The Original Walt Disney Studios Animation Courtyard

Gotta give the Imagineers and the Budgeteers props when its due! The new Walt Disney Studios Courtyard looks absolutely fantastic! As you can see, there's brand new life in this area that was once a fast and cheap Star Wars Launch Bay experience. The nighttime photo here by the great folks at WDWMagic shows just how magical a little effort can be!

It sure looked different back when we were there in 1989...

In the opening days, the then named Disney-MGM Studios were designed to be part theme park, part actual production facilities. There was a bit of both, making for an odd mix that has made it difficult for expansion and planning in later years. Honestly, there was not a lot to do, but what was there was charming. Never intended to be more than a partial day experience, when the suits decided it needed to be a full fledged theme park, planners had to think creatively and truly out of the small sized box they placed it in. There's a reason the park feels a bit thrown together. It was! 

Wanting to one up their neighbor in California -and soon to be competitor in Florida, Universal Studios- the centerpiece attraction for the production half of the park would be a studio tram tour past sound stages, wardrobe warehouses, and outdoor sets. It was an odd combination of sites, but at the beginning, it seemed to be enough.

The star of all the backstage studios facilities was the Animation section. This is the heart of The Walt Disney Company, and the park did its best to honor their legacy. 

Beyond the gateway into the area celebrating animation.

A fairly bland entrance to such an important aspect of Disney film making!

The entrance gate would also be the way to get to The Art of Disney Animation. This attraction would be the first time Disney animators would be on display working on real upcoming theatrical releases.

"I'm not bad, I'm just drawn that way!"

The idea of showcasing animators and animation was not new. In fact, this attraction was a greatly expanded concept from the much smaller "The Art of Animation" exhibit housed in Disneyland's Tomorrowland during the first half of the 1960's. The real highlight for fans of the art was watching the animators. I couldn't get enough- and the nearby store was the perfect spot to allow me to come home with some animation related treasures. 

Inside the complex was also a very clever film, "Back to Neverland" with Robin Williams and Walter Cronkite,  to be found here. (Years later, when the Company was doing things cheaply, the film was also presented in the Animation attraction at California Adventure. It was later removed when Turtle Talk with Crush took over the space.)

Back then in 1989, it didn't seem that Disney had saturated the parks with present day celebrities, so to do so here seemed a much better fit for the new park than Epcot putting in Ellen's Energy Adventure or Gary Sinese in Mission: Space.  (I hated that move to add celebrities where they don't belong. And still do! Much respect to Gary Sinese, however, for his pet project- look here.) The animation, the characters, the celebrities all belonged at Disney-MGM. You'd expect this at a park called "The Studios". Their absence would create an obvious void. The attractions gave a nod to the true stars of old as well as promoting the latest stars and starlets. 

It was this attention to honoring the past as well that made the park a place for families of all ages to appreciate. A very wise choice, and it made for good marketing. Changing the area to Launch Bay years later was a lazy move, and the public burned out on it quickly. Once Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge showed up, the area was finished. 

But here we are once more. Animation is honored again! It's about time for attractions like this that build on the past instead of tearing it down. (Looking at you Josh D'Amaro and the destruction of Rivers of America!)

Coco Boat Ride Area Expanded for Disney California Adventure

Disney CEO in the making Josh D'Amaro spoke about the Coco boat attraction for Disney California Adventure as one that would take its inspiration from Disneyland's classic Pirates of the Caribbean. That's a great piece of marketing fluff! What part of this could actually be real? We know there's severe space limitations in California, but Fantasyland is filled with them, and look how beautiful that area is!

So, what are those great Disney Imagineers actually up to? What will they build? 

Imagine if you will an entire land dedicated to the part of California that was influenced by the beautiful culture of Mexico. Its art, its architecture, its food, its music. Now imagine it all as an area of expansion for Disney California Adventure. It could be the equivalent of New Orleans Square in Disneyland.

What do I wish they would build? An indoor restaurant and an Epcot-ish mini Mexico pavilion with perpetual nighttime.  

Directly above is the official concept art for the Coco expansion. At the very top of this post is a piece I created with the help of several AI engines. One of the major differences between the two is my inclusion of a restaurant on the banks of the lagoon's boat ride. Think classic  Blue Bayou in California's New Orleans Square or even the San Angel Restaurante at Epcot's Mexico pavilion. The Gran Fiesta Tour may be the attraction there, but the true calling card draw is the waterside dining under a beautiful moonlit sky. Something like this will probably not happen as space is severely limited back in that corner of the park. But I wish it would. Don't you?

 

But let's imagine even more! How about making the Boardwalk Pizza and Pasta area into an extension of the Coco themed area? At the very top of this article is the new Los Amigos Plaza Restaurante. The elaborate courtyard is shown above.

Last but not least, let's re-Imagine Goofy's Sky Skool as The Three Caballeros Sky School, adding to attractions themed to this expanded land in the park. The new colors of the flight tower and the beautiful new arch lend a bit of flare to the surroundings. As far the ride itself, it's time to enclose a part of it and add in the three friends in Audio-Animatronic form. Donald Duck, and friends Panchito and Jose Carioca could sing and serenade us away from danger. Or so we think! It could be a total upgrade from what's there now and without too much work.

The little sister park next to Walt Disney's original castle park needs something this spectacular and this charming! The suits seem to have lost their way when it comes to making this park feel richly cohesive. Cars Land is a no contest smash, but the rest of the additions since have seriously been lacking, at least in my opinion. Not one single addition since 2012 has become a must-see for me, even though I love the film Big Hero 6. Will a Coco attraction do the trick to make me come back? Yes, maybe, but the ride and expansion had better be good! And an indoor restaurant will certainly affect my opinion on it, and a fully rethemed area would only make it better!

(Official concept art copyright The Walt Disney Company.)

Disney Abu Dhabi: The Company's First Park in the Middle East

A Wednesday morning surprise announcement! Disney announced its plan to build its first park in the Middle East. Disneyland Abu Dhabi! Now, United Arab Emirates has the distinction of hosting the first Disney branded themed destination in the region. Boasting a Yas Island waterfront location, Disney Imagineers are hot on the plans creating something very unique for this market. What will the park look like? What will be in it? 

In Disney's official press release, Josh D’Amaro, Chairman, Disney Experiences, states “This groundbreaking resort destination represents a new frontier in theme park development". 

The concept art by Imagineering is intentionally vague. But you can bet it will be bigger and more elaborate than what was once planned for Dubai Disneyland!

(Concept art copyright The Walt Disney Company.)