Disney Essay

The 'Walt Disney' Company was founded in 1923 by brothers Walt and Roy Disney as an animation studio. From 1923-1928, silent films were released, beginning the long and successful run of films for the company. In 1928, Mickey Mouse was created and debuted, an Icon for future movies for decades to come. During the 1940's, Disney decided to venture into the television side of the media, gaining more and more popularity as the years go on. Due to the television's having very little channels, it is not a surprise that the Disney animations had so much attention placed on them, for they were one of the few companies that made it onto television. A decade later, in 1955, Disneyland opens, one of the most famous theme parks ever created. It is evident from just this so far that as the years progress, so does the popularity Disney has. The Disney Company didn't just stop at television and film though, however, for in the 1980's, Disney Theatre opened and began, opening up a whole new world for the Disney characters that had been created over the years. However, in the 80's, aside from the introduction of Disney theatre, people were beginning to have less interest in it, so in the 1990's, the decade of the Disney Renaissance of Movies, many iconic films were written such as The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast, that are still popular to this day. As we reach the start of the new millennium in the year 2000, we see the introduction of Pixar Films such as Monsters Inc., and Ice Age, which brought Disney into a new world of characters, ideas, and new various animation techniques.

It has been said that one of the reasons why Disney has a reputation of delivering a magical experience to its guests (through theme parks, hotels, restaurants, retail stores, etc) is because it has one overriding vision and mission for all of its business operations. The 'mission' of the Walt Disney Company is to be one of the world's leading producers and to provide entertainment and information. They seek to develop the most creative, innovative and profitable entertainment experiences and related products in the world.

Disney has had a huge role in Education, Home and Business. For education, Disney Media and 'Disney Interactive' create products used to help improve learning environments and Disney Parks have the option of an educational experience tour for pupils. At home, Disney's vast media networks cover TV, film and radio. Theme parks and resorts are advertised through these forms of media, and the consumer products range from kitchenware to stuffed toys. Disney Business Services include studio rentals, advertising, meeting rooms and convention sites. Disney makes a lot of money from its many holdings including studio rentals, movie ticket sales and amusement park tickets. The Walt Disney Company made approximately $9,964 million dollars in the year 2012.

An example of a well-known movie produced by Disney from recent years is 'Maleficent'. Directed by Robert Stromberg and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, Maleficent came out on the 28th of May 2013. The film had a budget of $180 million, and the Box Office resultant amount was $757.4 million. The genre is a fantasy with quite a dark, horror twist. Maleficent could be considered as a postmodern film due to the fact that it goes against the conventions of traditional story tales. This time, also, the narrative is told in the perspective of the villain. Usually, the story of fairy tales are shown in the protagonist's point of view. The film was rated a PG and the main audience of the film were female, as shown by the opening weekend statistics which showed that 60% of people that attended were female. 51% of the audience were over 25 and families took up 45% of the audience. Disney films generally appeal to families because they are suitable for children to watch, however, due to the fact that 'Maleficent' is based on the fairy tale of 'Sleeping Beauty', it could be argued that the movie is targeted at females, of whom most fairy tales are targeted towards in the first place.