Join us for a nostalgia-filled talk that highlights several of Walt’s many achievements, from the Alice Comedies, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, and Steamboat Willie to Mary Poppins, Disneyland, and E.P.C.O.T. To launch our 10th Anniversary Celebration, film buff and former Walt Disney Productions...
To celebrate the museum’s 10th Anniversary, we are excited to theme our talks to one of our galleries each month. Beginning with gallery 1 in February, we will kick off this celebration by further exploring Walt Disney’s early life, and how his childhood home in Chicago—famously designed and built...
In an ode to the Imagineers who worked under Walt at WED Enterprises during the 1950s and 60s, educators are invited to engage in a hands-on workshop that explores the basics of critical thinking and design strategies. While problem-solving collaboratively, learn how to utilize the 21st century skillset students need in order to become the innovators of tomorrow.
Brownies visit The Walt Disney Family Museum to accomplish three of the five steps that are required when pursuing an Inventor Badge. Scouts will explore the museum galleries to learn about Walt Disney’s Imagineers, who worked at WED Enterprises during the 1950s and 60s and managed to imagine, invent, and build some of Disneyland’s most iconic attractions. Then, in the Learning Center, Brownies will brainstorm and apply these concepts to a problem, solving it collaboratively and creatively through design concepts.
Join Antonio Pelayo, one of the uniquely talented Ink & Paint artists at The Walt Disney Studios, for an interactive workshop in which students will learn about the inking and painting of animation cels, a fading art form that was once an essential component of the animation industry. With Pelayo’s...
Juniors visit The Walt Disney Family Museum to accomplish three of the five steps that are required when pursuing a Drawing Badge. In the galleries, Scouts will learn how foundational drawing was in the creation of Walt Disney’s many animated films. Then, in the Learning Center, they will experiment with different materials and practice various visual effects, such as stippling, crosshatching, and smudging. After drafting original concept art, backgrounds, and cartoon characters, Scouts will then showcase their work for other attendees during a group critique.
Journey back in time to create your own thaumatrope and a miniature zoetrope, which exemplify—through nothing more than clever positioning and a simple spinning motion—how immobile drawings can appear to come to life.
Join us for a screening of the film The Hand Behind the Mouse: The Ub Iwerks Story (1999), directed by Iwerks’ granddaughter, Leslie Iwerks, which will be followed by a Q&A with Leslie and her father, Disney Legend Don Iwerks.
In this six-week class, take the traditional animation techniques that Walt and his team used daily with pencil and paper, and move them into the digital world. Learn skills and software using Toon Boom to create hand-drawn animation on the computer. This class will focus on introductory-level...
In this fun and hands-on session, learn how to make your drawings truly come to life and put your creativity in the spotlight. For artists of all ages, join us in our Learning Center where an instructor will teach you step-by-step instructions on how to draw an original cartoon character.
This...
In this fun and hands-on session, learn how to make your drawings truly come to life and put your creativity in the spotlight. For artists of all ages, join us in our Learning Center where an instructor will teach you step-by-step instructions on how to draw an original cartoon character.
This...
In this fun and hands-on session, learn how to make your drawings truly come to life and put your creativity in the spotlight. For artists of all ages, join us in our Learning Center where an instructor will teach you step-by-step instructions on how to draw an original cartoon character.
This...
Successful animators have a comprehensive understanding of basic animation techniques and principles. This eight-week course focuses on one of these concepts each class by working traditionally with pencil and paper.
The Walt Disney Family Museum is closed on Thanksgiving Day.
Since 2014, Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar Animations Studios have partnered with Disney Worldwide Publishing for their Pixar Artist Showcase, in which talented animators and storytellers create unique and beautiful children’s books. In this special program, five illustrators will discuss...
In observation of Veterans Day, we are offering free admission to our main galleries and special exhibitions Walt Disney’s Nine Old Men: Masters of Animation and Fresh Starts. Upon arrival, please visit the ticket desk to pick up timed entry tickets to the main galleries and Walt Disney’s Nine Old...
Walt Disney’s Nine Old Men were some of the most talented artists at The Walt Disney Studios during Walt’s lifetime. However, their unique genius was not confined to their animator’s desks; the sincerity in their work was often inspired by their own families and the people that surrounded them...
Walt Disney went to great lengths to capture the magic of P.L. Travers’s classic children’s novel Mary Poppins when crafting the memorable 1964 film. Children’s book illustrator Genevieve Godbout was given a similar challenge when she was asked to illustrate a picture book version of the classic tale.
Disney Legend and Academy Award®-winner Glen Keane is one of the most revered animators of Disney’s renaissance. But he didn’t get where he is today without a little help from the artists who came before him. When he was hired at Disney in 1974 as a fledgling animator, he was taken under the wings of Eric Larson, Frank Thomas, and Ollie Johnston, whose teachings helped him to become a master animator. Join Glen for a special talk about how several of the Nine Old Men influenced him in his quest to becoming an animator, lessons he gained from their mentorship, and examples of how their unique influences make appearances in his legendary work.