How did “Cinderella” influence other Disney animated films?
Dave: If “Cinderella” hadn’t been a success, there probably would not have been any other Disney animated features. Walt had just gone through a difficult decade, notable for World War II, and … the company had had major financial problems. After” Bambi,” in 1942, Walt had been unable to get the financing for another full-length animated feature, so he had to be satisfied with package features, like “Make Mine Music” and “Melody Time,” which combined a number of short cartoons. Finally, by the end of the decade, he had been able to scrape together enough cash to do “Cinderella,” and the whole future of Disney animated features rested on its success. Thank goodness it was a big hit! Why was Walt so attracted to fairy tales as source material? Walt felt that when he used a fairy tale there was already a built-in audience for his film, because the audience members already knew a little about the story, and would be curious to see how Disney would depict it. “Snow White and the Seven Dwa
