By Lindsay Varien
As mentioned in the previous entry, The Lion King is a beloved animated film from Walt Disney Animation Studios. But how does a film such as this get from the big screen into our homes? In the case of The Lion King, Disney does all the work because the company is vertically integrated, which means that they control more than one step of the production chain. Below, we break down the process.
Production
The Lion King was directed by Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff, produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation, and written by Irene Mecchi, Jonathan Roberts and Linda Woolverton. The main voice actors in the film are Matthew Broderick, Jeremy Irons, James Earl Jones, Jonathan Taylor Thomas, and Moira Kelly. Early production of the film began in 1988 and ended with the film’s release in 1994. The film’s budget was $45 million, and animation was done by Walt Disney Animation Studios, with more than 600 people contributing.
Some have thought that the inspiration for The Lion King was based around William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, thinking that the two line up suspiciously closely. However, this is not all that people have noticed. Post-release, some other controversies and questions have come up about the production of the film, while none have yet been proven. One controversy that has come up is that of The Lion King compared with the 1960s anime television series from Japan called Kimba the White Lion. The controversy over whether Disney stole the idea of The Lion King from the show has gained so much attention over the years that it has even been featured in a recent Los Angeles Times article and even in an episode of The Simpsons.
The original music for The Lion King was done by lyricist Tim Rice and the infamous Elton John, writing unforgettable songs such as “Hakuna Matata” and “Circle of Life”, among others. The film’s original music score was done by the award-winning Hans Zimmer, who may be better known today for his later work on The Dark Knight (2009) and Inception (2011), and his earlier work on Rain Man (1989).
Distribution
The full film of The Lion King is distributed by Walt Disney Pictures, formerly Buena Vista Pictures. DVDs can be purchased at many retail stores throughout the country and the world. The film can also be purchased on iTunes in both regular and HD quality.
Synergy
The Lion King has become quite the extensive and wide-ranging commodity over the years. The commodity was first produced as the extremely successful American animated film, which was released in theaters in 1994. In 1995, the film was released on VHS and laserdisc in the United States, and deluxe editions were also released. The VHS format sold 4.5 million tapes on the first day alone. After being put into moratorium in 1997, The Lion King was re-released on VHS and released for the first time on DVD in 2003, this time under the title The Lion King: Platinum Edition.
Due to the success of the original Lion King film, Disney followed with two direct-to-video films called The Lion King II: Simba’s Pride (1998) and The Lion King 1½ (2004). It also led to a spin-off television series called Timon and Pumbaa which ran from 1995 to 1999. None of these, however, showed as much popularity as the original film. The Lion King was just recently re-released in theaters in 3D and has, once again, been a huge hit.
In addition, The Lion King was turned into a Broadway show, which opened in 1997, and has since won six Tony Awards including the award for Best Musical. Today, the show is Broadway’s seventh longest-running show in history. The Broadway show has spurred many more Lion King-based commodities. Everything from toys to clothes and christmas ornaments can be found in the Disney Store on the show’s website.
And of course, let’s not forget about “the happiest place on Earth”. Disneyland is a Disney theme park that opened in 1955, and currently has the largest cumulative attendance of any other theme park in the entire world.
Consumption
The Lion King was given a rating of “G” by the Motion Picture Association of America, which means it is a film that is appropriate for General Audiences and all ages may be admitted. The film has been immensely popular among children, as well as people of all other ages.
The Los Angeles Times – Anime instinct
The Lion King – Homage or Stealing?
The Lion King on Broadway – Store
List of longest-running Broadway shows
The Tony Awards – Past Winners
YouTube – Simpson’s Kimba/Simba reference
The Lion King II: Simba’s Pride
Timon and Pumbaa – television series
MPAA – Motion Picture Association of America
Lion King in 3D – Box Office Mojo
The Lion King 
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