Secret Disney show salutes movies
Walt Disney World has raised the curtain — in an uncharacteristically quiet way — on a new projection show called “Disney Movie Magic” at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
The nightly event salutes a slew of live-action films and relies heavily on projection mapping on the park’s Chinese Theater. There’s but a smidge of animation (coughJessicaRabbitcough).
“It was just neat to kind of revisit and remind people that, first and foremost, Walt Disney himself was a filmmaker and created some films that still resonate, whether they were released in the ’50s or released this summer,” said Michael Roddy, show director.
The show’s imagery ranges from a gigantic central images to a collage of tiny multiple clips. Whoa, was that “The Apple Dumpling Gang”?
“Different people take away different things,” Roddy said. “I’ve been very lucky to be around the audience and hear them point out different films that resonate with them — things you wouldn’t necessarily think of, like ‘The Cat From Outer Space’ or ‘The Black Hole’ or ‘The Rocketeer’ or ‘Swiss Family Robinson’ or ‘That Darn Cat.’”
Imagine that. Disney pushing our buttons.
“The thinking was, ‘Look at the films you remember moments from,’” Roddy said. “Just hearing Old Yeller bark — and hearing the name Old Yeller conjures up the entire experience.”
Don’t nod off, kids. Recent flicks such as “Beauty and the Beast,” “Pirates of the Caribbean” and “Guardians of the Galaxy” have prominent placement.
The unusual shape of the theater was a technical and creative challenge.
“These films literally escape the screen and overtake the building. That was the fun part of this,” Roddy said. First on his wish list: “Step in Time” from “Mary Poppins.”
“Realizing that we could use the scale and scope of that building to bring that number to life in a way that no one has ever seen was so fun and challenging,” he said.
So much so that fresh green-screen scenes were produced to get the chimney sweeps synced and other looks scaled properly.
But why so hush-hush? Folks in the park on premiere night were surprised by the previously unannounced show (which also has taken its time showing up on the Disney World website or app.)
“Normally we’re talking about these projects well in advance. But there was something kind of neat and exciting because there was so much being released over the last couple of weeks,” Roddy said (CoughPandoraCough).
“They didn’t know, and all of sudden it happens, there was something really charming and magical about that,” he said. “It allowed them to see it for what it is as opposed to building up what it might be.”