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Another sans Walt document, number 2 of three on animation dwarf personalities, that is more pertinent in the animation world than story. I'm not sure who is the 'George Major' they keep referencing, but my educated guess is George Brasno in the Vitaphone Production Reel #1761 (a 1934 Vaudeville short... read more →

This is a very interesting document in the story development of character personalities. Although it's more pertinent in the animation world, nonetheless, it's fascinating in how much effort the animators exerted in developing each of the seven dwarf characters, giving each having their own distinct personality. Click on the image... read more →

Typical story conference at this stage of the game. The story is already blocked out, and now they are just simplifying it, perfecting the arc. Dwarfs inside the mine and marching home, singing HI-HO, HI-HO.... Unfortunately, I am missing page 10 of the document. Click on the image below to... read more →

I'm not sure the date on this transcript is correct. The date is only posted on the cover page, not on the individual page headers or at the end, which is the norm. Furthermore, it is the same date, time, sequences, and participants of the document I posted last week,... read more →

A story conference without Walt but fruitful nonetheless. I'm a sucker for gags, and I really like the unused suggestion that when mining the diamonds, one of Sneezy's sneezes blows the already mined diamonds back into the wall. Also note that they're not just putting in gags for gags' sake... read more →

Mostly fine tuning the execution of the story -- the creation process is mostly over for this sequence. This is a dramatic sequence, so notice they are avoiding 'cartoony' effects. Click on the image below to read the transcript.

A couple of quick comments on this story conference transcript: Avoid subtlety, go for directness with regard to story points (an example being the 'hag' change from Queen's breaking of the mirror causing her transformation, due to the curse of 7, to transforming herself through mixing magic potions). Go for... read more →

This story conference covers the Spook Sequence. There's not a lot of story creation, so I don't find this meeting as captivating, but it's important in showing the story staging, how to set up and pull off the story. Click on the image below to read the transcript:

Every time I read through these transcripts, I come away amazed at the level of detail they bore into -- it's what made the Disney Organization so great. I sometimes wonder if we're even capable of holding this level of attention span in today's 140 character world? Also, note the... read more →