Women and men in ball gowns and blazers, with their young appendages, stand in front of the glass slipper from Cinderella, Keira Knightley’s costume from Pirates of the Caribbean, and the first drawings of Alice in Wonderland from 1951.” Look Mom, isn’t that from Mary Poppins?” a little girl calls out, pointing excitedly at a carousel horse. In fact, the little horse, which looks a little worn, is a film prop from 1964. “Wasn’t that your favorite film?” Asks the mother. “It still is,” replies the little one, beaming.
To the melodious sounds of Disney films, on dark carpets, with digital effects and a pinch of nostalgia, visitors are led through the 1500 square meter small Olympic Hall to the opening ceremony of the “100 Years of Disney Exhibition”. At the premiere this Monday, Bavaria’s Prime Minister and “Jungle Book” lover Markus Söder, moderator Steven Gätjen and influencer Riccardo Simonetti were present.
Historical films provide a look behind the scenes.
(Photo: Florian Peljak)
Dirk Galuba is one of the first to pose in the exhibition with a “Stormtrooper” from “Star Wars”. The 83-year-old is one of the veterans of the series “Storm of Love” and voice actor. The exhibition is very well done and entertaining, he says. He had the nickname “Goofy” himself back then. The character is “a bit weird” – maybe that’s why they called him that, he thinks and smiles. He was surprised that Disney used models in addition to drawings. In fact, small Disney characters can be seen that were originally used for the film production. A 20-centimetre-tall Pocahontas with blowing hair stands protected behind a glass barrier.
Screens hang on the walls next to the film props in glass cases. Former employees explain in historical recordings how film production worked in their day. At that time, for example, the sound effect was produced by several men with unusual instruments such as a lotus flute. The man on the display says that their instruments have repeatedly caused problems at border controls.
Two middle-aged men are standing on another wall with the inscription “colors make the man” and seem visibly overwhelmed. Based on a few color combinations on wooden blocks, they are supposed to guess Disney characters – at least they find Robin Hood with the colors green, brown and yellow. The colors of the film characters should be remembered by the viewers and have a recognition value. In the case of the two gentlemen, this probably failed.
“I like it very much,” says Emma Riedel. She came here with her father and sister. It’s like being in Disney World, says the eleven-year-old. She has already found her favorite film characters “Vaiana” and “Micky Mouse”.
The exhibition is open until September 3rd.