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Joseph: King of Dreams

December 29, 2022

Joseph: King of Dreams is a 2000 American direct-to-video animated biblical musical drama film. It is the first direct-to-video production from DreamWorks Animation. The film is an adaptation of the story of Joseph from the Book of Genesis in the Bible and serves as a prequel to the 1998 film The Prince of Egypt (as the biblical narrative of Joseph happens before that of Moses). Composer Daniel Pelfrey stated that the film was designed as a companion piece to The Prince of Egypt, noting that though "Joseph turned out to be very different than The Prince of Egypt, it was very challenging and rewarding".[2][3]

Joseph: King of Dreams
DVD cover
Directed by
  • Robert Ramirez
  • Rob LaDuca
Screenplay by
  • Eugenia Bostwick-Singer
  • Raymond Singer
  • Joe Stillman
  • Marshall Goldberg
Based onBook of Genesis
Produced byKen Tsumura
Starring
Edited byMichael Andrews
Music byDaniel Pelfrey
Production
company
Distributed byDreamWorks Home Entertainment
Release date
  • November 7, 2000 (2000-11-07)
Running time
74 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Co-director Robert Ramirez has said that whilst the reviews for the film had "generally been very good" there was a period "when the film was not working very well, when the storytelling was heavy-handed" and "klunky".[4]

Plot

Joseph is the youngest and most favored of Jacob's eleven sons, regarded as a "Miracle Child" because his mother Rachel had been thought infertile (“I am a Miracle Child”). Joseph grows conceited under his father's special treatment, and his elder half-brothers resent him for being favored, although Joseph desires to be accepted amongst them ("Bloom"). One night, Joseph dreams of a pack of wolves attacking the family's flock, and the next day, the dream comes true. Another dream follows, in which Joseph sees his brothers bowing before him, to which on telling them this, they hatch a plan to get rid of him, led by Judah. They sell him to a slave trader and take his torn coat back to their parents, convincing them that Joseph was killed by wolves.

In Egypt, Joseph is bought by Potiphar, the captain of Pharaoh's guards ("Marketplace"), and gradually becomes his most trusted attendant, as well as befriending his beautiful niece Asenath ("Whatever Road's at Your Feet"). However, Potiphar's wife, Zuleika, attempts to seduce Joseph, who refuses her advances. Infuriated, Zuleika falsely accuses Joseph of making advances on her. Potiphar nearly has him executed, but Zuleika, feeling guilty, stops him. Though Potiphar realizes that Joseph is innocent of the crimes, he reluctantly has him thrown in prison to preserve his reputation. Joseph finds himself imprisoned alongside the Pharaoh's cupbearer and his baker and interprets their dreams, which reveal that one will be put to death and the other will return to his position at the palace. Sure enough, the baker is executed and the cupbearer is returned to his job. The cupbearer, however, forgets his promise to tell the Pharaoh about Joseph, leaving him to languish in jail.

Meanwhile, Asenath secretly supplies food to Joseph regularly through the prison's skylight. However, she is nearly spotted by a guard while doing so one evening during a thunderstorm, and is forced to drop the basket of food, much to Joseph's anger. At his lowest point, Joseph climbs the walls of the jail to the skylight, questioning God for his misfortunes and demanding to know why everything has happened to him, before slipping, falling back down, and being knocked unconscious. Upon waking the next day, Joseph finds renewed purpose in caring for a small, dying tree, which is the only source of green in the prison, and slowly helps it grow bigger and healthier as he reflects on his past and begins to trust in God's plan again ("You Know Better Than I").

Soon, the Pharaoh becomes troubled by nightmares which none of his advisors can interpret. Remembering Joseph, the Pharaoh's cupbearer advises him to send the now-widowed Potiphar to retrieve him. The two share a happy reunion with Potiphar apologizing to Joseph for imprisoning him and Joseph forgiving Potiphar for it. Joseph interprets the dreams as warnings of seven years of abundance being followed by seven years of famine to come after that may wipe out Egypt, and suggests that a fifth of each year's harvest will be kept back for rationing. Impressed, the Pharaoh makes Joseph his minister and second-in-command, under the name "Zaphnath-Paaneah". In the following years, Joseph's guidance not only saves the Egyptians from starvation, but allows them to sell excess grain to their neighbors, who were also devastated by the famine. Joseph marries Asenath and has two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, with her ("More than You Take").

Eventually, the sons of Jacob arrive in Egypt to buy grain due to a famine in their homeland. They do not recognize Joseph, who refuses to sell to them and accuses them of spying. The brothers offer to buy the grain with the silver they sold Joseph for 20 years before, claiming that they will need it to feed their elderly father and youngest brother. Joseph still refuses to sell them grain, and imprisons Simeon until they can prove that they have another brother to support ("Bloom (Reprise)"). They reappear with Benjamin, Jacob's twelfth son and Joseph's almost identical younger brother, born during his absence, and who is now doted upon by Jacob. Benjamin tells Joseph that Rachel has died and Jacob has been inconsolable ever since Joseph was declared dead. Simeon is released and Joseph invites the brothers to a feast.

After the feast, Joseph has his golden chalice concealed in Benjamin's bag while no one is looking, where upon its discovery, he orders that Benjamin shall be enslaved to see how the other brothers will react, and is astonished when they offer themselves in Benjamin's place. Grief-stricken and ashamed, Judah confesses to having sold Benjamin's older brother into slavery, a crime which has haunted him and his brothers ever since for twenty years, and that they cannot return without Benjamin, as it would break their father's heart to lose another son. Shocked at and touched by their change of heart, Joseph reveals himself to them. They reconcile, and Joseph invites them to live with their wives and children in Egypt. Shortly thereafter, he is happily reunited with his father, and meets his brothers' wives and children. The Hebrews then enter Egypt, unaware of the hardships that they would have to face in later years.

Cast

Additional voices

Production

Conception and development

Development for Joseph started while The Prince of Egypt was being made, so the same crew worked on both films, and the wide group of ministers served on both projects as consultants. Work on the animated movie was based in Los Angeles and Canada, and nearly 500 artists contributed to the project."[5]

Executive Producer Penny Finkelman Cox and DreamWorks employee Kelly Sooter noted the challenge in telling a Bible story faithfully yet still making it interesting and marketable: "we had to take powerful themes and tell them in a way that's compelling and accessible for all ages". They also noted that though it was destined to be a direct-to-video project from the beginning, "the quality of the animation does not suffer ... Our approach to the movie was to develop it with the same quality and storytelling that we did with [The] Prince of Egypt." Creatives involved also noted that "one of the most challenging parts of the movie was creating Joseph's dream sequences, which look like a Van Gogh painting in motion".[5] Nassos Vakalis, who helped storyboard and animate the film, said "I had to travel a lot to Canada to see work done in a few studios that were subcontracting part of the movie".[6] Composer Daniel Pelfrey explained, "I must say the writers and directors did a great job staying true to the story and bringing it into a presentation for a contemporary audience."[2]

Early work

Ramirez explained the early stages of the film's production:

December of 1997 was a great time on the production. While the script was being fleshed out, Paul Duncan (the head background painter) and Brian Andrews (story artist) were creating some phenomenal conceptual artwork. Francisco Avalos and Nasos Vakalis were doing storyboards based on a rough story outline. Weeks later we started assembling a very talented story crew that included artists that had both television and feature experience. We had a script that was well-structured and followed the Bible story fairly accurately. Once the First Act was storyboarded, we filmed the panels, recorded a temp vocal track with music, and edited it all together to create the storyreel. We were excited and ready for our First Act screening for Jeffrey Katzenberg, which was set for an early weekend morning in the New Year of 1998.[4]

Screening and production troubles

Ramirez explained how things turned awry at the film screening:

When the lights came on in the screening room, the silence was deafening. All the execs put down their yellow legal notepads and headed down the hall to the conference room (which for me felt miles away). When we all sat down, Jeffrey looked up and said three words: "Nothing made sense." He was right. Nothing made sense. We followed the Bible story tightly. The script had structure. We storyboarded it word for word, yet it fell flat on its face. It all suddenly felt like a horrible, horrible disaster, and the worst part of it all was that I didn't know how to fix it. I was deeply confused, and our aggressive production schedule didn't allow for the story re-working that usually takes place on a theatrical feature. Share Stallings, one of our creative executives on the project, was very supportive and offered encouragement to the crew. She assured me that at least two sequences could be saved by clarifying some visuals and re-writing some dialogue. I couldn't see it at the time, although she turned out to be right. The only thing I could think about was that "nothing made sense."

Cracking the story

Ramirez explained they cracked the story by returning to the basics of storytelling.

When we started analyzing the characters in Joseph, we began to work from the inside out as opposed to just putting together a story. Once we delved into the minds of these characters and dissected their personalities, we started making some important breakthroughs. What does Joseph want? To be a part of his brothers' lives and reunite with his family. What does Judah, Joseph's older brother, want? He wants the love and positive attention that his father Jacob reserves only for Joseph. What does Jacob want? Jacob wants to show the world how much he loves his favorite son, Joseph. Why does Jacob love Joseph so much more than his other sons? Because Joseph is the spitting image of his favorite wife. He's the first-born son of the woman he waited for all his life to marry. Once we discovered the "wants" of the main characters, it was simple to figure out what actions they would take to satisfy them. Another important discovery was finding the voice of each individual. Once we had a deeper understanding of our characters and what made them tick, the scenes had a new spark of life that had been missing all along. The characters were now driving the scenes, instead of vice versa. In time, ideas that were born out of character helped blend sequences so that they flowed into each other instead of feeling disconnected.[4]

Casting and approach to characters

Mark Hamill, who was cast as Judah, Joseph's elder brother, explained that the choices he made regarding his character:

Judah starts out at a high station in his family structure, and that's all disrupted by this little child who claims to have visions of the future, he says. Eventually, it causes Judah to lead all the brothers against Joseph. I don't think of him as a villain. In many ways, he's like all people, wondering, "How will this affect my own life?" He's self-centered and has to re-evaluate all his preconceived notions.[5]

Ramirez explained one of the main themes in the film by analyzing how Joseph reacts upon seeing his brothers for the first time after they sold him into slavery:

These 'strangers' turned out to be his brothers. Now it was Joseph's turn. Would he follow his initial gut instinct and enslave them? Abuse them? Kill them? Or would he rise above hatred and forgive them? In a nutshell, that's what the crux of the story is about: forgiveness[4]

Jodi Benson was thrilled to be cast as Joseph's wife, Asenath, after seeing the work that had been done with Moses in The Prince of Egypt. Benson didn't audition for the part, and was instead offered it. Unlike some of the other characters, she provides both the speaking and singing voices in her role. It took twelve days to record her lines, and the only other voice actor she worked with was the singing voice for Joseph, David Campbell. Benson explained her character is the "voice of reason and the voice of trying to do the right thing to reconcile [Joseph] with his brothers". Her character was given a much larger role than what is presented in The Holy Bible.[5]

Music

Score

All songs were produced and arranged by Danny Pelfrey, and he also composed the score. Hans Zimmer, the composer for The Prince of Egypt, had approved of Pelfrey taking over his role after the latter, a relative unknown at the time, did a couple of interviews at DreamWorks. Pelfrey explained "Through the process [Zimmer] gave me input as to what they like to hear, mostly through the arranging and production of the songs. After that he got too busy but he gave me the foundation and communication skills I needed to successfully complete the project".[2] After receiving the job, Pelfrey read as many different translations of the original Bible text as he could, to find story nuances that he could incorporate. In regard to his collaboration with DreamWorks, he said "Before starting the input was pretty sketchy, but it was an ongoing process with lots of dialog with writers, producers and directors along the way. Jeffery Katzenberg always ultimately approved everything. He was directly involved with the entire process."[2] He also explained "I had never done a musical before ... [and Zimmer] helped me incorporate the sounds from Prince of Egypt as well as guided me in the song production".[3]

Pelfrey used choral choirs sparingly in his score, with notable examples being "a small female group in the beginning for what I was calling God's theme, and in the big scene at the end, which was the reunion of Joseph, his brothers and Jacob, his father". This was because the effect reminded him of angels, adding "I also I think it was more appropriate to the sonic tapestry and created a more uplifting feeling".[2] He described his musical style in the film as "World/Orchestral", noting that the instruments used were more regional than specifically Egyptian, incorporating: "Duduk, Ney, Rebaba, Ban-Di, Bansuri, Moroccan Flute, Zampona, and a great variety of percussion including Djmbe, Darabuk, Dholak, Udu, etc etc". In regard to using instrumentation from an inaccurate historical context, he said "I always thought ... that the exact historical and geographical use of the instruments is not as important as the evocative or dramatic effect ... So, I didn't really concern myself too much with 'right place, right time'.[2] A temp-track was made for the score, though Dreamworks "were not too attached to it"; some parts were tracked with "Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis" by Vaughan Williams.

Pelfrey said "Since I had never done a musical before, it was interesting to note the difference between producing these songs as opposed to doing a record. In a musical, the songs advance the story and I had to help that process, as well as make the songs belong to the fabric of the film and the palette of the score. Although this was animation, it certainly did not call for a cartoon approach, due to the depth of the story. The film needed more of a live-action treatment to the score. "Joseph: King of Dreams also allowed me to work with the best producers in the business and helped make this a very successful experience both personally and professionally."[3] He explained "[Lucas Richman] is the reason the Symphonic Suite from Joseph was created. He contacted me about wanting to present it in a concert he was doing in Knoxville where he is the conductor and music director, so I created the suite especially for them. He has created a vibrant and thriving orchestra there and they were all very welcoming to me." It was performed in LA by the Los Angeles Jewish Symphony in August 2010.[2][7]

Songs

A soundtrack was not released with the film.[5]

All tracks are written by John Bucchino.

No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
1."Miracle Child"Maureen McGovern, Russell Buchanan & David Campbell 
2."Bloom"Maureen McGovern 
3."Marketplace"Chorus 
4."Whatever Road's at Your Feet"David Campbell 
5."You Know Better Than I"David Campbell 
6."More than You Take"David Campbell & Jodi Benson 
7."Bloom" (Reprise)"Jodi Benson 

Release

As the first and only DreamWorks Animation direct-to-video film, Joseph: King of Dreams was released by DreamWorks Home Entertainment on VHS and DVD on November 7, 2000.[8][9] Special features included "Sing-a-long songs, storybook read-a-long programming, an interactive trivia game, and printable activity and coloring sheets".[5] The film was released by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment on Blu-ray on May 13, 2014, as part of a triple film set, along with DreamWorks Animation's The Road to El Dorado (2000) and Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas (2003).[10] The film was re-released by Universal Pictures Home Entertainment on DVD on February 1, 2018 without the DreamWorks Animation Home Entertainment label and again on June 5, 2018 under the DreamWorks Animation Home Entertainment label.

The direct-to-video film was "made available to Christian retailers, but mainly will be sold in traditional retailers such as Walmart and Target and video stores". The sale success of Joseph was to some degree influence whether more animated Bible stories would be released by DreamWorks.[5]

Book tie-ins

Nashville publisher Tommy Nelson, the kids division of the Christian publishing company Thomas Nelson Inc., partnered DreamWorks to publish four companion book titles based on the film, and has exclusive publishing rights to Joseph ("a read-along tape, a sticker storybook, a 48-page hardcover storybook with illustrations from the film, and a smaller hardcover storybook which retells the story of Joseph"[5]). One of them, My Sticker Storybook: Joseph and his Brothers (published 1 Nov 2000) was a sticker storybook that followed the plot Joseph, and was written by Dandi Daley Mackall.[11] The 48-page storybook (published 1 Nov 2000, and sometimes subtitled "Classic Edition") featured images from the film, a retelling by Mackall, and was a "stand-alone book, as well as a splendid companion to the video", also written by Mackall.[12] Joseph, King of Dreams: read-along (8 Mar 2001) was a full-color storybook and accompanying cassette which "capture[d] all the emotional and dramatic high points". Written by Catherine McCafferty, it included the song "Better Than I" and dialogue from the film.[13] A fourth book was published as well.

Critical response

You Know Better Than I, sung by Joseph (David Campbell) was critically acclaimed by many critics - one of the few universally praised elements of the direct-to-video film.

While praising the film's merits including animation, storytelling, and music, much of the criticism came with comparing it negatively to its theatrically released predecessor The Prince of Egypt. The song You Know Better Than I was singled out for praise by numerous critics, as were the van Gogh-inspired dream sequences. Many noted that the animated hieroglyph effects were similar to those from Prince, and suggested that the film stuck closer to the Bible source material than the previous film had.

DecentFilmsGuide gave the movie a B for Overall Recommendability and 3/4 stars for Artistic/Entertainment Value, writing "Artistically, the best thing about Joseph: King of Dreams is the visionary animation work in the dream sequences ... I caught my breath at the first glimpse of these dreams, which look like living, flowing Van Goghs". However it wrote "Joseph: King of Dreams is not remotely in the same class as The Prince of Egypt. [It] is much more a children's movie". It said the songs "while cheerful and uplifting, are generally unmemorable", and described the animation as "fine but not wonderful". It noted that "once one stops making unfair comparisons to a theatrical film made on a much bigger budget, Joseph: King of Dreams is very much worthwhile on its own more modest terms". Nevertheless, the review complimented the "ominous tune' Marketplace, and said "In one small way, Joseph: King of Dreams even outshines the earlier film: The spirituality of its signature song, You Know Better Than I, is much more profound than anything in the more mainstream "There Can Be Miracles".[14] DVD Verdict wrote "Joseph: King of Dreams will shatter any expectations you may have about direct-to-video animated features. This is no halfhearted attempt to cash in on the success of The Prince of Egypt, but is instead a fully realized and carefully crafted story of its own. This film could easily have been released theatrically, although its running time is maybe just a bit short for that", praising its animation, music, and storytelling.[15] PluggedIn wrote "while not as eye-popping as Prince of Egypt, [the film] is impressive for a direct-to-video title. Artfully executed dream sequences. Uplifting songs. It also takes fewer liberties than Prince of Egypt did".[16] Lakeland Ledger said "At its best, the story communicated the sense of desperation and yearning that make up the tale and provides a sense of the emotions that underscore the story".[17] Jan Crain Rudeen of Star-News wrote "As with Prince of Egypt, the best part of Joseph for me was the discussion it sparked afterward with my kids".[18]

The Movie Report gave the film 3/4 stars, writing "while clearly not on the level of that 1998 classic, it is a solid piece of work that is about on par with the SKG's spring theatrical release The Road to El Dorado"... Joseph is a new technical benchmark for straight-to-tape animated features, putting Disney's chintzy home video efforts to shame. It added "Bucchino's work is downright forgettable; the only song making the slightest inkling of an impression is Joseph's--and the film's--central number, Better Than I".[19] ChristianAnswers.net gave the film 4/5 stars, writing "Although the visual effects were not as outstanding as in The Prince of Egypt, the storyline does stay closer to the biblical version". The site added "The music was enjoyable, especially the song Better Than I".[20] "CommonSenseMedia rated the film 3/5 stars, writing "The animation is accomplished. Particularly compelling are the dream sequences, which almost look like animated Van Gogh paintings", however noting "it lacks [The Prince of] Egypt's poignant tunes and powerful storytelling".[21] The Los Angeles Times wrote "with its beautiful, big-screen quality, flowing animation and striking computer-generated imagery--and with its dignity and heart--is a fine telling of the biblical story".[22] Variety said "King of Dreams has just as much cross-generational appeal as its predecessor, and doesn't make the mistake of skewing primarily toward moppets. To put it another way: This is family entertainment in the best sense of the term, for which many families will be immensely grateful."[23]

Accolades

Year Nominee / work Award Result
2000 "Better Than I" Video Premier Award for Best Song Won[24]
2001 Joseph: King of Dreams Silver Angel Award for Feature Film Nominated
2001 Joseph: King of Dreams Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement in an Animated Home Video Production Nominated
2001 Penney Finkelman Cox (executive producer)
Steve Hickner (executive producer)
Jeffrey Katzenberg (executive producer)
Ken Tsumura (producer) 		DVD Exclusive Video Premiere Award for Best Animated Video Premiere Won
2001 Eugenia Bostwick-Singer
Marshall Goldberg
Raymond Singer
Joe Stillman 		DVD Exclusive Video Premiere Award for Best Screenplay Won
2001 Ben Affleck (voice)
Luc Chamberland (animation director: Joseph) 		DVD Exclusive Video Premiere Award for Best Animated Character Performance Nominated
2001 Rob LaDuca
Robert C. Ramirez 		DVD Exclusive Video Premiere Award for Best Directing Nominated
2001 Daniel Pelfrey DVD Exclusive Video Premiere Award for Best Original Score Nominated

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Animation outsourced to Bardel Animation Limited with additional animation outsourced to Big Fish Animation, Blue Sunflower, Canuck Creations, Character Builders, DreamWorks Animation, Dynomight Cartoons, Fil Cartoons, Giant Productions, Golden Bell Animation, Heart of Texas, Hits for Less, New Vision Productions, Ray Pang Effects, Red Rover, Spaff Animation, Starburst Animation, Tama Productions, Wang Film Productions and Wild Horse Animation Group.[1]

References

  1. ^ "Joseph: King of Dreams (Video 2000) - IMDb". IMDb.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g "Interview with Danny Pelfrey". Hans Zimmer Fansite. 2010-04-27. Archived from the original on 2014-06-01. Retrieved 2014-06-01.
  3. ^ a b c "Original Music Composer and Film Scorer". Danny Pelfrey. Retrieved 2014-06-01.
  4. ^ a b c d Ramirez, Robert (2000-11-07). "Out of Character: The Making of Joseph". Animation World Network. Retrieved 2014-05-30.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h . Crosswalk.com. 2000-11-03. Archived from the original on February 16, 2015. Retrieved 2014-06-01.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  6. ^ "Nassos Vakalis | Animation Insider- Animation interviews and articles". 2013-12-04. Archived from the original on 2014-06-01. Retrieved 2014-06-01.
  7. ^ http://www.soaringmusic.com/JosephSymphonicSuite.pdf[bare URL PDF]
  8. ^ Hettrick, Scott (July 27, 2000). "D'Works plans reign for 'Joseph' vid pic". Variety. Retrieved March 5, 2014.
  9. ^ . DreamWorks. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved March 22, 2014.
  10. ^ Armstrong, Josh (March 5, 2014). . Animation Scoop. Archived from the original on April 8, 2014. Retrieved March 5, 2014.
  11. ^ MacKall, Dandi Daley; Works, Dream (2000-11-01). Joseph, King of Dreams - Dandi Daley Mackall, Dream Works - Google Books. ISBN 9780849976940. Retrieved 2014-06-01.
  12. ^ MacKall, Dandi Daley (2000-11-01). Joseph, king of dreams - Dandi Daley Mackall - Google Books. ISBN 9780849976933. Retrieved 2014-06-01.
  13. ^ McCafferty, Catherine (2001-03-08). Joseph, King of Dreams: read-along - Catherine McCafferty - Google Books. ISBN 9780849976957. Retrieved 2014-06-01.
  14. ^ "Joseph: King of Dreams (2000)". Decentfilms.com. Retrieved 2014-05-30.
  15. ^ Harper, Erick (2000-12-11). . Dvdverdict.com. Archived from the original on 2014-09-01. Retrieved 2014-05-30.
  16. ^ "Joseph: King of Dreams | Video Review". Plugged In. Retrieved 2014-05-30.
  17. ^ "Lakeland Ledger - Google News Archive Search".
  18. ^ "Star-News - Google News Archive Search".
  19. ^ "The Movie Report Archive, Volume 77". TheMovieReport.com. Retrieved 2014-05-30.
  20. ^ "Joseph: King of Dreams (2000) …review and/or viewer comments • Christian Spotlight on the Movies •". Christiananswers.net. Retrieved 2014-05-30.
  21. ^ "Joseph: King of Dreams Movie Review". Commonsensemedia.org. 14 June 2007. Retrieved 2014-05-30.
  22. ^ "'Joseph: King of Dreams' Wisely Avoids the Gimmicks - Los Angeles Times". Articles.latimes.com. 2000-11-16. Retrieved 2014-05-30.
  23. ^ Leydon, Joe (November 6, 2000). "Review: 'Joseph: King of Dreams'". Variety. Retrieved May 30, 2014.
  24. ^ "The Hour - Google News Archive Search".

External links

 
Wikiquote has quotations related to Joseph: King of Dreams.

December 29, 2022
joseph, king, dreams, 2000, american, direct, video, animated, biblical, musical, drama, film, first, direct, video, production, from, dreamworks, animation, film, adaptation, story, joseph, from, book, genesis, bible, serves, prequel, 1998, film, prince, egyp. Joseph King of Dreams is a 2000 American direct to video animated biblical musical drama film It is the first direct to video production from DreamWorks Animation The film is an adaptation of the story of Joseph from the Book of Genesis in the Bible and serves as a prequel to the 1998 film The Prince of Egypt as the biblical narrative of Joseph happens before that of Moses Composer Daniel Pelfrey stated that the film was designed as a companion piece to The Prince of Egypt noting that though Joseph turned out to be very different than The Prince of Egypt it was very challenging and rewarding 2 3 Joseph King of DreamsDVD coverDirected byRobert Ramirez Rob LaDucaScreenplay byEugenia Bostwick Singer Raymond Singer Joe Stillman Marshall GoldbergBased onBook of GenesisProduced byKen TsumuraStarringBen Affleck Mark Hamill Richard Herd Maureen McGovern Jodi Benson Judith Light James Eckhouse Richard McGonagleEdited byMichael AndrewsMusic byDaniel PelfreyProductioncompanyDreamWorks Animation a Distributed byDreamWorks Home EntertainmentRelease dateNovember 7 2000 2000 11 07 Running time74 minutesCountryUnited StatesLanguageEnglishCo director Robert Ramirez has said that whilst the reviews for the film had generally been very good there was a period when the film was not working very well when the storytelling was heavy handed and klunky 4 Contents 1 Plot 2 Cast 2 1 Additional voices 3 Production 3 1 Conception and development 3 2 Early work 3 3 Screening and production troubles 3 4 Cracking the story 3 5 Casting and approach to characters 4 Music 4 1 Score 4 2 Songs 5 Release 5 1 Book tie ins 6 Critical response 6 1 Accolades 7 See also 8 Notes 9 References 10 External linksPlot EditJoseph is the youngest and most favored of Jacob s eleven sons regarded as a Miracle Child because his mother Rachel had been thought infertile I am a Miracle Child Joseph grows conceited under his father s special treatment and his elder half brothers resent him for being favored although Joseph desires to be accepted amongst them Bloom One night Joseph dreams of a pack of wolves attacking the family s flock and the next day the dream comes true Another dream follows in which Joseph sees his brothers bowing before him to which on telling them this they hatch a plan to get rid of him led by Judah They sell him to a slave trader and take his torn coat back to their parents convincing them that Joseph was killed by wolves In Egypt Joseph is bought by Potiphar the captain of Pharaoh s guards Marketplace and gradually becomes his most trusted attendant as well as befriending his beautiful niece Asenath Whatever Road s at Your Feet However Potiphar s wife Zuleika attempts to seduce Joseph who refuses her advances Infuriated Zuleika falsely accuses Joseph of making advances on her Potiphar nearly has him executed but Zuleika feeling guilty stops him Though Potiphar realizes that Joseph is innocent of the crimes he reluctantly has him thrown in prison to preserve his reputation Joseph finds himself imprisoned alongside the Pharaoh s cupbearer and his baker and interprets their dreams which reveal that one will be put to death and the other will return to his position at the palace Sure enough the baker is executed and the cupbearer is returned to his job The cupbearer however forgets his promise to tell the Pharaoh about Joseph leaving him to languish in jail Meanwhile Asenath secretly supplies food to Joseph regularly through the prison s skylight However she is nearly spotted by a guard while doing so one evening during a thunderstorm and is forced to drop the basket of food much to Joseph s anger At his lowest point Joseph climbs the walls of the jail to the skylight questioning God for his misfortunes and demanding to know why everything has happened to him before slipping falling back down and being knocked unconscious Upon waking the next day Joseph finds renewed purpose in caring for a small dying tree which is the only source of green in the prison and slowly helps it grow bigger and healthier as he reflects on his past and begins to trust in God s plan again You Know Better Than I Soon the Pharaoh becomes troubled by nightmares which none of his advisors can interpret Remembering Joseph the Pharaoh s cupbearer advises him to send the now widowed Potiphar to retrieve him The two share a happy reunion with Potiphar apologizing to Joseph for imprisoning him and Joseph forgiving Potiphar for it Joseph interprets the dreams as warnings of seven years of abundance being followed by seven years of famine to come after that may wipe out Egypt and suggests that a fifth of each year s harvest will be kept back for rationing Impressed the Pharaoh makes Joseph his minister and second in command under the name Zaphnath Paaneah In the following years Joseph s guidance not only saves the Egyptians from starvation but allows them to sell excess grain to their neighbors who were also devastated by the famine Joseph marries Asenath and has two sons Manasseh and Ephraim with her More than You Take Eventually the sons of Jacob arrive in Egypt to buy grain due to a famine in their homeland They do not recognize Joseph who refuses to sell to them and accuses them of spying The brothers offer to buy the grain with the silver they sold Joseph for 20 years before claiming that they will need it to feed their elderly father and youngest brother Joseph still refuses to sell them grain and imprisons Simeon until they can prove that they have another brother to support Bloom Reprise They reappear with Benjamin Jacob s twelfth son and Joseph s almost identical younger brother born during his absence and who is now doted upon by Jacob Benjamin tells Joseph that Rachel has died and Jacob has been inconsolable ever since Joseph was declared dead Simeon is released and Joseph invites the brothers to a feast After the feast Joseph has his golden chalice concealed in Benjamin s bag while no one is looking where upon its discovery he orders that Benjamin shall be enslaved to see how the other brothers will react and is astonished when they offer themselves in Benjamin s place Grief stricken and ashamed Judah confesses to having sold Benjamin s older brother into slavery a crime which has haunted him and his brothers ever since for twenty years and that they cannot return without Benjamin as it would break their father s heart to lose another son Shocked at and touched by their change of heart Joseph reveals himself to them They reconcile and Joseph invites them to live with their wives and children in Egypt Shortly thereafter he is happily reunited with his father and meets his brothers wives and children The Hebrews then enter Egypt unaware of the hardships that they would have to face in later years Cast EditBen Affleck Joseph speaking voice David Campbell Joseph singing voice Mark Hamill Judah Richard Herd Jacob speaking voice Russell Buchanan Jacob singing voice Maureen McGovern Rachel Jodi Benson Asenath Judith Light Zuleika James Eckhouse Potiphar Richard McGonagle Rameses I Dan Castellaneta Auctioneer Horse Trader Rene Auberjonois Butler Ken Hudson Campbell Baker Steven Weber Simeon Slave Trader Jess Harnell Issachar Lead Trader Piera Coppola Zuleika s servant Additional Voices Emily Eby Servant Matt Levin Benjamin Jeff Bennett Levi Tom Virtue Reuben Kevin Michael Richardson Potiphar s guard Additional voices Edit Royce D Applegate Roger Aaron Brown Debi Derryberry Murphy Dunne Jessica Gee Nicholas Guest Wendy Hoffman Luisa Leschin Randall Montgomery Jonathan Nichols Bibi Osterwald Michelle Ruff Doug StoneProduction EditThis section contains too many and overly lengthy quotations for an encyclopedic entry Please help improve the article by presenting facts as a neutrally worded summary with appropriate citations Consider transferring direct quotations to Wikiquote or for entire works to Wikisource March 2020 Conception and development Edit Development for Joseph started while The Prince of Egypt was being made so the same crew worked on both films and the wide group of ministers served on both projects as consultants Work on the animated movie was based in Los Angeles and Canada and nearly 500 artists contributed to the project 5 Executive Producer Penny Finkelman Cox and DreamWorks employee Kelly Sooter noted the challenge in telling a Bible story faithfully yet still making it interesting and marketable we had to take powerful themes and tell them in a way that s compelling and accessible for all ages They also noted that though it was destined to be a direct to video project from the beginning the quality of the animation does not suffer Our approach to the movie was to develop it with the same quality and storytelling that we did with The Prince of Egypt Creatives involved also noted that one of the most challenging parts of the movie was creating Joseph s dream sequences which look like a Van Gogh painting in motion 5 Nassos Vakalis who helped storyboard and animate the film said I had to travel a lot to Canada to see work done in a few studios that were subcontracting part of the movie 6 Composer Daniel Pelfrey explained I must say the writers and directors did a great job staying true to the story and bringing it into a presentation for a contemporary audience 2 Early work Edit Ramirez explained the early stages of the film s production December of 1997 was a great time on the production While the script was being fleshed out Paul Duncan the head background painter and Brian Andrews story artist were creating some phenomenal conceptual artwork Francisco Avalos and Nasos Vakalis were doing storyboards based on a rough story outline Weeks later we started assembling a very talented story crew that included artists that had both television and feature experience We had a script that was well structured and followed the Bible story fairly accurately Once the First Act was storyboarded we filmed the panels recorded a temp vocal track with music and edited it all together to create the storyreel We were excited and ready for our First Act screening for Jeffrey Katzenberg which was set for an early weekend morning in the New Year of 1998 4 Screening and production troubles Edit Ramirez explained how things turned awry at the film screening When the lights came on in the screening room the silence was deafening All the execs put down their yellow legal notepads and headed down the hall to the conference room which for me felt miles away When we all sat down Jeffrey looked up and said three words Nothing made sense He was right Nothing made sense We followed the Bible story tightly The script had structure We storyboarded it word for word yet it fell flat on its face It all suddenly felt like a horrible horrible disaster and the worst part of it all was that I didn t know how to fix it I was deeply confused and our aggressive production schedule didn t allow for the story re working that usually takes place on a theatrical feature Share Stallings one of our creative executives on the project was very supportive and offered encouragement to the crew She assured me that at least two sequences could be saved by clarifying some visuals and re writing some dialogue I couldn t see it at the time although she turned out to be right The only thing I could think about was that nothing made sense Cracking the story Edit Ramirez explained they cracked the story by returning to the basics of storytelling When we started analyzing the characters in Joseph we began to work from the inside out as opposed to just putting together a story Once we delved into the minds of these characters and dissected their personalities we started making some important breakthroughs What does Joseph want To be a part of his brothers lives and reunite with his family What does Judah Joseph s older brother want He wants the love and positive attention that his father Jacob reserves only for Joseph What does Jacob want Jacob wants to show the world how much he loves his favorite son Joseph Why does Jacob love Joseph so much more than his other sons Because Joseph is the spitting image of his favorite wife He s the first born son of the woman he waited for all his life to marry Once we discovered the wants of the main characters it was simple to figure out what actions they would take to satisfy them Another important discovery was finding the voice of each individual Once we had a deeper understanding of our characters and what made them tick the scenes had a new spark of life that had been missing all along The characters were now driving the scenes instead of vice versa In time ideas that were born out of character helped blend sequences so that they flowed into each other instead of feeling disconnected 4 Casting and approach to characters Edit Mark Hamill who was cast as Judah Joseph s elder brother explained that the choices he made regarding his character Judah starts out at a high station in his family structure and that s all disrupted by this little child who claims to have visions of the future he says Eventually it causes Judah to lead all the brothers against Joseph I don t think of him as a villain In many ways he s like all people wondering How will this affect my own life He s self centered and has to re evaluate all his preconceived notions 5 Ramirez explained one of the main themes in the film by analyzing how Joseph reacts upon seeing his brothers for the first time after they sold him into slavery These strangers turned out to be his brothers Now it was Joseph s turn Would he follow his initial gut instinct and enslave them Abuse them Kill them Or would he rise above hatred and forgive them In a nutshell that s what the crux of the story is about forgiveness 4 Jodi Benson was thrilled to be cast as Joseph s wife Asenath after seeing the work that had been done with Moses in The Prince of Egypt Benson didn t audition for the part and was instead offered it Unlike some of the other characters she provides both the speaking and singing voices in her role It took twelve days to record her lines and the only other voice actor she worked with was the singing voice for Joseph David Campbell Benson explained her character is the voice of reason and the voice of trying to do the right thing to reconcile Joseph with his brothers Her character was given a much larger role than what is presented in The Holy Bible 5 Music EditScore Edit All songs were produced and arranged by Danny Pelfrey and he also composed the score Hans Zimmer the composer for The Prince of Egypt had approved of Pelfrey taking over his role after the latter a relative unknown at the time did a couple of interviews at DreamWorks Pelfrey explained Through the process Zimmer gave me input as to what they like to hear mostly through the arranging and production of the songs After that he got too busy but he gave me the foundation and communication skills I needed to successfully complete the project 2 After receiving the job Pelfrey read as many different translations of the original Bible text as he could to find story nuances that he could incorporate In regard to his collaboration with DreamWorks he said Before starting the input was pretty sketchy but it was an ongoing process with lots of dialog with writers producers and directors along the way Jeffery Katzenberg always ultimately approved everything He was directly involved with the entire process 2 He also explained I had never done a musical before and Zimmer helped me incorporate the sounds from Prince of Egypt as well as guided me in the song production 3 Pelfrey used choral choirs sparingly in his score with notable examples being a small female group in the beginning for what I was calling God s theme and in the big scene at the end which was the reunion of Joseph his brothers and Jacob his father This was because the effect reminded him of angels adding I also I think it was more appropriate to the sonic tapestry and created a more uplifting feeling 2 He described his musical style in the film as World Orchestral noting that the instruments used were more regional than specifically Egyptian incorporating Duduk Ney Rebaba Ban Di Bansuri Moroccan Flute Zampona and a great variety of percussion including Djmbe Darabuk Dholak Udu etc etc In regard to using instrumentation from an inaccurate historical context he said I always thought that the exact historical and geographical use of the instruments is not as important as the evocative or dramatic effect So I didn t really concern myself too much with right place right time 2 A temp track was made for the score though Dreamworks were not too attached to it some parts were tracked with Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis by Vaughan Williams Pelfrey said Since I had never done a musical before it was interesting to note the difference between producing these songs as opposed to doing a record In a musical the songs advance the story and I had to help that process as well as make the songs belong to the fabric of the film and the palette of the score Although this was animation it certainly did not call for a cartoon approach due to the depth of the story The film needed more of a live action treatment to the score Joseph King of Dreams also allowed me to work with the best producers in the business and helped make this a very successful experience both personally and professionally 3 He explained Lucas Richman is the reason the Symphonic Suite from Joseph was created He contacted me about wanting to present it in a concert he was doing in Knoxville where he is the conductor and music director so I created the suite especially for them He has created a vibrant and thriving orchestra there and they were all very welcoming to me It was performed in LA by the Los Angeles Jewish Symphony in August 2010 2 7 Songs Edit A soundtrack was not released with the film 5 All tracks are written by John Bucchino No TitlePerformer s Length1 Miracle Child Maureen McGovern Russell Buchanan amp David Campbell 2 Bloom Maureen McGovern 3 Marketplace Chorus 4 Whatever Road s at Your Feet David Campbell 5 You Know Better Than I David Campbell 6 More than You Take David Campbell amp Jodi Benson 7 Bloom Reprise Jodi Benson Release EditAs the first and only DreamWorks Animation direct to video film Joseph King of Dreams was released by DreamWorks Home Entertainment on VHS and DVD on November 7 2000 8 9 Special features included Sing a long songs storybook read a long programming an interactive trivia game and printable activity and coloring sheets 5 The film was released by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment on Blu ray on May 13 2014 as part of a triple film set along with DreamWorks Animation s The Road to El Dorado 2000 and Sinbad Legend of the Seven Seas 2003 10 The film was re released by Universal Pictures Home Entertainment on DVD on February 1 2018 without the DreamWorks Animation Home Entertainment label and again on June 5 2018 under the DreamWorks Animation Home Entertainment label The direct to video film was made available to Christian retailers but mainly will be sold in traditional retailers such as Walmart and Target and video stores The sale success of Joseph was to some degree influence whether more animated Bible stories would be released by DreamWorks 5 Book tie ins Edit Nashville publisher Tommy Nelson the kids division of the Christian publishing company Thomas Nelson Inc partnered DreamWorks to publish four companion book titles based on the film and has exclusive publishing rights to Joseph a read along tape a sticker storybook a 48 page hardcover storybook with illustrations from the film and a smaller hardcover storybook which retells the story of Joseph 5 One of them My Sticker Storybook Joseph and his Brothers published 1 Nov 2000 was a sticker storybook that followed the plot Joseph and was written by Dandi Daley Mackall 11 The 48 page storybook published 1 Nov 2000 and sometimes subtitled Classic Edition featured images from the film a retelling by Mackall and was a stand alone book as well as a splendid companion to the video also written by Mackall 12 Joseph King of Dreams read along 8 Mar 2001 was a full color storybook and accompanying cassette which capture d all the emotional and dramatic high points Written by Catherine McCafferty it included the song Better Than I and dialogue from the film 13 A fourth book was published as well Critical response Edit source source You Know Better Than I sung by Joseph David Campbell was critically acclaimed by many critics one of the few universally praised elements of the direct to video film While praising the film s merits including animation storytelling and music much of the criticism came with comparing it negatively to its theatrically released predecessor The Prince of Egypt The song You Know Better Than I was singled out for praise by numerous critics as were the van Gogh inspired dream sequences Many noted that the animated hieroglyph effects were similar to those from Prince and suggested that the film stuck closer to the Bible source material than the previous film had DecentFilmsGuide gave the movie a B for Overall Recommendability and 3 4 stars for Artistic Entertainment Value writing Artistically the best thing about Joseph King of Dreams is the visionary animation work in the dream sequences I caught my breath at the first glimpse of these dreams which look like living flowing Van Goghs However it wrote Joseph King of Dreams is not remotely in the same class as The Prince of Egypt It is much more a children s movie It said the songs while cheerful and uplifting are generally unmemorable and described the animation as fine but not wonderful It noted that once one stops making unfair comparisons to a theatrical film made on a much bigger budget Joseph King of Dreams is very much worthwhile on its own more modest terms Nevertheless the review complimented the ominous tune Marketplace and said In one small way Joseph King of Dreams even outshines the earlier film The spirituality of its signature song You Know Better Than I is much more profound than anything in the more mainstream There Can Be Miracles 14 DVD Verdict wrote Joseph King of Dreams will shatter any expectations you may have about direct to video animated features This is no halfhearted attempt to cash in on the success of The Prince of Egypt but is instead a fully realized and carefully crafted story of its own This film could easily have been released theatrically although its running time is maybe just a bit short for that praising its animation music and storytelling 15 PluggedIn wrote while not as eye popping as Prince of Egypt the film is impressive for a direct to video title Artfully executed dream sequences Uplifting songs It also takes fewer liberties than Prince of Egypt did 16 Lakeland Ledger said At its best the story communicated the sense of desperation and yearning that make up the tale and provides a sense of the emotions that underscore the story 17 Jan Crain Rudeen of Star News wrote As with Prince of Egypt the best part of Joseph for me was the discussion it sparked afterward with my kids 18 The Movie Report gave the film 3 4 stars writing while clearly not on the level of that 1998 classic it is a solid piece of work that is about on par with the SKG s spring theatrical release The Road to El Dorado Joseph is a new technical benchmark for straight to tape animated features putting Disney s chintzy home video efforts to shame It added Bucchino s work is downright forgettable the only song making the slightest inkling of an impression is Joseph s and the film s central number Better Than I 19 ChristianAnswers net gave the film 4 5 stars writing Although the visual effects were not as outstanding as in The Prince of Egypt the storyline does stay closer to the biblical version The site added The music was enjoyable especially the song Better Than I 20 CommonSenseMedia rated the film 3 5 stars writing The animation is accomplished Particularly compelling are the dream sequences which almost look like animated Van Gogh paintings however noting it lacks The Prince of Egypt s poignant tunes and powerful storytelling 21 The Los Angeles Times wrote with its beautiful big screen quality flowing animation and striking computer generated imagery and with its dignity and heart is a fine telling of the biblical story 22 Variety said King of Dreams has just as much cross generational appeal as its predecessor and doesn t make the mistake of skewing primarily toward moppets To put it another way This is family entertainment in the best sense of the term for which many families will be immensely grateful 23 Accolades Edit Year Nominee work Award Result2000 Better Than I Video Premier Award for Best Song Won 24 2001 Joseph King of Dreams Silver Angel Award for Feature Film Nominated2001 Joseph King of Dreams Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement in an Animated Home Video Production Nominated2001 Penney Finkelman Cox executive producer Steve Hickner executive producer Jeffrey Katzenberg executive producer Ken Tsumura producer DVD Exclusive Video Premiere Award for Best Animated Video Premiere Won2001 Eugenia Bostwick SingerMarshall GoldbergRaymond SingerJoe Stillman DVD Exclusive Video Premiere Award for Best Screenplay Won2001 Ben Affleck voice Luc Chamberland animation director Joseph DVD Exclusive Video Premiere Award for Best Animated Character Performance Nominated2001 Rob LaDucaRobert C Ramirez DVD Exclusive Video Premiere Award for Best Directing Nominated2001 Daniel Pelfrey DVD Exclusive Video Premiere Award for Best Original Score NominatedSee also EditList of films featuring slaveryNotes Edit Animation outsourced to Bardel Animation Limited with additional animation outsourced to Big Fish Animation Blue Sunflower Canuck Creations Character Builders DreamWorks Animation Dynomight Cartoons Fil Cartoons Giant Productions Golden Bell Animation Heart of Texas Hits for Less New Vision Productions Ray Pang Effects Red Rover Spaff Animation Starburst Animation Tama Productions Wang Film Productions and Wild Horse Animation Group 1 References Edit Joseph King of Dreams Video 2000 IMDb IMDb a b c d e f g Interview with Danny Pelfrey Hans Zimmer Fansite 2010 04 27 Archived from the original on 2014 06 01 Retrieved 2014 06 01 a b c Original Music Composer and Film Scorer Danny Pelfrey Retrieved 2014 06 01 a b c d Ramirez Robert 2000 11 07 Out of Character The Making of Joseph Animation World Network Retrieved 2014 05 30 a b c d e f g h Archive Joseph King of Dreams Crosswalk com 2000 11 03 Archived from the original on February 16 2015 Retrieved 2014 06 01 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint unfit URL link Nassos Vakalis Animation Insider Animation interviews and articles 2013 12 04 Archived from the original on 2014 06 01 Retrieved 2014 06 01 http www soaringmusic com JosephSymphonicSuite pdf bare URL PDF Hettrick Scott July 27 2000 D Works plans reign for Joseph vid pic Variety Retrieved March 5 2014 Joseph King of Dreams About the DVD DreamWorks Archived from the original on March 3 2016 Retrieved March 22 2014 Armstrong Josh March 5 2014 DreamWorks to release Chicken Run El Dorado and more in Triple Feature Blu ray sets Animation Scoop Archived from the original on April 8 2014 Retrieved March 5 2014 MacKall Dandi Daley Works Dream 2000 11 01 Joseph King of Dreams Dandi Daley Mackall Dream Works Google Books ISBN 9780849976940 Retrieved 2014 06 01 MacKall Dandi Daley 2000 11 01 Joseph king of dreams Dandi Daley Mackall Google Books ISBN 9780849976933 Retrieved 2014 06 01 McCafferty Catherine 2001 03 08 Joseph King of Dreams read along Catherine McCafferty Google Books ISBN 9780849976957 Retrieved 2014 06 01 Joseph King of Dreams 2000 Decentfilms com Retrieved 2014 05 30 Harper Erick 2000 12 11 DVD Verdict Review Joseph King Of Dreams Dvdverdict com Archived from the original on 2014 09 01 Retrieved 2014 05 30 Joseph King of Dreams Video Review Plugged In Retrieved 2014 05 30 Lakeland Ledger Google News Archive Search Star News Google News Archive Search The Movie Report Archive Volume 77 TheMovieReport com Retrieved 2014 05 30 Joseph King of Dreams 2000 review and or viewer comments Christian Spotlight on the Movies Christiananswers net Retrieved 2014 05 30 Joseph King of Dreams Movie Review Commonsensemedia org 14 June 2007 Retrieved 2014 05 30 Joseph King of Dreams Wisely Avoids the Gimmicks Los Angeles Times Articles latimes com 2000 11 16 Retrieved 2014 05 30 Leydon Joe November 6 2000 Review Joseph King of Dreams Variety Retrieved May 30 2014 The Hour Google News Archive Search External links Edit Wikiquote has quotations related to Joseph King of Dreams Official website Joseph King of Dreams at IMDb Joseph King of Dreams at The Big Cartoon DataBase Joseph King of Dreams at Rotten Tomatoes Retrieved from https en 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