136 – Dinosaur

As the sun rises on a new era of Disney – the Wilderness Years – film journalist Ben Travis and animation academic Sam Summers go back millions of years (while the studio looks to the future) in 2000’s Dinosaur. Strap in for Disney animation’s first CGI-centric film – with Ben and Sam exploring how the filmmakers blended prehistoric creatures into footage of live-action environments, with mixed results. Plus, there’s the very different version that could have been, courtesy of Phil Tippett and Paul Verhoeven; the bizarre DinoLand USA theme park area closely tied to the lore of the film; a whole ton of freaky lemurs; and the discovery of a long lost fossil: the Dinosaur Song Factory album. Oh, and Sam takes a deep – and we mean DEEP – dive into the Walt Disney Animation Studios numbering system, and why it all goes a bit haywire from Dinosaur onwards. This one goes out to all the little eggs out there. Next up: The Emperor’s New Groove Disniversity is brought to you by Ben Travis (@benstravis) and Sam Summers (@samsummers0), with art by Olly Gibbs and music by Nafets. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @disniversity. This podcast is not affiliated with Disney. — Welcome to Disniversity, the podcast crash course through the history of Disney’s animated classics, with film journalist Ben Travis and animation academic Dr. Sam Summers. Each week, we’ll be moving forward in time through the legendary Walt Disney Animation Studios catalogue, watching every feature film in chronological order – from Snow White to Strange World. Watch along with us, and listen as we explore each film’s historical context, advances in animation and lasting legacy, and talk about how they stand up today.