As the Public Broadcasting Service chronicles Walt Disney's legacy on its "American Experience" television program airing this mid-September, attention reverts to how Disney is on track to lure audiences to theaters with its new slate of live action and animation films.
It is clear that Walt Disney Pictures-released films resonate with young and old alike even in the contemporary age, as indicated by the box-office successes of movies such as "Finding Nemo," "Frozen," "Big Hero 6," "Toy Story 3" and "Inside Out." The moviegoing public found these films refreshingly vibrant enough to clamor for the next installment.
Also raking in high gross revenues in recent years were live action films like "Alice in Wonderland," "Maleficent," and "Cinderella."
Few people were aware that a series of cartoon shorts based on fairy tales combining live action and animation had taken root back in the 1920s, when Walt Disney set out to create his own studio. Even fewer people knew that that fledgling studio had quickly become straddled by debt.
Disney was a visionary who took big risks and defied traditional business practices. His artistry was his saving grace, though. From Alice, to Mickey Mouse, to the first animated feature of Snow White, Disney laid the foundation for commercial successes.
Clever use of sound, animation and special effects combined with innovative use of story and direction led to inspiring works.
Because many people believed in his artistic mission, Disney got the support he needed to prop up his company, even if his "capriciousness" drove others crazy. Constantly reinventing and reenergizing the Disney studio had huge payoffs in the end, The New York Times reported.
Walt Disney Pictures today continues to weave magic and make people think that one is never too old to watch a Disney film. Disney has injected elements like "the empowered heroine," among other tweaked formulas for its family-oriented films.
Highly bankable actors and actresses have been tapped to star in Disney's live action movies in the next couple of years. Emma Watson, for instance, will portray Belle in "Beauty and the Beast" that is slated to hit theaters in March 2017.
Scarlett Johansson and Lupita Nyong'o are among the stars in "The Jungle Book" that is scheduled for release in April 2016. Mia Wasikowska and Johnny Depp will reprise their roles as Alice and the Mad Hatter, respectively, in "Alice Through the Looking Glass" that has a May 2016 release date.
Walt Disney Studios' current man-at-the-helm expressed excitement that the company has been reimagining classic and timeless tales in a modern, cutting-edge manner, whether tweaked or "hewing more closely to the original," Entertainment Weekly reported.
Indeed, the enduring appeal of Disney movies continues to this day, building on the legacy left by one man that has benefited generations.