Heigh-ho! A 4K restoration of the original 1937 animation classic “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” is set to land on Disney+ later this month.
The 4K version of the film will be available on Disney+ worldwide on Oct. 16, timed for the 100th anniversary of the Walt Disney Co. Disney previously announced a 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray edition of “Snow White” would be available onstarting Oct. 10.
Disney shared before-and-after images comparing the original print to the 4K restoration of the film:
According to the company, the restored version “is the result of the combined efforts of the Walt Disney Studios Restoration and Preservation team, working closely with key artists from Walt Disney Animation Studios.” The team, which also recently worked together on the restoration of 1950’s “Cinderella,” including Disney Animation artists Michael Giaimo (production designer for the upcoming animated musical adventure “Wish,” as well as “Frozen” and “Frozen 2”) and animator/director Eric Goldberg (head of hand-drawn animation for Disney Animation’s newest short, “once Upon A Studio,” director, “Pocahontas,” “Fantasia/2000”).
“The opportunity to help restore Snow White was both an honor and a challenge,” Goldberg said in a statement. “As the very first Walt Disney feature, Mike Giaimo and I felt we owed a debt to history to get it looking as beautiful, and as accurate to the original colors, as we could. The muted palette and the delicate watercolor backgrounds evoke the illustrated fairy tales that Walt so loved, and the story and characters continue to resonate to this day. I hope our work inspires future generations of animation artists to fully appreciate the masterful talent and care that has gone into this landmark film.”
Kevin Schaeffer, director of Restoration for Walt Disney Studios, commented, “We are incredibly excited to go back to Walt’s original negative and use current state of the art technology to restore this stunning classic to its original beauty.”
“Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” is an historic achievement: It’s the first full-length cel animated feature in the history of motion pictures. The film was recognized by the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences with a special honorary Oscar (one large Oscar accompanied by seven smaller ones), presented to Walt Disney by Shirley Temple. The film is the highest-ranked animated feature on the American Film Institute’s “100 Years…100 Movies” list, and was inducted into the National Film Registry in 1989, the registry’s inaugural year.
