"A Silly Symphony"

Release Date June 30, 1931

Timing 7:07

Synopsis

A cheerful tribe of musical beavers puts up an elaborate dam which, alas, is destined to be destroyed in a spectacular flood.

Credits

Director : Wilfred Jackson

Animation : Roldolfo "Rudy" Zamora

DVD

Disney Treasures : Silly Symphonies

Television

The Ink and Paint Club : #53 : Silly Symphonies at the Zoo

Mickey's Mouse Tracks : Episode 47

Technical Specifications

Color Type : Black and White

Animation type : Standard

Sound mix : Mono

Aspect ration : 1.33 : 1

Negative format : 35mm

Print format : 35mm

Cinematographic process : Spherical

Original language : English

Released by Columbia Pictures

Gallery

Click on the thumbnail for the full-sized picture

Comments

From Rod Bennett : The flood scene here really is very impressive for the time, prefiguring similar water effects in the later features "Pinocchio" and "Fantasia."

From Jerry Edwards : A group of beavers are shown using inventive ways of working to build a dam. When a storm causes a flood and the debris destroy the dam, a clever little beaver saves the day when he topples a large tree, which forms a new dam and blocks the flood. A short that doesn't have much to it as individual scenes, but a fun little cartoon as a whole. It helps that beavers are among my favorite animals. Disney's live action featurette Beaver Valley is among my favorite nature films.

From Kevin Whitmore : What a delightful production! The beavers are so cheerful and industrious - it is impossible not to love them. The music is engaging, even the disaster is cute!

From Gijs Grob : Quite an uninteresting cartoon about beavers. The film starts with rather dull gags of beavers building to music. Only after four minutes a "story" develops of a little beaver who saves the whole population from a terrible flood. The beavers completely lack personality and even the brashy little one fails to impress. One of the weaker Silly Symphonies.

From Fredrik J : I really like this one. The music is catchy and upbeat, the sound effects work with the music rather than disrupting it, the animation matches the music wonderfully, and the gags are both cute and funny. A perfect example of how to make a true "Silly Symphony" in every meaning of the word.

Story? We don't need no stinkin' story.

Referenced Comments

Autumn (1930)