Disney Fanon Wiki
Don't have an account?
Register
Advertisement
Register
in: Films, Walt Disney Animation Studios, Anniversary productions,
and 96 more

Once Upon a Studio: Version 2.0

View source

This is an idea for a hypothetical rewrite of Disney's centennial short: Once Upon a Studio, in which the Princesses are shown to have a greater role in restoring the morale of all the other Disney characters following Goofy's botched first attempt at taking the group photo. It would also contain a new epilogue scene set the following day (October 17, 2023), hosted by Mickey, Cinderella, Prince Charming, and a number of other characters.

Synopsis

In Once Upon a Studio, an all-star ensemble of beloved characters from Walt Disney Animation Studios assembles to take a group photo in honor of The Walt Disney Company's 100th anniversary—making for a joyful, entertaining, and emotional reunion. Featuring 547 characters from more than 85 feature-length and short films, Once Upon a Studio welcomes heroes and villains, princes and princesses, sidekicks and sorcerers—in all-new hand-drawn and CG animation—to celebrate 10 decades of storytelling, artistry, and technological achievements.

Plot

Taking place in Burbank, California on October 16, 2023, when Walt Disney Animation Studios turned 100 years old, its employees are leaving the Roy E. Disney Animation Building as their usual work day is done and Burny Mattinson imagines about the walls of the studio coming alive after an intern talks with him about the great history it made throughout the century.

Inside the studio, after the doors close, all is quiet when suddenly, Mickey Mouse, as seen in a production cel picture for Mickey's Birthday Party, comes to life, and calls Tinker Bell. Mickey questions if all of the employees are gone, in which Tink replies yes with a nod. Excited, Mickey, with his girlfriend Minnie, jump out of the picture, and Minnie gets many characters from the studio's filmography with her signature "Yoo-Hoo!" signal, whether traditionally or computer animated. Tiana, Pinocchio, Judy Hopps, Nick Wilde, and Louis are the first to respond to the signal. Mickey calls to Bambi, Flower, and Thumper while the latter calls to Orville, Bernard, and Bianca. Minnie, alongside Rhino, Mittens, and Bolt, enlists Peter Pan to gather everyone from upstairs and he complies and flies off with Wendy, John, and Michael Darling.

During that, several gags of the characters interacting with one another happen all over the studio;

  • Sisu runs happily down the hall, followed by Jim Hawkins riding on his Alponian Solar Cruiser, Maui changes into his hawk form and flies into the hall while reminding Aladdin and Abu to meet in the lobby, and the former says he'll see them there while sliding down the railing with them ending up with the rock trolls, Vanellope von Schweetz and Dodger ride on the former's candy kart, Elliott takes Cody on a fun ride, Wayne and Lanny slide down on their ropes, and the Ocean drops Moana into the hall along with Flounder, who needed water.
  • Moana searches for water for Flounder. She approaches Merlin (who was at the Snuggly Duckling coffee area with his sugar bowl, the Mad Hatter, the March Hare, Lucille Krunklehorn, Mrs. Potts, Chip, and Cogsworth, who tells the others that they have no time for tea), and with his help, he casts a spell using the magic words, "Chapeaulius Bowlius" to summon water in the Mad Hatter's hat for Flounder to swim in, much to the former's pleasure, who then tells a passing Penguin Waiter with a plate of spaghetti and meatballs that "There's a carp in [his] cap."
  • Elsa freezes Hans in his frame after Anna asks her if she thinks that all of the villains will be showing up (most likely because she would be worried about seeing Hans again after he tried to kill them in their film) after seeing an angry Stromboli trying to get a snack from the studio's vending machine.
  • Donald Duck steps into an elevator with Carl, Terk, Humphrey the Bear, Ranger J. Audubon Woodlore, and Mother Gothel, when Flash calls from across the hall to hold the elevator as he slowly takes his time walking to them, much to Donald's annoyance.
  • Olaf draws on an animator's office desk humming "Friend Like Me" while using a book copy of Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life to boost his height while the Robin Williams Lost Boy, Timon and Pumbaa pass by, with the former telling him to shake a leg (in which Olaf replies that the leg won't make a difference because it's all in the wrist) when the Genie bursts out of the drawing, sending Olaf to pieces and he uses his magic to put him back together.
  • While Prince John, Thomas O'Malley, Chicken Little, Milo Thatch, Happy, the Headless Horseman, and Gaston are freshening up in the men's room for the picture, the Cheshire Cat appears in front of his face, laughing, when Minnie comes in while covering her eyes and tells them to move it.
  • While Christopher Robin, Kanga, and Eeyore try to free Winnie the Pooh from his picture, Antonio Madrigal speaks with Cinderella's bird friends, Meeko, Cri-kee, Pascal, and Pua about meeting in the lobby while stopping Joanna the Goanna from eating Jaq and Gus before getting spooked by an angry barking Pluto.
  • While MacBadger, Ratty, Mole, Ryder, Honeymaren, Sven, and Kristoff walk by, Kristoff warns some Dalmatian puppies, who are watching "Night on Bald Mountain" on a TV, that they'll have nightmares when Chernabog pops out of the TV, scaring the puppies and they run away and, in the process, run over Scrooge McDuck, who had just came out from his picture, causing him to drop his money bags, which Robin Hood and Little John grab.
  • At this point, Flash finally makes it into the elevator, much to the exasperation of the others, especially Donald who he thanked for holding the elevator. Baymax then squeezes into the elevator after he makes it, increasing Donald's frustration and resulting him to be thrown into a quacking fit when the fully-occupied elevator closes it's doors.
  • While Ursula is being followed and annoyed by a lovestruck Splat, Cinderella and Prince Charming follow down the stairs, where the prince is the one to drop his shoe, much to their humor. Max picks up the shoe and runs off with it. Charming calls for Eric while Cinderella cheers for Max.
  • Mickey was amused by this when he sees Kaa leading Clarabelle Cow with his hypnosis. He tries to get him to stop, but Rapunzel says she has it covered, hitting Kaa with her frying pan offscreen to save her.

While all of this is happening, Mickey looks up at a portrait of the late company founder, Walt Disney and takes his hat off to pay respects and fondly remember his legacy. Minnie reminds Mickey that everyone is in the lobby as Mickey speaks to the picture saying that he has to go and thanks him declaring, "On with the show.", foreshadowing The Walt Disney Company's bright future ahead.

Mickey flies down the lobby stairs amongst some of the other characters to the entrance on Dumbo while Toby Turtle, Bowler Hat Guy, and DOR-15 avoid them. After Raya tells Mickey that the coast is clear, everyone goes outside to take the group photo. During the outside gathering, Wreck-It Ralph bumps in front of the door, but is okay while Scar comes out feeling annoyed by those he refers to as "idiots" around him while Mr. Toad flies around the area on the Magic Carpet. Meanwhile, Ichabod Crane ducks from a ladder being held by Goofy. After Jock and Trusty walk by, Flora turns the building's hat structure pink while Merryweather quickly changes it back to blue. Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, (in black and white), is the last to arrive for the photo as he positions himself next to Pacha and Kuzco (in llama form), in which Mickey allows Oswald to do so. Oswald tips his ears to say thank you to Mickey, but Kuzco warns him to keep a distance.

Everything is all set as Rafiki hands Goofy an old fashioned camera. However, things backfire as Goofy tries to find the timer button for the camera, he accidentally falls off the ladder, breaking it, shorty after Iago timed it with a three second countdown. Stitch chews on a part of the camera, but Lilo drags him away. Grumpy expresses a sarcastic comment saying "Well, that was fun." and Eeyore states that they might try again next century. Hiro, Go-Go, Honey Lemon, Wasabi, and Fred along with Friar Tuck, the Big Bad Wolf, Professor Ludwig Von Drake, Arthur Pendragon, and King Leonidas, among many of the others, leave in disappointment as the group photo is cancelled and ruined. Mickey tries to assure everyone that everything will be fine, but soon loses hope. Tarzan, however, decides it may be best to simply postpone the photo for a day or two to iron out the kinks. On the spiral staircase leading to the studio's main reception, Cinderella, Prince Charming, Rapunzel and Eugene observe this scene with pained expressions, as Cinderella and Rapunzel discreetly admit that since all the Disney characters are under such tremendous pressure on this day, a mishap of some kind was pretty much inevitable, but that it's nothing they truly cannot fix. As Moana, Maui and Chief Tui arrive on the scene, Cinderella and Rapunzel quickly decide to intervene in an effort to lift everyone's spirits, feeling a growing sense of urgency.

Cinderella, Rapunzel, Moana and their respective Princes then arrive in the courtyard, along with several other characters who weren't initially present such as Ariel, Eric, Belle, the Beast, Pocahontas and John Smith, to the surprise of those who were about to depart. Rapunzel and Eugene quickly check up on Goofy and find, to their relief, that he has only sustained minor injuries. Cinderella then gives a heartwarming speech, tuning into the collective pressure everyone is feeling to live up to Walt's legacy, but assuring them that their dreams are never out of reach. Inspired by Cinderella's idea, Fairy Godmother uses her wand to conjure a guitar for Rapunzel, which she happily takes. She then begins playing a brand new rendition of "When You Wish Upon a Star", as everyone tunes in intently, as Cinderella eagerly whispers "here we go".

OUAS-film-1-Large

Cinderella is the first to sing, before handing over to Belle and the Beast's duet as Lewis and Wilbur Robinson, the Queen of Hearts, Penny, Pecos Bill, and Widowmaker listen, much to Hades' annoyance. Quasimodo, Pocahontas, Snow White, Baloo, and Mowgli also join in singing along. As Jiminy Cricket (now voiced by his current actor, Joe Ochman), Fairy Godmother, Asha and the rest of the cast sing the bridge, the other characters help undo Goofy's mistake with the magic brooms sweeping up his camera in a pile, Fix-It Felix Jr. fixing it with his magic hammer, Hercules putting the ladder back in position with his super strength, and the Fairy Godmother using her magic wand to lift Goofy up over the ladder, allowing him to set up the camera safely. Ariel and Eric, Aladdin and Jasmine, and Rapunzel and Eugene then begin singing the final verse of the song, followed by Tarzan and Jane, with Cinderella and Prince Charming gently finishing it off.

GroupPicture

The iconic group photo, featuring over 500 Disney characters from multiple feature films and shorts represented.

With the camera's timer slowly ticking down, Mickey and Cinderella eagerly invite all the other characters, along with the audience, to join in. All the characters then begin singing the final verse jubilantly as a collective whole. Cinderella and the Prince then cap it off with the first line of her tune; "A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes", followed by Rapunzel and Eugene singing the first chorus line of "I See The Light", and Aladdin and Jasmine doing the same for "A Whole New World". The entire cast then triumphantly sing the final line of the song one last time, and smile for the photo, Tinker Bell then uses her wand to cut from the scene to where the group photo on the wall is taken.

Wind-Down

The relaxing epilogue set the following day

The following afternoon (October 17, 2023), Mickey, Cinderella, Prince Charming and Fairy Godmother send the audience off with a heartwarming address about the Walt Disney Company's bright and promising future. Timon, Pumbaa, Rapunzel, Eugene, Aladdin and Jasmine also drop in to bid their respective farewells, and the film ends with the tagline, "To all who have imagined with us, laughed with us, and dreamed with us, Thank You."

At the end of the credits, a dedication to Mattinson reads "For our pal Burny and his 70 years of legendary storytelling at Disney Animation."

Cast

Main article: List of characters in Once Upon a Studio: Version 2.0

Live-action

Animated

Also appearing are Tinker Bell, Bambi, Friend Owl, Bolt, Mittens, Penny, Wendy Darling, John Darling, Michael Darling, the Lost Boys, Nana, Tick-Tock the Crocodile, Jock, Lady, Tramp, Peg, Fauna, Christopher Robin, Kanga, Roo, Meeko, Flit, John Smith, Nakoma, Chief Powhatan, Governor Ratcliffe, Percy, Ocean, Pua, Heihei, Cri-Kee, Fa Mulan, Mushu, Li Shang, Yao, Ling, and Chien Po, Pascal, Cinderella's bird friends, Perla, Happy, Doc, Dopey, Sneezy, Sleepy, Bashful, the Prince, the Evil Queen (in Old Hag form), Blue Fairy, Geppetto, Figaro, Cleo, Honest John, Gideon, Prince Phillip, Maleficent, Pongo, Perdita, the Dalmatian Puppies, Roger Radcliffe, Anita Radcliffe, Nanny, Cruella De Vil, John Henry, Amos, Benjamin Franklin, Philoctetes, Rutt and Tuke, Kenai, Koda, Maggie, Mrs. Calloway, Grace, the Small One, Cyril Proudbottom, Angus MacBadger, Mole, Water Rat, Ichabod Crane, Katrina Van Tassel, Brom Bones, The Headless Horseman, Ryder, Honeymaren, Lieutenant Mattias, Sven, Oaken, Grand Pabbie, Bruni, Hiro Hamada, Go Go Tomago, Fred, Honey Lemon, Wasabi, Aunt Cass, Chernabog, Tuk Tuk, Boun, Noi, Tong, Namaari, Splat, Jaeger Clade, Searcher Clade, Ethan Clade, Meridian Clade, Callisto Mal, Legend, Sebastian, Max, Luisa Madrigal, Pacha, Kronk, Yzma, Bagheera, Shere Khan, King Louie, Colonel Hathi, Winifred, Hathi, Jr., Shanti, Lady Tremaine, Lucifer, Anastasia Tremaine, Drizella Tremaine, Mr. Smee, Captain Hook, Fifer Pig, Fiddler Pig, Practical Pig, the Big Bad Wolf, Horace Horsecollar, Clarabelle Cow, Clara Cluck, Chip and Dale, Huey, Dewey, and Louie, Daisy Duck, Pete, Spike the Bee, Ludwig Von Drake, Susie the Little Blue Coupe, Pecos Bill, Widowmaker, Slue-Foot Sue, Joe, Jenny, the Golden Harp, Bongo the Bear, Humphrey the Bear, J. Audubon Woodlore, Mother Gothel, Taran, Eilonwy, Fflewddur Fflam, Hen Wen, Gurgi, Creeper, the Horned King, Ferdinand the Bull, Johnny Appleseed, Alice Blue Bonnet, Johnny Fedora, the Reluctant Dragon, Peter, Sonia, Sasha, Ivan, Maximus, Fix-It Felix Jr., Sergeant Calhoun, Taffyta Muttonfudge, King Candy, KnowsMore, Shank, Yesss, Mirabel Madrigal, Alma Madrigal, Agustín Madrigal, Julieta Madrigal, Isabela Madrigal, Pepa Madrigal, Félix Madrigal, Camilo Madrigal, Dolores Madrigal, Bruno Madrigal, one of his rats, Marie, Berlioz, Toulouse, Tod, Copper, Squeaks, Oliver, Georgette, Tito, Francis, Einstein, Rita, Duchess, Thomas O'Malley, Roquefort, Scat Cat, Edgar, Simba, Nala, Mufasa (in ghost form), Zazu, Shenzi, Banzai, and Ed, Jafar, Rajah, the Sultan, Magic Carpet, Wayne, Lanny, Alan-A-Dale, Basil, Olivia Flaversham, David Q. Dawson, Ratigan, Fidget, Esmeralda, Djali, Phoebus, Frollo, Victor, Hugo, and Laverne, Dumbo, Timothy Q. Mouse, Aladar, Plio, Yar, Zini, Suri, Hercules, Megara, Pegasus, Zeus, Pain and Panic, Piglet, Tigger, Owl, Rabbit, Gopher, Prince John, Sir Hiss, Maid Marian, Lady Kluck, Sheriff of Nottingham, Friar Tuck, Skippy, Sis, Tagalong, Toby Turtle, Big Mama, Dinky and Boomer, Miss Bianca, Penny, Evinrude, Madame Medusa, Mr. Snoops, Orville, Wilbur, Jake, Percival C. McLeach, Lilo Pelekai, Nani Pelekai, David Kawena, Jumba Jookiba, Pleakley, Terk, Tantor, Kala, Kerchak, Clayton, Milo Thatch, Kida Nedakh, Vincenzo Santorini, Audrey Ramirez, Joshua Sweet, Molière, Wilhelmina Packard, Cookie, Nessie, John Silver, Morph, B.E.N., Captain Amelia, Dr. Delbert Doppler, Lumiere, Mrs. Potts, Chip Potts, Maurice, LeFou, Lewis Robinson, Wilbur Robinson, Lucille Krunklehorn, DOR-15, Arthur Pendragon, Archimedes, Madam Mim, Merlin's sugar bowl, the March Hare, Alice, the White Rabbit, Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum, the Queen of Hearts, the King of Hearts, the Penguin Waiters, Fifi, José Carioca, Panchito Pistoles, Pedro, Ben Ali Gator, Hyacinth Hippo, Madame Upanova, Bacchus, Jacchus, Melinda, Brudus, Yen Sid, the Magic Brooms, Duke, Flying John, Rachel, Joe, Yo Yo Flamingo, the Spring Sprite, Prince Naveen, Ray, Charlotte La Bouff, Mama Odie, Juju, Dr. Facilier, King Leonidas, the Secretary Bird, Chicken Little, Abby Mallard, Runt of the Litter, Fish Out of Water, Lambert Lion, Chief Bogo, Clawhauser, Gazelle, Mr. Big, Fru Fru, Koslov, Bellwether, The Ugly Duckling, the Robin Williams Lost Boy from Back to Never Land, Winston from Feast, George and the lipstick paper airplane from Paperman, Paul from Inner Workings, Art and Dot from Us Again, four Skeletons from The Skeleton Dance, Boy Tree, and Lady Tree from Flowers and Trees, Casey, and Oswald the Lucky Rabbit.

Dan Abraham and Trent Correy, the directors of the short film, make cameo appearances holding the door for Mattinson.

Release

Once Upon a Studio premiered on ABC on October 15, 2023, as part of The Wonderful World of Disney: Disney's 100th Anniversary Celebration. The short film was released for streaming on Hulu and Disney+ on October 16, 2023, and was broadcast on Disney's linear television networks, including the Disney Channel (as part of the Once Upon A Monday Movie Marathon), Disney Junior, Freeform, FX, FXM, and FXX.

Marketing

The official trailer was released on September 21, 2023.

Music

David Metzger would still compose the soundtrack, although it would now be recorded by a 111-piece in-house orchestra created by Disney called the "Wonderland Symphony Orchestra", along with a small rock ensemble. It would also be orchestrated by one of John Williams' frequent collaborators, Conrad Pope.

Main Article: Once Upon a Studio: Version 2.0 (Soundtrack)

Trivia (exclusively for this version)

  • This version of OUAS is perhaps a little more melancholy than the original version, mainly due to the scenes with both Rapunzel and Cinderella watching Goofy's failed first attempt at the group photo from a distance, as it dawns on them how much pressure everyone is truly under to get the group photo right.
  • Cinderella and Rapunzel's increased role is largely a product of their popularity among fans as two of Disney's most beloved Princesses, along with the former being Walt's personal favourite character.
  • This rendition of When You Wish Upon a Star maybe seen by some fans as even more epic and soulful than that of the existing OUAS, due to it having a quieter and more peaceful beginning with Cinderella singing the first two lines and Rapunzel accompanying on her guitar, before handing over to Belle and the Beast, along with the absence of Scuttle's background vocals. This is also evident with more epic repeat of the final verse with a sweeping shot of the chorus, followed by Cinderella and Charming, Rapunzel and Eugene, and Aladdin and Jasmine's closing duets before everyone sings the final line; "Your dreams come true!", as the orchestra reaches its absolute apex and the photo is finally taken.
  • It was originally intended to include not only Pixar characters, but also characters from The Muppets, along with other Jim Henson properties such as Fraggle Rock, Bear in the Big Blue House, Mopatop's Shop and even The Hoobs, but it was eventually decided the focus should remain only on Walt Disney Animation Studios to avoid the short becoming too cluttered with characters.
Community content is available under CC-BY-SA unless otherwise noted.
Advertisement

Fan Feed

More Disney Fanon Wiki