Animation Cel of Dopey Playing the Drums

Is that a Dopey cel from Walt Disney’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs or is that Keith Moon? We’ll find out when we see whether or not he blows up his drum set. This is a great Courvoisier cel and background from the Silly Song sequence where all of the dwarfs play their instruments. The background is formed by airbrushing on a wood grain and a paper overlay.

This Dopey cel playing the drums is from the Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs dancing scene

The dancing scene is one of the most delightful in the film.

Dopey cel

A slow discovery of fun that breaks into a celebration. Trying new things as they get to know the mysterious Princess. That moment bonds the characters together. It’s what I experience in my backyard when we let all of our insecurities and pretensions go and just enjoy good company. Our status and achievements are not qualifications to dance, celebrate and have a great time.

Film Title:

Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs

Image Title:

Animation Cel of Dopey Playing the Drums
Year: 1937
Studio: Disney Studios
Width of Image = 6.75 inches
Height of Image = 4.00 inches
Width of Art = 8.00 inches
Height of Art = 8.00 inches
Background: Courvoisier Background
Price $5000
Though designing the dwarfs was relatively easy, animating them proved to be difficult, as the animators, already finding human figures difficult to animate, now had to animate “ill-formed” human figures. Despite being conceived late in production, Dopey proved to be the most endearing of the dwarfs. Dopey’s appeal proved the success of silent characters in feature films and prompted the studio to make Gideon from Pinocchio silent. The songs in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs were composed by Frank Churchill and Larry Morey. Paul J. Smith and Leigh Harline composed the incidental music score. Well-known songs from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs include “Heigh-Ho”, “Someday My Prince Will Come”, and “Whistle While You Work”. Since Disney did not have its own music publishing company at the time, the publishing rights for the music and songs were administered through Bourne Co. Music Publishers, which continues to hold these rights. In later years, the studio was able to acquire back the rights to the music from many of the other films, but not Snow White. Snow White became the first American film to have a soundtrack album, released in conjunction with the feature film. Before Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, a film soundtrack recording was unheard of and of little value to a movie studio. In the very early stages of pre-production for Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Dopey was simply called “The Seventh”. An armature of each dwarf was constructed as a reference for the animators. Perce Pierce, one of the storymen working on Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, was particularly active in creating the characters of the dwarfs. Dopey’s personality and role were finalized quite late in the process. After someone suggested that Dopey should move like burlesque comedian Eddie Collins, who himself was filmed performing actions for Dopey. At one point, Dopey was even considered for the title role in “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice” in Fantasia before Mickey Mouse was chosen. However, many of Dopey’s traits remain, including the long, floppy sleeves and playful attitude.
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