Walt & El Grupo

Theatrical Release Date: 2009 09 11 (USA - Limited)

UPC: 786936806830

Studio: Walt Disney

MPAA Rating: PG   Contains:null

Summary: Theodore Thomas, son of the late Walt Disney Studios animator Frank Thomas (1912-2004) and director of the acclaimed 1995 documentary Frank and Ollie, helms this second foray into Disney history, Walt & El Grupo (2007). The subject this time lies somewhat outside the boundaries of Disney animation and rests on an unusual footnote: in 1941, Walt Disney personally led a "goodwill tour" and research expedition of South America, with a team of animators in tow whom he collectively christened "El Grupo." The voyage transcended passing personal interest on the part of the animators; its residual effects can be seen in several Latin-themed Disney projects -- notably, Saludos Amigos (1942) and The Three Caballeros (1945), both of which won Oscars, and other efforts designed to support the Good Neighbor Policy of the United States. With Walt & El Grupo, Theodore Thomas and his wife, Kuniko Okubo, combine rare, unseen 16 mm home movie footage of the original trip (held in the Disney vaults for years) with footage from their own trip through South America that retraces the Disney animators' original journey -- contrasting 1941 footage with glimpses of the same locales, shot 60 years later. On the soundtrack, Thomas and Okubo overlay reminiscences by the original travelers, taken from journals and letters and read by family members. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi

Category: History [nf]

Awards: Film Presented – San Francisco International Film Festival Film Presented – Seattle International Film Festival Film Presented – Palm Springs International Film Festival

Features: Audio Commentary With Director Theodore Thomas And Historian J.B. Kaufman

Photos In Motion
From The Director's Cut
Home Movies For The Big Screen
My Father's Generation
Artists And Politicians

Saludos Amigos: Original 1943 Release
Original Theatrical Trailers
Saludos Amigos
The Three Caballeros

Walt & El Grupo

Format: DVD

Release Date: 11/30/2010

Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1 Alternate Wide Screen

Audio: DD5.1 Dolby Digital 5.1

Runtime: 107 Minutes

Sides: 1

Number of Discs: 1

Language(s) English,Spanish

Subtitles: English,Spanish

Region: USA & territories, Canada

Chapters: Disc #1 -- Walt & El Grupo
1. An Introduction [:00]
2. Once Upon A Time [:00]
3. First Stop: Brazil [:00]
4. Artists And Politicians [:02]
6. Dances Of Argentina [:00]
5. The Artist's Role [:00]
7. Sojourn In Uruguay [7:52]
8. The Cartoonist [5:27]
9. A Gaucho Welcome [6:01]
10. Unique Characters [9:26]
11. 5 Days In Chile [8:33]
12. Coming Home [13:00]
13. Afterword [5:30]
14. End Credits [6:51]

Cast and Crew: James Wesley Stemple  Composer (Music Score) 
Kuniko Okubo  Producer 
Theodore Thomas  Director 
Theodore Thomas  Screenwriter 
Walter E.D. Miller  Executive Producer 
Juan Carlos González  Actor 
Marcelo Niño  Actor 
Mariúza Barroso Salomão  Actor 
Virgilio Roig  Actor 
John Canemaker  Actor 
Blaine Gibson  Actor 
Diane Disney Miller  Actor 
Harriet Wolcott  Actor 
J.B. Kaufman  Actor 
Jeanette Thomas  Actor 
Cindy Garcia  Actor 
Lydia Reed  Actor 
Leticia Pinheiro  Actor 
Sheila Banani  Actor 
Ankito  Actor 
Harriet Burns  Actor 
Maria Elisa Botelho Byington  Actor 
Marsha Gilpatrick  Actor 
Maria Cecilia Braga de Araujo Goes  Actor 
Flávio Barroso  Actor 
Brian Lansburgh  Actor 
Janet Lansburgh  Actor 
Juan Carlos Portas  Actor 
Mali Legarreta  Actor 
Josefina Molina Chazarreta  Actor 
Andrés A. Chazarreta Ruiz  Actor 
Miguel "Tachuela" Gramajo  Actor 
Hugo Rocha  Actor 
Guillermo Guerrero  Actor 
Jorge "Faruk" Palacio  Actor 
Cecilia Palacio  Actor 
Elizabeth O'Farrell de Apellaniz  Actor 
Miguel B. O'Farrell  Actor 
Kevin Blair  Actor 
Jorge Delano  Actor 

Country: USA