tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post1961896933032287790..comments2024-02-08T07:33:49.907-08:00Comments on Re-Imagineering: Sleeping Beauty to Reawaken!Mr Bankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12952506736745891323noreply@blogger.comBlogger62125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-11927031610313074732008-09-18T10:36:00.000-07:002008-09-18T10:36:00.000-07:00i definitely critique disney on everything.....im ...i definitely critique disney on everything.....im VERY particular on what disney does.....i pretty much understand the type of things Disney wanted for his park....so given that id like to say that i have high hopes for this attraction....with all that has been said, i believe that if disney does what they said they would, then this will be mostly the past blended with more modern effects....i heard that the goons' eyes will be like the 50s....i cant wait....i havent been in the castle in 17 years and when i went to go in it, they said it was closed forever....and it broke my heart forever....but now....ill get to see it again...AND remember because the dvd comes with a virtual walkthrough of the original attraction.....even if you guys want to be negative....i wont....because i believe that this will be where old and new memories collide.....Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-37145184065736793342008-08-13T17:35:00.000-07:002008-08-13T17:35:00.000-07:00I saw the post about Penelore llc. I wrote them an...I saw the post about Penelore llc. I wrote them and asked if I could come visit their shop (it's only 20 minutes from WDW). I reached Dave Ensign who was very enthusiastic and invited me to the shop right away. I can't tell any of you how cool the place is. It's like I walked into wed imagineering in the 60's just a little bit smaller. They have these autographed pictures of wed legends everywhere. Harriet Burns, Marc Davis, Perry Russ, Lee Nessler etc. When I asked what this had to do with their work, Dave kindly told me that Penelore was here BECAUSE of these great people. Dave was great and took me to lunch. He started to tell me about Penelore's future projects and I was completely captivated. I don't think he ate a bite but he left me so inspired and as a "disneyland museum" fan I can finally see that it hasn't died. <BR/><BR/>Hey. I'm not a fan of Disney subbing things out to outside vendors BUT it's good to know that there are companies/people who live and breath Walt's vision. <BR/><BR/>Blast me if you want to but it's true. I've seen it for myself.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-1449652020768333052008-08-03T07:34:00.000-07:002008-08-03T07:34:00.000-07:00And why HASN'T there been a tribute to Harriet Bur...And why HASN'T there been a tribute to Harriet Burns on here?!? For shame.Capt. Tomorrowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03382606555081631383noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-58753212598982708762008-07-31T07:34:00.000-07:002008-07-31T07:34:00.000-07:00The problem with all they anonymous posts is that ...The problem with all they anonymous posts is that it is impossible to keep track of who is saying what.<BR/><BR/>I assumed that the anonymous person who suggested that we put the skyway zooming through the castle and past tiny dioramas was in fact the same person who thought Walt "just did it". Therefore I wanted to stress that there is a TON OF WORK and a TON OF REJECTION involved with the creative process, especially what WDI does.<BR/><BR/>The points this latest anonymous poster makes about WDI being limited by many outside restrictions placed upon them is certainly true much of the time.Teevteehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18009538411830575506noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-90709187288040796102008-07-31T05:02:00.000-07:002008-07-31T05:02:00.000-07:00This is a good thing. The last time I saw the Slee...This is a good thing. The last time I saw the Sleeping Beauty dioramas was in 2000 and it was seriously shoddy. (Barbie dolls?)<BR/><BR/>This is good news. It's a small step in the right direction. You have to crawl before you can walk.Greg Bevierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12444699748867072476noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-57088010168071600712008-07-31T04:06:00.000-07:002008-07-31T04:06:00.000-07:00I think the whole tirade about Walt "just did it" ...I think the whole tirade about Walt "just did it" is misplaced. What I got out of the post was simply that Walt was a dictator and "did" (green lighting not executing) "things" instinctively, versus a corporate culture that uses committees and data to conditionally approve and hone an idea into blandness. <BR/><BR/>At Pixar, Lassiter could invite all the critique he wants as he was the last word and held on to the core vision. Only the comments that refined the big idea were approved, versus dismantling a concept and homogenizing it in a rudderless corporate morass. <BR/><BR/>And Harriet Burns will be surely missed.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-47676229226216962012008-07-30T21:29:00.000-07:002008-07-30T21:29:00.000-07:00”Walt had a great vision, Walt was a ruthless task...<I>”Walt had a great vision, Walt was a ruthless task master who got work done and Walt knew how to find really great people to work with him... but Walt or the original Imagineers never "just did" anything... That is an insult not only to the real genius of Disney, but also to the countless years of work the people who actually created the attractions (hint, they were not Walt) worked their lives for. ”</I><BR/><BR/>I think you are over reacting to the “just did”. My impression to that is that if Walt felt the challenge was in any way feasible, he could trust that his talented Imagineers could do it. The people he pulled from the studio were the “Pixar” and “Industrial Light and Magic” level of the time. Most of what Walt proposed was WAY beyond anything anyone had ever conceived of. But, he and his team were able to make it happen. <BR/><BR/>While the many of the challenges were certainly well beyond just putting together some slightly themed off the shelf toys, when the Imagineers put their efforts into it, they “just did it”. Much of what they did back then couldn’t be done by today’s Imagineers because now they often aren’t given the opportunity to “just do it”. The limitations placed on them in recent years have frequently resulted in little more than “slightly themed off the shelf toys”.<BR/><BR/>Of course, that’s not to say that they don’t get some remarkable things accomplished, GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY, it’s just that those opportunities are EXTREMELY RARE.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-56509727242957965752008-07-30T20:51:00.000-07:002008-07-30T20:51:00.000-07:00"One would hope that cooperation rather than cutth..."One would hope that cooperation rather than cutthroat competition would characterize the collaborative work of the Imagineers -- but that's just my hopeful imagination from the outside imagining in."<BR/><BR/>Read about how John Lasseter runs things at Pixar. He has said that screenings of early versions films are not "pat on the back" sessions. Flaws are exposed, and conflict has resulted in at least one director being taken off a film.<BR/><BR/>Then look at the finished result at Pixar. I could only hope that Imagineering is run that way.Spokkerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03244298044953214810noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-35648412509028315172008-07-30T20:16:00.000-07:002008-07-30T20:16:00.000-07:00I know it's off topic, but how about a posting abo...I know it's off topic, but how about a posting about the recent passing of Harriet Burns?<BR/><BR/>- Mark EadesAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-91866669688786670292008-07-30T13:20:00.000-07:002008-07-30T13:20:00.000-07:00That projects developed under Walt, and since, hav...That projects developed under Walt, and since, have gone through many iterations with additions, subtractionsand changes, can be seen in many of the concept sketches, design lay-outs, and hptographs of the "finished" projects.<BR/><BR/>My experience in creating a work for the stage, is that a certain harmony among designers, cooperation and mutual respect among actors, commradely give-and-take, <I>joie de vivre</I> and one-for-all-and-all-for-one-spirit, can create a collaborative psychic pride and spirit which leads to great theatrical success.<BR/><BR/>One would hope that cooperation rather than cutthroat competition would characterize the collaborative work of the Imagineers -- but that's just my hopeful imagination from the outside imagining in.theatremanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04803823338652745012noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-13369552716025544362008-07-29T07:40:00.000-07:002008-07-29T07:40:00.000-07:00Tell me, how is it possible that after that marvel...Tell me, how is it possible that after that marvelous process of sifting, critiquing, refinement and Herculean effort you still get "Superstar Limo"?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-65146514978453338182008-07-29T00:40:00.000-07:002008-07-29T00:40:00.000-07:00That is in incredibly naive though romantic view o...That is in incredibly naive though romantic view of old Uncle Walt.<BR/><BR/>I will put aside reality for a moment and pretend that Walt did as you suggest, even so actually CREATING those attractions took and INSANE amount of work, back and forth give and take and compromise. To think that Walt "just did it" is beyond ridiculous. He lived in the real world with all of it's limitations and practical realities. To say he "just did it"is a HUGE slap in the face to the scores of people who worked their asses off to make it work.<BR/><BR/>No, I am afraid you are dead wrong on this. Walt never "just did" anything. He WORKED, he made people WORK. The creation of many of the classic attractions took literally YEARS of back and forth critiquing. No, it was not with focus groups but to think that ideas were not ruthlessly ripped apart and then reassembled in new ways is to fundamentally not understand the creative process of how the parks came to be.<BR/><BR/>Walt had a great vision, Walt was a ruthless task master who got work done and Walt knew how to find really great people to work with him... but Walt or the original Imagineers never "just did"anything... That is an insult not only to the real genius of Disney, but also to the countless years of work the people who actually created the attractions (hint, they were not Walt) worked their lives for.<BR/><BR/>Focus groups do suck, marketing driven ideas generally suck... I give you that... but the creative process is all about being cut throat and examining EVERY idea with a microscope and then editing away all the crap... nothing is JUST DONE, it is a crazy difficult process and nearly miraculous when projects of the scale Disney works on come together in the end... it takes Herculean effort.Teevteehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18009538411830575506noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-82421650061605457082008-07-28T18:13:00.000-07:002008-07-28T18:13:00.000-07:00"the very essence of ANY creative work, and especi..."the very essence of ANY creative work, and especially the work WDI does is having your ideas critiqued."<BR/><BR/>Interesting point.<BR/><BR/>Maybe this is the reason that from time to time we end up with homogenized and calculated projects. They are over thought "vehicles" designed by committee from the critiques of marketing, finance and focus groups. <BR/><BR/> Walt knew what worked by watching the reactions of the guests, sat at the exit, or waited in line and just did what he felt was gonna exceed the expectation of the audience.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-21388978210946560852008-07-27T17:35:00.000-07:002008-07-27T17:35:00.000-07:00As Spokker said the very essence of ANY creative w...As Spokker said the very essence of ANY creative work, and especially the work WDI does is having your ideas critiqued. Only those very few that can withstand HARSH evaluation have a chance to move on.<BR/><BR/>What you suggested would be similar to saying lets add a ball room for 300 people inside a Mini Cooper and lets also make the 300 people teleport to get inside... it is just flat impossible. Obviously you are well intended and the thoughts behind your idea are good, and yet the idea itself is still poor. That's OK... all great ideas are born out of a LOT of trial and error and modification.<BR/><BR/>Perhaps the reason your idea got cut down (aside from stinking) is because it somehow made it seem as though what WDI IS doing with the castle is not good enough. The fact is that the return of the modest walk through in the castle is a GREAT sign that WDI and Disney as a whole does in fact get it sometimes and it deserves nothing but praise.<BR/><BR/>FYI, the castle at DL is TINY as compared to the one in Florida and even the Florida one would be hard pressed to fit an attraction such as you described.Teevteehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18009538411830575506noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-15934430040568182622008-07-26T22:36:00.000-07:002008-07-26T22:36:00.000-07:00I enjoy the romanticism of Imagineering as much as...I enjoy the romanticism of Imagineering as much as anybody, but if someone's idea stinks, it stinks. <BR/><BR/>As much as they portray Imagineering to be this wonderful place where everybody and their ideas are cherished like the unique little snowflakes they are, it's still a business.<BR/><BR/>If you told your idea to Tony Baxter himself he would certainly do his best to let you down easily, but inside he's going to wonder what the hell you're smoking.<BR/><BR/>In any case, somehow connecting the skyway to the castle would ruin the look of the castle. It makes no sense, even in "Fantasyland".<BR/><BR/>If you are unable to bear having your ideas ripped to shreds then don't go into any creative business. Even if your coworkers aren't honest with you, your audience will be.Spokkerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03244298044953214810noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-87825965134976479812008-07-26T22:30:00.000-07:002008-07-26T22:30:00.000-07:00^^^^^ While you may feel that your idea was pounc...^^^^^ <BR/><BR/>While you may feel that your idea was pounced on, all Imagineering ideas must meet minimum criteria. They have various levels of design development that they must follow. In your case, putting ANY ride system into the castle would be considered unfeasible. There is just NO room for anything other than the existing NARROW walkways and scenes.<BR/><BR/>While some of the challenges to your idea were rash, Imagineers often face similar challenges (though, it sometimes appears that they haven't been challenged NEARLY enough).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-62170986294774620502008-07-26T08:04:00.000-07:002008-07-26T08:04:00.000-07:00"putting the Skyway inside Castle walk thru has to..."putting the Skyway inside Castle walk thru has to be the dumbest thing I've ever heard"<BR/><BR/>Now I know what it must be like to be an Imagineer and have your ideas pounced on and stomped to death before you can even sketch it. Walt made the Pirate boats go "up" a water fall and put boats inside a building. I suppose that's dumb too? <BR/><BR/>I admit that I've never been inside the walk thru before it was closed and the displays on your blog look bigger than they may really be. The Castle I have been inside of is in Florida and it seems quite large, although the one at Anaheim looks different and must be smaller somehow. Excuuuuuse me.<BR/><BR/>I'm sorry for having an idea and even sorrier for sharing it here. I won't mention it again.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-48905911716090581172008-07-25T18:08:00.000-07:002008-07-25T18:08:00.000-07:00I was with you up until you suggested flying fairy...I was with you up until you suggested flying fairy buckets could fit into Sleeping Beauty's Castle.Spokkerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06878138419800159091noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-21496171781360372592008-07-25T18:01:00.000-07:002008-07-25T18:01:00.000-07:00Your kidding right?I mean aside from the horrid ug...Your kidding right?<BR/><BR/>I mean aside from the horrid ugliness of what you just described, and the idea that flying by TINY dinoramas is hardly an engrossing experience is the fact that the castle is small... like doll house small. <BR/><BR/>What they are doing is in this case just right... no need to wish for more, especially some ridiculous silly thing like that.Teevteehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18009538411830575506noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-78614175323757825322008-07-25T16:51:00.000-07:002008-07-25T16:51:00.000-07:00"...Being able to "fly" by the displays from your ..."...Being able to "fly" by the displays from your fairy themed bucket, and with a few minor cable transmissions, change direction to travel across the interior... Sure, they may be a few challenges with hiding the cables, bashing out a few walls to clear the buckets,widening the towers,..."<BR/><BR/>Sheesh! No wonder you're Anonymous!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-31154471728871272612008-07-25T15:45:00.000-07:002008-07-25T15:45:00.000-07:00Nothing personal and since you are "Anon" it shoul...Nothing personal and since you are "Anon" it should not embarrass you. However, putting the Skyway inside Castle walk thru has to be the dumbest thing I've ever heard. I hope I'm not seeming closed minded.<BR/><BR/>"Doing the impossible" becomes "doing the ridiculous" as that technology in that small confined space is not technically feasible. Why not just use Peter Pan boat vehicles instead, they would actually be more attractive.<BR/><BR/>Don't mean to offend , just an opinion.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-38327046723657619662008-07-24T09:30:00.000-07:002008-07-24T09:30:00.000-07:00It unfortunate that WDI did not see the opportunit...It unfortunate that WDI did not see the opportunity to bring back the Skyway as a means of ascension and descension within the Castle. Reopening something is not that imaginative. The Castle is an icon and deserves an amazing interior experience.<BR/><BR/>The money for the "virtual room" could be applied to the budget as now the disabled could go too. Being able to "fly" by the displays from your fairy themed bucket, and with a few minor cable transmissions, change direction to travel across the interior, would have made this attraction into a magical experience. Sure, they may be a few challenges with hiding the cables, bashing out a few walls to clear the buckets,widening the towers, etc. But isn't doing the impossible what WDI is there for? They did it once with a Mountain, why not a Castle?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-36307448266115518952008-07-23T16:15:00.000-07:002008-07-23T16:15:00.000-07:00Following on the heels of "Jungle Cruise - the mov...Following on the heels of "Jungle Cruise - the movie" can we expect "People Mover - the movie" with a celebratory reopening tie-in?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-73309253276888045162008-07-23T10:26:00.000-07:002008-07-23T10:26:00.000-07:00Here's a great article on the history of the Sleep...Here's a great article on the history of the Sleeping Beauty Walk-Through, including Ken Anderson's memories of creating the attraction and a complete description of scenes in the diorama:<BR/><BR/>http://www.mouseplanet.com/articles.php?art=ww080723wsMerlin Joneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13397520005969644808noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22576594.post-24463011134036448852008-07-23T00:12:00.000-07:002008-07-23T00:12:00.000-07:00Actually, the sad thing watching the Tony Baxter i...Actually, the sad thing watching the Tony Baxter interview video at LaughingPlace.com is when he says a number of people never realized that the Sleeping Beauty Walk-Through Attraction ever existed.<BR/><BR/>I was left with the impression he was talking about managers at Disneyland and the corporate level, not simply guests at the park.<BR/><BR/>You'd think the execs would get a two-week crash course on the history of the company, its founder and its theme parks. <BR/><BR/>I know Bob Iger grew up in New York, but maybe if he and others would take a little more interest in the past they'd see the genius of the Walt Disney as a storyteller. showman and innovator.<BR/><BR/>They'd might see that Lasseter's genius is simply following the rules laid down by Walt about quality being the best business plan.<BR/><BR/>They might visit the Adventurers Club or watch Disneyland's Country Bear Jamboree before deciding to gut them for something far less magical. <BR/><BR/>They might actually visit Tokyo and realize in today's interconnected world, we in the states KNOW what Imagineering is capable of delivering and we're tired of settling for less because of cost cutting.<BR/><BR/>I'd rather have one very special new attraction every four or five years than three in the same amount of time that aren't as good as they could or should be.<BR/><BR/>That said, this is a wonderful and welcome development. If they handle the ADA compliant area like Nemo, it'll be fantastic.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com