BURBANK, United States—From princess costumes and cute character sketches to century-old toys, photos and documents, Disney’s backrooms and warehouses are stacked to the rafters with “hundreds of millions” of filmmaking treasures, its archivists say.

In celebration of the company’s upcoming centennial—officially marked on Oct. 16—Disney recently allowed a glimpse into its vaults, hosting a media visit to its film studio lot in Burbank, near Los Angeles.

“This is what we call the tip of the iceberg,” said Walt Disney Archives director Becky Cline, before presenting artifacts ranging from the studio’s founding legal document and the first Mickey Mouse cartoon script to costumes from the latest Marvel films.

Many more items are currently out touring the world, with “Disney100: The Exhibition” on display simultaneously in Munich and Philadelphia. More locations including London will be added soon.

Paris is currently hosting an immersive, multi-sensory experience, centered around the friendships between Disney’s iconic characters.

But a major portion of the studio’s archives is in “five or six” warehouses “scattered around” the Los Angeles area, including larger items such as former theme park ride vehicles and movie props, said archivist Nicole Carroll.

“We make so much stuff, we’re always looking for more space!” she said.

Founded in 1970, the 30-strong team of archivists aim to keep a “small representation” of everything, Carroll explained.

For example, if a recently wrapped movie has 250 lavish costumes, including four or five for each of the heroes, the archive team will select “a couple of iconic looks from each character” for posterity.

Even with this selective approach, every time a film wraps, “we could be adding hundreds of things” to the archive, said Carroll.

Among the studio’s most treasured memorabilia are the giant storybooks featured at the start of “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” and “Sleeping Beauty,” and a crystal slipper from the live action version of Cinderella.

Some items end up serving a practical purpose—an original snow globe from 1964’s “Mary Poppins” was pulled from the archive and replicated by filmmakers creating the 2018 sequel.

Factor in photo and document archives containing first-edition cartoons, tickets to Disneyland’s 1955 opening, plus corporate reports and press clippings, and the total collection extends to “hundreds of millions” of items, said Cline.

But perhaps the most hallowed space for Disney obsessives is located right on the Burbank lot—founder Walt Disney’s personal offices, from which he managed his entertainment empire from 1940 until his death in 1966.

A painstaking inventory of every item he left behind was taken, right down to the exact resting angle of his books, including volumes on Nikola Tesla, Salvador Dali and trains.

Just under a decade ago, those offices were restored by Walt Disney Archives employees.

They now contain everything from unfinished plans for theme parks to figurines of beloved fairy tale characters.

Just a few tour groups are admitted each year to this space, considered sacred by cognoscenti of a company renowned for the almost unparalleled obsession of its fandom.

“People come in and cry at this amazing human,”&nbsp;said tour guide Laura Sanchez.

“They get to walk in the past.”&nbsp;

<h1>Filmmaking treasures in ‘hundreds of millions’: Disney gives glimpse of vast archive for centennial celebrations </h1>BURBANK, United States—From princess costumes and cute character sketches to century-old toys, photos and documents, Disney’s backrooms and warehouses are stacked to the rafters with “hundreds of millions” of filmmaking treasures, its archivists say.In celebration of the company’s upcoming centennial—officially marked on Oct. 16—Disney recently allowed a glimpse into its vaults, hosting a media visit to its film studio lot in Burbank, near Los Angeles.“This is what we call the tip of the iceberg,” said Walt Disney Archives director Becky Cline, before presenting artifacts ranging from the studio’s founding legal document and the first Mickey Mouse cartoon script to costumes from the latest Marvel films.Many more items are currently out touring the world, with “Disney100: The Exhibition” on display simultaneously in Munich and Philadelphia. More locations including London will be added soon.Paris is currently hosting an immersive, multi-sensory experience, centered around the friendships between Disney’s iconic characters.But a major portion of the studio’s archives is in “five or six” warehouses “scattered around” the Los Angeles area, including larger items such as former theme park ride vehicles and movie props, said archivist Nicole Carroll.“We make so much stuff, we’re always looking for more space!” she said.Founded in 1970, the 30-strong team of archivists aim to keep a “small representation” of everything, Carroll explained.For example, if a recently wrapped movie has 250 lavish costumes, including four or five for each of the heroes, the archive team will select “a couple of iconic looks from each character” for posterity.Even with this selective approach, every time a film wraps, “we could be adding hundreds of things” to the archive, said Carroll.‘Cry’Among the studio’s most treasured memorabilia are the giant storybooks featured at the start of “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” and “Sleeping Beauty,” and a crystal slipper from the live action version of Cinderella.Some items end up serving a practical purpose—an original snow globe from 1964’s “Mary Poppins” was pulled from the archive and replicated by filmmakers creating the 2018 sequel.Factor in photo and document archives containing first-edition cartoons, tickets to Disneyland’s 1955 opening, plus corporate reports and press clippings, and the total collection extends to “hundreds of millions” of items, said Cline.But perhaps the most hallowed space for Disney obsessives is located right on the Burbank lot—founder Walt Disney’s personal offices, from which he managed his entertainment empire from 1940 until his death in 1966.A painstaking inventory of every item he left behind was taken, right down to the exact resting angle of his books, including volumes on Nikola Tesla, Salvador Dali and trains.Just under a decade ago, those offices were restored by Walt Disney Archives employees.They now contain everything from unfinished plans for theme parks to figurines of beloved fairy tale characters.And, of course, several Oscars.Just a few tour groups are admitted each year to this space, considered sacred by cognoscenti of a company renowned for the almost unparalleled obsession of its fandom.“People come in and cry at this amazing human,”&nbsp;said tour guide Laura Sanchez.“They get to walk in the past.”&nbsp;

Film / Drama

Filmmaking treasures in ‘hundreds of millions’: Disney gives glimpse of vast archive for centennial celebrations  

The live-action remake is the biggest film of 2023 in the Southeast Asian country: "They really loved Halle Bailey's performance as Ariel," says Disney's head of studios in APAC, John Hsu.

<a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/t/the-little-mermaid/">The Little Mermaid</a>&nbsp;may have bombed in some key movie markets in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/t/asia/">Asia</a>, but in the Philippines, it has been a splashy success.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/t/disney-2/">Disney</a>’s live-action remake of its 1989 animated classic is currently the biggest blockbuster of the year in the Southeast Asian country, having earned $5.8 million and surpassed Hollywood’s two biggest global hits of the year: Universal’s&nbsp;The Super Mario Bros. Movie&nbsp;($2.2 million) and&nbsp;Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3&nbsp;($4.7 million).

“The Philippines, obviously, is a standout market for us,” says John Hsu, Disney’s senior vp studio business in Asia Pacific. “It’s rare, but it’s the biggest territory for&nbsp;The Little Mermaid&nbsp;in Southeast Asia by far, our third highest-grossing market in Asia-Pacific behind Australia and Japan, and our 11th highest-grossing territory globally,” he says.

Elsewhere in Asia, the picture hasn’t been so bright. In the vastly larger markets of China and South Korea,&nbsp;The Little Mermaid&nbsp;has majorly&nbsp;<a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/box-office-the-little-mermaid-gets-doused-in-china-south-korea-after-racist-backlash-1235505682/">underperformed amid a racist backlash</a>&nbsp;on social media over the casting of Black actress&nbsp;Halle Bailey&nbsp;in the role of Ariel. The film has earned just $3.6 million in China and $5 million in South Korea —&nbsp;a fraction of what other Disney live-action remakes have grossed in those markets. The&nbsp;Jungle Book&nbsp;(2016) and&nbsp;The Lion King&nbsp;(2019) were outright blockbusters in China, earning $150 million and $120 million. In South Korea,&nbsp;Aladdin&nbsp;(2019) took $91 million and&nbsp;Beauty and the Beast&nbsp;(2017) brought in $37.5 million. Disney has declined to comment on&nbsp;The Little Mermaid’s performance in those countries.

In the Philippines, not only were such negative elements absent, but Bailey’s performance was widely embraced by Filipino filmgoers, according to Hsu. “They really loved Halle Bailey’s performance as Ariel, and they really liked her as the new princess,” he says.

“The Little Mermaid&nbsp;is a notable standout for the Philippines market this year,” says Rance Pow, president of Artisan Gateway, an exhibition industry consultancy specializing in Asia. Pow points out that the film is doing better than any other Hollywood fare this year, but it still won’t reach the heights of other Disney live-action remakes released in the Philippines pre-COVID —&nbsp;Aladdin&nbsp;earned $11 million there, and&nbsp;The Lion King&nbsp;took in $10.2 million.

“This might be because the Philippines is still re-ramping,” as the theatrical market continues to recover post-COVID, Pow says.

In the U.S.,&nbsp;The Little Mermaid&nbsp;has been doing good business despite protestations by some regarding Bailey’s casting. The movie has earned north of $257 million since its May 24 release. Box office analysts believe it could top out at $350 million domestically, close to&nbsp;Aladdin’s domestic haul of $355.6 million.

Japan is another major market where&nbsp;The Little Mermaid&nbsp;is showing some promise. It has earned $10.3 million there since its launch on June 9, and last weekend beat Sony’s&nbsp;Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse&nbsp;and Warner Bros.’&nbsp;The Flash.&nbsp;Word of mouth for&nbsp;The Little Mermaid&nbsp;is looking positive, but Japan is a famously slow-burn market, so it will take another few weeks to make clear how far the film can climb.

Hsu sees several contributors to&nbsp;The Little Mermaid’s outsize success in the Philippines: the country’s youthful demographics, strong nostalgia in the market for the original Disney animation, and an abiding love of music and singing that runs deep through Filipino culture. And he credits Disney’s Philippines-based marketing team for leaning into these factors to mount an especially effective campaign for the film.

“The did a comprehensive campaign across all media, but they really focused on social media, leaning into the music, nostalgia and Princess Ariel,” he says, noting that Bailey’s rendition of “Part of Your World,” the lead single from The Little Mermaid soundtrack, hit No. 1 on Spotify in the Philippines and has over 13 million plays there.

“Post-COVID, internet usage in the Philippines has increased significantly,” he adds. “So the team went very heavy on TikTok, recruiting influencers to promote the film by performing their own versions of Ariel’s songs. That really drove awareness and word of mouth for the film, which culminated in the strong opening.”

Some of the viral comedic posts created by Filipino TikTok influencers, using the branded&nbsp;Little Mermaid&nbsp;effect created by Disney, are below. Elsewhere in the Manila area, fan enthusiasm manifested in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/asias-movie-theaters-get-innovative-1235516178/">moviegoers dressing up</a>&nbsp;in mermaid and merman cosplay to attend special screenings of the film.&nbsp;

<h1>‘The Little Mermaid’ Becomes a Blockbuster in the Philippines Amid Racist Backlash Elsewhere in Asia</h1>The live-action remake is the biggest film of 2023 in the Southeast Asian country: "They really loved Halle Bailey's performance as Ariel," says Disney's head of studios in APAC, John Hsu.<a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/t/the-little-mermaid/">The Little Mermaid</a>&nbsp;may have bombed in some key movie markets in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/t/asia/">Asia</a>, but in the Philippines, it has been a splashy success.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/t/disney-2/">Disney</a>’s live-action remake of its 1989 animated classic is currently the biggest blockbuster of the year in the Southeast Asian country, having earned $5.8 million and surpassed Hollywood’s two biggest global hits of the year: Universal’s&nbsp;The Super Mario Bros. Movie&nbsp;($2.2 million) and&nbsp;Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3&nbsp;($4.7 million).“The Philippines, obviously, is a standout market for us,” says John Hsu, Disney’s senior vp studio business in Asia Pacific. “It’s rare, but it’s the biggest territory for&nbsp;The Little Mermaid&nbsp;in Southeast Asia by far, our third highest-grossing market in Asia-Pacific behind Australia and Japan, and our 11th highest-grossing territory globally,” he says.Elsewhere in Asia, the picture hasn’t been so bright. In the vastly larger markets of China and South Korea,&nbsp;The Little Mermaid&nbsp;has majorly&nbsp;<a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/box-office-the-little-mermaid-gets-doused-in-china-south-korea-after-racist-backlash-1235505682/">underperformed amid a racist backlash</a>&nbsp;on social media over the casting of Black actress&nbsp;Halle Bailey&nbsp;in the role of Ariel. The film has earned just $3.6 million in China and $5 million in South Korea —&nbsp;a fraction of what other Disney live-action remakes have grossed in those markets. The&nbsp;Jungle Book&nbsp;(2016) and&nbsp;The Lion King&nbsp;(2019) were outright blockbusters in China, earning $150 million and $120 million. In South Korea,&nbsp;Aladdin&nbsp;(2019) took $91 million and&nbsp;Beauty and the Beast&nbsp;(2017) brought in $37.5 million. Disney has declined to comment on&nbsp;The Little Mermaid’s performance in those countries.In the Philippines, not only were such negative elements absent, but Bailey’s performance was widely embraced by Filipino filmgoers, according to Hsu. “They really loved Halle Bailey’s performance as Ariel, and they really liked her as the new princess,” he says.“The Little Mermaid&nbsp;is a notable standout for the Philippines market this year,” says Rance Pow, president of Artisan Gateway, an exhibition industry consultancy specializing in Asia. Pow points out that the film is doing better than any other Hollywood fare this year, but it still won’t reach the heights of other Disney live-action remakes released in the Philippines pre-COVID —&nbsp;Aladdin&nbsp;earned $11 million there, and&nbsp;The Lion King&nbsp;took in $10.2 million.“This might be because the Philippines is still re-ramping,” as the theatrical market continues to recover post-COVID, Pow says.In the U.S.,&nbsp;The Little Mermaid&nbsp;has been doing good business despite protestations by some regarding Bailey’s casting. The movie has earned north of $257 million since its May 24 release. Box office analysts believe it could top out at $350 million domestically, close to&nbsp;Aladdin’s domestic haul of $355.6 million.Japan is another major market where&nbsp;The Little Mermaid&nbsp;is showing some promise. It has earned $10.3 million there since its launch on June 9, and last weekend beat Sony’s&nbsp;Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse&nbsp;and Warner Bros.’&nbsp;The Flash.&nbsp;Word of mouth for&nbsp;The Little Mermaid&nbsp;is looking positive, but Japan is a famously slow-burn market, so it will take another few weeks to make clear how far the film can climb.Hsu sees several contributors to&nbsp;The Little Mermaid’s outsize success in the Philippines: the country’s youthful demographics, strong nostalgia in the market for the original Disney animation, and an abiding love of music and singing that runs deep through Filipino culture. And he credits Disney’s Philippines-based marketing team for leaning into these factors to mount an especially effective campaign for the film.“The did a comprehensive campaign across all media, but they really focused on social media, leaning into the music, nostalgia and Princess Ariel,” he says, noting that Bailey’s rendition of “Part of Your World,” the lead single from The Little Mermaid soundtrack, hit No. 1 on Spotify in the Philippines and has over 13 million plays there.“Post-COVID, internet usage in the Philippines has increased significantly,” he adds. “So the team went very heavy on TikTok, recruiting influencers to promote the film by performing their own versions of Ariel’s songs. That really drove awareness and word of mouth for the film, which culminated in the strong opening.”Some of the viral comedic posts created by Filipino TikTok influencers, using the branded&nbsp;Little Mermaid&nbsp;effect created by Disney, are below. Elsewhere in the Manila area, fan enthusiasm manifested in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/asias-movie-theaters-get-innovative-1235516178/">moviegoers dressing up</a>&nbsp;in mermaid and merman cosplay to attend special screenings of the film.&nbsp;

Disney Philippines