The Master of Colors

The Master of Colors is a 1986 American animated fantasy film directed by Michael Wildshill in his directorial debut. Featuring the voices of Jamie Lee Curtis, Helen Shaver, Will Ryan, and Nicholas Rowe, the film follows a young girl named Teresa whose hair magically changes colors that represent her expressions over a witch's spell. Many CalArts graduates, as well as some former Disney animators were involved with this film. Wildshill, then employed at Disney, conceived the film's idea in 1981 and pitched it to Disney, but it was turned down and he was fired the following year.

The Master of Colors was released on May 30, 1986 by Paramount Pictures and received positive reviews with praise to its animation, story, characters, and voice acting. It was a financial success, grossing $19.3 million worldwide on a $10 million budget during its initial run. In recent years, the film has garnered a cult following. The film rights are now owned by Universal Pictures, which had obtained the film rights from Paramount Pictures as a result of the Multimedia/MCA Inc. merger (with the former owning Michael Wildshill Productions as Multimedia Animation) in the mid 1990s.

Plot
Teresa is a 17-year-old girl who lives in a ordinary life with her parents while attempting to fulfill her crush Chuck.

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Voice cast
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 * Jamie Lee Curtis as Teresa
 * Helen Shaver as The Magic Witch
 * Will Ryan as Nibbler
 * Nicholas Rowe as Chuck, Teresa's love interest

Development
Michael Wildshill first came up with the concept of The Master of Colors while working at Walt Disney Productions in 1981.

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Writing
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Casting
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Animation
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Music
The musical score, composed by Jerry Goldsmith was released on a CD and a LP.

Home media
On February 10, 1987, Paramount Home Video released The Master of Colors on VHS and LaserDisc in the United States and Canada. On November 17, 1989, the film was re-released on both VHS and LaserDisc in a new advertising campaign with lower retail prices. It was this new wide availability on video, as well as broadcasts on cable, that helped The Master of Colors garner a cult following long after its theatrical debut. A 10th Anniversary VHS edition was released by MCA/Universal Home Video on November 19, 1996, alongside a LaserDisc release. This was followed by another VHS release under the Universal Family Features label on September 22, 1998, and the Signature Collection LaserDisc was released on October 13, 1998.

The film was released on DVD for the first time on December 15, 1998, which was reprinted numerous times in the ensuing years, both as a stand-alone release or bundled with other animated movies from Universal or DreamWorks. On December 18, 2001, a 2-disc DVD set called the "15th Anniversary Edition" was released and included special features such as audio commentary from both individuals and an interview featurette. The film was also released on VHS and DVD under the Universal Animated Features Collection label on January 15, 2002, again on DVD on July 25, 2006 as a 20th Anniversary Edition, and later on Blu-ray on June 28, 2011. Both releases retained the special features of the 15th Anniversary Edition. Another Blu-ray release from Universal for the film was released on June 5, 2012, as a part of Universal's Universal 100th Anniversary releases.

Box office
The film's distributor, Paramount Pictures, barely did any promotion for the film, leading Wildshill to finance the advertising campaign themselves. The financiers had expected the film to open in wide release in 1,000 venues, but Paramount opted for a limited opening weekend in 100 theaters, with its widest release in only 700. Although in competition with Cobra, it performed better in those theaters alone in its opening week than other summer fare. However, as a result of its release and competition in the summer fare, The Master of Colors became only a moderate success, grossing	$19,364,482 in North America, though it was more successful on home video, cable and foreign release, ultimately turning a profit.

Critical response
The Master of Colors has a 82% "Fresh" approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 37 reviews, with an average rating of 7.4/10. The consensus states: "Highly original and well-written, The Master of Colors is a remarkable animated tale for both children and adults alike." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 64 out of 100, based on 53 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

Accolades
The Master of Colors won Best Animated Film of 1986 at the 14th annual Saturn Awards, where it also received a nomination for Best Fantasy Film, losing to The Boy Who Could Fly.

Legacy
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Main transcript
To see the transcript of the film, click here.

Trailer transcripts
To see the transcripts for the trailers of the film, click here.