time that lead characters in a Disney animation are completely computer generated. Although the whales in "Pines of Rome" were computer animated, their eyes were all hand-drawn. This was done because the software available to the studio at the time was not advanced enough to create convincing eyes with the expressiveness desired by the filmmakers. This was not a problem by the time "The Steadfast Tin Soldier" went underway, and the CG characters for that segment have fully expressive features.
The rain seen during Pomp and Circumstance was filmed back in 1940 and was used in the Rite of Spring segment in the first Fantasia (1940).
Then Disney chairman Jeffrey Katzenberg was opposed to the film so development took place without his knowledge or involvement.
When the Rhapsody in Blue segment was privately screened for Al Hirschfeld and his wife, they were both in tears, so overjoyed were they at seeing Hirschfeld's iconic drawings rendered onscreen.
HIDDEN MICKEY: In "Pomp and Circumstance", after the rain stops and the animals step out on the deck of the Ark, you can see Mickey and Minnie Mouse standing on the roof.
The "Rhapsody in Blue" segment is drawn in the style of caricaturist Al Hirschfeld. Hirschfeld is famous for incorporating the name of his daughter Nina Hirschfeld West into his drawings. There are three instances of "Nina" in this segment: one on the end of Duke's toothpaste tube, one in the fur collar of John's wife and one in her hair. She herself is caricatured among the people rushing out of the Goldberg Hotel alongside caricatures of Hirschfeld himself, sequence director Eric Goldberg, his wife Susan Goldberg, and producer Donald W. Ernst. The man running towards the camera with the coat in his arm is writer Brooks Atkinson, taken from a Hirschfeld illustration.
The success of the original Fantasia (1940) on a limited video release made Disney appreciate that there was enough interest for a continuation project.
When Bette Midler was introducing "The Steadfast Tin Soldier" by talking about ideas that were originally going to be in the original Fantasia (1940) she mentions "Flight of the Bumble Bee". It was used in Melody Time (1948) under the title Bumble Boogie.
Quincy Jones was chosen to introduce the Rhapsody in Blue segment because he knew both Al Hirschfeld and George Gershwin.
Instead of being produced all at once, as the original Fantasia (1940) had been, each segment was produced individually during production lulls between features. "Pines of Rome", the first segment to go into production, was completed in 1995. Ludwig van Beethoven's 5th was the last sequence to go into production.
The "Carnival of the Animals" segment marks the first time that watercolor animation is featured in a traditionally animated feature.
In the "Rhapsody In Blue" segment, the hotel/apartment is called the Goldberg. It's named after the two directors of the segment, Eric Goldberg and Susan Goldberg.
The "Pomp and Circumstance" sequence has hidden duck shapes throughout - webfoot-shaped puddles, the Ark's squat hull, etc. - to better fit Donald Duck into the picture.
The Rhapsody in Blue segment is the first one in a Fantasia film to be based on the work of an American composer.
There is a statue of Mufasa from The Lion King (1994) behind James Earl Jones. Jones provided the voice of Mufasa in the film, as well as every other appearance of Mufasa, including the 2019 Live Action Reboot.
The Rhapsody in Blue segment was originally intended not to be featured in Fantasia 2000 (1999) but as a stand-alone short.
The original plan for the film was to feature 2 segments from Fantasia (1940) - The Sorcerer's Apprentice and The Nutcracker Suite. The latter was replaced by Rhapsody in Blue, the segment utilizing Al Hirschfeld's drawings.
The Steadfast Tin Soldier segment has a substantially different ending to the original Hans Christian Andersen tale. The upbeat nature of the music largely dictated this change.
Mickey Mouse joins Roy Edward Disney on the DVD commentary audio track.
For the Pomp and Circumstance segment, the animators drew Donald and Daisy Duck from the style of animation the studio used for the characters in the 1940s.
The "Steadfast Tin Soldier" segment was originally slated to appear in Fantasia (1940) but no one could decide what music to set it to.
In the "Carnival of the Animals" segment, the flamingo with the yo-yo is named "Our Hero"; the six flamingos who oppose him are called "The Snotty Six."
Initially the release was going to only feature a few new segments with the majority of sequences coming from the original Fantasia (1940). However this was found to be impractical and Disney instead considered making the film out of mostly new segments with a few favorites from the original. Eventually they decided to only keep the "Sorcerer's Apprentice" from the original with the rest being entirely new segments.
Entirely new computer software had to be written to make the water effects in the Pines of Rome segment.
Even though Disney were discouraged from releasing sequels to 2D Animated Disney Animated Feature films prior to 2006 Theatrically after the failiure of The Rescuers Down Under (1990), this film still had a Theatrical Release undergoing what Walt Disney had in mind with the first film for many years, a legacy of which his nephew Roy Edward Disney wanted to live up to.
The animators on the Tin Soldier segment had real difficulty finding examples of jack-in-the-boxes for their lead villain as it's a toy that simply isn't made anymore.
Director Pixote Hunt spent two years writing and creating the Ludwig van Beethoven's Fifth segment which opens the film.
In the "Steadfast Tin Soldier" segment, the name of the fishery that catches the fish after it swallows the tin soldier is Ernst Fish, a tribute to producer Donald W. Ernst.
Composer Bruce Broughton was initially contracted to pen original music for the interstitial sequences, and also conducted the recording of "Rhapsody in Blue" that is featured in the final film. Broughton ultimately did not provide any original score for the film, and the recording of "Rhapsody in Blue" on the film's CD soundtrack is an alternate version conducted by James Levine, who conducted every other recording for the final film. Broughton has continued to work with Disney, however, on many other Disney projects since.
Roy Edward Disney actually studied "Pines of Rome" in a Music Appreciation course he took while studying at Pomona College in California. He brought a score to one of the first meetings with the animators, and told them he wanted it in the final film.
A third film in the Fantasia series, called Fantasia 2006, was in the works however partway through Disney eventually realized this was impractical and released the shorts intended for it individually without the "fantasia" branding.
Received its world premiere at New York City's Carnegie Hall with the 120 piece Philharmonia Orchestra of London providing the music. This was repeated in Paris, Tokyo and at London's Royal Albert Hall.
The opening abstract segment, set to Ludwig van Beethoven's Fifth, directly mirrors the opening of Fantasia (1940) which also began with an abstract section, set to Johann Sebastian Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D Minor.
Two composers feature in both Fantasia movies with different works: Ludwig Van Beethoven (symphonies number 5 and number 6) and Igor Stravinsky (The Rite of Spring and Firebird Suite).
This is the first time since 1977 (being The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977) and The Rescuers (1977)) where 2 Disney Animated Feature Films have released the same year. Ie. Tarzan (1999) which came 6 months before Fantasia 2000 (1999).
The short (under three minutes) segment, "The Carnival of the Animals" was meant to be a tour de force for some animator. Director Eric Goldberg animated the sequence himself. His separate short, based on George Gershwin's "Rhapsody in Blue", was released as part of Fantasia 2000 (1999) and became, at 12 minutes, the longest segment. "Rhapsody in Blue," originally planned by director Eric Goldberg as a stand-alone independent film, was an eleventh-hour addition to the lineup. "The Nutcracker Suite" from the original Fantasia (1940) was originally planned for this spot, until a production hiatus allowed Goldberg an opportunity to allow the Disney animators to work on "Rhapsody in Blue." See the trivia for The Emperor's New Groove (2000). In the earliest trailer a clip was shown from the segment of "The Nutcracker Suite." However, when the trailer was re-purposed for the theatrical run in June of 2000, this segment was missing. Yo-Yo Ma had recorded a host segment for "The Nutcracker Suite."
The first Disney animated feature film since The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) to not be released in June and the first since The Aristocats (1970) to be released in December.
The is the first Walt Disney Animation Studios film not to feature the credit "Walt Disney Pictures presents" in the opening.
The second directorial effort for both Hendel Butoy and Eric Goldberg respectively after The Rescuers Down Under (1990) and Pocahontas (1995) which were both directed by Mike Gabriel.
Frank the Frilled Lizard from The Rescuers Down Under (1990) and Winifred the Indian Elephant from The Jungle Book (1967) also make cameos in the Pomp and Circumstance segments of the film.
The use of "Pomp and Circumstance" was mandated by Disney CEO Michael Eisner after he heard the song at his son's graduation. Eisner's original idea for the segment was to have all the Disney princesses and princes in a wedding procession, where the princesses were all pregnant. The animators refused to work on this idea.
Released 59 years after Fantasia (1940), this holds the record for the longest gap between any two theatrically-released film sequels.
Walt Disney Animation Studios' only film of the Post-Renaissance to not release in the 21st century (specifically the 2000s).
Remains the only time in which two Walt Disney Animation Studios films releasing the same year are in separate eras, Tarzan (1999) was the end of the Renaissance while this film was the beginning of the Post-Renaissance.
As of 2008, none of the Walt Disney Animation Studios films made during the Post-Renaissance contained any musical elements.
Walt Disney Animation Studios' 40th feature film and last one of the 1990s as well as the final one to release in the 20th century.
Walt Disney Animation Studios' last film to not release the same year as a DreamWorks Animation film until Ralph Breaks the Internet (2018).
The first Disney animated feature film since Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) to be released on December 17th.
The fourth Disney animated feature film to release on the same day as a previous film, with this film releasing on December 17th 62 years apart from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937), the first was Peter Pan (1953) which released on February 6th 10 years apart from Saludos Amigos (1942) (with the american release date being February 6th 1943), the second was The Rescuers (1977) which released on June 22nd 22 years apart from Lady and the Tramp (1955), and the third was The Black Cauldron (1985) which released on July 26th 34 years apart from Alice in Wonderland (1951).
Director Cameo
Eric Goldberg: The animator seen "assisting" James Earl Jones in the intro to "Carnival of the Animals" is the director of that segment and of "Rhapsody in Blue".
