Don Hahn

An engaging and thought-provoking look into our creative selves. I was expecting more of a "how to", but I still enjoyed this, though it did take me a few chapters to really get into it. Once I got there, however, I was hooked, and really looked forward to reading a new chapter or section each day. As I got to the end, I wanted to go back and re-read the entire thing again (and will likely do just that at some point).

Don Hahn is the producer of The Lion King and Beauty and the Beast, and has show more written other books about animation (The Alchemy of Animation is a great book for those interested), and offers lots of insights into the creative process, and our creative faculties.

One thing I would have liked is a bibliography. It's clear the author did a lot of research in writing this, and a list of his sources would be nice as a pointer to other sources. I noticed this mostly because I recognized some of the anecdotes and examples he used, including a few that I think came from the writings and speeches of Sir Ken Robinson (an expert on creativity). The lack of bibliography, however, is a minor point to be sure, and the book stands on its own quite well.

I recommend this to anyone interested in the creative process, or who considers themselves to be "creative" (hint: that means *everyone*). show less

The treasure of the book is its copious visuals, especially the drawings, sketches, designs, plans, and layouts documenting the creation of the various rides and attractions at Disneyland. In particular, this includes a variety of concepts that were either abandoned (Edison Square), retooled (Liberty Street), or only existed for a brief period before being replaced (Mickey Mouse Circus), so visual documentation of these is crucial. The text, as is typical of Disney non-fiction, is show more straightforward and informative but with a thin gloss of myth-building, although a few true points of interpersonal conflict are mentioned that surprised me a little. (The legend of Walt-the-prophet, though, is very much intact.) The thing that's really missing, though, is a complete set of photographs of the finished rides and attractions as they originally appeared at their opening. I suppose the book is intended for people who are already very familiar with them, but as someone who has heard of more of these rides than I've seen, I would've liked to have seen the finished results in every case. show less

With astonishing craft and style, Waking Sleeping Beauty delivers a ripping yarn, peeling back the curtains of the Disney animation studio during a tumultuous 10-year period that took it from the lows of The Black Cauldron to the mighty highs of The Lion King. Constructed by veteran director Don Hahn, this lively film feeds fans a steady stream of tasty morsels, as the machinations inside the mouse house come to light. See a timid teenage Tim Burton hunched over his animation desk! Thrill to show more John Lassiter's (Toy Story, Up) handheld home movies! Revel in the battles between Michael Eisner and Jeffrey Katzenberg! Rarely do we get a chance to see this collision of commerce and art, of giant personalities and grand ideas. Taking the creativity that lifted Disney out of its rut, Waking Sleeping Beauty harnesses it to tell the stories behind that effort. (DW) Ragtag screening presented by Walt Disney's hometown Marceline, MO.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1159961/ show less

This book would always face the tension between being a scholarly look at Disney's mid-century style and a coffee table book to present artwork in an accessible style. sine it leaned more toward the latter, I wish there had been more actual art.n