Generations of artists, filmmakers, and musicians have been inspired by Disney films, TV shows, and songs. Some actually grew up to work for the “House of Mouse.” Others just made their own Disney-esque creations without any official approval from the company.

Escape From Tomorrow

This full-length movie caused a stir at the Sundance Film Festival in 2013 and led to much speculation over whether or not Disney would sue Randy Moore, the director responsible. Moore and his crew snuck into various Disney theme parks over a period of several weeks and filmed the movie without the company’s permission…or even anyone’s knowledge. Disney didn’t know about it until it screened at Sundance. Escape From Tomorrow’s plot follows a man who has a mental breakdown while on vacation at Disney World with his family. The surreal film, which isn’t even close to being as family-friendly as the average Disney flick, has been compared to the works of director David Lynch (Twin Peaks, Mulholland Drive). Disney eventually decided not to sue after concluding that legal action would only give the movie tons of free publicity.

Music Inspired By The Life And Times Of Scrooge

This strange concept album isn’t about Ebenezer Scrooge of A Christmas Carol. It’s about Scrooge McDuck was recorded by Tuomas Holopainen, keyboardist for Nightwish, a Finnish progressive metal band. Comic books and cartoons about Donald Duck, Scrooge McDuck, and all their duck relatives have been enormously popular in Scandinavia for decades, which explains Holopainen’s idea. The album itself follows the storyline of The Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck, a graphic novel compilation of the most popular stories concerning the “world’s richest duck.” Holopainen even recruited longtime Scrooge artist Don Rosa to design the album cover, which depicts Scrooge toting a bag of gold while wearing a Davy Crockett hat. Holopainen managed to skirt copyright laws—and Disney’s ire—by not including “McDuck” in the title and showing him from behind on the cover.

Here’s a video for the track “A Lifetime of Adventure.”