As I posted earlier, on June 2-3, Josh and I were invited to cover the Grand Re-Opening of Star Tours at Disneyland as well as the Grand Opening of the new The Little Mermaid attraction at Disney California Adventure.

Today, I wanted to share with you about The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Undersea Adventure.  We were there for the opening ceremonies where none other than the voice of Ariel, Jodi Benson, was on hand to perform a medley of songs from the film.  This was an experience that I’ll never forget.  She’s still got it!  Check out the video:

This new attraction is the next generation “dark ride.”  Picture any of the attractions in Fantasyland injected with steroids.  It’s the same idea — floating through various scenes like you would in Peter Pan, Snow White, or Pinnochio.  But instead of small rooms, with half size figures, The Little Mermaid ride is MASSIVE with life-size characters.  The Ursula is especially large and foreboding.

If you are a fan of The Little Mermaid, you’ll love the ride.  If not, it may not be your thing.  No thrills.  What you see is what you get.  But I liked it very much.  And I was excited to see how the Imagineers used new technologies to achieve the same “dark ride” experience on a bigger scale.

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We teamed up with Ricky Brigante of Inside the Magic to cover the event.  Head on over to InsidetheMagic.net to view full coverage of the events including video and pictures.

The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Undersea Adventure

On June 2-3 of this year, Josh and I were invited to cover the Grand Re-Opening of Star Tours at Disneyland as well as the Grand Opening of the new The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Undersea Adventure attraction at Disney California Adventure.  And let me tell ya, Disney sure knows how to throw a party.  We had such a fun weekend.

Today, I’ll give my review of Star Tours.  Check back soon for my review of Little Mermaid.

The opening Ceremony for Star Tours wasn’t as impressive as I’d hoped it would be — George Lucas did not show up.  But it was cute, including the Disneyland Resort president, Tom Staggs in the theatrics.

My thoughts:

The day the original Star Tours closed last year, I drove down from Santa Monica specifically to ride one last time.  I waited in line for an hour along with many other like-minded geeks.  I stood in line in silence saying goodbye to an old friend.  To be honest, I didn’t trust George Lucas to reopen this classic attraction with anything that would live up to the original.  I took my last trip to Endor and left the park, grieving.  (I know – pathetic.  But there is something so final about extinct Disney attractions.)

I can honestly say, I am blown away by “Star Tours 2.”  I love it.  The geniuses at ILM and Imagineering lovingly updated this attraction.  They kept the traditional Star Tours jingle and even found a place for the original pilot, Rex.

The Queue – I was afraid they’d take away the giant Star Speeder, R2-D2, and C-3P0 but thankfully, they didn’t.  Just spruced them up.  The second room, the Robot Room, makes more sense — it’s more of a baggage handling area rather than some weird trash conveyor belt area from the original.  I never quite got what was going on in that room — or why we were seeing behind the veil of Star Tours.  The new security scanner at the end of the queue is hilarious.

The Ride – AMAZING.  And so many variables.  Over 50 different ride variations?  Wow.  I was a little worried about the 3D aspect but I am very impressed with it.  Probably the best 3D and the best use of 3D I’ve ever seen.  The destinations are great, even those revolving around the prequels.  And making C-3PO the pilot actually works really well.

My only minor complaint is how the story exists in this strange in-between — there are elements of the prequels and the original trilogy in the ride.  The timeline doesn’t quite work but I don’t mind.

The bottom line:  Head on down to Disneyland or Walt Disney World and get in the two hour+ line to ride Star Tours: The Adventure Continues.  You’ll love it.

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We teamed up with Ricky Brigante of Inside the Magic to cover the event.  Head on over to InsidetheMagic.net to view full coverage of the events including video and pictures.

Star Tours: The Adventure Continues

This past Monday, Josh and I had the honor to interview Dave Smith, the founder and director of the Walt Disney Archives.  We met with him in his office on the Walt Disney Studios lot in Burbank.

We were there to cover the 40th anniversary of the Archives for InsidetheMagic.net.  We’ll be posting the majority of our coverage over there.  But I wanted to share with you Dave’s answer to one very important question.

I asked Dave what he had gleaned over the last 40 years of studying Walt’s life that would indicate what made Walt Disney so successful.  This is what he said:

“I think the basic quality about Walt is that he was a genius in knowing what the public wanted in entertainment.  He didn’t listen to all of his critics that tried to talk him out of doing things he wanted to do because he knew what would interest the public.  And that was proved true throughout his career.

He was always trying new things… things that other companies and individuals were afraid to do.  He was always willing to put up his money to do things that other people didn’t want to do.

Of course, most people were afraid that these things wouldn’t be successful.  He wasn’t afraid they weren’t going to be successful.  He knew they were going to be successful.  Now if only we all had that ability… but I think that was indeed where he was a genius and I think that was his most important quality.”

Some key points stuck out at me from what Dave said.

• Walt didn’t listen to the naysayers in his life
• Walt tried new things – always
• Walt was a risk-taker
• Walt believed completely in his projects

I’d like to share one more quote by Walt Disney himself which backs up what Dave Smith observed.

“Somehow I can’t believe that there are any heights that can’t be scaled by a man who knows the secret of making his dreams come true. This special secret, it seems to me, can be summarized in four C’s. They are curiosity, confidence, courage, and constancy, and the greatest of these is confidence. When you believe in a thing, believe in it all the way.”

I believe that you and I can be just as big an impact on our world as Walt Disney.  I’m prepared to try.  Are you?

I’ve been having some amazing adventures since I moved to Los Angeles over a year ago.  Not all of them have been directly film related but they have been opportunities I wouldn’t have had in Atlanta.

Last week, I had the opportunity to cover a major media event at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim.  They were unveiling their new night time water show, World of Color. I scored my invite through my work over at www.InsidetheMagic.net and because of the work we do here at DawsBrothers.com.

On top of the premiere of World of Color, the event consisted of a Red Carpet, a pre-show with a really impressive talking Mickey Mouse, and an after party.

The Red Carpet was actually blue – I’m assuming because World of Color is a water show.  Click here to see pictures from the carpet.  You’ll see stars like Vanessa Hudgens, Jason Segel, John Stamos, Geena Davis, and Terri Hatcher.  Plus, there are some really neat puppets.

The talking Mickey Mouse at the pre-show was amazing.  Disney had been testing this technology through private interactions with guests at Disneyland for a few months.  This was the first public use of the technology.  Check out this video:

After the pre-show, we saw World of Color and you can read my review of the show here.

The show finished and Ricky Brigante (from Inside The Magic) and I headed back to the Grand Californian Hotel to start capturing our footage.  Then we headed over to an area of Disney California Adventure called Paradise Pier.  That portion of the park had been completely emptied of guests and they threw a private party for all of us media and all of the celebrities.

And it was the best party I’ve ever been to.  There was free catered food, free churos, free drinks, free games, and most of the attractions in that area were running (and with no wait.)  There was a cover band doing mostly Black-eyed Peas and Fergie songs and the music wasn’t so loud that you couldn’t think.  It was perfect.  Even Mickey Mouse was there taking pictures with everyone.

At one point I found myself standing with The Bachelor on my left and John Stamos on my right.  It was surreal.  John Lassiter was also on hand with his family.

The party ended and I headed home glowing from such a magical evening.

The next morning I went back to Disneyland to see a press event called “What’s Next?”  During the show, they unveiled new changes to the Disneyland Resort and the Disney Cruise Line.  To check out those updates, click here.

The coolest part of the “What’s Next?” event was the fact that Jodi Benson, who was the voice of Ariel in The Little Mermaid, performed live on stage.  You can see that video here:

Needless to say, I highly recommend blogging because it opens up some really cool doors.

I’m so thankful I decided to move to Los Angeles.  These opportunities are some that I treasure.  It’s all about finding joy in the journey.

What are some of life’s little blessings that you’ve gotten to experience along your journey?

As I said in yesterday’s post, last night I went to the World Premiere of Disney’s World of Color, the new water show at Disney’s California Adventure theme park. If you didn’t follow me on Twitter last night while I was at the press event, check out this site. Myself and my friend, Ricky Brigante from www.InsidetheMagic.net were there covering the event.

We covered the Red Carpet and the After Party where we saw stars like John Stamos, Wayne Brady, and Terri Hatcher. That will be it’s own blog post – it is definitely an interesting chapter in my Adventure out in California. Today, I’ll focus on the show itself.

Some might ask, what does a new water show at the Disneyland Resort have to do with this blog about film and filmmaking? Well, the answer is – World of Color is on the cutting edge of storytelling. Disney has re-imagined the way a film is shown and experienced. Combining music, fire effects, and video projected onto a HUGE screen of misting water, this show is truly in a class of its own.

World of Color at Disney’s California Adventure is 25 minutes long and I could have stood there for much longer than that. I was taking pictures during the show but about a third of the way through, the sounds and sights I was experiencing took my breath away and I just had to stop and take it all in. My mind was officially blown.

Everything in the show is top notch. I loved the selections from the various Disney films from Wall-e and Toy Story to The Little Mermaid and Aladdin. They even included scenes from classics like Fantasia. And I love the emotional journey it takes you on as you relive these great scenes. I can’t even explain how new and different this show is or how BIG the show is. The water screens fill your periphery and you become consumed by it.

The most jaw dropping sequence to me was the Toy Story 2 sequence: the laser Zurg was phenomenal. And because they use multiple layers of water screens, it feels like the images are 3D. Sometimes, I couldn’t even see the water so certain elements looked to be floating in thin air.

Only one thing about the whole experience made me raise my eyebrow. The viewing area for the show isn’t perpendicular to the show. It was at an angle so everyone had to look slightly right. I found that strange but it didn’t take away from the experience.

I would recommend getting there extremely early to get a good spot. I’m sure it will get full several hours in advance. Also, you will get wet, even if you are far away. Maybe it was just particularly windy but I was farther back from the water and still got sprayed. But, it’s only a mist. You’ll live. Once you see just how high and wide the water can spray, you’ll understand.

On a side note – I’m doing a terrible job describing this show! Just like the Matrix, one cannot be told what World of Color is – you must be experience it for yourself.

Check out the video that Ricky and I recorded. If you plan on seeing the show anytime in the near future, please don’t ruin it for yourself. But if you can’t resist – enjoy!

So, what are you waiting for? Head on over to Disney.com and book your trip to the Disneyland Resort RIGHT NOW! (And no, Disney isn’t paying me to say any of this.) World of Color really is one of those things you should make a special trip to see. I would. It is breathtaking.

Come back soon to read my account (and see pictures) of the Red Carpet and After Party at the World Premiere of World of Color.

Tonight I will be going to a press event at the Disneyland Resort debuting a new nighttime water show called “World of Color.”

I received an official press release from Disney and included a blurb from it below here -

“Lights, water, music, fire and animation will come together like never before on June 11 when “World of Color” makes its dazzling debut at Disney’s California Adventure theme park.  The show is choreographed with revolutionary technology that creates a playful, nighttime spectacular and a new way for guests to experience Disney stories – from the charming to the adventurous.”

Check out this video to get a taste of the show:

When I went to Vegas for the first time back in April, I caught the water show outside The Bellagio and was blown away.  But this show seems to take all that is great about The Bellagio fountain and amp it up with color, film projections, and fire effects.  The video and pictures that I’ve seen make me think this show will make my head explode.

On a side note, the title for “World of Color” is inspired by one of Walt’s original TV shows called “Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color.”  The theme song was written by Richard and Robert Sherman.  You may recall that Josh and I recently met Richard Sherman at a ceremony honoring he and his brother.

I’ll be tweeting the event as I talk to Imagineers and other notable people on the Red Carpet and at the After Party.  Be sure to follow me – @jeremiahdaws.  Who knows what celebrities I might bump into?

Also, check back here on Friday.  I’ll post my review of the show and you won’t want to miss out on that.  I’ll also be partnering with Ricky Brigante from www.InsideTheMagic.net to provide video and pictures of the event.