Setting the scene

The Animation Gallery has been a revolving display that features work from upcoming animated releases for years now. The entranceway, or exit depending on which direction you venture through the exhibits, has been prime Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs for a quite a while, but recently the two room gallery shifted away from a specific film and into the realm of a specific feature of the film process itself.

Titled Setting The Scene, the showcase seeks to spotlight the artistry of background animation and how background art, beloved by many but easy to overlook in the scope of a film, is critical to setting down a feature in a precise place and/or time. There are evolution pieces within the gallery that highlight how the process unfolds from sketches to finished art, lengthy specimens that would have been utilized with the multiplane camera, and gorgeous artwork from wall to wall and floor to ceiling.

What is so wonderful about Setting The Scene is that no matter what your favorite feature film is, you are likely to find a piece from it. It may take some closer examination than just a passing glance, but this is one of those exhibits where working for it can truly deliver just rewards. In all honesty, whether you’re looking for something from Fox and the Hound, Lilo and Stitch, or Sleeping Beauty, the gallery is well worth the investment of time.

The next time you are at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, don’t fly by Setting The Scene on your way to meet Mickey Mouse. Or if you do, make sure you take the time to come back and examine the panels within the cases. These are the worlds in which the characters we know and love live in, and we should pay jut as much attention to their homes as we do to ours.