Disney Interactive

Disney Animated – A new iPad App Released Today

Jason @disneygeek.com

Disney Animated is a new iPad App released this morning by Disney Interactive in collaboration with Touch Press and Walt Disney Animation Studios. It is hard to put this App into words, it is part Animation Tutorial, part Animation History, part experimental, and really a lot of fun to explore. The App allows the user to have access to assets that were only available in the Disney Animation Research Library or were locked away and not accessible to anyone. The breadth and depth of this first generation app is impressive. It spans all the feature animation films from Snow White through the upcoming release, Frozen.

Disney Animated - iPad App

The App has two primary parts. The first is a “book”. This allows you to drill into the topics of Animation such as Story, Backgrounds, Character, etc.. The second are a set of interactive experiences. These range from Character Animation to Interactive Particle Systems to an interactive Color Map of all Disney Animated Films. As you navigate through this App you will find that everything is clickable. If you see a frame, a piece of art, a character and click on it you get a clip, more detail, or an interactive experience. For the film clips you can view them full screen in a video scrubber mode and drill down frame by frame and with several in the Gallery you can actually move between pencil sketches, rough animation, and final animation seamlessly and see how it looks throughout the process.

Another interesting feature is based on the Frank and Ollie book – The Illusion of Life and features the 12 principles of Disney Animation. You explore the principles and see examples of them in practice. Where the app shines compared to a book is instead of a couple sketches/frames you have the ability to flip through several an see them in motion and control this motion. You also get the added dimension of sound.

For an example of unprecedented access.. you can examine marquettes, including an original one from Pinocchio. They have photographed them from all angles and you can virtually spin them around to examine all sides.

The App is designed for all types of users in mind. Whether you are a child wanting to play with an interactive element or see a clip of your favorite character or an animation student wanting to learn more about how Disney Animated Films come to life to a disneygeek like myself just curious about the films and process.

For those of you who travel or just do not have the patience for online Apps, good news. Almost all of the Application is downloaded and run locally. The two exceptions being the movie trailers which are streamed and the links to the AppleStore to purchase the music. Due to this it is a large App weighing in at over 1.5GB. It is also on the more costly side starting at $13.99. I think it would be fair to compare this App to traditional books and DVD extras more than your average App and when you put it in those categories the pricing seems more reasonable. What would you pay for a book to learn about the animation process with rich pictures and detailed information? Or for a series of clips on the process or your favorite films? The App will only be available for iPads to start with, note iPad 2 forward, it will not work on the iPad 1. There are currently no plans to expand beyond. But other Touch Press products have been expanded to Apple and Windows desktops.

The potential for expansion is great. They have said there will be an update once Frozen is released with more clips, information and Color Map for the film. Beyond that no details were given but if it does well I could see more interactive elements such as additional characters to animate, more marquettes to look at, or even additional Apps looking at other Disney Properties, Pixar jumps to mind as a logical extension.

A look around the App:

Disney Animated - iPad App
A sample look at the Character section. If you click on any of the image you get more information, animated clips, or some sort of interactive element.
Disney Animated - iPad App
A timeline of Disney Films that you can navigate through and drill into each film for information.
Disney Animated - iPad App
For example here is part of the Little Mermaid’s page. You can learn about the characters, the music, etc..
Disney Animated - iPad App
When looking at a clip it is available in a video scrubber mode where you can pinch in to a frame by frame view and move through the scene
Disney Animated - iPad App
For some clips you can view the pencil sketches, rough animation and final animation, just as can on DVD/BluRay extras but with the App you can move between them in real time and view overlays as you scrub through the clip.
Disney Animated - iPad App
An interactive workshop on character animation. You can animate her and then play the clip back as well as share it with others online.
Disney Animated - iPad App
Another Interactive Workshop featuring a particle system from Frozen called Elsa’s Snow. Again you can play around with the App and share your creations with others.
Disney Animated - iPad App
One of the most impressive features is the Color Map. Here you can see all 52 Disney releases represented. Each line is a different film. As you scroll across horizontally you see the color and key frames from the film. Go vertically and you move between films.

Disney Press Release:

DISNEY INTERACTIVE PUTS THE MAGIC OF ANIMATION AT YOUR FINGERTIPS WITH NEW INTERACTIVE iPad APP

Disney Animated, a collaboration with Touch Press and Walt Disney Animation Studios, Provides Unprecedented Access to the Art and Technology Behind All 53 Walt Disney Animation Studios Feature Films

August 8, 2013 (Burbank, CA) — Disney Animated, a new premium app for iPad, is now available in the App Store. For the first time ever, fans can explore the story of Disney animation through unique interactive illustrations and authentic animation workshops derived from actual Disney technologies. Disney Animated gives fans unparalleled access to an astonishing amount of content, including text, art, sound, images, interviews and interactive activities, spanning all eras of Walt Disney Animation Studios history, many previously unavailable to the public. Disney Animated was created in collaboration with Touch Press, the acclaimed developer of award-winning iPad apps such as The Elements and Barefoot World Atlas, recently selected by Apple as one of the ten best apps of all time.

“At Disney Interactive we are committed to building new, high-quality storytelling experiences that leverage digital technologies and platforms,” said Mark L. Walker, Senior Vice President, Disney Interactive Entertainment. “Through the power of the iPad, we are bringing fans closer than ever to their favorite Walt Disney Animation Studio films and the art and technology of making those films. Disney Animated represents a rare moment when innovation, technology and art converge to create an experience that is entirely new.”

“Walt Disney Animation Studios’ top animators, artists and technicians brought their expertise to this app to help create an incredibly authentic experience which represents our studio’s rich legacy,” said Dave Bossert, co-author of Disney Animated and Producer, Creative Director, Head of Walt Disney Animation Studios Special Projects. “We’re excited to show the world the art and technology behind how we make our films and inspire the next generation of animators.”

Through Disney Animated, fans can immerse themselves in content from all 53 full-length animated feature films. From the ability to examine treasured artifacts and intricate artwork to an exclusive first look at footage, concept art, animation tests and visual effects from the upcoming film Frozen, Disney Animated allows fans to discover the animation process through hands-on interactive activities adapted from the actual tools Disney animators use.

“The world of Disney animation is amazingly rich and deep. The more you look into it, the more surprising and delightful it becomes.” said Theodore Gray, co-author of Disney Animated and Chief Creative Officer of Touch Press. “We rethought from the ground up how this story should be told, now that we can tell it with words, pictures, clips, sounds, and interactive workshops that let you apply what you’ve learned.”

Disney Animated features:

  • The Story of Animation: How Disney animated films are brought to life, from early concept and story development through layout and background, animation, visual effects, sound and music and final assembly – with every illustration on every page touchable and interactive, including the ability to peel back the layers of animated scenes to reveal work-in-progress animation steps and visual effects layers.
  • Interactive Workshops: Hands-on interactives allow fans to experiment with iPad versions of authentic Disney animation technologies and share their creations via email and social media. Fans can animate Vanellope from Wreck-It Ralph using a straightforward but powerful 3D animation package adapted from real Disney software and control a swirling snow visual effect from the upcoming film Frozen.
  • Disney Animation History in One Place: A comprehensive timeline of all 53 animated feature films from Walt Disney Animation Studios, including animated clips of favorite characters and recently uncovered historic trailers.
  • Unprecedented Access: Disney Animated contains over 750 interactive illustrations, including more than 400 short animation clips, over 350 high-quality images from Disney’s archives, including backgrounds, concept art, character sketches, and super-zoomable storyboards, 3D rotational photography of rare artifacts like the maquette of Hyacinth, the dancing hippo from Fantasia, and a unique Color Map that displays a sophisticated color summary and thumbnail frames from every scene from every one of Walt Disney Animation Studios’ 52 released feature films in a single iPad image.

Disney Animated is available for $13.99 from the App Store on iPad at AppStore.com/DisneyAnimated. For more information on Disney Animated, visit Disney.com/Animated.

About Disney Interactive
Disney Interactive, one of the world’s largest creators of high-quality interactive entertainment across all platforms, is the part of The Walt Disney Company responsible for the global creation and delivery of interactive entertainment, multi-platform video games, and family-focused content across all current and emerging digital media platforms. Disney Interactive produces and distributes a broad portfolio of content from Disney Interactive Games and Disney Interactive Media. Products and content released and operated by Disney Interactive include blockbuster mobile, social and console games, online virtual worlds, #1 kid’s entertainment destination Disney.com and the #1 Family/Parenting portfolio on the Web.

Disney Interactive is the interactive entertainment part of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS).

About Touch Press
Touch Press is a three-year-old publisher of richly interactive iPad and iPhone apps. With over 5.5 million total downloads, and the winner of countless awards for its work, Touch Press is widely regarded as the most important driver of the new world of interactive media, and nearly all of its products have been featured by Apple as App of the Week or Editor’s Choice. Touch Press apps can be seen on Apple billboards and television commercials worldwide, and their Barefoot World Atlas was recently selected by Apple as one of the ten best apps of all time in connection with the 5th anniversary of the App Store.

All images in this posting are from Disney Interactive