Now first of all, There’s an insightful article at Yahoo today on the new Magic Kingdom, which I highly recommend you read. Also there’s an insider’s take.
Secondly, I spent some time the other day gathering some of the impressions people had on Slashdot on the whole Pixar/Disney ordeal. Personally, I went from not knowing what to think to thinking this is one of the better things that could happen.
“Does this mean that Mickey Mouse will now only have 1 button?”
PurpleButter
And now, down to business.
Pros
“Disney’s new CEO, Robert Iger, has impressed Steve Jobs enough to make this deal possible. Jobs is the type of person who wants to make [insanely] great things, and he wouldn’t send one of his greatest creations into the maws of mediocrity. If you recall, it was recent that Jobs was ready to leave Disney in a very public row between Jobs and Eisner.” – node 3
“It would also be interesting to see if he can convince them to release movies in iTunes music store AT THE SAME time as the theatrical release. I’m not saying it’s very likely, but it would be nice (as long as they up the resolution of the videos they sell on iTunes…)”
mikeisme77
“IP and equipment didn’t make Pixar great. The people made Pixar great. If Disney fucks it up, everyone just ups, leaves, and forms a new company leaving Disney with nothing but a name. Disney shelled out a few billion for the SHOT at using Pixar to do something good. If they blow it, the real ‘assets’ of Pixar can simply leave and go make another few million each.”
Shihar
“…another Gates desire bites the digital dust. Apple owns the living room, Bill – you own the, umm…oh, DOS, that’s right – get used to it. “
djupedal
“John Lasseter is now Disney’s Chief Creative Officer, working with the animators at Disney and Pixar as well as leading the Imagineers in designing and revamping attractions for the theme parks. Also, the current President of Pixar, Ed Catmull, is now the head of all Disney Animation.
All the news reports I’ve seen have said that Iger and Jobs main concern was keeping Pixar as intact and independent as possible. Lasseter is under contract until 2011, and is well respected in the animation field for his passion for storytelling and perfection. When asked about whether traditional 2D animation would be restored, John didn’t rule it out.”
WebGangsta
“Exactly my thoughts. Basically, Disney Animation is gone. It has been replaced in whole by Pixar, which isn’t altogether a terrible thing. I mean, Disney couldn’t milk the Lion King forever, and they had no new ideas.
I don’t think Jobs would have agreed to this if he wasn’t sure the talent were also coming along. He did the same with Apple – he brought Avie and gave Ive the carte blanche he required. If Jobs cares about Pixar, and my understanding is, he does, then there’s little to worry about. Lasseter is the creative force behind Pixar, and not only will he be in charge of Disney’s animation vision, but they’re putting him in charge of theme parks, consumer goods and even their broadway stuff. That’s a massive shift in power, and it’s long overdue.”
csoto
Cons
“The fact that they are hypocrtical. First, they used stories from the public domain to build their empire. Then they use their money and power to bribe congress to extend copyright from the original 14 years to be basically infinite. Thus, no material can ever enter the public domain again.” – soft_guy
“I mean we’re going to have one guy (Jobs) essentially controlling two companies that will between them produce the content, the distribution network, the playback codec and the playback device.” – tpgp
Questions:
I wonder if this means we’ll see that remake of (Disney’s) TRON that John Lasseter wanted to make?
boxlight
“Does this mean [Roy Disney is] coming back? He’s spent some time hanging out at the Pixar studio, and like Jobs, wanted Eisner out. They both got their wish.”
theurge14
Con2: Just like Sony – boo hoo (who might up ‘owning’ the livingroom with the ps3 of course).
I think it’s better to see how this plays out. As long as they continue to make great films, we (consumers) are in the clear.
I think without Disney’s marketing power Pixar would not be able to show their great movies to so many people. Creativity meets Economy – this is a fair deal in our times, where almost just the money seems to rule and not the heart behind companys like Pixar. In this case now both things have a good position: Pixar makes the movies people want to see – and Disney makes it possible. I hope for them [Disney] that they do not make a mistake in terms of resticting Pixar’s creativity in any ways.
(I think no one can deny Disney’s marketing power. Even if many informed people hate Disney nowadays, there is still the mass market, which always gets reminded of Bambi, Mickey and Donald, when they hear “Disney” – and not of Eisner or any other idiot)
I guess one thing that my fiance and I are gawking at is the fact that now we won’t be able to see Pixar teamed up with different movie studios. So there’ll be no Steven Speilberg – Pixar films, or no chance to see a Marvel character in a Pixar film.. hell, even a dark film by Pixar? Nope. It’s opening so many doors for the future, but closing twice as many behind them.
It’ll be interesting to see wht happens… but I’m going to stay neutral until I see something.