Seal Island (film)

Seal Island
File:Seal Island.jpg Film poster for Seal Island
Directed by	James Algar
Produced by	Ben Sharpsteen, Walt Disney
Narrated by	Winston Hibler
Cinematography	Alfred Milotte
Edited by	Anthony Gerard
Production company	Walt Disney Productions
Distributed by	RKO Radio Pictures
Release dates	December 21, 1948 (1948-12-21)
Running time	27 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$100,000

Seal Island is a 1948 American documentary film directed by James Algar. The film was produced by Walt Disney and was the first installment of the True-Life Adventures series of nature documentaries. It won an Academy Award in 1949 for Best Short Subject (Two-Reel).

Cast

• Winston Hibler as Narrator

Production

In 1947, Walt Disney contracted with Alfred and Elma Milotte to shoot documentary footage of the wildlife and culture of Alaska. Disney did not see the theatrical value in the footage of human activity in Alaska, but he was intrigued with footage that the Milottes shot of the seal population at the Pribilof Islands. Disney himself coined the title Seal Island for the film, and planned it as the first in a new series of nature documentaries called True-Life Adventures.

The Milottes shot more than 100,000 feet of film and spent over a year filming the seals. The total production cost Disney a little over $100,000.

Release

RKO Radio Pictures, the studio distributing Disney’s films at the time, initially refused to release the half-hour Seal Island. Disney booked the film for its Los Angeles and New York theatrical engagements, and RKO agreed to release the film nationally only after it proved its commercial potential and received the Academy Award.

External links

• Seal Island at IMDb