A movie for all your senses...

Walt Disney World was created by Walt Disney because he always had a dream to provide the theater going public with an experience of all the senses. As a matter of fact, when he created the film “Fantasia” it was meant to be multi-dimensional. He went from small town to small town to ask the theater managers to play the movie. However, to play it, the theater owner or manager had to promise to make some changes to their property. Special speakers were required as well as special equipment for mist and smell to reach the viewers. The costs for these changers were extraordinary; none of the managers were willing to put so much into presenting the film. When it was officially released, the viewers only had a part of the experience and it left many disappointed.

Walt Disney was simply ahead of his time. He had the imagination but not the technology necessary to give the audience the multi-sensory experience. Of course, Disney has long been innovators – they have created technology that did not exist to make some vision come to life. Some movie theaters are now being built with the equipment that would have made “Fantasia” an amazing movie experience.

Since he could not make it happen on the big screen, Walt Disney decided to make it happen in a much larger theater. That is why he created Disneyland in California. The Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida is designed on the same pattern. The park is designed to be a huge movie that the viewer can actually step into. From the parking lot into Main Street, the visitor is greeted with the same things they would see at the theater. They park and then approach the ticket booth. At the front door you can see posters advertising upcoming attractions – the themed areas inside the park. As you walk through the door, the first thing you will smell is the popcorn coming from the carts parked nearby. Main Street is where you will see the movie credits. There are names painted on the windows above the stores. These names tell the story of Disney – from accountants to designers to Walt Disney himself.

Finally, as you begin walking down Main Street you can finally see the feature presentation – Cinderella’s Castle. You can not see the castle from anywhere outside of the park – it is not visible until you step on to Main Street. The Main Street Train Station was specifically designed to hide it until the very last moment. Walt Disney wanted it to be a breathtaking moment. The entire Disney experience – at whichever park you visit – is the same. It is not a theme park, it is a show. The workers are cast members, their uniforms are costumes. They are actors on a stage and you enter into a very different world.

Another way to Experience what Walt Disney intended for that early movie is an attraction found in Fantasyland. Mickey's PhilharMagic is a 20 minute 3 dimensional large screen movie using ideas and visuals from the movie "Fantasia," but also adding the other sensory features that Walt Disney intended. It is so much fun to try to catch the things that pop out of the screen at you -- jewels, instruments, even Donald Duck. The smell of roses and the feel of mist on your skin makes it an incredible experience. Mickey's PhilharMagic is a FastPass ride, though the auditorium is large and the wait is usually short. It is worth the wait.

The pictures in today's blog were taken by Bruce.