One of the great panels of the D23 Expo thus far has been the “Voices of the Park” presentation from last night. While you wait for some more in-depth reports from the Expo, enjoy this uncut audio of the entire presentation.
Download the “Voices of the Parks”
One of the great panels of the D23 Expo thus far has been the “Voices of the Park” presentation from last night. While you wait for some more in-depth reports from the Expo, enjoy this uncut audio of the entire presentation.
Download the “Voices of the Parks”
From Jennifer Fickley-Baker on the Disney Parks Blog:
Ever wonder how Disney develops new attractions and experiences for its theme parks and resorts? Today, Tom Staggs, chairman, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, and Bruce Vaughn, chief creative officer, Walt Disney Imagineering, took us on a behind-the-scenes look at the creative design process for the Magic Kingdom Park New Fantasyland expansion at Walt Disney World Resort.
When Imagineers start building a new park or a land, they first create a detailed scale model to help visualize what the project will look like when it’s complete. Models like the one in this Magic Kingdom Park New Fantasyland flythrough video are not only works of art, but they’re also an invaluable tool that helps Imagineers visualize sight lines, analyze guest traffic patterns and get an overall sense of the design and aesthetics.
Some of the attractions and restaurants coming to New Fantasyland that you saw in that video include:
- Under the Sea ~ Journey of The Little Mermaid where guests will get to experience what it’s like to go under the sea with Ariel and her friends.
- Enchanted Tales with Belle where families and children will have the opportunity to meet Belle with a whole new degree of interactivity and personalization.
- Dumbo The Flying Elephant, complete with an interactive queue under the Big Top and not one but two Dumbo attractions.
- Be Our Guest Guests can dine in three separate dining rooms in the Beast’s castle. The main dining room is the Ballroom, where Belle and Beast had their first dance, in the West Wing or in the Castle Galley during lunch hours.
- Gaston’s Tavern, a place where guests can dine in splendor and pay tribute to the manliest of men…Gaston himself!
Tom also gave D23 Expo attendees even more detail around the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train where guests will take a journey through the diamond mine of the Seven Dwarfs in a new ride system designed by Walt Disney Imagineering. The ride system allows each mine car to swing back and forth individually as the train twists and turns along the track. But don’t take my word for it – see for yourself.
While Tom and our crew are out in Anahiem covering everything Expo for you we hope you are enjoying our new Expo Central Site. We figured we would take a moment to share with you this video from Disney for a quick look inside the Expo. Stay tuned for a full report from Tom and our team direct from the Expo soon.
These are some event specific and other specialty Vinylmation that were showcased at D23. First up is the 2011 Disneyland Half Marathon 3″ Stopwatch figure.
This will release on September 2 at Disneyland for $14.95. Runners can pick this one up and there is a space on the back to write your marathon time.
Up next are 2 figures from an upcoming “Teams” series. The two teams features are the Orlando Magic and LA Lakers (make sense) from the NBA.
Hopefully they offer a full selection of teams and other sports. I can’t wait for my Red Sox, Patriots and Celtics Vinylmation!
Update: 8/29/11 IMPORTANT – Check out more details and HQ photos on our updated DCL 2011 Explained Page.
Update: 9/21/11 All these DCL vinyls will be on ships in September.
A ton of great DCL Vinylmation on the way. We know about Aqua Duck Donald. At D23 they unveiled a vinyl specific for each ship… the Magic, Dream and Wonder. And they also had on display these 7 figures. It’s classic Disney characters all dressed up and ready to set sail.
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| Dale |
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| Chip |
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| Donald Duck |
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| Goofy |
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| Mickey |
Mickey actually has an accessory hat. And if this one looks familiar, we saw him pop up on eBay by one of those Hong Kong sellers.
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| Minnie |
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| Pluto |
A few upcoming 9″ Urban 7 figures were shown off at D23 on Friday. Here is a look.
This 9″ King Tut is part of a 9/3 combo. It will retail for $74.95 and is LE 1500.
The 3″ King Tut is a depiction from outside the sarcophagus. This combo will release in November.
Disney calls this 9″ figure “Monster”. We saw this in Jumbo pin form earlier in the year.
This is another figure we saw coming, 9″ Color Bar. We inferred this released based on the 3″, Jr., Ear Hat combo released earlier this year.
I can’t wait for the Florida Project! September 9-11 at EPCOT. We already knew all the figures for purchase, but we got a peek at the ‘gift’ given to people who registered for the Vinylmation day:
It’s a Minnie Mouse. I don’t know about you, but this figure doesn’t do much for me. Its kind of plain. I like the bow, but a generally ugly piece. Your thoughts?
The Orange Bird is a different story. I know we already have one (the AP Exclusive), but this one has a different facial expression and a Mickey Ear Hat! This guy will be only available through trading with Cast Members at the Florida Project.
Here is a look at the 3″ available. Dumbo will be sold with a 9″ Mickey and Pooh will be sold solo.
On the right, is the 9″ Mickey that is packaged with the 3″ Dumbo. On the left is the 9″ Empress Lily. Check out our Florida Project Explained page for more info.
Here are two of the figures:
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| Flower from Bambi |
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| Dopey – Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs |
Update: Check out Park 7 Explained for full set list.
Not much new on the Park 7 front, but we finally get a glimpse of Figment in Spacesuit. This set will release in November and will retail for $12.95. (thanks Zoe)
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| Figment in Spacesuit |
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| Earful Tower, EPCOT 2000, Kali River Rapids |
