The Walt Disney Signature Collection

[Hardbackyoyo]

Do 4K Blu-Rays even have room for seamless branching?

[teej]

I have a question that I’m not sure where else to ask. I still buy the newer releases from this collection because I love the Steelbooks at Best Buy, but I have all of the titles from the Diamond Collection in my Movies Anywhere app. If I redeem a code for my Movies Anywhere app from the Signature Collection, what happens to my digital copy from Diamond Collection in Movies Anywhere? To my understanding, the bonus features are different(?) or contain new features on the newer releases, so does it just replace what I had with the new Signature edition?

Thanks for any help!

Here's a breakdown of the Signature Collection titles and any differences between their original Disney Movies Anywhere digital versions:

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs: (February 2016 / Movies Anywhere October 2017)
When Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs went from Diamond Edition to Signature Collection, it retained a majority of its bonus features on both Blu-Ray and Disney Movies Anywhere. "The One That Started It All," which had been 17 minutes on the 2009 disc, was expanded to 33 minutes by the inclusion of several of the "Hyperion Studios" featurettes. Likewise, the exploratory nature of the "Hyperion Studios" feature was instead streamlined into a more watchable 30-minute documentary. Featurettes that didn't make it into the documentary were available on their own, but "Where It All Began" curiously was not on the disc nor on Disney Movies Anywhere. It wasn't until Disney Movies Anywhere migrated to Movies Anywhere that it was available, along with all the supplements from the 2016 disc. The Oswald short, "Hungry Hoboes," had been a digital exclusive on both Disney Movies Anywhere and Movies Anywhere.

In addition, the following featurettes and cartoons from 2009 hadn't made it onto the 2016 Blu-Ray disc or any digital platform:

The Idea Man (1:41)
In Walt's Words: Cleaning the Cottage (7:03)
Setting the Stage (4:04)
Giving Voice to Snow White (2:46)

Silly Symphonies: "Babes in the Wood" (8:04)
Silly Symphonies: "The Skeleton Dance" (6:02)
Silly Symphonies: "Music Land" (10:15)
Silly Symphonies: "Goddess of Spring" (10:04)
Pluto: "Playful Pluto" (8:09)
Silly Symphonies: "Flowers and Trees" (8:31)
Silly Symphonies: "The Old Mill" (9:06)
Mickey Mouse: "Steamboat Willie" (8:02)


Beauty and the Beast: (September 2016 / Movies Anywhere October 2017)
This is the more frustrating entry to write about. The Disney Movies Anywhere version of Beauty and the Beast included all three versions of the film, albeit the Work in Progress still only as Picture-in-Picture. I'm not particularly a fan of the IMAX Special Edition, but would have preferred having that option available to me. When Beauty and the Beast migrated from Disney Movies Anywhere to Movies Anywhere, the Work in Progress and IMAX Special Edition were dropped. In addition, all the supplements are in a mish-mash order that makes no sense. Finally, to add insult to injury, Movies Anywhere includes Don Hahn's introduction for the "Transformation: Pencil Animation Version," but the actual featurette is nowhere to be found. For some small consolation, it is available on Vudu and iTunes versions (I haven't checked Amazon Video yet, and Google Play doesn't include supplements).

In terms of digital-exclusive material, when Beauty and the Beast first hit digital platforms in 2010, the featurette The Beauty of Voice Acting was an iTunes exclusive. It eventually was included among the digital supplements on Disney Movies Anywhere in 2016, along with another new digital supplement: Searching for Beast's Castle. Both featurettes made the jump to Movies Anywhere and other digital services, so are no longer platform-exclusive.

The Laugh-O-Gram cartoons and other brief animated clips from the 2010 Diamond Edition weren't included on the 2016 Disney Movies Anywhere or 2017 Movies Anywhere digital platforms.


Pinocchio: (January 2017 / Movies Anywhere October 2017)
Supplements are identical on the January 2017 disc, Disney Movies Anywhere platform, and its migration to Movies Anywhere. Ironically, the 2017 release includes a brief 2000 featurette (made for R2 Special Edition DVDs) and a very old storyboard-to-film comparison from the 1992 laserdisc (!), but does not include the maquette turnaround videos that were on the 2009 Blu-Ray.


Bambi: (June 2017 / Movies Anywhere October 2017)
Supplements are identical on the June 2017 disc, Disney Movies Anywhere platform, and its migration to Movies Anywhere. The one exception is the feature-length Inside Walt's Story Meetings, which a disc-exclusive. On the 2011 disc, it has seamless branching to additional featurettes. On the 2017 disc, it simply extends it by removing the branching option and leading into the featurette directly. Also, there are a couple featurettes from 2005 (Restoring Bambi and Disney Time Capsule 1942: The Year of Bambi) that never made the jump to Blu-Ray in either 2011 or 2017, nor to digital, obviously.


The Lion King: (August 2017 / Movies Anywhere October 2017)
Movies Anywhere migrated over most of the Disney Movies Anywhere supplements (which were simply migrated from the now-defunct Virtual Vault), but curiously left out The Lion King: A Memoir and The Animators' Reunion, the latter originally a digital exclusive. Both featurettes are still available on Vudu, however only if you redeemed the digital version of the Diamond Edition. Vudu actually has two separate page entries for both the Diamond Edition and the Signature Collection, so if you redeem both, you have access to both pages.


Lady and the Tramp: (February 2018)
Speaking of separate page entries, Lady and the Tramp is the first Diamond Edition to get a separate page listing for its Signature Collection on Movies Anywhere. So if you already have the Diamond Edition available on your Movies Anywhere, redeeming the Signature Collection code will now give you access to that page, while still keeping access of the older one.

https://moviesanywhere.com/movie/lady-and-the-tramp

https://moviesanywhere.com/movie/lady-a ... re-edition

As for supplements, it's repeated across both, but the Signature includes the three newer pieces as well.


Peter Pan: (June 2018)
Unlike Lady and the Tramp, the original Movies Anywhere page is updated with the new Signature featurettes. So if you already have access to the Diamond, there's no need to redeem the Signature code unless you want to have access to that page, too.

https://moviesanywhere.com/movie/peter-pan-1953

https://moviesanywhere.com/movie/peter-pan-2018


The Little Mermaid: (February 2019)
And now, we're back to Lady and the Tramp, where two separate page entries exist, but the newer Signature featurettes are not added to the older entry.

https://moviesanywhere.com/movie/the-li ... rmaid-1989

https://moviesanywhere.com/movie/the-li ... -signature


Planning ahead, the Movies Anywhere page for Cinderella doesn't include much, just the then-new Diamond Edition supplements. So I'm sure when it gets upgraded for Signature Collection later this year, a new page will be created that has more material to justify redeeming the Signature code (along with, hopefully, a new transfer).

Likewise, Sleeping Beauty is a repeat of its 2014 disc, which pared down the more extensive 2008 Blu-Ray set, but on Movies Anywhere includes Four Artists Paint One Tree as a digital exclusive. Here's hoping an eventual Signature Collection re-instates more of the missing 2008 featurettes (Grand Canyon, The Peter Tchaikovsky Story, Sequence 8, History of Sleeping Beauty Castle, etc.) in addition to whatever new stuff they cobble together.

One Hundred and One Dalmatians, The Jungle Book, and Aladdin are fairly packed on Movies Anywhere, and Aladdin has the benefit of actually including its complete 43-minute documentary in addition to all 70 minutes of its branching featurettes. The 2015 Blu-Ray infamously didn't include the actual main documentary, just the branching featurettes. Here's hoping nothing gets lost in migration when new Signature Collection pages are made.

Albert

Wow, thank you so much for this! So overall it seems worthwhile to add all new digital codes into Movies Anywhere. I didn’t realize they’d add new pages of features. Thanks again!

[Disney Duster]

So, I am patiently awaiting the cover art for Cinderella. The Little Mermaid's dropped the 13th and 14th of the month two months before the home video release came out, so that's what I expect for Cinderella. I hope the cover art is the dress transformation from the bottom half of this option Disney made for the Platinum before:


And I hope that the covers are done like Peter Pan's Signature with the title not sideways and no white space. I wouldn't mind the dress transformation idea for the Best Buy steelbook. I would probably buy the Blu-ray, DVD, 4K, and steelbook if they all turn out good.

Disney, if you need to take your time to make such good covers, go ahead!

Someone on Blu-ray.com said:

I talked to someone on DMC chat, and they said there isn't a placeholder for a 4K version of the Cinderella Signature Collection Edition at the moment.

But I really hope for a 4K.

[Vlad]

I’m excited about the cover art as well. Cinderella has always had great cover arts on home media releases in the past. I hope the tradition will continue with the Signature Blu-ray.

[Disney Duster]

I agree, I have thankfully liked every cover art they've done for Cinderella on home video here. Your idea for the cover art with Cinderella in her work dress would also be good, I just love that dress transformation picture so much.

[Atlantica]

I wasn't a fan personally of the Platinum Edition cover, as it was a shame the Cinderella had her back to us, and the Prince looked like the focal point ? I love love love the old VHS one for some reason; I don't know if it's nostalgia, or it's a great cover. Either one !

When I was in Disneyland Paris a few years ago, there was a French poster for the film regarding a cinematic re-release. It was absolutely AMAZING, and I can see that someone popped it onto artwork here :

http://www.dvd-covers.org/art/DVD_Cover ... s.jpg.html

Would love something like that, making use of the clock which isn't often used in Cinderella artwork.

[Mooky]

I've always loved this cover:

https://c8.alamy.com/comp/BPBCMC/cinder ... BPBCMC.jpg

Her face is slightly off and her hair is just a tiny bit too orange, but everything else is great.

[Atlantica]

Agreed, that is a lovely one as well.

Cinderella herself does have a tendency to go off model quite easily; I always assumed this was because she was drawn to be really realistic, it is a struggle sometimes to properly capture her.

Plus she is the only Princess who varies from blonde / white blond / yellow / strawberry blonde hair depending on where you look

[Vlad]

You're so right. I always thought that Snow White, Cinderella and Aurora are the Princesses which are the hardest to draw. Mainly because they look like vintage illustrations from the '30s, '40s and '50s. Modern day artwork and clipart makes them look different, and while they are lovely, the originals will always be superior. That's why I really appreciate the artwork in the "Story of" storybooks...the artists who drew them over there did awesome jobs.

[Disney Duster]

It's true the Platinum cover should have turned Cinderella and the Prince around to see all of Cinderella's face and put more focus on her, but that is not needed for me, though I admit that would make it better.

The French poster with the clock for the 2005 restored version in French theaters is indeed an amazing artwork. The only thing wrong for me is the pumpkin doesn't look like the one in the film, it is too small and is almost the size of the two mice carrying it, while everything else looks so on-model.

The one with Cinderella and the stairs and the coach, I just don't like the color scheme, the off-modelness, and the Fairy Godmother being off-center and stolen from the original VHS cover. Other than that, yes, it's good. Cinderella's pose is cool.

My favorite cover art for Cinderella has so far always been the first VHS cover.

I heard Cinderella was really hard to draw. Maybe it is because of the realism like you guys said.

[JeanGreyForever]

https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread.php?t=316667
Cinderella (2015) is being released in 4K UHD, presumably to tie-in with the Signature Edition as the first live-action remake to get the 4K treatment. No signs of a 4K Cinderella (1950), which I frankly doubt we'll get.

Although I'm 99% sure this release won't feature anything new, I'd kill for an extended cut along with deleted scenes actually on disc and a plethora of other bonus features.

The one with Cinderella and the stairs and the coach, I just don't like the color scheme, the off-modelness, and the Fairy Godmother being off-center and stolen from the original VHS cover. Other than that, yes, it's good. Cinderella's pose is cool.

Lol, I've never even noticed that the fairy godmother was hovering above the cover in the side corner until you mentioned it. That is odd.

[Disney Duster]

Wow, that is most surprising news! But hooray!!! I will be buying it. It should look amazingly gorgeous in 4K! But I hope also for the original in 4K.

[Vlad]

I agree, the 2015 version would look gorgeous in 4K. As for the original, I hope it'll get the 4K treatment too. I'm sure it would look great. The Little Mermaid and The Lion King both have fantastic 4K presentations.

[Atlantica]

I would love love love LOVE for the 4K version to be an extended cut .... That would be a much deserved dream come true !

[Old Fish Tale]

Yes, they need to release the extended versions of 'The Lion King' and 'Pocahontas' on Blu-Ray.

[blackcauldron85]

Disney Movie Club's website has not been working for me for days. Has Cinderella been released yet or is it just a pre-order?

[JeanGreyForever]

Cover revealed. Let's hope that when it says Ultimate Collector's Edition, that means it'll actually come with some solid bonus features that warrant the label on the packaging even though we all know that isn't happening.

Disney Movie Club's website has not been working for me for days. Has Cinderella been released yet or is it just a pre-order?

It's just a pre-order. I'm pretty sure the release date isn't until the summer.

[blackcauldron85]

^ Thank you!!!!!!

[DisneyFreak5282]

Cover revealed. Let's hope that when it says Ultimate Collector's Edition, that means it'll actually come with some solid bonus features that warrant the label on the packaging even though we all know that isn't happening.

I'm almost positive that the Blu-Ray disc included with this will be the same one we got with the original release. Since UHD discs don't typically include bonus features the only chance we have is the addition of new digital only bonus features, which I don't see happening, especially for this movie.

[Vlad]

I'm thinking of the time when they re-released The Jungle Book and The Force Awakens, but in 3D. They released 2 great editions, with beautiful covers, and lots of new bonus content. Who knows, maybe they'll do the same for Cinderella.