Showing posts with label theme parks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label theme parks. Show all posts

Saturday, August 15, 2026

Gosling's Starfighter jacket and other highlights from the Disney convention















Tuesday, July 28, 2026

Absolutely glowing review of Universal's new Fast & Furious roller coaster




Todd Martens for the LA Times:

I had perhaps the best view of the Valley I’ve ever seen.

Granted, it was fleeting. But I was alternately in awe and fearful of what Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift was presenting before me.

BTW, from years ago:

Tuesday, December 30, 2025

Near disaster at the Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular

Weird when the show that involves a fake mishap genuinely injures a brave crewmember:



@crislainyrodrigues Ao vivo é desse jeito! Espero que o cara esteja bem 🙌🏻 #disney #indianajones ♬ On A Roll (STEM whistling) - Altitude Music / BMGPM

Thursday, December 4, 2025

Disney's Olaf robot is pretty great

@kellyfitzsimons__

The cutest thing I’ve ever seen 😭😭😭🩵

♬ original sound - tuckerbudzyn



@sleasca Just 15 seconds of #olaf wondering around @Disneyland Paris ✨ #frozen #worldoffrozen #disney #disneyland ♬ original sound - Stacey Leasca



@drewthedisneydude Walt Disney Imagineering just revealed a next-generation robotic character representing Olaf, the beloved snowman from Walt Disney Animation Studios’ Frozen. This debut marks a new chapter in Disney character innovation, one where technology, storytelling, and collaboration come together to bring screen to reality. From the way he moves to the way he looks, every gesture and detail is crafted to reflect the Olaf audiences have seen in the film — alive, curious, and unmistakably himself. As for his snow-like shimmer that catches the light just like fresh snow, this was enhanced by iridescent fibers. These details make Olaf one of the most expressive and true-to-life characters built, and he’s soon making his debut at Disney Parks. Walt Disney Imagineering collaborated closely with the film’s original animators at Walt Disney Animation Studios to ensure every gesture felt true to the character. To make Olaf as authentic as possible, Imagineers used a branch of artificial intelligence called reinforcement learning, pushing the limits of hardware to achieve the creative intent of the artists. Olaf’s “snow” also moves differently than the hard shells of other robotic characters, and he can fully articulate his mouth, eyes, and removable carrot nose and arms. Most importantly, Olaf can speak and engage in conversations, creating a truly one-of-a-kind experience. Olaf will soon greet Guests in World of Frozen, coming soon to Disney Adventure World at Disneyland Paris, and World of Frozen at Hong Kong Disneyland Resort. #DisneyParks #DisneyAnimation #Frozen #Frozen2 #Olaf ♬ original sound - Drew Smith



From the official announcement:
While the BDX droids — the Star Wars free roaming robotic characters that mimic movements in a simulation — have been interacting with guests for a while now, Olaf presents a far greater challenge: an animated character with non-physical movements. To make Olaf as authentic as possible, the team used a branch of artificial intelligence called reinforcement learning, pushing the limits of hardware to achieve the creative intent of the artists.

It takes humans years to master walking and even longer to perform graceful motions. Deep reinforcement learning helps him acquire these skills in a fraction of the time.  

Olaf’s “snow” also moves differently than the hard shells of other robotic characters, and he can fully articulate his mouth, eyes, and removable carrot nose and arms. Most importantly, Olaf can speak and engage in conversations, creating a truly one-of-a-kind experience. 
...
Olaf will soon venture out into the unknown, eager to see guests at:

Arendelle Bay Show in World of Frozen, the new immersive world coming soon to Disney Adventure World at Disneyland Paris.
Limited-time special appearances at World of Frozen at Hong Kong Disneyland Resort.

Monday, September 15, 2025

"Scuba-clad man robs Disney Springs restaurant, swims away"



Reportedly swam up, restrained the employees, and swam away with over $10,000

Wednesday, July 2, 2025

Some great theme park images



Tuesday, January 21, 2025

The LA Times wrote about the updated version of Disneyland's Haunted Mansion

LAT (plenty of photos):

The last time the attic received a major overhaul was in the mid-2000s, and that figure, known as the “black widow bride,” had a more aggressive, sinister story to tell. Holding an ax, she was portrayed as a murderous, wealth-seeking seductress who had beheaded her husbands, evident by their heads disappearing from the wedding portraits scattered around the attic. Those pictures are still present, only now the full bodies of the men vanish — leaving their departure up to the imagination.

Irvine said the attic scene was redone, in part, because the projection technology on the prior figure had become so outdated as to necessitate regular maintenance. But rather than update what was there, [Disneyland Creative Director] saw an opportunity to add a greater contrast with the more festive waltz in the prior room as well as to embellish the Mansion’s tale.

...

“The bride that used to be in there was an ax murderer, and in this day and age we have to be really careful about the sensitivities of people,” [Creative Director] said. “We were celebrating someone chopping off her husband’s heads, and it was a weird story. 

Tuesday, November 26, 2024

Beautiful photos from the Haunted Mansion

It’s still spooky season. Haunted Mansion. (No flash, no exterior light) Never EVER interrupt the show.

[image or embed]

— Peter Tedone (@ptfilm.bsky.social) November 23, 2024 at 9:02 PM

Sunday, May 26, 2024

If you want even more Disney Star Wars hotel commentary, here's a long podcast from several months ago

It's a group of adults describing their disappointing immersive Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser experience in detail--a funny point made is that, when you think about it, most "high end" Disney hotel experiences are extremely lackluster compared to high end experiences at non-Disney hotels and restaurants. 

(That's certainly my opinion of the hotel on Oahu.)

Wednesday, May 22, 2024

Galactic Starcruiser roundup


The four-hour opus if you haven't watched it yet.







(In Utah, several options starting at $120.)


Below, some fan art and jokes:


Sunday, March 17, 2024

The roller coaster Nemesis Reborn has a cool animated eye













Saturday, March 16, 2024

New roller coaster lets you experience The Phantom of the Opera in virtual reality during the ride

Here's the promotional video:



From the official site:
Eurosat Coastiality - The Phantom of the Opera invites you on an immersive VR adventure. At the centre of this gripping story is the ghost of the Parisian 'Opéra Populaire', whose fascinating story is now brought to life at Europa-Park. The Phantom of the Opera lives in secret and hides his masked face from the world. But when the young soprano Christine enters his life, fate takes its course. 
The mystery and intrigue of this gripping love story, coupled with the thrill of a rollercoaster ride, can now be experienced up close.

This new virtual reality adventure in the French themed area on Eurosat Coastiality has been set to Andrew Lloyd Webber's classic musical 'The Phantom of the Opera'. A separate station with sliding track and separate trains has been integrated into the dark ride rollercoaster to make the innovative ride experience possible.

This means that there are two attractions in one ride that use the same track layout. With this concept, Europa-Park offers its visitors a unique virtual reality experience.

All passengers put on the VR headset in a pre-show room before the actual VR rollercoaster ride. The real, physical environment is recreated exactly in virtual reality, allowing visitors to board the train without any problems while wearing the VR headset. This is followed seamlessly by the actual VR ride on the rollercoaster.

Monday, February 26, 2024

Maybe one day we'll have a virtual version of Galaxy's Edge with all the planned bells and whistles




Speaking of virtual theme park reconstructions:





And:




Also, here's Starcruiser viewport footage:

Saturday, January 6, 2024

Impressive Disneyland model made by a future Imagineer when he was 14 and had limited reference material to work with















*See more miniatures.