On October 16, 1923, Walt Disney and brother Roy signed a contract with Margaret Winkler to make a series of animated cartoons called Alice Comedies. What was then known as The Disney Brothers Studio eventually became The Walt Disney Company, a multi-billion dollar creative force crossing movies, TV, video games and theme parks.

With Disney celebrating its 90th birthday today, we here at Digital Spy are marking this momentous anniversary by picking out our favorite Disney movies. Disney has produced and released an eclectic range of films crossing classic animation (see Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs), live-action blockbusters (Tron, Pirates of the Caribbean) and trail-blazing Pixar offerings (Toy Story, Wall-E).

Without further delay, here are 12 movies from the Disney back catalog that we absolutely adore...

Tom Eames, Entertainment Reporter - Robin HoodThere have been many adaptations of Robin Hood over the decades, from Russell Crowe's multi-accented gruff take, to the BBC's younger version with Jonas Armstrong, and Kevin Costner going all Bryan Adams in the 1990s. However, like with the Muppets' version of A Christmas Carol, the Disney animation of Robin Hood is perhaps the most enjoyable in a strange way.

It has the classic Disney animation style, some brilliant songs, one of animation's best romances, a great bunch of fun for all the family, and it is genuinely funny. Turning each iconic character into an animal works brilliantly somehow, especially Phil Harris as Little John and Peter Ustinov as Prince John. Plus, it has Roger Miller's 'Ooh-De-Lally' which makes it worth watching alone.

Simon Reynolds, Movies Editor - The Muppet Christmas CarolThis was the first Muppet film I saw at the cinema and it's one that's stayed with me ever since. A Christmas Carol is a story that's seemingly ingrained in your mind from birth, but with the Muppets front and center it all feels so wonderfully wacky and original.

The casting is also spot on (Statler and Waldorf as the Marleys!), and even though this came in Michael Caine's supposed "wilderness years" I still think it's up there with one of his best performances. This film crops up on TV every December, and it wouldn't be Christmas without it.

Sam Rigby, Entertainment Reporter - Finding NemoWhen Finding Nemo swam into cinemas in 2003, I was a 12-year-old who hadn't been to see a Disney film since Hercules six years before. For me, Nemo was an instant Disney classic. From the amazing recreation of the Great Barrier Reef and the unforgettable characters, to Thomas Newman's beautiful score, Nemo had everything that makes Disney so appealing to film fans of all ages.

As Disney/Pixar announced sequel after sequel in the years that followed, I started to wonder if we would ever get the chance to revisit Marlin, Dory and Nemo. The announcement of Finding Dory earlier this year was a very exciting moment for this particular Disney fanatic but producers will have a tough time topping the magic of Nemo. Here's hoping they get it right. But if not, at least we have this brilliant film to revisit for years to come. And remember, just keep swimming...

Frances Taylor, Entertainment Reporter - The Little MermaidFrom classic shanties such as 'Under the Sea' and 'Kiss the Girl', to a shoal of friendly and colourful characters (who didn't want to be best friends with Sebastian?), The Little Mermaid was - and still is - my all-time favorite Disney movie.

Every time I had a day off 'ill' from school, the pyjamas would be on and I'd stick on my worn-out VHS of the 1989 animated classic. The record number of times I watched The Little Mermaid in a single day was four. Nearly 20 years on, that's still something that I'm proud of.

Catriona Wightman, US News Editor - The Lion KingI've always loved The Lion King - when it came out, there were bitter arguments about who would get to play Nala in our faithful playground re-enactments - but watching it a few months ago I realized just how masterful it is. Not only are there the obvious Hamlet comparisons, but it's a surprisingly dark film, filled with ruminations on power and death.

I'm not ashamed to say it made me have a little cry, but it's also massively enjoyable with great songs, beautiful animations, touching romance and excellent humor. It's a real triumph.

Mayer Nissim, News Editor - Cool RunningsBased (loosely) on the real-life story of the 1988 Jamaican bobsled team, Cool Runnings is a story about fighting prejudice, triumphing against the odds and above all else the power of friendship to overcome all obstacles. Yes, it's as cheesy as it sounds, but that hasn't stopped me from sobbing every time I've watched it (into the double figures, if you're asking).

Led by ex-bobsled champ/cheat Irv Blitzer (John Candy in one of his last roles) three failed sprinters and egg-carrying pushcart racer Sanka make it to Calgary for the Winter Olympics. There are great one-liners, countless classic scenes, endlessly quotable moments ("I see pride! I see power! I see a bad-ass mutha, that don't take no crap off of nobody!") and a bittersweet ending that explodes the sports movie clichés to prove that it really isn't the winning, but the taking part that counts.

Emma Dibdin, Entertainment Reporter - DumboThe best children's movies are the ones that leave you very slightly scarred for life. Many of Disney's most beloved outings wouldn't have had half as much staying power were it not for their dark edges - ask anyone which scene they remember most from Bambi, and odds are they'll reply "Bambi's mom", with a tearful thousand-yard-stare. It's safe to assume that Disney has provided many children with their first experience of death.

So while Dumbo isn't the most narratively perfect Disney movie, it's the one that traumatised this writer the most, with a one-two punch of heartbreak and terror. First, persecuted baby elephant Dumbo visits his wrongfully imprisoned mom and, unable to reach her through the bars of her cell, tearfully hugs her trunk (we've got something in our eye).

And then he gets inadvertently wasted (supposedly on alcohol, but we ain't buying it), and Pink Elephants On Parade happens. Cue a lifetime of nightmares.

Daniel Sperling, Entertainment Reporter - The Hunchback of Notre DameMuch like its wart-ridden, buck-toothed protagonist, The Hunchback of Notre Dame is somewhat unloved despite its hidden charms. This writer is a big fan of the Disney practice of giving kids a slice of whimsy with a side order of nightmares, and Hunchback is perhaps the film that best handles that balancing act. It's Gothic Disney, reworking Victor Hugo's chokingly bleak 1831 novel to give everyone a happy ending and the chance for big colourful songs, but admirably keeping its distinctly un-kid friendly themes of religious persecution and lust-fuelled genocide.

Thus, alongside comic relief gargoyles and an eccentric gypsy showman, you have the awesomely evil Judge Claude Frollo, who basically steals the movie from its hero, Quasimodo. Throughout the film Frollo contemplates drowning babies, happily orders floggings, burns entire families in their homes and destroys half of Paris just because his faith forbids him from having sex with this film's 'princess', Esmerelda - all the while proclaiming himself to be a man of God. He's got no supernatural powers, just a misplaced sense of moral superiority teamed with callousness and a sadistic streak - now that is freakin' terrifying.

Hunchback looks absolutely gorgeous as well, bringing 15th century Paris to life with sweeping cityscapes of rich colors and conveying the scale and spectacle of the Notre Dame cathedral with ease. It may not be an obvious choice for the title of best Disney movie, but if Hunchback can keep the kids clapping while exploring sensitive ideas far beyond their years, and look gorgeous doing so, it deserves recognition.

The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)

Lewis Corner, Music Reporter - Toy Story1995 was the year Pixar Animation Studios and Walt Disney Pictures brought toys to life. Tapping into the age-old suspicions of little children everywhere, Toy Story follows cowboy doll Woody and astronaut action hero Buzz Lightyear coming to life whenever humans are not looking.

Their tempestuous relationship from initial animosity to the best of friends is resolved throughout the film like most of the company's past flicks, but it was its groundbreaking animation and snappy wit which led Disney and children's films in general into a new era. It's a classic that, truth be told, still has us wondering if toys really do come to life.

Kate Goodacre, Chief Sub-Editor - The AristocatsEverybody wants to be a cat. Well, nearly everyone. Getting kidnapped and abandoned in the middle of the countryside by a nefarious butler doesn't immediately support that line of thinking, you'd have to admit - but The Aristocats sure packs a hell of a lot of feel-good feline hi-jinks into its 78-minute running time.

Boasting an impressive voice cast (including Eva Gabor as Duchess, Phil 'Baloo' Harris as Thomas O'Malley and Disney veteran Sterling Holloway as heroic mouse Roquefort), The Aristocats also possesses a killer soundtrack, memorable characters (drunken geese, eccentric lawyers, jazz band beatnik street cats) and some evocative animation. The scene where Duchess and Thomas are perched on the rooftops admiring the Parisian skyline has stuck in my memory since I was a little girl.

And did I mention there were kittens? Adorable if slightly precocious kittens? Yep. Case closed.

Morgan Jeffery, TV Reporter - Beauty and the BeastYou can keep your 1980s Ron Perlman TV nonsense and your CW-fied brooding hormones, when it comes to adaptations of La Belle et la Bête, Disney's 1991 animated epic comes out on top. It has genuine wit ("If it's not baroque, don't fix it!"), some big scares for the kids (I'm thinking of the wolf attack) and moments of high drama - pretty sure I let out a high-pitched yelp as a little 'un when the dastardly Gaston plunged a knife into the Beast's back.

In Belle and the Beast's relationship, it also features one of the Mouse House's most compelling romances - though we all know that the Beast was better before he turned back into the handsome prince - and an utterly unforgettable cast of supporting characters. Who doesn't love Lumiere and Cogsworth?

And as a final note, Beauty and the Beast - since adapted into a Broadway musical - boasts some of the greatest songs ever committed to the Disney canon. This writer has a particular affection for Gaston's boisterous ballad below...

Robert Copsey, Music Editor - AladdinI was 4 years old when Aladdin was released, but 21 years after first falling in love with it, for me it remains up there as one of Disney's best. The two obvious highlights are 1) Robin Williams's brilliantly bonkers voicing of the Genie and 2) The musical numbers, which were thoroughly deserving of the two Oscars they won at the time.

But beyond that, between the film's plot - which loosely finds "street rat" Aladdin break free from the shackles of his homeland Agrahbah after winning the heart of the Sultan's daughter Princess Jasmine - and a brilliant supporting cast including Jafar and anthropomorphized sidekicks Abu and Iago, it's the combination of a heart-warming love story with spectacular action sequences and a sophisticated comic flair that appeals to kids and adults are what make Aladdin a Disney classic.