Once Upon a Studio is a 2023 American live-action/animated fantasy comedy crossover short film written and directed by Dan Abraham and Trent Correy, produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. Made in honor of the studio's centennial on October 16, 2023, the short film was described as a "love letter" to Walt Disney Animation Studios by Correy and Abraham.
In the film, Disney characters come to life from pictures hanging on the walls of the Roy E. Disney Animation Building following the end of a usual work day. The short's art style combines computer graphics, traditional animation and live-action, and features characters from almost all of the studio's works made up to that point, including all sixty-two feature films, numerous short films, and some live-action Disney films featuring animation produced by the studio such as The Reluctant Dragon (1941), Mary Poppins (1964), Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971) and Pete's Dragon (1977). The film was dedicated to Burny Mattinson, the company's longest serving Disney employee, who appeared in the short and died eight months before its release.
Once Upon a Studio premiered at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival on June 11, 2023, and had its first public showing on ABC on October 15, 2023, as part of The Wonderful World of Disney: Disney's 100th Anniversary Celebration, hosted by Kelly Ripa, along with the television premiere of Encanto.
Cast and characters[]
- Burny Mattinson - himself
- Renika Williams - Disney intern
Voices[]
- Scott Adsit - Baymax
- Tony Anselmo - Donald Duck
- Jason Bateman - Nick Wilde
- Kristen Bell - Anna
- Jodi Benson - Ariel
- Robby Benson - Beast
- Ravi Cabot-Conyers - Antonio Madrigal
- Griffen Campbell - Pinocchio
- Auli'i Cravalho - Moana
- Jim Cummings - Baloo, Winnie the Pooh
- Ariana DeBose - Asha
- Chris Diamantopoulos - Mickey Mouse
- Richard Epcar - Little John
- Bill Farmer - Goofy, Pluto
- Keith Ferguson - Prince Charming
- Josh Gad - Olaf
- Ginnifer Goodwin - Judy Hopps
- Jonathan Groff - Kristoff
- Jennifer Hale - Cinderella
- Jess Harnell - Scuttle
- Tom Hulce - Quasimodo
- Jeremy Irons - Scar
- Dwayne Johnson - Maui
- Bob Joles - Cogsworth
- Judy Kuhn - Pocahontas
- Nathan Lane - Timon
- Luke Lowe - Flounder
- Idina Menzel - Elsa
- Jim Meskimen - Eeyore, Merlin
- Piotr Michael - Iago
- Mandy Moore - Rapunzel
- Paige O'Hara - Belle
- Raymond S. Persi - Flash
- Ian R'Mante - Thumper
- John C. Reilly - Wreck-It Ralph
- Phoenix Reisser - Mowgli
- Kaitlyn Robrock - Minnie Mouse
- Anika Noni Rose - Tiana
- Lea Salonga - Mulan
- Lee Slobotkin - Peter Pan
- Natalie Babbitt Taylor - Snow White
- Josh Robert Thompson - Grumpy
- Kelly Marie Tran - Raya
- Alan Tudyk - Mad Hatter
- Scott Weinger - Aladdin
- Richard White - Gaston
- Harland Williams - Carl
- Daniel Wolfe - Robin Hood
- James Woods - Hades
Archival recordings[]
- Stan Alexander - Flower
- Stephen J. Anderson - Bowler Hat Guy
- Awkwafina - Sisu
- Bill Baucom - Trusty
- Peter Behn - Thumper
- Eric Blore - Mr. Toad
- Pat Carroll - Ursula
- Bobby Driscoll - Peter Pan
- Cliff Edwards - Jiminy Cricket
- Verna Felton - Flora
- Santino Fontana - Hans
- Joseph Gordon-Levitt - Jim Hawkins
- Robert Guillaume - Rafiki
- Sterling Holloway - the Cheshire Cat, Kaa, Winnie the Pooh
- Billy Joel - Dodger
- Charles Judels - Stromboli
- Barbada Luddy - Merryweather
- James MacDonald - Jaq and Gus
- Bob Newhart - Bernard
- Clarence Nash - Donald Duck
- Chris Sanders - Stitch
- Sarah Silverman - Vanellope von Schweetz
- David Spade - Kuzco
- Mark Walton - Rhino
- Frank Welker - Abu, Joanna
- Robin Williams - Genie
- Michael-Leon Wooley - Louis
- Alan Young - Scrooge McDuck
International release[]
| Country | Network(s) | Date of release | Local title |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | ABC | October 15, 2023 | Once Upon a Studio |
| Disney Channel, Disney Junior, FX, FXM, Freeform, Disney+, Hulu | October 16, 2023 | ||
| Worldwide | Disney+ | October 16, 2023 | |
| Europe Middle East Africa |
Disney Channel | October 16, 2023 | |
| Canada | CTV 2 | October 15, 2023 | |
| Germany | Disney Channel, RTL | October 16, 2023 | |
| India | Disney+ Hotstar | October 16, 2023 | |
| Indonesia | Disney+ Hotstar | October 16, 2023 | |
| Italy | Rai 2 | December 24, 2023 | |
| Malaysia | Disney+ Hotstar | October 16, 2023 | |
| South Africa | e.tv | October 16, 2023 | |
| Thailand | Disney+ Hotstar | October 16, 2023 | |
| Brazil | Disney Channel, Disney+ | October 16, 2023 | Era uma vez um estúdio |
| Portugal | Disney Channel, Disney Junior, Disney+ | October 16, 2023 | |
| Arab World | Disney Channel, Disney Junior, Disney+ | October 16, 2023 | كان يا مكان في الاستوديو |
| Latin America | Disney Channel, Disney Junior, Disney+ | October 16, 2023 | Había una vez un estudio |
| Bulgaria | Disney Channel, Disney Junior, Disney+ | October 16, 2023 | Имало едно време едно студио |
| Czech Republic | Disney Channel, Disney+ | October 16, 2023 | Bylo nebylo jedno studio |
| Denmark | Disney+ | October 16, 2023 | Der var engang et filmstudie |
| Finland | Disney+ | October 16, 2023 | Olipa kerran studio Olipa kerran elokuvastudio |
| France | Disney+ | October 16, 2023 | Il était une fois un studio |
| Greece | Disney Channel, Disney+ | October 16, 2023 | Μια φορά σε ένα στούντιο |
| Hungary | Disney Channel, Disney+ | October 16, 2023 | Volt egyszer egy stúdió |
| Iran | Filimo, Namava | October 16, 2023 | روزی روزگاری در یک استودیو |
| Israel | Disney+ | October 16, 2023 | היה היה סטודיו |
| Japan | Disney+ | October 16, 2023 | ワンス・アポン・ア・スタジオ -100年の思い出- |
| Norway | Disney+ | October 16, 2023 | Der var en gang et filmstudio |
| Poland | Disney Channel, Disney Junior, Disney+, Polsat | October 16, 2023 | Było sobie studio |
| Romania | Disney Channel, Disney Junior, Disney+ | October 16, 2023 | A fost odată un studio |
| Slovakia | Disney+ | October 16, 2023 | Bolo raz jedno štúdio |
| Spain | Disney Channel, Disney Junior, Disney+ | October 16, 2023 | Érase una vez un estudio |
| Sweden | Disney+ | October 16, 2023 | Der var en gång en filmstudio |
| Ukraine | PlusPlus | October 16, 2023 | Одного разу на студії |