Flowers and Trees
Encyclopedia
Flowers and Trees is a 1932 Silly Symphonies
cartoon produced by Walt Disney
, directed by Burt Gillett, and released to theatres by United Artists
on July 30, 1932. It was the first commercially released film to be produced in the full-color three-strip Technicolor
process, after several years of two-color Technicolor films.
Flowers and Trees was already in production as a black and white cartoon before Walt Disney saw Herbert Kalmus
' three-strip Technicolor
tests. Deciding that Flowers and Trees would make a perfect test for the process, he had the black and white footage scrapped, and had the short redone in color. The color Flowers and Trees was a commercial and critical success, winning the first Academy Award for Animated Short Subjects
.
As a result of the success of Flowers and Trees, all future Silly Symphonies cartoons were produced in three-strip Technicolor, and the added novelty of color helped to boost the series' previously disappointing returns. Disney's other cartoon series, the Mickey Mouse
shorts, were deemed successful enough not to need the extra boost of color, and therefore remained in black-and-white until 1935's The Band Concert
.
Disney's exclusive contract with Technicolor, in effect until the end of 1935, forced other animators such as Ub Iwerks
and Max Fleischer
to use Technicolor's inferior two-color process or a competing two-color system such as Cinecolor
.
Silly Symphonies
Silly Symphonies is a series of animated short subjects, 75 in total, produced by Walt Disney Productions from 1929 to 1939, while the studio was still located at Hyperion Avenue in the Silver Lake district of Los Angeles...
cartoon produced by Walt Disney
Walt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
, directed by Burt Gillett, and released to theatres by United Artists
United Artists
United Artists Corporation is an American film studio. The original studio of that name was founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charles Chaplin, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks....
on July 30, 1932. It was the first commercially released film to be produced in the full-color three-strip Technicolor
Technicolor
Technicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
process, after several years of two-color Technicolor films.
Flowers and Trees was already in production as a black and white cartoon before Walt Disney saw Herbert Kalmus
Herbert Kalmus
Herbert Thomas Kalmus was an American scientist and engineer who played a key role in developing color motion picture film...
' three-strip Technicolor
Technicolor
Technicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
tests. Deciding that Flowers and Trees would make a perfect test for the process, he had the black and white footage scrapped, and had the short redone in color. The color Flowers and Trees was a commercial and critical success, winning the first Academy Award for Animated Short Subjects
Academy Award for Animated Short Film
The Academy Award for Animated Short Film is an award which has been given by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as part of the Academy Awards every year since the 5th Academy Awards, covering the year 1931-32, to the present....
.
As a result of the success of Flowers and Trees, all future Silly Symphonies cartoons were produced in three-strip Technicolor, and the added novelty of color helped to boost the series' previously disappointing returns. Disney's other cartoon series, the Mickey Mouse
Mickey Mouse
Mickey Mouse is a cartoon character created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks at The Walt Disney Studio. Mickey is an anthropomorphic black mouse and typically wears red shorts, large yellow shoes, and white gloves...
shorts, were deemed successful enough not to need the extra boost of color, and therefore remained in black-and-white until 1935's The Band Concert
The Band Concert
The Band Concert is an animated short film produced in Technicolor by Walt Disney Productions and released to theaters on February 23, 1935 by United Artists. The film was the first Mickey Mouse film produced in color and remains one of the most highly acclaimed of the Disney shorts...
.
Disney's exclusive contract with Technicolor, in effect until the end of 1935, forced other animators such as Ub Iwerks
Ub Iwerks
Ub Iwerks, A.S.C. was a two-time Academy Award winning American animator, cartoonist, character designer, inventor, creator of Mickey Mouse, and special effects technician, who was famous for his work for Walt Disney....
and Max Fleischer
Max Fleischer
Max Fleischer was an American animator. He was a pioneer in the development of the animated cartoon and served as the head of Fleischer Studios...
to use Technicolor's inferior two-color process or a competing two-color system such as Cinecolor
Cinecolor
Cinecolor was an early subtractive color-model two color film process, based upon the Prizma system of the 1910s and 1920s and the Multicolor system of the late 1920s and 1930s. It was developed by William T. Crispinel and Alan M...
.