It's A Small World Animated TV Series To Be Released Soon - and IASW iPad App Available Now !

Disney Animation released a first trailer for It's a Small World, the Animated Series as, yes, an animated series inspired by Mary Blair beloved attraction and tribute to all children of the world will come on your TV anytime soon! In this new animated series, six international friends - i suppose one for each continent - embark for an unforgettable adventure travelling the globe in a hot air balloon.




Disney also released recently on the iTunes Appstore an iPhone - iPad application called "It's a Small World", which i strongly recommend to you as this new app is a lovely, charming tribute to Disneyland beloved attraction. If you have young children between 1 and 6 they will love it, really, as this is an application designed as an interactive app for very young children. Still, all of you who love Mary Blair's attraction and who are always young at heart - and own an iPhone or iPad or iPod Touch - should enjoy the app. Why? Because they've succeed to find back the original childhood spirit of the ride. And you can feel that the guys who developed the application tried their best to find back this "original spirit".

One of the great things is all the interactive part: almost wherever you "touch" elements of each image something is happening, the characters are moving, a crocodile goes out of the water, a dragon breath fire, etc... until the final where you launch your own fireworks by taps in the night sky. So, basically, the app is as much animated as the ride is!

There is 15 "chapters" in the app, and each one transport you, just like in the ride, in a different country or continent. In most of them you'll find Mary Blair famous color tones, and even reminiscences of her style. Here is screen captures of some of them, and although they don't pay totally justice to how it looks when you're experiencing the app, i'm sure you will identify which country / continent they are showing.

















As i've told you the interactive part is charming... for instance in this chapter inspired by the jungle scene of the ride the page will look like this when it appears...



But if you tap on the crocodile or in the black area where you see the glowing eyes then the jungle animals appear, the hippo goes out of water, etc...



Each image is also slowly moving, almost as the same pace than the boat in the ride, giving you the feeling to discover each scene like you do when you're in the ride!

Again, it's a read along / sing along app for young children, but if you download it you'll be surprised how charming it is. The app cost $3.99 or 2.99€ on the Appstore, and knowing all the work it is to develop an app as i create also applications myself as you know, i can tell you that it's a fair price. And as i said, if you have young children they will love it! Here is the iTunes direct link to downed the App. There is an iPhone version of the app but of course if you own an iPad it will look even better on it. Finally, Disney also released a promotional video that you can see below but it don't show how charming the App is.




Pictures and video: copyright Disney

Disneyland It's a Small World Projection Show

Here is something nice done for It's a Small World Holiday version at Disneyland: it happen each 15 minutes when the IASW clock show start and Disneyland Imagineers have installed a projection show on ISAW facade with animation, dolls, a Gingerbread House appearing magically and even a tribute to Mary Blair with a flying bird becoming a cuckoo! I wish they'll too this at Disneyland Paris - and may be they will do it in the future as the projection show is probably not too expensive. Have a look at the video below!




Picture and video: copyright Disney

Why Did It Took So Long ?

I know, we've passed the age to play with dolls but, hey, it's "It's a Small World" dolls! Recently released on the Disney Store online i have to admit that for once they did it right, as these dolls looks exactly as they do in the beloved ride, as Mary Blair designed them.

The most surprising is not that they're at last available but why did it took so long to Disney to release them? The merchandise potential of dolls - or anything else - inspired from It's a Small World is absolutely huge and i still can't believe it took them almost 50 years to finally make them available.

So far there is seven different dolls available as well as four plushs inspired by IASW animals. Each dolls are dressed in its original IASW costume, are 16" high ( 40 cm ) and they sing in both their native language and english! The seven dolls include the one of England...

...the one of France...

...the one from Kenya...

...the one from India...

...the one from Hawaii...

...the one from Japan...

and the one from Holland...

Considering the number of different dolls in the original attraction if they decide to do them all - which i wish - be prepared to make room in your children bedroom! Each of the dolls cost $29.95 -  22€ - which is still reasonable, but i have a bad news for those of you living outside the U.S , if you order for instance one doll and have it shipped to Europe the additional shipping is $34 ! All this because they ship it with DHL or UPS, etc... If you order three different dolls the total is $89.85 and you still have $61 of shipping. Which makes $150.85 for the three ( 111 euros ) on which you'll pay at least 20% of customs and VAT so the bill at the end should be around 135 euros which put each doll at 45 euros! ( yes, i know, it was too cool to be true, you knew that something was going to go wrong somewhere ).
So, unless you have a friend in the U.S to whom the Disney Store can send them and then your friend forward them to you, you may think twice before ordering these as-good-as-the originals- It's a Small World dolls.

That said it's indeed a good merchandise idea so here is the link to the Disney Store!


And if you prefer books to dolls... click on the pic below.




Pictures: copyright Disney

Disney's "It's A Small World" iPhone - iPad App is a Charming Tribute to Disneyland Beloved Attraction

Disney released recently on the iTunes Appstore a new iPhone - iPad application called "It's a Small World", and this new app is a lovely, charming tribute to Disneyland beloved attraction.

Let's be clear from the start: this is an application designed as an interactive app for very young children. Still, all of you who love Mary Blair's attraction and who are always young at heart - and own an iPhone or iPad or iPod Touch - should enjoy the app. Why? Because they've succeed, i think, to find back the original childhood spirit of the ride. It's not perfect, but you can feel that the guys who developed the application tried their best to find back this "original spirit".

One of the great things is all the interactive part: almost wherever you "touch" elements of each image something is happening, the characters are moving, a crocodile goes out of the water, a dragon breath fire, etc... until the final where you launch your own fireworks by taps in the night sky. So, basically, the app is as much animated as the ride is!

There is 15 "chapters" in the app, and each one transport you, just like in the ride, in a different country or continent. In most of them you'll find Mary Blair famous color tones, and even reminiscences of her style. Here is screen captures of some of them, and although they don't pay totally justice to how it looks when you're experiencing the app, i'm sure you will identify which country / continent they are showing.

















As i've told you the interactive part is charming... for instance in this chapter inspired by the jungle scene of the ride the page will look like this when it appears...



But if you tap on the crocodile or in the black area where you see the glowing eyes then the jungle animals appear, the hippo goes out of water, etc...



Each image is also slowly moving, almost as the same pace than the boat in the ride, giving you the feeling to discover each scene like you do when you're in the ride!

Again, it's a read along / sing along app for young children, but if you download it you'll be surprised how charming it is. The app cost $3.99 or 2.99€ on the Appstore, and knowing all the work it is to develop an app as i create applications also myself as you know, i can tell you that it's a fair price. And no need to say that if you have young children they will love it! Here is the iTunes direct link for those who are interested. There is an iPhone version of the app but of course if you own an iPad it looks even better on it. Finally, Disney also released a promotional video that you can see below.




Pictures and video: copyright Disney

" Walt and El Grupo " Dvd released ! Walt Disney and Animation Artists in South America - 1941

The awaited Dvd of "Walt and El Grupo" is released today and for those of you who didn't had the luck to see it - i.e, basically everybody living outside the U.S - it will be a fantastic opportunity to discover this rare footage of Walt Disney and Disney Studios animators filmed in 1941 during their legendary trip in South America.

You can order the Dvd directly on the Disney and more Amazon Emporium HERE at special price of $19.99 (instead than $29.99). And below you'll find the movie trailer and rare pictures from a LIFE magazine photographer who joined "El Grupo" during their trip, it should give you a better idea of what this historical movie is about.



In early 1941, before U.S. entry into World War II, the United States Department of State commissioned both a Disney goodwill tour of South America, intended to lead to a movie to be shown in Central and South America as part of the Good Neighbor Policy. The tour took during ten weeks Walt Disney, his wife Lilly and a group of sixteen great artists from Walt Disney Animation as well as composers from the Walt Disney Studios to South America, mainly to Brazil and Argentina, but also to Chile and Peru. The movie, of course, now known as "Saludos Amigos" was made up of four different segments. Donald Duck stars in two of them and Goofy stars in one. It also features the first appearance of the character José Carioca.



But the Disney group was not alone, as LIFE photographer Hart Preston was there too and did a fantastic photographic report for LIFE magazine. It is these very rare pictures that you will see today, probably for the first time.

We will begin by Brazil in Rio de Janeiro. On the top, Walt and Lilian Disney going for a tandem bike ride in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, June 1941. Below Frank Thomas, on the left, is standing with Walt Disney on a beach of Rio de Janeiro.



Precisely, in the next pictures we'll see Disney and his group going on a Brazilian beach...




Where Walt with his camera filmed some young cariocas...





Another great picture of Walt filming on a beach of Rio de Janeiro.



Meanwhile, Disney artists like Lee and Mary Blair created great watercolours that will serve as inspiration for the future movie.






They've also study the brazilian vegetation in botanical gardens...









And even waterfalls...



..And animals like this parrot - who knows, may be his painting by Lee Blair was the one who inspired the character of Jose Carioca?




Or may be it was this parrot?




Near a beach of Rio, Lee and Mary Blair meet and greet young cariocas...







...while on the other side of the road Disney artist Herb Ryman was doing sketches of animals.





The group went also in mountain villages...



...where Herb Ryman did some interesting paintings.




Here are two sketches of Frank Thomas, in the first one Pluto meet an armadillo...



And this one shows Dopey with a Brazilian monkey.



After the work the Disney group is relaxing...




...and for Walt, it's lunch time!...



...before some party later in the evening.



The Brazilian premiere of Fantasia also happened when they were in Rio de Janeiro.



And Walt Disney gave a presentation about animation with the help of three of his animators.



In a Brazilian nightclub performers entertained an audience which included Walt Disney.



And in the Urca Casino nightclub, dancers put on a floor show for the benefit of Walt Disney and his movie crew.



The group then moved to other countries, in Argentina to see the famous "gauchos"...



Or in Peru to see peruvians villagers...



While in Peru, they went also on Lake Titicaca to film sequences that will serve as inspiration for the Donald segment in Saludos Amigos. On the pictures, Walt is the one who holds the camera.








Hope you enjoyed this pictorial article with these rare LIFE pictures of the Disney South-American tour. All of them are coming from the fantastic LIFE photographic archives which are now avalaible to anyone in a special section of Google Images HERE.

To order the Walt and El Grupo Dvd directly on Amazon just go on the Disney and more Amazon store HERE



Pictures: copyright Disney and Time-Life - All rights reserved