Working for Disney has long been a secret wish of mine, although I must confess that blogging wasn’t actually on the list of things I could do there! My real big dream job has probably now been replaced by technological advancements, which means that the animated movies are now in the hands of graphics geeks rather than old fashioned artists, so there’s probably not much call for someone to do the cell coloring anymore.
A number of years back, to my great joy, I visited Disney’s MGM Studios on a day they were offering small classes in drawing Disney characters and excitedly I stood in line, then took my place at the table and learned how to draw Pumba from the Lion King. Now as much as I have fantasized about coloring Disney cells and being paid to do it, drawing is so far outside of my skill set that it was laughable to believe that I could create anything that resembled a piece of jungle vegetation never mind a recognizable character, however, I had forgotten one small thing. This was Disney, and within Disney there’s a magic where dreams come true – and today, years later, I still have the passable sketch of Pumba that I created under the guidance of a Disney artist.
So now I know my coloring dream job will never materialize, I’ve found another outlet for my Disney habit – blogging here at families.com! I hope that by my skill with words (which far outweighs my lack of skill with images) I can share my love of “the” Mouse, and his creator’s dreams and products to others.
Now in my early 40s I’m a little too old to be considered a “Mouseketeer” but with the same technological achievements that have taken away my dream of being a paid colorist at the Disney studios, I can use my pen to discuss the Disney magic so all is not completely lost – there’s still a happy ending …… and that’s pure Disney!
The Therapeutic Power of Coloring Books