CINDERELLA (1950)
75TH ANNIVERSARY PRESENTATION
It’s hard to believe that 75 years ago, one of Hollywood’s greatest success stories, Walt Disney Productions, could have gone broke. The loss of the European market during World War II had left them $4 million in debt. Rather than quit, however, Walt Disney focused on creating one of his most beloved animated features. Cinderella’s struggle to escape her evil stepmother and two stepsisters and attend a royal ball struck a chord with audiences of all ages, while the singing mice and chirping birds who helped her were particularly popular with children. In addition to winning awards at the Berlin and Venice Film Festivals, Cinderella and its reissues made enough to finance the next decade of studio operations, including Disney’s move into television and the creation of Disneyland. The film also marked the launch of the Walt Disney Music Company, which added to the film’s profits when the soundtrack hit number one on the pop charts.
d. Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, Hamilton Luske, 74m, DCP
Courtesy of The Walt Disney Studios.