Mickey Mouse & Friends Are About To Debut In a Whole New Way

Disney movies and cartoons are well-loved around the globe. You could say that they’re a key part of growing up. The characters, the story, the music and even the villains, are all features of Disney stories that we know and love.

When you think of Disney movies and cartoons, classic animation probably springs to mind; the kind that were the first to be released by Walt Disney himself, and have continued to be released by The Walt Disney Company over the years. Of course, you probably also think of the newer style of animation, using CGI to create characters that appear more life-like, such as the Toy Story (1995) characters.

There’s another type of animation that The Walt Disney Company uses though, and while it isn’t a common one that is featured in their work, there’s something new coming this weekend that we can’t wait to see!

Stop-Motion Animation

Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) is a favorite Disney movie that was created using stop-motion animation. This type of animation is created using puppets and scale models as sets. Each puppet is placed in position, and a frame captured. Parts of each puppet are then moved slightly, and another frame captured. The process continues, taking hundreds of frames that make up minutes of a story.

Different to traditional animation that is created using pencils, ink and paint, stop-motion animation requires everything from designing and sewing costumes, to the making of the puppets, the design of sets, and careful planning of the placement and movement of the camera to capture the perfect frame. While it requires a great deal of patience, the finished product is rather spectacular.

A New Feature

Whilst it’s the time of year to celebrate Thanksgiving, it’s also the time of year when the Holiday celebrations begin. As such, it’s in the lead up to Christmas that we can expect to see new releases on the cinema, and on streaming services, including Disney+. It comes as no surprise then that a new Disney show is about to be released. Debuting on November 27, at 7 p.m. Eastern Time and Pacific Time, Mickey Saves Christmas will be shown on ABC, Disney Channel, Disney Junior and Disney XD. The all-new, half-hour show will then debut via streaming services on November 28, and will be available on Disney+ and Hulu. The variety of platforms that the Holiday special will be shown on, means that plenty of audiences will be able to watch this wonderful, festive tale.

Mickey Saves Christmas

Prepare for a charming tale of Mickey Mouse and friends helping Santa to deliver presents on Christmas Eve. Unfortunately, Mickey’s cabin lights go out just as Santa is about to land his sleigh, ready to deliver presents to the children of Hot Dog Hill. As such, there aren’t any toys to deliver. Not to worry though – Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Daisy Duck, Goody and Pluto are around to help save Christmas. They hop on Santa’s sleigh and return to the North Pole, just in time, to help make and wrap a new set of presents for Santa Claus to deliver.

Directed by David H. Brooks, of Stoopid Buddy Stoodios, whose work has included the creation of stop-motion sequences for The Simpsons, Mickey Saves Christmas is the longest stop-motion Mickey Mouse production to have been released to date. The Christmas special will feature everything that makes for a wonderful family gathering around the TV: a sweet tale; music; catchy tunes that everyone can sing along to; and of course, beloved characters. The fresh songs that are set to be a hit with audiences have been composed by Ben Zeadman, with lyrics written by Laura Schein.

Mickey Saves Christmas is set to be a hit with viewers of all ages, both the young and the young-at-heart. As expected with Disney movies and shows, you need to keep your eyes peeled for an Easter Egg or two. Adults should also look out for visual references to favorite holiday shows from years gone by.

Disney Friends Like You’ve Never Seen Before

Every effort has been made to ensure that Mickey Mouse and friends look distinctly dimensional. Every part was put together, including intricate details, to help make the stop-motion show just right. The Mickey puppet was around five or six inches tall, and Goofy was nine to ten inches. This puts into perspective the level of crafting and attention to detail that was required to make Mickey Saves Christmas possible.

The stop-motion show will also see Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Daisy, Goofy and Pluto dress in elf costumes and will introduce audiences to brand-new characters that will no doubt be a hit. These include Jingle and Jolly, two young reindeer. Whilst they weren’t intended to have starring roles, the creative team behind Mickey Saves Christmas soon fell in love with them, and gave them more screen time. Watch this space – there could be a Jingle and Jolly spinoff, according to Brooks. Move aside Rudolph the red nosed reindeer!

Whilst Mickey and friends will feature in a new way, their voices won’t. Bret Iwan is returning as Mickey Mouse and Kaitlyn Robrock as Minnie Mouse. Disney Legends, Bill Farmer and Tony Anselmo will also be returning, as Goofy and Pluto, and Donald Duck respectively.

Make sure you tune into one of the stations that Mickey Saves Christmas will be broadcast, on November 27. We can’t wait to watch this new stop-motion creation. We’re sure that it will become a a favorite show to watch year after year, at Christmas time.