With over 107 years of craft, we have worked on our fair share of festive films. Here are 10 facts about the iconic Christmas projects we have worked on that you may not have known.
1. White Christmas (1954) – Did you know that according to Rosemary Clooney, the “midnight snack” scene in which Bob Wallace expounds on his theory of what foods cause what dreams was almost entirely improvised.
2. Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer (1964) – When the film was first released, in 1964, the technology of using an articulated metal armature inside the figures was considered so amazing that TV Guide devoted four pages to the story. They failed to mention that the “new” technology had been pioneered 31 years before.
3. Gremlins (1984) – Did you know that the set for Kingston Falls is the same one used for Back to the Future (1985).
4. Edward Scissor Hands (1990) – The idea for the movie was inspired by a drawing Tim Burton had done when he was a teenager. The drawing depicted a thin, solemn man with long, sharp blades for fingers. “Since I liked to draw since I was younger, oftentimes images would come up, and they’d stay with you, and you’d keep drawing them.
5. The Nightmare before Christmas (1993) – Did you know that it took a group of around 100 people three years to complete this movie. For one second of the film, up to 12 stop-motion moves had to be made.
6. The Santa Clause (1994) – Did you notice that when Scott is in denial, he wears black converse shoes but then wears red converse shoes later in the movie when he fully embraces being Santa.
7. Eight Crazy Nights (2002) – Did you know that Davey’s parents are voiced by Adam Sandler’s parents, Stan Sandler and Judith Sandler. This is Stan’s only film appearance. He died in 2003 and his memory was dedicated in another Adam Sandler film, 50 First Dates (2004).
8. The Polar Express (2004) – Did you know that The Polar Express is listed in the 2006 Guinness Book of World Records as the “first all-digital capture” film, where all acted parts were done in digital capture.
9. The Holiday (2006) – Did you notice that Miles’s (Jack Black) studio setup, seen in the opening scene of the movie, with keyboard, monitors, sound modules, etc., was copied directly from the studio of Hans Zimmer, who composed the score for the film.
10. Fred Clause (2007) – In trying to come up with a name for Santa’s brother, Jessie Nelson (who came up with the idea for the film after her daughter asked her if Santa has a family) hit upon “Fred” while watching The Godfather (1972) on television. “Fred” is an homage to Fredo Corleone.
Head to our Legacy to discover more fun facts within The Vault.
