Disney’s Pinocchio with Andrew Chesworth - E026

Oscar nominated director Andrew Chesworth has such an interesting career. He worked at Disney animating on Frozen, Feast, Big Hero Six, Zootopia, Moana, Get a Horse! to name a few, before working with SPA Studios on Klaus and Ember, as well as directing two of my all time favourite animated shorts: One Small Step and The Brave Locomotive.

Sitting down with Andrew was a great privilege, especially when he told me he wanted to talk about Disney’s 1940 Pinocchio. Often overlooked in the oeuvre of early Disney animated features, Pinocchio is a true tour de force in pushing the medium forward. More expensive than the highly successful Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, you can see no corners were cut with Pinocchio. Approaching with the mentality of no limitations, Walt Disney and his team were firing on all cylinders, finding a strong moral story, complex characters with distinct personalities mixed with incredible technical innovations as well as standout artistry in animation.

These are a few of the things we talked about:

• The making of One Small Step and The Brave Locomotive
• The stylistic approach of each animator, including the criminally overlooked Art Babbitt and Bill Tytla.
• Irony at the base level of Pinocchio and the dangerous world that lurks in every corner

& so much more!

I’m really excited to hear your thoughts after listening to us ramble on!