Cinderella (1950)

Animation Family Fantasy Musical Romance

United States

English

March 4, 1950

1hr 16min

Status: released

Trailer, Teaser & Videos

Movie Details:

Based on	“Cinderella” by Charles Perrault
Country	United States
Language	English
Genres	Animation, Family, Fantasy, Musical, Romance
Release date	February 15, 1950 (Boston) March 4, 1950 (United States)
Running time	1hr 16min
Age rating	PG
Starring	Ilene Woods Eleanor Audley Verna Felton Rhoda Williams James MacDonald Luis van Rooten
Directed by	Wilfred Jackson Hamilton Luske Clyde Geronimi
Story by	William Peet Ted Sears Homer Brightman Kenneth Anderson Erdman Penner Winston Hibler Harry Reeves Joe Rinaldi
Produced by	Walt Disney Ben Sharpsteen
Edited by	Donald Halliday
Music by	Oliver Wallace Paul Smith
Production Company	Walt Disney Productions
Distributor	RKO Radio Pictures

Voice Cast & Characters:

Ilene Woods as Cinderella
Eleanor Audley as Lady Tremaine
Verna Felton as the Fairy Godmother
Rhoda Williams as Drizella
James MacDonald as Jaq, Gus, and Bruno
Luis Van Rooten as the King and Grand Duke
Don Barclay as the Doorman
Lucille Bliss as Anastasia
William Phipps as Prince Charming (voice), with Mike Douglas providing the singing voice
Marion Darlington as the Birds
June Foray as Lucifer, Lady Tremaine’s cat

Storyline:

When Cinderella’s cruel stepmother prevents her from attending the Royal Ball, she gets some unexpected help from the lovable mice Gus and Jaq and her Fairy Godmother.

About Movie:

Cinderella is an American animated musical fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by RKO Radio Pictures. It is based on Charles Perrault’s 1697 fairy tale “Cinderella” and features direction by Wilfred Jackson, Hamilton Luske, and Clyde Geronimi. The film features the voices of Ilene Woods as Cinderella, Eleanor Audley as Lady Tremaine, Verna Felton as the Fairy Godmother, and others.

Background

During the early 1940s, Walt Disney Productions faced financial difficulties due to the loss of connections to European markets during World War II, leading to commercial failures with films like Pinocchio, Fantasia, and Bambi. By 1947, the studio was over $4 million in debt and on the verge of bankruptcy. In response, Disney returned to feature film production in 1948 after a series of package films, deciding to adapt Perrault’s Cendrillon into an animated format.

Release and Reception

Cinderella was released in theaters on February 15, 1950, and received critical acclaim. It became a box office success, marking Disney’s biggest hit since Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) and significantly improving the studio’s financial situation. The film garnered three Academy Award nominations: Best Scoring of a Musical Picture, Best Sound Recording, and Best Original Song for “Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo.”

Legacy

The success of Cinderella led to two direct-to-video sequels: Cinderella II: Dreams Come True (2002) and Cinderella III: A Twist in Time (2007). Additionally, a live-action remake directed by Kenneth Branagh was released in 2015. In 2018, Cinderella was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress for being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”