'Fantasia' and Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless
Courtesy of Photofest
by Rebecca Ford
Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless will write the script based on the "Night on Bald Mountain" segment of Disney's 1940 animated film.
Disney is conjuring up a live-action movie based on the "Night on Bald Mountain" sequence from the studio's animated classicFantasia.
Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless will write the script for the project - which is in early development at the studio - based on the 1940's animated film. The hot writing duo is also executive producing the film.
The "Night on Bald Mountain" section of Fantasia centered on a dark winged creature who raised spirits from the dead. They dance, fly through the air and enjoy an night of mayhem until they fade away as the night ends and the sun begins to rise.
Fantasia was comprised of eight animated segments that were set to pieces of classical music. Russian composer Modest Mussorgsky first created the music used in the "Night on Bald Mountain" section in 1867, and it was arranged by Leopold Stokowski for the film, introducing the now-well-known music to a much wider audience.
Sources say the live-action take will be similar to what Disney did with Maleficent, which starred Angelina Jolie as the iconic witch. Maleficent earned a spell-binding $758.4 million worldwide when it was released in May 2014.