... leads to them speaking almost in unison as they answer questions about the film, trading words effortlessly and laughing over shared reminiscences.
The movie that they've created together looks better than ever, with a crisp new look and brilliant colors courtesy of an excellent restoration. But it's the same "The Little Mermaid" they remember. "We probably hadn't seen it in nine years, since it was re-released theatrically in '97. It's fun to see again," says John. Especially fun was reteaming to do the commentary track on the DVD, they both tell us -- remembering how it was in the late '80s, when they were working on the film with their close partners, composers Howard Ashman and Alan Menken.
John explains that Howard and Alan "Actually wrote the score in the animation building. There was a room set up with a synthesizer and all that. Howard and Alan came out from New York and relocated for the whole process. And in a room next door, storybook artists were starting to work on ideas for 'Under the Sea' and some of the songs. I think that was what it was like in the early days of Disney animation -- how it was done for 'Snow White' and 'Cinderella.' The composers were right there."
Ron adds "In the old days, the room the director was in was always called the music room, because it had a piano and so much of the early work, like the Silly Symphonies and 'Snow White' was so music-driven. Over the years they got away from that, so 'Little Mermaid' was a throwback."
Another piece of Disney history that went into the creation of the "The Little Mermaid" was a True-Life Adventure film called "Mysteries of the Deep." Made in 1959, the film took viewers into a beautiful underwater world -- and it became a key resource for Ron and John, both landlocked Midwestern boys. "It had some great footage of an octopus walking along the ocean floor," recalls John. "We were working on Ursula at the time, and Ruben Aquino, the lead animator on Ursula, took that footage and used it for a basis for her walk, with her tentacles kind of slapping and slithering along. They took some of the film and had Photostats made of it, and drew on top of them."
Another underwater resource was motion model Sheri Stoner. They filmed her underwater so they could capture the motion of her hair. "People don't think about this, but underwater is much more complicated to animate because hair always has to move, and any kind of fabric has to float, and the ripples and bubbles under the water ... gravity is different," says John. On the other hand, the directors claim that animals are always easier to create in animation than people -- so the Little Mermaid was in many ways more challenging to animate as a "real girl" than she was when half-fish.
The unveiling of the restored "The Little Mermaid" at the El Capitan reunited many of the key players from making of the film -- composer Alan Menken and "Ariel" voice Jodi Benson (who performed a showstopping rendition of "Part of Your World" together), along with Ron and John and Sheri Stoner. They talked as if the film were made just yesterday -- and the sparkling color and lively songs make us realize that "The Little Mermaid" will truly never grow old.
