STEAMBOAT WILLIE
Steamboat Willie is a 1928 animated short, the debut of Mickey Mouse, and the beginning of the success of Walt Disney’s Animation Studio. The reason for the success of this animation was due to the fact that it was the first animated film released with synchronised sound which then made the typical silent animation outdated and unwanted by the public. This feature completely separated Disney from its competitors and boosted them in the industry. The animation was designed specifically to have sound as seen in Mickey’s famous whistle, the smoke puffs from the chimney, and playing the cow’s teeth as a xylophone. It’s interesting to see the thought put into every aspect so that they could use sound as strategically and effectively as possible.
Ub Iwerks, Walt Disney, Steamboat Willie, 1928
References
Moma learning (no date) MoMA. Available at: https://www.moma.org/learn/moma_learning/walt-disney-ub-iwerks-steamboat-willie-1928/ (Accessed: 08 May 2023).
Ub Iwerks, Walt Disney. Steamboat Willie. 1928: Moma (no date) The Museum of Modern Art. Available at: https://www.moma.org/collection/works/302797#:~:text=Disney’s%20Steamboat%20Willie%20is%20a,obsolescence%20and%20launched%20an%20empire. (Accessed: 08 May 2023).
(2009) YouTube. Walt Disney Animation. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBgghnQF6E4 (Accessed: 08 May 2023).