A Love Letter to Disney: Brand New Short Announced Celebrating Disney100

From Mickey Mouse to Baymax, Disney has always created timeless characters. From Mickey’s first appearance in 1923 to Elsa and beyond, Disney animation has had a talent for creating characters that connected with audiences everywhere. Now, your favorite Disney characters are back in an all-new way as part of the Disney100 celebration.

As the company celebrates its 100th anniversary, they are looking to the past and bringing some of their most beloved characters back to the silver screen in an all-new animated short, “Once Upon a Studio.” The short begins with Mickey trying to round everyone up for a group photo. Naturally, this isn’t going to go according to plan. With so many different personalities in the mix, hijinx are bound to happen.

The short will bring back original voice actors as well as classic animation. More than 40 original voice actors lent their talents to this incredible project. Josh Gad tweeted that he got emotional when he was told about the project.” I nearly cried when I was told Olaf would appear alongside the Genie, utilizing previously unheard audio from my idol #RobinWilliams,” he wrote in a tweet.

So excited to finally have the world see what the @DisneyAnimation has created to celebrate the incredible 100 year legacy of the studio. I nearly cried when I was told Olaf would appear alongside the Genie, utilizing previously unheard audio from my idol #RobinWilliams https://t.co/9rhfnw8QRQ

— Josh Gad (@joshgad) June 11, 2023

That epic hint tells us much. After nearly 30 years, we will see the Genie come back with all-new dialogue, which is sure to make more than Josh Gad emotional. Also, Josh Gad and Robin Williams being included in the short means that the film will showcase lovable sidekicks as well as main characters. Could the villains make an appearance too? There is no confirmation on that yet, but it’s an intriguing idea!

Credit: Disney

According to Deadline, the short premiered during the Annecy International Film Festival this past week. Creators Dan Abraham and Trent Correy explained that they began this project “off-grid” in an attempt to keep it secret until its world premiere at the festival. They also explained that the animated short is a love letter to the Walt Disney Company as a whole and specifically to Disney Animation. 70-year-old legendary animator Burny Mattinson even makes a cameo!

Disney

The short will appear before Wish, a brand new feature film debuting in theaters on November 22, 2023. Wish in itself is a love letter to Disney animation. The film will follow a young girl named Asha and answer the question of where the first Wishing Star came from. People Magazine says that, “Together, Asha and Star work to defeat a villain that has been described as one of the most “formidable foes” in Disney history.”

Together Once Upon a Studio and Wish will combine to create an epic tribute to the past 100 years. With these two films, Disney is coming full circle with and celebrating the very best of what they do. We can’t wait to see what the next 100 years brings.