Telluride Film Fest Cinematheque: “Bambi”

“The glow and texture of the Disney brush reaches new heights.” – Variety

Not just for children, the Telluride Film Festival invites true cinephiles of all ages to come and appreciate the third installment in the TECNICOLOR EXPLORED series at the Wilkinson Public Library, with popular host and cinematic educator, Seth Berg.

In 2008, the American Film Institute released a list of the Top 10 Best Films in each of 10 classic film genres – BAMBI (1942, 70 minutes, Rated G) placed third in the category of animation.

Aside from the movie’s heartrending storyline, these accolades were certainly a result of the film’s plunge into the extraordinary world of Technicolor, where motion picture imagery leapt off of the big screen and into the eyes and imaginations of the audience. Rich and heavily saturated, Technicolor became a tool to emphasize imaginative story lines and sets – to transition the vividness of the mind’s eye to celluloid.

This three-time Oscar-nominated masterpiece from Disney creators was based on the book “Bambi, A Life in the Woods” by Austrian Author Felix Salten. Time Magazine wrote of the film, “For the first time, Disney has done his backgrounds in oils instead of watercolors. The result is striking.”

Walt himself recalled, “Well, actually it was a change of pace for us from what we’d been doing. Snow White, Pinocchio, and the others were more the obvious cartoon-type of characters. But with Bambi there was a need for subtlety in our animation, and a need for more of a life-like type of animation. There was a certain awe and respect we had of this classic of Bambi that I decided that, well, number one, I’d have to put my artists back in school.”

For a preview of the show, watch the trailer (from original 1942 version):

Note: Telluride Film Festival Cinematheque is collaboration between The Telluride Film Festival and Wilkinson Public Library.