Disneyland Paris marked International Animation Day on Wednesday with new photos documenting one of only three surviving historic multiplane cameras from Walt Disney Studios.
The massive rig used multiple layers of painted artwork to create depth in animated scenes. It first went to work on the 1937 short The Old Mill, which won the Academy Award for Best Cartoon Short Subject the following year. Disney also received a technical Academy Award for the camera in 1938.
That layered process helped shape scenes in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Pinocchio, Fantasia and Bambi. The opening of Bambi, with vegetation sliding past at different speeds as the camera moves through the forest, remains one of its best-known uses.
How the camera reached Disneyland Paris
The surviving camera arrived at the resort with the former Art of Disney Animation attraction at Disney Adventure World. The attraction became Animation Celebration in 2019. The other two historic cameras are held by the Walt Disney Archives in Burbank and The Walt Disney Family Museum in San Francisco.
Disneyland Paris also points to 15 dioramas at the Disneyland Hotel that borrow the same layering principle. The displays stack scenic elements to give flat artwork a stronger sense of depth.
Disneyland Paris’ full feature includes the complete photo set and more history on the camera.