FANTASIA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jK_ShoOL2ao (part 1)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDsPydW3Y54&feature=related (part 2)
There are two activities for of different difficulty (elementary and advanced).
Both begin with a discussion element. As well as a thematic orientation for the film this
also establishes the characters appearing in the film.
Elementary version.
1. Ask for responses to the question “Who has the hardest life?”
2. First viewing: Write on the board:
Watch and decide which character
A) Is most unhappy.
B) Is most talented
C) Is funniest
D) Is saddest
3. Give out the sentences sheet. Ask students to work through it in pairs, then watch again
and check the answers.
Advanced version.
1. In 3’s, ask students to discuss the question about the four characters. Have a class
discussion to see what groups think.
2. The video is to be viewed “back to back” (use the two links or if you are using
the original film stop just at the end of the section where the little girl is playing
the piano), in two parts (reversing the pairs half way.) The vocabulary lists A and
B should be used according to the group and their needs. For example, all the
class could read lists A and B and check and new words with you. Or half read A,
half B, according to which part of the film they are going to watch. Or you might
decide to make a selection of the vocabulary and teach it with the whole class
before the back-to-back viewing.
3. Give out the task sheet “Match words to describe the characters” sheet and watch
the film again.
Using the activity:
Ask students to listen to the soundtrack without seeing the film.
Get them to make notes to the questions below and discuss them afterwards.
Which feelings do you associate with the music?
Are there different feelings at different parts?
What do you notice about the speed(s) of the music?
What other sounds, apart from the music, can you hear?
Try and imagine a story to go with the music.
Watch the film:
Give out the pictures. Ask students to discuss
a) What is happening
b) What kind of shot is being used
The ask them to choose (or allocate) a picture for them to write a dialogue/what is
he thinking or commentary for the picture.
The second is a back-to-back activity suggested by participants in Inca – the idea is to get
students in pairs to practise saying the phrases whilst you clarify any vocabulary. They
then watch and one says the phrases when she/he sees them, the other ticks them off. You
could add some false ones so that students don’t just tick off all the phrases but have to
make sure they only tick the correct ones.
FANTASIA 2000
Elementary version
Who has the hardest life?
a.
b.
c.
d.
A young man dreams of being a musician but is tied to a boring job.
A middle-aged man is unemployed and cannot find work.
A little girl. Her parents are too busy to spend time with her.
A rich man who is bored and frustrated with his life.
After watching:
Choose the correct answer from the words in bold.
1. The young man wakes up early in the morning/late in the morning..
2. The unemployed man has a cup of coffee and a donut/ a cup of coffee / two
cups of coffee.
3. The subway train goes to Grand Central/ Town Central.
4. The young man takes a bog of nuts from his pocket/ a lunch box.
5. The unemployed man tries to steal an apple / think about stealing an apple.
6. After her singing lesson, the little girl has an art lesson / a swimming class.
7. The popcorn seller shouts at the monkey / hits the monkey.
8. The rich man balances a bone on his head / on his nose.
9. All the characters / Not all the characters imagine themselves skating on an ice
rink.
10. The night shift starts at 5pm / 6pm.
Advanced Version
Discuss the following situations. For whom do you feel most sympathy? Which situation
do you think is the most difficult to resolve?
e. A young man who dreams of being a musician but is tied to a boring
job.
f. A middle-aged man who is unemployed and cannot find work.
g. A little girl whose wealthy parents are too busy to spend time with
her.
h. A rich man who feel bored and frustrated with his life and wife.
Vocabulary (pre-teach a selection?)
Part A
skyscrapers
sunrise
drum sticks
alarm clock
cleans teeth
overalls
horse and cart
milk bottles
donut
hurdles
newspaper headline
subway entrance
pouring coffee
building site
drill
lift/elevator
scaffolding
hotel doorman
Revolving doors
nanny
commuters
heavy machinery
bag of nuts – cracking nuts
ballet class
Part B
playing piano
organ grinder and monkey
popcorn seller
buying half a shop
looks sad
ice rink
skating on ice
a dollar sign
playing the drums
flying like a bird
flapping his wings
get the bill
building site
drumsticks
scaffolding
lift/elevator
nightshift
call a taxi
runs downstairs
crane
nightclub
lights on Broadway
Choose words or to describe the characters from the list below.
(You might use more then one for some or even none if you don’t think any apply.)
a) Young man
b) Little girl
c) Unemployed man
d) Rich man
e) The nanny
f) The rich man’s wife
g) The little girl’s parents
optimistic
ashamed
bored
hard-working
distracted
sympathetic
childlike
selfish
envious
suicidal
patient
energetic
uncaring
Cloze activity – advanced follow-up
The story for Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” in “Fantasia 2000” is a clever combination
___(1)___ characters and ideas. Whether you love or hate the films that come __(2)___
of the Disney studio there is no denying the professionalism and originality of pieces
such as this. The film “Fantasia 2000”, ___(3)___ features one of the original “Fantasia”
cartoons, touches ___(4)___ an intriguing aspect of the history of Walt Disney pictures.
___(5)___ all the time, effort and money that went ___(6)___ making the original
“Fantasia” the film was not a commercial success, being rather ___(7)___ “highbrow” for
the cartoon audiences of the time. Indeed, rarely ___(8)___ animated films been seen as
high art in a cinema-graphic or narrative sense. The seem to suffer ___(9)___ the same
kind of prejudice applied to musicals or westerns – their very popularity is a ___(10)___
of defect. ___(11) films like “Chicken Run” and “Toy Story” achieve can achieve a cult
status they are still essentially popular comedies. ___(12)___ animators try and make
serious films they tend ___(13)___ fail. As audiences, we seem reluctant ___(14)___
accept serious animation. The comic parts of “Fantasia” and “Fantasia 2000” are the
___(15)___ successful and the ones that will be remembered the longest.
1. of
2. out
3. which
4. on
5. Despite
6. into
7. too
8. have
9. from
10. kind/sort/type
11. Although
12. If/When/Whenever
13. to
14. to
15. most
TWO FURTHER ACTIVITIES FOR LOWER LEVELS:
True or false?
In this film we see
A man sleeping
A cat drinking milk
A woman eating a doughnut
A man drinking a cup of coffee
A waitress working
Men working on a building construction
Someone selling newspapers
A lot of people leaving a building
A girl learning to dance
A teacher sleeping
Someone playing the piano
A man dancing with a monkey
A boy eating popcorn
People ice-skating
People playing football
A man playing the drums
A woman buying things
Someone dreaming
A ball falling from a window
Someone running downstairs
A man getting in a taxi
People playing music
In pairs, students practise saying the phrases whilst you clarify any vocabulary. They then
watch back to back. One says the phrases when she/he sees them, the other ticks them
off. There are some that do not appear in the film. Lists A and B correspond to the 2
halves of the film (stop A just at the end of the little girl’s piano lesson.)
Work in pairs.
Look at lists A and B.
Practice saying them together.
A
A man sleeping
A cat
A woman with a doughnut
Newspapers
A waitress
A lift/elevator
A doorman
People on a train
A train station
Men drinking coffee
A bag of nuts
Apples
A ballet class
A park
A music teacher
A tennis lesson
B
A man playing a piano
Popcorn
A man dancing with a monkey
A shop
Men looking sad
A girl with a ball
Ice-skating
A drum set
A man flying
Birds and clouds
A bill
A ball in a window
Lots of cars
A taxi
Musicians
A nightclub