Welcome to our annual Disney Person of the Year article. To see the runners up, check out our Most Fascinating Disney People post.
From an outside perspective, it would appear that the leadership change at the top of The Walt Disney Company had an impact on the Disney 100 Celebration. The New Year’s Day kickoff was delayed, the promised website never launched, and various parts of the organization seemed to be focused on other priorities. But all is forgiven as two Disney fans at Walt Disney Animation Studios came together to provide the greatest celebration of Disney’s legacy that one could imagine.
Dan Abraham and Trent Correy first met when they co-directed Once Upon a Snowman featuring Olaf. While Correy comes from the animation department and Abraham comes from story, they felt that the two experiences worked well together. Once they finished the short, they wanted to find a way to keep working together. Correy went off to Zootopia+ while Abraham moved to Baymax!. While they were on separate projects, they kept in touch. When they realized that there should be something to celebrate the character legacy of Walt Disney Animation Studios, they reunited on their own time to develop their idea which had a decent chance of never seeing the light of day.
As the story goes, Correy and Abraham began planning their short in secret during the pandemic. They would meet at a local Taco Bell, roll-down their windows, and pitch ideas to each other. After spending their spare time developing their vision, it was time to pitch the idea to Disney Animation’s Chief Creative Officer Jennifer Lee. Abraham and Correy went through their storyboards through Zoom. When they were done, Lee leaves. As Abraham tells it, “Trent and I looked at each other like, ‘Oh, no… What is happening?’ When she came back, her glasses were on top of her head, and she wiped away a little tear. She said, ‘I don’t know how, but we have to figure out how to make this.’ Trent and I were just beside ourselves! We couldn’t believe it. It felt like such a long shot to work on something for that long—and on something that no one was asking for. It felt so amazing.”
Once the short got a greenlight, Correy and Abraham, along with their producers Yvett Merino and Bradford Simonsen, raced the clock to get the short done in time. The technical challenges were immense as they would have to combine live-action, traditional animation, and computer animation into a seamless world. They also would bring back many classic animators and voice actors to recreate the roles they made famous. The team even had Richard Sherman play “Feed the Birds” on Walt’s piano in the historic 3H office. While the short will play to anyone, Disney fans can go on an easter egg hunt from spotting photos of legendary animators to the snow globe from Mary Poppins.
The short also proved to be a fitting tribute to Disney Legend Burny Mattinson who passed away earlier this year. Not only is the short dedicated to him and his historic career, but he also stars at the start of the short when he says, “if these walls could talk.” The twinkle in Burny’s eye is familiar to those who knew him. You can see him remember all the amazing things he has been a part of during his time at the studio.
It is easy to provide fan service. What is hard, is giving fans something that is more than easter eggs and esoteric references. Once Upon a Studio is a touching tribute to the artists, technicians, and administrators at Disney and to the fans that love their work. When the short made its debut at Destination D23, it received the sole standing ovation of the weekend. You could feel how the audience was moved. Correy and Abraham combined their knowledge of animation and storytelling while mixing in their Disney fandom and knowledge to create something truly special. While we may not know what is next for this duo, either as a team or separately, I can’t wait to see what they come up with next.
While we normally designate an individual as our Person of the Year, Correy and Abraham’s teamwork has not only been rewarding, but reminds us that teamwork is at the heart of all animation.
For giving fans the greatest gift to celebrate 100 years of Disney Animation, Laughing Place names Trent Correy and Dan Abraham our 2023 Person of the Year.