Frozen

Story

After her coronation, newly-crowned Queen Elsa loses control of her icy powers. Accidentally, she traps her kingdom in eternal winter and flees to the mountains. Her sister, Anna, teams up with a rugged iceman, his reindeer, and a friendly snowman, and sets off on a perilous journey to find Elsa and break the spell.

Why we chose it

When we asked visitors to the museum to tell us their favourite films Frozen was one of the top answers. One of the most successful and best loved Disney animations, it has a huge number of fans of all ages who love it for its two powerful and independent princesses - who don’t need princes to rescue them or marry them.

Where it came from

Disney first attempted to adapt Hans Christian Anderson’s 1845 tale, The Snow Queen, in 1937. However, the writers struggled to make the Snow Queen’s character relatable for modern audiences. Elsa was originally a villain. It wasn’t until the early 2000s that someone suggested making Elsa and Anna sisters. The rest of the story then began to fall into place, taking inspiration from Scandinavian culture.

Where it went next

Frozen won many awards, including two Academy Awards, a BAFTA and a Golden Globe. Over 8 million Frozen-related books have been sold and the film’s popularity led to a severe merchandise shortage after its release. The film has also been adapted as an ice skating show and a musical.

Associated stories

A sequel, Frozen 2, was released in 2019, following two animated shorts; Frozen Fever (2015) and Olaf’s Frozen Adventure (2017). Chris Buck was also the director of Disney’s Tarzan (1999), and co-director Jennifer Lee co-wrote the screenplay for Wreck-It Ralph (2012).