The ART OF MULAN was only Jeff Kurtti's fourth published work, and one of which he remains enormously proud. He is honored to see this important and significant story in print again for new generations, along with some stunning additional visual development artwork and new foreword by Thomas Schumacher. Inspired by a two-thousand-year-old Chinese legend, Mulan was the first animated feature film to be primarily produced by Disney's animation studio at Walt Disney World in Florida. This was a dazzling array of talented and dedicated filmmakers who specialized in traditional hand-drawn animation and collaborated on the musical segment "I Just Can't Wait to Be King" in The Lion King (1994), shorts ranging from the Roger Rabbit cartoon Tummy Trouble (1989) to the legendary folktale John Henry (2000), and feature films such as Lilo & Stitch (2002). The Art of Mulan reveals the story behind the making of the film in this distinct place and at this particular time, both of which bridge the Disney animation renaissance of the 1990s and the sensibilities of today's Walt Disney Animation Studios. Like the film's heroine, the Disney artists who created MULAN made a journey of self-discovery that began with a momentous decision: to make a modern film adapted from an ancient Chinese source. THE ART OF MULAN chronicles their efforts to remain faithful to the spirit of the original legend and the traditions of the Chinese culture, while at the same time make it accessible for an international audience approaching the end of the second millennium. Their words reveal their passion while more than 350 stunning color and black-and-white illustrations showcase their brilliance, all clear reminders of why Mulan has become a fan favorite of so many who grew up with it

Author Biography

JEFF KURTTI is a leading authority on The Walt Disney Company, its founder, and its history. He is the author of more than thirty books, a writer-director of award-winning documentary content, and a respected public speaker. A Seattle native, Kurtti worked as a production coordinator on the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Arts Festival, followed by two years as the assistant to the president of the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts). For several years, he worked for Walt Disney Imagineering, the theme park design division of The Walt Disney Company, and then for the Corporate Special Projects department of Disney. Since 1995, Kurtti has enjoyed a career as an author, writer, and consultant in the motion picture, theater, and theme park entertainment industries. He was creative director, content consultant, and media producer for The Walt Disney Family Museum in San Francisco and a producer of The Boys: The Sherman Brothers Story, a critically acclaimed documentary about the famed songwriters.