5 Things You'll Learn in 'The Story of Frozen: Making a Disney Animated Classic'

Producer Paul Del Vecho reveals all about the Oscar-winning film's special.

ByABC News
August 28, 2014, 11:10 AM
A new one-hour special goes behind-the-scenes sharing the secrets of "Frozen" in "The Story of Frozen: Making an Animated Classic."
A new one-hour special goes behind-the-scenes sharing the secrets of "Frozen" in "The Story of Frozen: Making an Animated Classic."
Walt Disney Company

— -- Princesses Elsa and Anna of "Frozen" are going to have another moment in the spotlight.

A behind-the-scenes look at the Oscar-winning animated film, "The Story of 'Frozen': Making a Disney Animated Classic," is set to debut on Sept. 2 on ABC at 8 p.m. ET, and fans have a lot to look forward to.

With interviews from "Frozen" stars Idina Menzel, Kristen Bell and Jonathan Groff, songwriters Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez, executive producer and Disney Animation Chief Creative Officer John Lasseter and the film's producers and directors, there's a lot that will be revealed about the film by Disney, parent company to ABC News. Producer Paul Del Vecho gave ABC News a preview.

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1. Nobody Expected the Film's Monster Success: The team behind "Frozen" always knew that the film was special, but nobody expected it to become the fifth highest grossing film of all time. "It took on a life of its own," Del Vecho marveled. "It's been very exciting!"

2. The Film Required New Technology: One reason "Frozen" had such a magical effect on viewers was because of the way it looked. The snow scenes, for example, required special technology, which Walt Disney Animation Studios created for the movie. "We didn't want characters to walk on a white surface. We wanted them to interact with the snow," he said, adding that facial animation was also improved to allow for subtlety. "We tend to build on the success of [previous films, including 'Tangled'] and advance the artistry."

3. ... But It Built on Old Themes: Yes, "Frozen" was a departure from previous Disney animated films, but there were familiar tropes, too. However, the film dealt with them a little differently. "We did want to turn them on their heads -- the love at first sight, or the [concept of] Prince Charming," he said. "We kept asking ourselves, 'What movie do we want to see today?' and ... we did not set these girls up on a pedestal. They have real issues and real problems just like we all do in real life. [We wanted to] make them real and relatable."

4. "Let It Go" Created the Movie's Theme: "It was such an empowering song that we ended up rewriting quite a bit of the movie to make that song and theme fit," Del Vecho said of the movie's feel-good anthem. "What I love most about it is everyone who hears it comes up to me and has a different of interpretation of why it touches them."

5. You'll Get a Sneak Peek at a Future Project: While work on the "Frozen" franchise is still ongoing (there's a Broadway show in the works and a "Frozen" story arc coming to "Once Upon a Time" on ABC),") Walt Disney Animation Studios is currently putting the finishing touches on its newest film, "Big Hero Six." The ABC special will feature the debut of a scene from the film. "We're really hitting our stride and telling real, believable, heartfelt stories," Del Vecho said.