Oddball Films and curator Kat Shuchter bring you Sex, Drugs and Di$ney - Educational Shorts from the Magic Kingdom. While obviously more well known for their animated features, Di$ney (as Walt Di$ney Educational Media) has been making educational primers since the 1940s with audacious subject matter like menstruation, venereal diseases, child-molestation, drug abuse and more. This program features high/lowlights of Di$ney's educational side with shocking shorts, some animated, some live-action and all Di$ney. Always the trailblazers, the dreamily animated The Story of Menstruation (1945) is reported to be the first film to use the word "vagina" in its screenplay. In VD Attack Plan (1973), a cartoon syphilitic sergeant directs his VD troops into battle against ignorant humans. Benny's a teen that's got it all, but he might lose it if he trades his friends for steroids in Benny and the 'Roids (1988). Learn all about growing up, from an animated embryonic cycle to adolescent pimples in the zippy musical short Steps Towards Maturity and Growth (1969). Not ones to shy away from heartbreaking reenactments, Smokeless Tobacco: The Sean Marsee Story (1986) cashes in on the triumph and tragedy of a teenage hero turned cancer statistic. No subject was too taboo, even child-molestation, like the creepy dramatization Now I Can Tell You My Secret (1984). And for a little fun on the road, Goofy's behind the wheel and causing all sorts of mayhem in Freeway Phobia (1964). And Donald learns how he can help out in the war effort in The Spirit of '43 (1943), a bit of good old fashioned propaganda.With even more surprises in store, you'll never think of Di$ney the same way again!
Date: Thursday, January 2nd, 2014 at 8:00pm
Venue: Oddball Films, 275 Capp Street San Francisco
Admission: $10.00 Limited Seating RSVP to RSVP@oddballfilm.com or (415) 558-8117
Web: http://oddballfilms.blogspot.com
Featuring:
The Story of Menstruation (Color, 1945)
A Walt D*sney Production, The Story of Menstruation is an animated short film produced for American schools detailing the menstrual cycle. Rumored to be the first film with the word “vagina” in it’s screenplay, this vintage gem is both matter of fact and dreamily flowery. A large-headed girl takes you through the dos and don’ts of menses while helpful diagrams guide us all to better understanding.
VD Attack Plan (Technicolor, 1973) “Yes, it’s true. Walt D*sney Productions has made a significant contribution to the war against VD. “VD Attack Plan” – A fully animated Walt D*sney 16mm motion picture.” states the brochure accompanying this 16mm educational film. VD Attack Plan had some forward thinking and enlightening approaches (not just for D*sney but everyone else producing this type of film in 1973) to the subject of sexually transmitted diseases including promotion of condoms (instead of abstinence) and the fact that VD can be spread through same sex couplings. This “war against disease “ film doesn’t miss a beat-even showcasing some of the graphic effects of the disease in action. In brilliant Technicolor, just like you’d want it to be.
Benny and the ‘Roids (Color, 1988)
Steps Towards Maturity and Growth (Color, 1969)
Another coming of age cartoon classic brought to you by Walt Di$ney and the Upjohn Pharmaceutical Company. Mostly animated with an animated embryonic cycle and several jazzy musical numbers. It emphasizes the need for an equilateral triangle of physical, mental and social health.
Smokeless Tobacco: The Sean Marsee Story (Color, 1986)
When good-looking all-star teen athlete Sean Marsee died of jaw cancer from smokeless tobacco in 1984, W@lt Di$ney studios jumped at the chance to recreate this cautionary tale for a generation of youngsters to learn that even chaw can kill you!
Freeway Phobia (Color, 1964) (Subtitled The Art Of Driving The Super Highway).
Hilarity naturally ensues when everyone’s favorite talking dog, Goofy, demonstrates how not to drive on the freeway. First, he is the overly timid driver, then the overly aggressive driver, and finally the inattentive driver, shaving or eating. In a dynamic mix of animation styles, demonstrates how NOT to merge on the freeway, drive with distractions, and basically cause every thinkable accident.
Now I Can Tell You My Secret (Color, 1984)
A little boy and his coach are close, too close, but the coach says it's just their little secret. No taboo was too big for the folks at Di$ney!
Curator’s Biography
Our films are almost exclusively drawn from our collection of over 50,000 16mm prints of animation, commercials, educational films, feature films, movie trailers, medical, industrial military, news out-takes and every genre in between. We’re actively working to present rarely screened genres of cinema as well as avant-garde and ethno-cultural documentaries, which expand the boundaries of cinema. Oddball Films is the largest film archive in Northern California and one of the most unusual private collections in the US. We invite you to join us in our weekly offerings of offbeat cinema.
Curator’s Biography
Kat Shuchter is a graduate of UC Berkeley in Film Studies. She is a filmmaker, artist and esoteric film hoarder. She has helped program shows at the PFA, The Nuart and Cinefamily at the Silent Movie Theater and was crowned “Found Footage Queen” of Los Angeles, 2009.
About Oddball Films
Oddball films is the film component of Oddball Film+Video, a stock footage company providing offbeat and unusual film footage for feature films like Milk, documentaries like The Summer of Love, television programs like Mythbusters, clips for Boing Boing and web projects around the world.