The Old Mill
Encyclopedia
The Old Mill is a 1937
Silly Symphonies
cartoon produced by Walt Disney
, directed by Wilfred Jackson
, scored by Leigh Harline
, and released to theatres by RKO Radio Pictures on November 5, 1937. The film depicts the natural community of animals populating an old abandoned windmill
in the country, and how they deal with a violent thunderstorm
that nearly destroys their habitat.
Like many of the later Silly Symphonies, The Old Mill was a testing-ground for advanced animation techniques. Marking the first use of Disney's multiplane camera
, the film also incorporates realistic depictions of animal behavior, complex lighting and color effects, depictions of rain, wind, lightning, ripples, splashes and reflections, three-dimensional rotation of detailed objects, and the use of timing to produce specific dramatic and emotional effects. All of the lessons learned from making The Old Mill would subsequently be incorporated into Disney's feature-length animated films, especially 1937's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
.
episode Bart Has Two Mommies
, where Homer tries to win a rubber duck
race by making his rubber duck cross the finish line first. The duck however floats to an abandoned windmill very similar to the one in the classic Disney short, with a sign declaring: "The Old Mill." The scene where the duck is nearly squashed by the water wheel is a direct reference to the most famous scene of The Old Mill. Raymond Scott's Powerhouse
B is heard in the Old Mill scene where Homer protected the duck from the water wheel in that scene.
The three mills from the short can be seen in miniature on the Storybook Land Canals ride at Disneyland.
The Old Mill is featured in the World of Color presentation at Disney's California Adventure
.
Diamond Edition's Blu-ray disc as a special feature.
1937 in film
The year 1937 in film involved some significant events, including the Walt Disney production of the first full-length animated film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.- Events :*April 16 - Way Out West premieres in the US....
Silly Symphonies
Silly Symphonies
Silly Symphonies is a series of animated short subjects, 75 in total, produced by Walt Disney Productions from 1929 to 1939, while the studio was still located at Hyperion Avenue in the Silver Lake district of Los Angeles...
cartoon produced by Walt Disney
Walt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
, directed by Wilfred Jackson
Wilfred Jackson
Wilfred Jackson was an American animator, arranger, composer and director best known for his work on the Mickey Mouse and Silly Symphonies series of cartoons and the two segments Night on Bald Mountain and Ave Maria of Fantasia from The Walt Disney Company.Wilfred Jackson was born in Chicago,...
, scored by Leigh Harline
Leigh Harline
Leigh Adrian Harline was a film composer.-Career:Born in Salt Lake City, Utah, he worked for various radio stations before joining the Walt Disney studios in 1932 as arranger and scorer...
, and released to theatres by RKO Radio Pictures on November 5, 1937. The film depicts the natural community of animals populating an old abandoned windmill
Windmill
A windmill is a machine which converts the energy of wind into rotational energy by means of vanes called sails or blades. Originally windmills were developed for milling grain for food production. In the course of history the windmill was adapted to many other industrial uses. An important...
in the country, and how they deal with a violent thunderstorm
Thunderstorm
A thunderstorm, also known as an electrical storm, a lightning storm, thundershower or simply a storm is a form of weather characterized by the presence of lightning and its acoustic effect on the Earth's atmosphere known as thunder. The meteorologically assigned cloud type associated with the...
that nearly destroys their habitat.
Like many of the later Silly Symphonies, The Old Mill was a testing-ground for advanced animation techniques. Marking the first use of Disney's multiplane camera
Multiplane camera
The multiplane camera is a special motion picture camera used in the traditional animation process that moves a number of pieces of artwork past the camera at various speeds and at various distances from one another...
, the film also incorporates realistic depictions of animal behavior, complex lighting and color effects, depictions of rain, wind, lightning, ripples, splashes and reflections, three-dimensional rotation of detailed objects, and the use of timing to produce specific dramatic and emotional effects. All of the lessons learned from making The Old Mill would subsequently be incorporated into Disney's feature-length animated films, especially 1937's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937 film)
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is a 1937 American animated film based on Snow White, a German fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm. It was the first full-length cel-animated feature in motion picture history, as well as the first animated feature film produced in America, the first produced in full...
.
Awards and Accolades
- The Old Mill won the 1937 Academy Award for Best Short Subjects: CartoonsAcademy Award for Animated Short FilmThe Academy Award for Animated Short Film is an award which has been given by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as part of the Academy Awards every year since the 5th Academy Awards, covering the year 1931-32, to the present....
. - It is ranked at the IMDb top short list as the 17th greatest short film ever.
- It was also included in the book The 50 Greatest Cartoons As Selected by 1,000 Animation Professionals, in which it is honored as #14.
Homages
This cartoon was parodied in The SimpsonsThe Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
episode Bart Has Two Mommies
Bart Has Two Mommies
"Bart Has Two Mommies" is the fourteenth episode of the seventeenth season of The Simpsons.-Plot:One day, the Simpsons attend a church fundraiser for a new steeple. In spite of Homer's best efforts to cheat, Ned Flanders wins a rubber duck racing contest and wins a female-oriented computer called...
, where Homer tries to win a rubber duck
Rubber duck
A rubber duck is a toy shaped like a stylised Yellow-billed Duck , and is generally yellow with a flat base. It may be made of rubber or rubber-like material such as vinyl plastic...
race by making his rubber duck cross the finish line first. The duck however floats to an abandoned windmill very similar to the one in the classic Disney short, with a sign declaring: "The Old Mill." The scene where the duck is nearly squashed by the water wheel is a direct reference to the most famous scene of The Old Mill. Raymond Scott's Powerhouse
Powerhouse
Powerhouse or Power House may refer to:* Power station, a facility for the generation of electric power* The Power-House, a 1916 novel by John Buchan* Powerhouse Arts District, Jersey City...
B is heard in the Old Mill scene where Homer protected the duck from the water wheel in that scene.
The three mills from the short can be seen in miniature on the Storybook Land Canals ride at Disneyland.
The Old Mill is featured in the World of Color presentation at Disney's California Adventure
Disney's California Adventure
Disney California Adventure, or simply California Adventure, is a theme park in Anaheim, California, adjacent to Disneyland Park and part of the larger Disneyland Resort. It opened on February 8, 2001 as Disney's California Adventure Park. The park is owned and operated by the Walt Disney Parks and...
.
Release
The short got its Blu-ray release on March 1, 2011, on the BambiBambi
Bambi is a 1942 American animated film directed by David Hand , produced by Walt Disney and based on the book Bambi, A Life in the Woods by Austrian author Felix Salten...
Diamond Edition's Blu-ray disc as a special feature.