According to Keane, this was mainly due to the fact that the majority of the fairy tale takes place within a tower. Walt Disney first attempted to adapt 'Rapunzel' into an animated film soon after the studio released Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in 1937, but the project was ultimately abandoned when the story turned out to be 'a really hard nut to crack'. Keane, on the process of creating Rapunzel. There is a great “aha' moment when I finally recognize the character on my paper as someone I know.' It’s a very intimate personal process and I will do hundreds, sometimes thousands, of drawings in finding that design. For me the joy of creating a character that I believe is real is at the heart of creating a memorable character. 'The development of a character for me is a very personal journey. However, Keane remained closely involved with the project nonetheless, serving as both the film's executive producer and Rapunzel's supervising animator. Keane eventually resigned from his position as director after suffering a heart attack in 2008, and Nathan Greno and Byron Howard were hired to replace him. Keane became interested in the idea of directing an animated film based on 'Rapunzel' because he was especially intrigued by the concept of a 'person that was born with this gift inside of her and it had to come out', which he felt was similar to his experience working as an animator at Walt Disney Animation Studios. Longtime Disney animator Glen Keane first decided to adapt the fairy tale ' Rapunzel' by the Brothers Grimm into an animated feature film in 1996. Her appearance and personality have drawn much comparison between her and one of the preceding Disney Princesses, Ariel from The Little Mermaid (1989), by whom she was inspired.ĭevelopment Conception and writing The tenth Disney Princess, Rapunzel was officially inducted into the line-up on October 2, 2011, becoming the franchise's first computer-animated member and the first European princess in 20 years, the last being Belle from Beauty and the Beast (1991). The character was adapted into a less passive heroine for the film.Ĭritical reception of Rapunzel has been generally positive, with critics complimenting her spirited, lively personality and independence. Voiced by American actress and singer Mandy Moore, Rapunzel is a young princess kept unaware of her royal heritage by a vain old woman named Mother Gothel, who raises her in a secluded tower to exploit her hair's healing abilities to remain young and beautiful forever.Ĭreated and animated by supervising animator Glen Keane, Rapunzel is loosely based on the title character of the fairy tale of the same name published by the Brothers Grimm. Rapunzel is a fictional character who appears in Walt Disney Animation Studios' 50th animated feature film Tangled (2010). Unnamed maternal great great grandparents

Mother Gothel (abductor and acting mother) Rapunzel from the Brothers Grimm's fairy tale

Tangled rapunzel sun