Magic of Disney Animation is a new attraction that opened at Disney’s Hollywood Studios this month. Reminiscent of both the classic Animation experience at Disney-MGM Studios and the current Walt Disney Studios Lot in Burbank California, this new Walt Disney World experience is inspired by the Once Upon A Studio animated short and the feature films from Walt Disney Animation Studios. In this episode, we discuss this new park experience, share some not-to-miss details, and play a recording of a media panel featuring iconic Disney animators (including recent Disney Legend inductee, Eric Goldberg). Thanks to WDW Magazine for providing the audio and for joining me on this episode.
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Transcript (Auto-Generated):
How does the magic of Disney Animation at Disney’s Hollywood Studios compare to the original Disney MGM Studios experience? In this episode, we’ll chat about the details, story, and imagineering of this new attraction. Welcome aboard Imagination Skyway. Your guided tour through the worlds of Disney and Imagineering. I’m your host, Matthew Krul, and it’s my job to explore the stories and places we love and the people who bring them to life. Before we get started, remember that you can unlock ad free episodes and bonus content at patreon dot com slash skyway and get complimentary trip support from our sponsors at KMV travel dot com slash skyway. Plus, be sure to follow Imagination Skyway on social media for even more content and ways to connect with the show. In today’s episode, we discuss everything you need to know about the magic of Disney Animation, now open at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Drawing from the architecture, atmosphere, and artistry of the legendary Walt Disney Animation Studios and inspired by the Disney short film Once Upon a Studio. This new experience includes a film screening, a play area inspired by Mary Blair, a character experience inspired by the animation process, a drawing class, and some fun surprises and Easter eggs throughout. This episode not only includes a recap of the attraction, but also a panel featuring some iconic Disney animators. As we begin our journey, please remain seated. Keep your hands and arms inside the podcast at all times and enjoy your journey aboard Imagination Skyway. This month, a brand new experience opened at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, which feels like a harkening back to Disney MGM Studios, and that is the official grand opening of the magic of Disney Animation. I have visited Animation Courtyard. I’ve seen the new Mickey Mouse Clubhouse show on an animation courtyard, as well as the new Little Mermaid production over there, but haven’t yet had the chance to step into the old animation building itself. So I am fortunate to have a guest on the show who was there, who’s been on the show before. And ironically, Tim, I think the or by coincidence, the last time you were on the show was to talk about Disney’s Hollywood Studios. If I’m not mistaken, I think it was the yeah, the anniversary of Disney’s Hollywood Studios that you were on the show. So it’s good to have you back. Thank you. I’m excited to be back. And, and also, funny enough, I’ve, I’ve walked through animation courtyard to get to the experience, but it was a fast day. So I have not experienced the courtyard really. And I also haven’t seen the new clubhouse show. So I’ve had all of the experiences you haven’t and vice versa. Yeah, I think having two young daughters, those were our priorities. Seeing the characters in Animation courtyard, seeing the new baby care center as well. We spent some time there. So glad that that is open at Park used to be at the front of the park, right next to guest relations, shared a space with guest relations and it was honestly small. Like it was not one that we spent a lot of time in. It was really just there for like quick, urgent need or nearby and want to do a diaper change on a, um, you know, a more cushiony changing table for my younger daughter than at a restroom elsewhere in the park. So now it’s more a, you know, it’s more suited for maybe cooling down, which we did. We were there for cool kids summer very, of course, uh, hot weather when you go into Orlando in the summer. So any chance you get to escape? The heat is always good. Um, but, uh, anyway, there’s, there’s so much that’s here in animation courtyard. I want to start by getting your first impressions. I know you didn’t spend a lot of time in the courtyard itself, but walk us through. You turned the corner from Disney’s from Hollywood Boulevard at Disney’s Hollywood studios go through what used to be the arch. Now this kind of this this gated entrance that looks very similar. Having just been there a couple of times actually in the last year, looks very similar to the actual Walt Disney Studios lot in Burbank, California, and very reminiscent of that space and walk through there and then go into the magic of Disney animation. So I’m going to leave this very open ended and just see what your first impressions were as you walked through the courtyard into the animation building. Sure. Yeah. So this was my first time seeing the courtyard. I hadn’t been, um, since September of last year. It had been a long time. So, um, we were being marched through, um, you know, it was a press event, so we were on a very tight schedule and we, you know, we marched through the courtyard and I found myself stopping, um, to just stare. There are so many character statues and they had just added a bunch of new dog characters, um, a lot of canine friends there. And I caught myself stopping to take pictures and I had to be shepherded in, um, really fast, but it was just such a cool space, you know, when I was touring Magic of Disney Animation, it was not yet open to the public, but the animation courtyard has been. And even without that experience being open, the courtyard was just full of families just sitting there shade, which sometimes is hard to come by in the studios. So they’re just sitting and relaxing, kids running around like crazy. And it’s just it felt very kinetic. It was just a very energetic space. Even in the brief amount of time that I got to experience it. I have a few friends with kids down down in Orlando, and they say they just go and hang out there because there have been all these surprise character interactions, especially with cool kids. Summer. Um, Disney. Disney did confirm that those surprise character interactions will continue to some degree, some degree, even though we have characters inside magic of Disney animation. So it’s going to be a very fun space. But, um, obviously where I spent most of my time was inside magic of Disney animation. Um, it’s very surreal stepping in to what was launch bay and, um, and, uh, you know, experiencing the space so differently. Um, but, um, the, you know, I thought going into this, there would be some love for the, you know, the old Disney MGM studios. I thought I would get that kind of vibe, but I really thought this is an air conditioned space for families. But I walked away thinking I, as an adult with no kids would come back to this space on every trip and I would spend time in there finding new things. Um, so I, I thought it was just so well done and I, I could not recommend it more. I’m excited to dive into it. And, you know, it’s definitely a place that I’m excited to bring the girls and like you, even if I weren’t with them, I would be excited to go to just knowing that it is tied to Walt Disney Animation Studios. And it is a place to feel connected to the heritage and the history and the characters associated with the studios. There are so many spaces here, right? So you have the Once Upon a Studio theater, the Drawn to Wonderlands play area, where I imagine I will probably be spending hours of my next park visits with the girls. Um, the off the page area and Olaf draws. And then of course, there are galleries to view too. And, you know, just looking at the initial videos and photos of this space, I just can see how much detail went into this. How many Easter eggs that are there. And knowing that this whole space, from what I’ve gathered, a large number of the space and I know you were at the event, so you could probably tell me even more and kind of elaborate this on this. But, you know, the story seems to be really focused around the Once Upon a Studio film or short, I should call it the Once Upon a Studio short, which is. Honestly might be probably the most like, brilliant short Disney has ever created. I remember seeing it at destination D23 when they unveiled it for the first time, and then seeing it back at home and I. I cry every time. It’s just such a breathtaking and moving short. Um, so can you discuss the overall inspiration, the story, and, uh, for the magic of Disney animation and how that plays out through the different spaces? Yeah, absolutely. And I’m glad you brought up the, the short film specifically, because if, if I were going to magic of Disney animation for the first time, despite the, um, you know, the impulse to line up for Olaf draws right away, I would recommend starting with that film because it really does kind of give you the backstory of this space. So, um, in the short film, right, the animators step out for the day and the characters all come out of their portraits and gather to take a photo to commemorate the one hundredth anniversary of the studios. In that short film, um, so they’ve taken that story and that is what’s happening, uh, at Magic of Disney Animation. Uh, in a, in a panel, Dan Abraham said, imagine the, um, the animators have just stepped out for the, for coffee. And all of the characters took that as their sign to, oh, we got to come out of these portraits and we’re going to host an open house for the guests of Hollywood studios to come in and learn about animation and our stories. And so that makes this a unique space where these characters from completely different worlds and stories that normally don’t interact. And even in the parks, you know, you wouldn’t see them all together. They’re on their separate parade floats. Maybe, um, they can all exist in one space together. Um, and, and once upon a studio, the theater really sets the tone for that. Um, and there are some enhancements to it. So, you know, there are. I had the number. It was like five hundred and forty five hundred and forty three characters from eighty five feature length or short films in the original Once Upon a studio short. Um, but they’ve added four additional portraits, enchanted portraits that allow even more characters or characters that weren’t showcased as much in the film to appear. So you’ve got to watch these portraits on the side of the theater while watching the main show, and you can see them kind of gathering. Um, and Danny Abraham, Abraham said he was super excited for that experience because he thought there was not enough love for the Great mouse detective. And so you’ll see, you’ll see characters from that. You’ll see Luisa from, um, Encanto and Maleficent marching through. And it’s just, it really makes the whole space, um, kind of envelop you in this, this story. So definitely worth a watch. That’s great. Definitely worth knowing that if you’ve seen the short, it’s still going to be a new experience as you see it in that theater, and you’ll get some hidden surprises and enhancements as you as you watch it. So we’ll be sure to do that when we go and visit in just a couple of months. I selfishly want to start when we dive into the specific areas with the drawn to Wonderland’s play area. Because as a Disney dad, this is probably the section I’m the most excited for. There are not too many play spaces throughout the parks that are air conditioned or shaded there. They do exist, um, especially at Magic Kingdom has a, you know, over a Dumbo that has the play area. We often go over there just for the play area, not even for Dumbo. Um, the attraction itself, uh, you know, at Epcot, there’s the Wall-E playgrounds, but if it’s in the middle of the summer, there’s no shade. It’s not, it’s outside, there’s no air conditioning. Um, so we’ll often maybe go to like the advanced training lab just out at the exit of mission space for a little, little play or over at the Seas Pavilion, the aquarium to spend some time there. And this, you know, at Hollywood Studios, there was no dedicated play area. And here, if you’re if you’ve got young kids or you’re a kid at heart, this section just looks to be the most creative and, um, deeply imaginative play space of any that I’ve come across. So I’m really excited to, to visit here when we go on our next trip. What were your impressions walking through this space and how many times did you go down that slide? Because it looks like a lot of fun. So I did go down the slide three times. Um, so it was a unique experience to be there with only adults. So we all got to, you know, become kids again. Um, so stepping in, um, the idea behind this is, um, it’s concept art from Mary Blair, uh, for Alice in Wonderland, as well as actual, like final film stills. Um, but one of the concept art pieces is kind of exploding, um, at the entrance. And so you’re stepping in to that artwork is the idea behind it. Um, it’s divided into two spaces. Um, one for kids ages six months to twenty three months. And then on the other side, it’s three to five years. Um, and on both sides, importantly for parents, there are cushioned bench seating all along the walls with outlets so you can relax, recharge your devices while your kids have a great time. Um, and if you do have kids in, in two age groups, it is, is very easy to monitor both sides. Um, but the, you know, the side for the older kids was, was the really fun one. It has a lot more to do. Um, there’s a bead table that is like the, the mad hatter’s table and there are some surprises. If you pick up a tea kettle, you’ll find the dormouse. And there’s all kinds of fun little things to do. But I thought the most fun thing was this roller slide. Um, but what really excited me was that the Imagineers took accessibility into consideration and not just we need to have a wheelchair ramp or a wheelchair transfer for this slide, but they really took the, you know, the actual, um, considerations for people with disabilities and turned it into part of the experience. So there is a ramp to get up to the slide, but it’s not just a ramp. It is a maze. Uh, a queen of hearts inspired maze to her castle. And it is interactive and accessible to everyone. And I thought that was just really cool in this space to see. That’s so cool. I am very excited, as I’ve said a couple of times, to go and check this area out. And just knowing the connection to Mary Blair and the thought that went into the design of this space for all guests and parents and kids alike is not surprising, just given how Disney has been really tapping into these these details of experience with so much of what’s been developed for the parks lately. And in either case, I’m excited to to check this out. Um, is, is this also the area or is this somewhere near here where there was a, uh, I saw like stitch spinning around in a chair? Was it around this, this part of the, the pavilion, we’ll call it or was somewhere else? So the stitch spinning around on the chair that is um, an animators office. So you’ll, you’ll pass through it going toward the, um, the lobby for the theater. Um, so the theater is kind of off if you’re looking straight at it, it’s off to the left. And then there’s this hallway with the animators office. And then the rest of the experiences are, are in this like kind of downstairs space where, um, there’s the, the, the largest real estate is off the page where all of the character encounters happen. And to the left of off the page is this this playground. But that the animators office is, if we want to move there. Um, one of the coolest things for Disney history nerds like you and me, like I, it’s not an experience per se. It is just something to see. And you could walk right past it and just say, oh, look, it’s still spinning, but there is so much. Um, the creative director, Danny at our magazine had said it has to be the most Disney Easter eggs per square foot anywhere in a Disney park. There’s just so much to see in this. And the, the desk itself was taken from, um, an animation academy experience or some kind of drawing experience that previously existed. Um, and they have so many, so many nods and Easter eggs to various films, um, and experiences from Disney parks history. Do you have a favorite or a couple favorite Easter eggs that are there. Sure. So, um, there’s one, um, if you’re looking at the desk, um, and you kind of like look up where the animators eyeline would be, um, you’ll see a fantasia. Mickey. And behind that is a speeder bike. That is an homage to the fact that this space used to be the, the Star Wars space. So there’s a little, a little nod to, um, to Star Wars there. Um, Dan Abraham shared his favorite. Um, he said Heihei is one of his favorite characters and he really wanted to make sure Heihei was represented in this space. And so he thought, where, where would we most likely find Heihei. So if you watch the trash can, um, every, every 30s or so, the trash will just kind of pop up and there’s his head and then he ducks back down into the trash can. Um, so that was really cute. Um, and then one more, um, in the original magic of Disney animation experience, there was the back to Neverland, uh, short film, which featured Walter Cronkite and Robin Williams kind of learning about the animation experience. And in it, Robin Williams becomes an animated lost boy. Um, and there is an homage. There’s a whole film poster for that and the animators office, but you’ll also, throughout the experience, find other nods to this Robin Williams Lost Boy. And I thought that was really special too. That’s super special. And a great nod back to those who remember the short. I was really young, but have this, you know, very vague memory of of seeing that. And then of course, you have the chance to, because of the internet, get to get to see it, um, online with, uh, those who, who documented it before it became an extinct experience. Um, which I think ties nicely. Speaking of that to off the page, which you said makes up the largest section of this new space and is very similar in its approach to You not only obviously, you know, like this, this section, instead of being a film about the animation process, this is more of an experience about the animation process. As you’re meeting some of your favorite Disney characters and Disney friends. So talk a little bit more about the off the page experience and perhaps some of the, the details, um, or, or Easter eggs or things that you might have learned through the experience. Yeah. So there are, there are six stations, um, that represent a different stage in the animation process. And there are, I believe eight characters. It’s either one or two per station, um, in, um, in this experience. So if I’m remembering correctly, let me actually let me look at my notes. Um, it’s, uh, Mulan, um, in the story section, Rapunzel in layout and you’ll meet Chip and Dale in hand-drawn animation, Donald and Daisy in computer animation, goofy and lighting and stitch in effects. Um, and so two of those characters were intentionally chosen because they represent two of the three films that were actually drawn or animated in the studios. And that is Lilo and Stitch, um, and Mulan. Um, I wish there was more love for Brother Bear there. Um, I did see a couple of nods, but Brother Bear happens to be one of my favorite films and was also, um, also done in the studios. Um, but yeah, so you’ll, you’ll be able to line up and meet these various characters in these immersive environments that represent that part of the, the animation process. I admittedly did not get to meet anyone other than Donald and Daisy during my time there. Um, they were adorable as always. Um, but I do know that the Rapunzel section has a very cool multiplane camera nod. Like the, the actual like set of, um, the space is supposed to recreate kind of the, the multiplane camera approach. I did not get to to really absorb that, but it’s something I’m excited to go back and see. That’s so cool. Did you find that there was anything else there that it taught you about the the animation process, or was it really more just about experiencing the different stages? So I believe, and this is a spot that I did not get to spend that much time with, but there are like plaques where you can learn more. But if you are there with your kids and they just want to meet a bunch of characters in one experience like that is, I think, the core purpose of this. There are still educational experiences. I think it’s a little less educational, more family fun than the previous iteration. Um, and, you know, obviously there is an educational element to Olaf draws, which we’ll talk about, but, um, I see most families not really diving into the specifics of the animation experience, and really using this as an opportunity to see so many characters without having to step outside. Once you know it’s it’s eight characters, you can see I don’t know how long the lines will be, but, um, I used to always say, you know, a character meal was your best bet for seeing a bunch of characters, but now just go to magic of Disney animation and there’s so many there. Um, so I think really, it seemed to me the focus was on interacting with characters in these kind of themed, um, settings that you and I might pick up on some subtle details, but for the kids, it’s really just a fun, a fun way to, to meet Mulan or Rapunzel. Yeah, I’ll report back on the wait time because we will definitely be experiencing this when we go. Yeah. Uh, and that does segue very nicely into Olaf Draws because off the page, you’re learning a bit about the animation experience and Olaf draws. You are actually participating in the animation experience. And this was a core part of the former animation experience at Disney MGM Studios and at Disney’s Hollywood Studios before it became Star Wars Launch Bay. And now they’re bringing it back. And I know that there is some online. Always there’s controversy online. I feel like it exists online more than anywhere else. But, you know, lots of commentary one way or another about replacing the former. You know, you used to have an animator on stage teaching you how to draw. I remember doing that many times, and now it’s replaced with an Olaf, um, animatronic, as well as pre-recorded lessons from really big animators at Walt Disney Animation Studios. And to me, I think that’s, that’s a pretty exciting thing. Um, while you’re losing out on that, that human, I guess, connection of someone like actively teaching you how to draw on the spot, the fact that you’re getting a direct connection to these really iconic animators at Walt Disney Animation Studios, and having them teach you how to draw is exciting. And then, you know, I just know that it’s going to be really exciting for I think Emily is a little too small. She might still try and, and, you know, she still loves to draw, but like, Maggie’s really into drawing at four and a half. So to have her get to see like, I’m excited for her to see Olaf there and then learning how to draw an iconic character. Um, I’m, I’m just giving my thoughts ahead of time without even seeing the or experiencing this. But, you know, could you speak to Olaf draws the experience of it and how you felt about this new format of animation? Um, education. Yeah. So I mean, I’m always a big proponent of human cast members, uh, having a role and a space in the parks. But, um, I do think this works. I have not gotten a comment back from Disney, but I suspect they specifically did nine animators as an homage to Walt’s nine Old men makes sense, but it is a cool experience to. I mean, it’s pre-recorded, but you still feel like you’re, like, connected to these very well-known animators, um, very influential within the studios. Um, and, you know, they recorded this with Imagineering. Um, and they have this really witty repartee with Olaf and it’s, it’s funny, um, the way they are interacting on camera with an animatronic, uh, you know, who is not actually there when they were recording. It’s, they, the back and forth is so nice. Um, it is a fast paced experience. Um, about fifteen minutes per character. Um, but I did not find my like, I was trying to record video and audio as I was doing at the media event and I was still able to keep up. And I am a writer, not an artist. I do not draw well and I feel like I did okay. I brought I brought them home and was proud of them. Um, but what I really liked about having these, you know, these renowned animators is they would share some behind the scenes details about a specific film or a process. I felt like I actually, that was where I did most of my learning. Um, and, and of course, Olaf keeps it light. Um, you know, there’s a Samantha joke here or there. Um, I didn’t see, I think one of the animators, um, is, uh, Samantha Vilfort. Uh, I assume there are more Samantha jokes in that one. I’ve not seen that. That is the Moana class. Um, but, um, you know, Olaf was really funny. He’s left handed. We learned through this experience. It had never been confirmed by Disney before, but Olaf is left handed. Um, but by the end of the experience, he will ask everyone to raise their, um, their drawings. And no matter how you feel about yours, um, Olaf shares his. And I can guarantee you yours will be better than Olaf. So that does that does help if you’re, you know, not the best hand draw. Um, but the space, like I’m not sure I got to stay in and do a few in a row. Um, I’m not sure like the actual flow of it, but if you have time, if there’s even a few moments before or after the lesson to just go up and kind of observe the, the stage area, there are so many more Easter eggs and homages to past and present animators. And it’s, it’s just a really cool thing to, to absorb. If you’re a fan of Disney history, I will definitely make time for that. And, um, you know, this is also one of those experiences that I imagine will inspire a new generation of animators. A lot of if you really, I know people like you and me, Tim. Like we get this really incredible opportunity to interview and chat with so many people who have moved on to do prominent roles at Disney. and you hear a lot of stories. A lot of the origin stories are similar in nature that they a lot of the first generation or not first, second generation Imagineers grew up seeing, you know, wonderful world of Disney on television, a world of color on television or the, you know, second, third generation. They grew up going to Disneyland and have this moment, this very visceral moment where they would be maybe riding Peter Pan’s flight or a lot of volunteers riding Haunted Mansion seems to be a common theme and were inspired at that moment to perhaps, you know, like that was the seed that was planted that led to them learning that craft and becoming Imagineers. And I get the sense that there are probably going to be kids, um, young kids who go participate in Olaf draws. And because of the Moment with, you know, the moments with Olaf or, you know, getting to learn how to draw and then holding up your drawing and, and sort of like and showing it, um, showing it off. Like for some kids, that might be the moment that that seed that’s planted, that gets them interested in pursuing animation or storytelling or writing or something that is tied to creating films. So that to me is an exciting part of Olaf draws being here at the park. And that was very much, um, the hope of the Imagineers and the animators that I spoke with. So I got to sit down with, um, in a group interview with Dan Abraham and then Eric Goldberg, Disney legend as of this year, uh, you know, famously, uh, came in and animated Genie. Um, and I got to speak with them and, uh, they were just so excited about inspiring this future generation of Imagineers. I asked Eric for his advice. Um, you know, if someone comes and gets inspired, what do they do next? And he said, draw every day, draw things you’re good at, but draw things that you know you’re terrible at. Draw everything you see. Just draw, draw, draw. He said even in the age of, you know, computer animation, they still, he said, drawing by hand is their currency in the studios, everyone draws. Um, and it was just, it was just really cool to hear their hopes for the experience and, and that they, you know, these, these well known animators who have, you know, done amazing things with their career every day. They’re still practicing their craft. Um, and that they encourage us to do the same. Yeah. That’s so incredible. Was there anything else, you know, you had the chance to interview a number of really incredible animators and, and leaders at Walt Disney Animation Studios and Imagineers. Um, is there anything else that you took away from the conversations, anything that excited you or that brought, you know, some inspiration or that gave an aha moment? Anything that, um, you know, you are excited to share from those conversations. Yeah, absolutely. Eric. Eric Goldberg’s a character. He’s so much fun. I, um, I took the, the audio recording of the group interview and put it through a transcription service. So I had the notes and I was looking at the transcript and it starts with shut up, Mickey. And I was like, what in the world is this? But I forgot that as he was sitting down for the interview, his the way he moved his Mickey watch started talking to him and he literally just went, shut up, Mickey. And I just thought it was the funniest way to start an interview. Um, but no, a combination of this conversation with Eric and something you actually learn in the genie class, um, from Olaf draws was really a cool connection to make. So in the Olaf Draws experience when you were drawing Genie, it is led by Eric Goldberg and he shares that, um, the reason that he animates genie wearing, um, a really loud Hawaiian shirt and goofy ears near the end of Aladdin, the film. It’s an homage to Back to Neverland, in which, at the beginning, the live action version of Robin Williams is wearing, um, this loud Hawaiian shirt and goofy ears. And I had never known that connection before. And then in this group interview experience, right at the end, he shared that he actually owns that Hawaiian shirt that Robin Williams was wearing. And he said he, you know, he’s so happy that he has that. And I just thought that was a really cool connection. Yeah. That’s so cool. Um, and any other Imagineering details that we might have missed in our conversation? Yeah. So I’ll keep us at I have two actually. So Olaf draws and this is a small one. And, uh, I will start by saying Jungle Cruise is one of my favorite attractions in any Disney park. But as you’re passing under the Olaf Draw sign outside the the little studio, make sure you look up and turn around. Um, the the sign on the back says, behold, the backside of the sign. which is a nice backside of water. Reference for Jungle Cruise fans. Um, but actually I think one of my favorite spaces we haven’t talked about because it’s the lobby of the studio or the theater. Sorry. Where you watch Once upon a studio. Um, so, uh, Disney Imagineering worked with the Photopass team on this. Um, so first of all, there are enchanted portraits that, you know, they look like they’re just stills from a film, and they will occasionally come to life. So you can see the characters moving. But there are three specific experiences that Photopass worked on, um, with, uh, with the Imagineering team. You’ll scan your magic band at one of these large frames and a character that is kind of hard to interact with in the parks ordinarily. So the Kakamora from Moana, uh, Maximus and Pascal from tangled or Baymax from Big Hero six. Um, they play like a one minute long game with you. So Baymax is one of my favorite characters. Um, I was super excited to to have this experience. He asks you to in excitement for the open house that’s happening. He wants you to blow up balloons so you have an invisible air pump and he teaches you how to pump, and then he asks you to go faster and faster, and you blow up as many balloons as you can before one finally gets too big and explodes. Um, and then the part that, um, Photopass really helped with is Baymax will then step out of his, um, uh, frame to pose for a picture with you. So I actually have a picture of Olaf. It’s all on the screen, obviously, but Olaf’s arm is around me and we pose for a picture, and then that gets sent to your, um, to your My Disney Experience app. If you have memory maker, you can get it without the watermarks. Um, but there’s three, three separate games you can play. Each is like a minute. And it’s just a really unique way to, to interact with the characters Um, and the, um, the creative director, a creative lead for this that I spoke to, um, he, he shared that it’s really like, if you think if you’ve done uncharted, uncharted adventures on Disney cruise line, um, or used your Disney photopass lenses, like the augmented reality lenses on your phone, it’s kind of like a marriage of those two experiences. Um, and I thought that was just so fun. Um, it’s a perfect way to, you know, obviously the, the film, the short film is playing on loop. It’s maybe about ten minutes. So while you’re waiting, you don’t have to just sit and wait. There’s stuff to do in this lobby. And I honestly like, I enjoyed it just as much as Olaf draws. And I assume there is a much shorter line for these experiences right now. Um, but it was just a, it was just a fun little thing that, that really enhanced the experience. That’s wonderful. I will look out for that too. It just seems like this is a space we’ll have to dedicate a couple hours to enjoy and our next trip and we’ll probably be there for every other trip, especially when the girls are young. Um, just to get to experience all of that. Um, now, will we get to learn more about this in a WDW magazine article anytime soon? Of course. Uh, January issue next year. It’s our Ohana issue. It is about all things family. Um, and so I actually just wrote my first draft over the weekend, clocked in at three thousand five hundred words. So now I got to work with my copy editor to figure out how to cut that thing down. Uh, because even for print, that’s a little long. Um, but yeah, we will absolutely be covering this in detail in our January issue. Um, so if you, if you want to subscribe, become a member, um, you’ll get that issue as long as you’re subscribed by December tenth, that is our cutoff date to get the January issue. But we also have some amazing issues coming up, uh, at the end of this year. So go subscribe now, wdw dot or dash magazine dot com. Um, and, uh, join a print membership. We’d be excited to, to have you along for the ride. Absolutely. Uh, there’s a, there’s a podcaster that I think writes for your magazine as well. Uh, and imagine you’re in column, if I’m not mistaken. Yeah, yeah, yeah. He contribute once or twice. Yeah. Matt is in um, I would say ninety, ninety nine percent of our issues from the, the last five or so years. Matt’s been, I don’t know if you’ve missed one yet, but I think only one. I think there’s only been one. Yeah. But it’s been great writing. Yeah. Yeah. Uh, yeah. Matt always brings, uh, so many cool Imagineering insights that, you know, your audience gets to hear all the time. Um, but I’m happy you share that with our audience as well. Yeah. No, I, I just had to plug it because, um, I like I, some of my favorite content that I produce is for WDW magazine. It’s just something about like sitting down and writing an article that I don’t do through the podcast. So it’s a nice outlet, nice creative outlet to just sort of like put on my, my Imagineering hat and think about how I’m gonna geek out about some very specific detail of some attraction or a broader theme of a park or it’s just a lot of fun. So I love getting the opportunity to write for the team at WWE magazine and DLR magazine and DCL magazine. There’s like a little bit of a little bit of everything. So anyway, Tim, this has been so much fun. Uh, I appreciate you sharing all these anecdotes and takeaways from the experience and hopefully all the listeners will get the chance to, to check it out on their next trip. Awesome. Thank you so much for having me. Welcome to the magic of Disney Animation here in Disney’s Hollywood Studios. I’m Alex Gonzalez, I’m a Walt Disney World public relations manager, and I’m going to be your moderator today. We’re before we present our panelists, I wanted to give you a little history or story about this space. So for over one hundred years, Walt Disney Animation Studios have been creating stories and characters that have become part of our lives. And that’s sixty four different animated films, with a sixty fifth coming out in Thanksgiving, which is hexed. Who’s excited for that one? Love a good wish story. Now, throughout all of this films, they’ve been able to inspire new generations of storytellers of fans around the world. And here, with the magic of Disney Animation, we’re celebrating that legacy. Now joining us today, we have, um, Eric Goldberg, Disney animator and Disney legend. Dan Abraham, co-director of the one Savannah Studios short film, which inspired this whole experience. Danny Hank, senior creative director for Walt Disney Imagineering. And Jackie Swisher, vice president of Disney’s Hollywood Studios, from twenty twenty to twenty twenty six. Now, to get things started, I think we gotta go back in time and talk about what was that first Disney animated film that inspired you and just altered your brain chemistry. Well, when I was very young and we’re talking eons ago, um, my dad took me to see Dumbo in a an elementary school gym. They’re showing it on sixteen millimeter, and I just fell in love. I just thought, this is marvelous. And, you know, I didn’t even have that kind of vocabulary when I was six. But the film stuck with me. It’s got so much in it. That’s wonderful. And to this day, it’s still my favorite Disney film. I love that. What about for you? Uh, for me, uh, similar. My my mom took me to the theater to see a reissue of lady and the tramp and that movie. Like, I just couldn’t believe what I was looking at. I mean, that’s first movie in Cinemascope. Yeah. That’s right. First movie in Cinemascope. And, uh, it just it it was it was happening to me. It got into my brain. It got into my heart. It never left. I still to this day. Thank you, mom, for taking me to a really great one that has stood the test of time for me. I was a nineties Disney kid. The Disney decade, I think it was called. Right. And, um, Aladdin. Uh, I was ten years old and, you know, thank you, Mr. Goldberg. Um, and that’s when I knew I wanted to work for Disney. Was, uh, seeing Aladdin in theaters. My most impactful memory was a little later. So I have two girls. They’re fourteen and seventeen now, but when they were little, frozen came out and frozen was just spoke to my heart with two girls, two sisters just at the inspirational movie. And there’s nothing like watching a year and a half year old, uh, pronounce things that they have no idea what they’re saying and letting go. She knew every single word. It’s just amazing. Iconic. Well, from all of us. It’s been a little bit over a year since we’ve known about this project, but for all of you, it’s been much longer than that. Danny, can you talk about how this project came to be? Yeah, it really started, um, Jackie, we were talking about what do we do with animation career? How do we liven up animation courtyard? And to give it a sense of place, a sense of story. And we came up with the idea of it being the Walt Disney Studios and anchoring. It was bringing back the magic of Disney animation, anchoring it with an animation building, bringing it back. The sorcerer hat and modeling it after the Roy Disney Building in Burbank and giving it a place. This whole land, a place for young kids and families to go and enjoy together. And, uh, and when we were starting to work on the magic of Disney animation, we were trying to figure out we didn’t want it to be an exhibit style attraction. We had Walt Disney Presents here in the park, and that’s where we came up with the idea of like, what about Once Upon a studio? Because that gives it a sense of place. It gives it a sense of story. Why are all the characters here and how can we go and play with them? And so that all kind of came together. And that’s why, uh, we base it on that short. We’re short. And speaking of that short, it’s not every day a short film from Disney becomes part of a Walt Disney World attraction. Then when you first heard about this project, what went through your mind? Um, uh, my buddy Trent Corey and I came up with the idea for the, for the short Once Upon a Studio, and that became like just the highlight of my career so far. Never had so much fun. And the artists that we got to work with. Eric Goldberg was the head of hand-drawn animation on that short. And he made sure that every character, every line, every cleanup line was reminiscent of it’s film like, we took that much care because we care that much and we’re geeks and we’re geeks, quite frankly. Uh, proud to be in the same category with you and my friend. Uh, but no, to to put that out there. And then it was, it was nicely received from people. And then a couple years later to hear from Danny, uh, that that this plan was evolving. Uh, you could have knocked me over with a feather and then to come in and help be creative, a creative director on this with you for the first time. I’ve never worked with Imagineers before, and it has been so wonderfully collaborative from start to finish. You guys seem to be interested in my ideas and, uh, you’re, you’re also brilliant and lovely and thoughtful and you care just as much and you’re a geek as well. So it’s to, to feel that love and to feel that the respect because, you know, the film and now this attraction, it reflects one hundred years of artists and, and all of them, all the blood, sweat and tears that they put into making those deadlines and making those characters come to life and, and giving people a childhood and an escape from a sometimes harsh reality of the world and stuff. And they get a place that they can go and they can see Cinderella turn into, you know, a, you know, getting ready for the ball and all of those things like it, um, to see this reflected, like the shorts intention is amazing. So I’m, I’m so, so honored to have been part of this. And this whole place is filled with multiple experiences from an enchanted gallery, meet and greet locations. There’s an indoor playground for kids, but one of my favorite is definitely Olaf Draws. I had the opportunity already to do two of three of the classes, but the one that stuck out the most was the Genie. So, Eric, what happened? What? What went through your mind? What was your reaction when they told you, we want you to teach people how to draw the genie. Well, I was thrilled. I was thrilled and very, very happy to be part of this. Olaf Draws experience, and I had a great time kind of ad libbing with Olaf back and forth and, uh, and really feeling like this is something that everybody’s going to enjoy. And the fact that I can teach people how to draw. What people call my signature character is very, very special. So, you know, warts and all. That’s my technique. And it was it was amazing. Erica was the first, um, first animator we filmed for that. And he set the bar and poor Dan went next. And you had I was like, Eric set the bar. AD libbing with Olaf and, and teaching a wonderful class. And I think that’s what just. It means a lot like having. We have nine different artists, um, from the studios, their directors, their story artists, their animators, and they’re teaching you to draw the characters that they’ve helped create, how they’ve ushered to life. And that’s what makes the, the, this experience so special. And I have to say, at some point in life I wanted to be an animator. I took my classes to do comic book sketches and all the things. But going through this space, it has reignited again all of that wonder. So honestly, congratulations to all of you. This has been phenomenal. Can I say to that? Y’all asked me to be the one to like, teach everybody to draw Mickey Mouse. I mean, I worked in this park in nineteen ninety three as an attractions host. I was doing superstar television and monster sound show. Yeah. And I would come over here to the animation building, uh, constantly because I wanted to get into animation and I’m so happy and lucky that I was able to do that. But then to, you know, return all these years later, and now I’m the one that gets to teach people how to draw Mickey Mouse is Holy cow, guys. That’s a dream come true. You have a great Mickey impression, too. You want to do it right now? Uh. Hey, Danny. Uh, you want to go out for some cheese later? Thank you. Pressure. What are you talking about? You know, from new experiences to beloved reimagining favorites. Disney’s Hollywood studio continues to grow. Jackie. What? How does the magic of Disney animation fit into the broader vision and future of this park? Yes. Alex. Well, you said it. Disney’s Hollywood Studios is continuing to evolve. It is. It will be a lifelong thing for all of our parks that evolution. And we want here our guests to be able to jump inside the stories they love and live their adventure. So whether that’s in Toy Story land, where guests can feel what it’s like to be in the backyard or any of our amazing experiences, the magic of Disney animation continues that journey. So our guests are able to jump inside these stories. And we’ve always celebrated filmmaking and animation here at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. And this attraction is another one of those experiences. So we know that our job, our goal is to create memories that last a lifetime. And those memories are even more powerful when you can celebrate them together as a family. So this attraction really gives the experience for children of all ages can enjoy this experience. Families can can be together as they play and explore and, and really get inspired by this amazing experience and this and do that together. We’ve had such a great experience with our cast member previews to be able to see some of that with our cast and our families come to life, and was so excited to be able to bring that to life here in this amazing attraction. And to say that this was a collaborative effort. It’s one hundred percent true. What was that process to deciding what would go into this experience to fit all of the families, young adults and everybody to have a different experience, but still hitting on that same magic feeling? What was that like? Well, we really wanted to make sure that this great space was fully utilized, that we had amazing experiences and through an incredible collaboration with the Imagineering team and our operations and all of the players, there’s so many people involved in bringing these things to life. We wanted to make sure that all of these spaces could bring something different, whether it’s drawn to life, where our guests can see six different characters and meet and greet those characters in that space, whether it’s a wonderland and bringing that to life, that playground, such an amazing thing to bring Mary Blair’s artwork to life, um, that our teams really came up with ways to, to take every nook and cranny of this building and make it something really special for our guests to explore. And there’s a lot to uncover and discover in this, in this space. There’s so many little details. But now I have a question for all of you. What is that one character or hidden detail or nod you hope our invitees can experience or find in the space. Who wants to go first? I’ll go first. Um, I so so, uh, we have, um, uh, an animators office. It’s, uh, we released a video on it last week and, um, it’s one of the, you know, it used to be an actual animators office, right? So you could look down into it and we wanted to recreate, you know, that feeling of like, okay, someone is working in here. Our backstory is that Mickey and his friends are growing an open house for us. So all the characters, uh, the animators are out to lunch. All the characters are here hosting the parties. You see Olaf, um, in Olaf draws, uh, we see the Alice characters in Drawn to Wonderland and in the animators office. The characters have kind of taken it over. And so we have a bunch of animated figures in that space. And, uh, one of my favorite characters, um, it happens to be Heihei. Uh, and we’re trying to figure out where do you put heihei in, in, in the animation building, where would he go? And, uh, the obvious place was the trash can. So if you look at the trash can, that’s where you’ll find Heihei. So I hope you find it. What about for you? You know, for me, one of the things that I sort of geek out about is, uh, there’s like an exhibit here where a bunch of the Disney characters have, um, lent their items on display for all of us to see. And I just sort of, it tickles me like that. You could see, uh, Elsa’s, uh, her orb thing. Orb and sceptre, scepter, scepter is the word. And you can see, uh, this, that, and the other just. There’s a honey pot on loan from Winnie the Pooh. Like things like that, I think are just so adorable. But in the lost and Found, uh, somebody lost the life size black cauldron. And I just love that every film from all of these years has is represented in this building that we have, you know, sure. You know, Lilo and Stitch and these super popular films, you see these characters all the time, but there are those folks that love Johnny Appleseed, and there are those folks that love the Black Cauldron, and that we want them to be reunited with their friends and remember those films as well, because each film got us to the next one. And it’s just, it’s so cool to see all those sort of like obscure little, uh, things in there as well. It was fun getting texts from you in the middle of the night saying like, hey, hey, where can we put the devil’s eye? You know, the diamond from, you know, can we put that in pennies notes somewhere? Yeah. And, and it is, it’s in the gallery. Was that a challenge being able to pick and choose which items would come to this? Just to say, yeah, we have to draw the line somewhere. You mean. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Because I sent a list of like a billion ideas, like every sixty five films and like, okay, one at least one to six items per film that these can be anywhere in Lost and found or in the gallery. Go, go have fun. We could do a whole museum pack. Oh, absolutely, I love it. And then Eric, what about you? Well, several years ago, back when this Park had an extension of the animation studio in Burbank. You know, there was a tour there called Back to Neverland, and it was a film of Robin Williams and, uh, Walter Cronkite showing people the animation process. And in it, Robin Williams is turned into a lost boy from Peter Pan. And one of our great animators, wonderful guy Michael Woodside, was so enamored by that whole exhibition. And and particularly by the Robin Williams Lost boy character that boy Dan and Trent were making Once Upon a Studio. He campaigned like nobody’s business. Can I please do The Lost Boy? Can I please put an. Michael animated it. And you’ll see the lost boy holding up the open house sign, you know, in a marvelous sculpt. So I think that’s, uh, that’s a nice obscurity, too. And Michael Woodside did some new animation of Lost Boy in this theater show. Uh, when you guys get to watch this show later tonight. Um, a lot. It brings us such joy to bring more hand-drawn animation and computer animation, you know, into our attractions and experiences. And so we have a lot of new animation for this one, which is just amazing. The fact that there is a theater designated to once upon a studio. Holy smokes, does that warm my heart. And then we’ve added, uh, new additional, uh, bits of animation that, uh, some of these, uh, panels, these portraits on the sides, uh, may come to life during that film. And, uh, it’s more of an immersive experience and it’s really something to see a real, a reason to, uh, come in here and get out of the hot air and watch it multiple times. And then. Jackie, what about you? It’s hard to pick a favorite in here. There’s so much. There’s so many things to see. One of my favorites inside the building is the Enchanted Gallery. So to Dan’s point, it’s not just the artwork in this room that comes to life. There’s quite a bit of artwork out there in the Enchanted Gallery that comes to life as well. There’s a really great immersive experience that our Disney photo imaging group brought together, so you can take some of those memories home with you, which is also pretty amazing part of this building. And I am so excited to see our guests experience this space. We get a little taste of it today in the courtyard. We have so many sculpts out there in the courtyard, and it’s really fun to see our guests finding those sculpts as those characters have come to life all over. My favorite out there is Lucifer and how some guests are a little afraid. Some are brave to get up to Lucifer in that courtyard, but it’s going to be an amazing experience for all of our guests. Well, I’m pretty sure everyone here is going to have a great time experiencing each and every one of these rooms. Thank you for your time, everyone, if we can have it for our panelists. Welcome back to Imagination Central. Before you exit this episode, remember to follow Imagination Skyway on social media and share the show with anyone who might enjoy listening to our program. Remember that you can access ad free episodes and bonus content at patreon dot com slash Imagination Skyway, which is also a great way to support the show. When you’re ready for your next vacation, remember that listeners of Imagination Skyway can get rewarded for booking a trip to Disney through CMV. Travel voted the top travel agency in Orlando in twenty twenty six. Simply fill out the form at KMV travel dot com and make sure that you select Imagination Skyway under the. How did you hear about us? Question. To be eligible for a special gift from the team. Terms and conditions apply as you disembark. 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