In this Oscar-Nominated short, Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty, directed by Nicky Phelan and produced by Darragh O’Connell, old Granny tells a tale that goes a bit off the rails as all good stories should do. It’s hilarious. It’s got a maniacally angry ‘elderly fairy’ who crashes the fairy tale party and spreads her bile around the joint in a most amusing tirade.
Category Archives: Fairy Tales
Frank Baum and ‘The Wizard of Oz’
This is the oldest known film version of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, made in 1910. It was made by the Selig Polyscope Company and did not involve the author, L. Frank Baum.
Smithsonian Magazine has an article called Frank Baum, the Man Behind the Curtain. It describes how Baum came to write what amounted to the first American children’s book and how he was so convinced he’d written a great book that he framed the pencil stub he’d written it with.
Where Do Fairy Tales Come From?
The traditional notion of where fairy tales come from suggests that people like the Brothers Grimm listened to oral folktales handed down through the generations and wrote them down with little embellishments. But now, in a book called Fairy Tales: A New History, Ruth B. Bottigheimer argues that fairy tales have a much more literary genesis than has been commonly thought. The Chronical Review has an interesting article about the different theories on the origin of some of the world’s most retold stories. The article points out how confusing and complex the history of fairy tales becomes when you consider that many of the most familiar tales are shared across different cultures. Jack Zipes, a leading translator and adapter of fairy tales says that “It’s absurd to create a dichotomy. The literary and the oral thrive off one another.”
Purchase Fairy Tales: A New History (Excelsior Editions)
Who’s Hungry: Animation Based on Hansel & Gretel
Freshman CalArts animation student, David Ochs made this wonderfully dark and violent take on the Grimms story, Hansel and Gretel. It is everything a good fairy tale should be – full of evil, danger, self-reliant heroes, terrible and disgusting villains, and threatening environments. The artwork is gorgeous and the piece is beautifully animated and has a very unsettling soundtrack.
Thanks to Cartoon Brew for posting this.
Animation: The Emperor’s New Clothes
Here is the Hans Christian Andersen story, The Emperor’s New Clothes, as told by the Toei Animation Company in Japan. It’s a limited animation in a sort of anime style that tells the story quite well.
Betty Boop in 1934 Cinderella Cartoon
Betty Boop stars as Cinderella in this 1934 cartoon from Fleischer Studios. This was Betty Boop’s only appearance in color.
