News / Toon Studio

It’s the much anticipated grand opening of dark ride Toy Story Midway Mania at Disney’s California Adventure park and the impending US release of sure-fire Summer blockbuster WALL-E that has brought the business world’s attention back to the mouse’s relationship with that desk lamp.

Whilst it was Disneyland Resort Paris that benefited most from the rekindled Disney-Pixar relationship last year, with inspiration for the Toon Studio expansion, all this talk of big-budget films and 4D interactive dark rides certainly doesn’t leave our homeland completely in the dark.

In a post on CNBC.com’s Media Money blog, found by member Yesitsme on magicforum, writer Julia Boorstin investigates how Disney has used the characters of Pixar to bring a new generation to their theme parks. Hinting at projects yet to come, she name-checks the well-known ‘Carsland’ expansion at California Adventure, and then something a little less well-known, for much closer to home…

There’s no question that Pixar is an increasingly important driver of Disney parks. The last big attraction Disneyland launched was its “Finding Nemo” Submarine ride last year, it’s working on a big “Cars” attraction for Disneyland and a “Ratatouille” ride for Euro Disney outside Paris. All these rides further proof of the fact that Disney’s acquisition of Pixar was about much more than just a movie studio, it was about building brands to exploit across all its platforms, which is CEO Bob Iger’s big strategy.

That’s it, folks. A ‘Ratatouille’ ride for Disneyland Resort Paris!

More specifically, as we’ve all already guessed, for the back of Toon Studio at Walt Disney Studios Park. To repeat the rumours from DCP forum member Grandmath we shared in our last update, some current plans spotted backstage show a very large showbuilding connected onto the Costuming building and sitting across part of the current Studio Tram Tour road, which has been rerouted.

The balloon height tests appeared to suggest a building about the same height as Studio 5 — the Crush’s Coaster building. The exterior is widely suspected to be based on Gusteau’s restaurant from the film, but this fact has yet to extend beyond a guess.

What kind of timescale are we looking at? If DLRP Today sources are correct, don’t expect to meet Rémy in any way other than a meet ‘n’ greet on Toon Studio Plaza for some time yet. The good news here, though, is that this attraction will reportedly be something quite special. As in, something good enough for the 20th Anniversary…

But, thanks to CNBC, the Rat is officially out of the bag a full four years early.

Between an indoor Little Mermaid land, an outdoor Bug’s Land and an indoor — and very Goofy — soundstage, the rumours that filled the years from the opening of Walt Disney Studios Park to its first major expansion — Crush’s Coaster and Cars Quatre Roues Rallye — seemed almost to have completely run out of the steam by the time the first piece of the park’s Phase 2 was completed.

Toon Studio instantly became the most popular area of the park, but no-one seemed to want to put their neck on the line with a suggestion for where it could go next. Until now…

Rumours have been spreading for several months about the addition of some kind of Ratatouille-themed experience in the land. Initially started by a throwaway comment from infamous MiceAge columnist Al Lutz, the suggestion seemed more of a guess (Ratatouille + Paris = Logical) than something based upon real Imagineering fact, supposing that Paris might be a more natural home for Rémy than California Adventure:

“Ratatouille has done very well in Europe however, and the merchandise and toys are selling better in France than they did in America. With that, the Ratatouille attraction concept may very well be slotted in to the Walt Disney Studios park in Paris.”

Fast forward a few weeks or months and the rumours appear again, this time from well within the boundaries of Disneyland Resort Paris itself…

A French fan claims to have spotted Imagineers in Toon Studio holding plans and discussing certain things relating to Ratatouille. Concept art showing a real-life recreation of Gusteau’s restaurant — apparently intended to go behind the Studio Tram Tour station — was even spotted. An optimistic bit of make-believe or a real in-park assessment of plans for the future?

This week, the biggest step yet to the start of a Toon Studio expansion project arrived and the rumours really “took flight” — literally. Walt Disney Studios fans will remember well the heart-pounding sight of seeing those four coloured balloons floating in the sky in 2006, showing where the four corners of Crush’s Studio 5 building would later be built and its visual impact on the rest of the park and resort.

That day has arrived again, as Grandmath, a consistently well-informed member of the Disneyland Resort Paris community, just reported today on magicforum:

“The balloon (yes, they used just one, but they moved it around at different locations) was pretty high, mm maybe as high as Crush’s Coaster main building. Seems pretty tall for a dark ride, but yet again, we don’t know what is planned there. Maybe the dark ride will be built on several levels, such as Phantom Manor or Pirates of the Caribbean.

“As for the space, in fact don’t consider that the grass area as the perimeter for the building. I saw an expansion map with this building on it, it was stuck to the Costuming building, and expanded on the current tram tour road. Therefore the Tram Tour station was relocated as well, to fit with this new building (and allowing for the extension of Hollywood Boulevard).

“I’m sure that this is some signs of larger things to come, not just a simple building on the grass area. Tram Tour is surely being involved too… but then again, we’ll see in a few months!”

Exciting, no? The recent dearth of rumours about the medium-term future of the resort has thankfully been lifted and suggestions are popping up from all angles… but where is the money coming from? And what are the real contenders?

As you’ve no doubt read recently on DLRP Today, the resort’s finances continue to climb up, up and away. Well, not quite “away” — there’s still some work to go before the resort can claim a profit, but everything is looking good. The effect of the four major new attractions at Walt Disney Studios Park — and to a lesser extent the three earlier additions to Discoveryland — simply cannot be questioned.

The resort squeezed a huge amount of investment and change out of the €240million gift card agreed in January 2005. With that now all but complete, it seems they have every intention to do the same again. If real profit will ever be found at this resort, they have no option but to continue investing sensibly and keep the ball rolling. A similar round of investments spread over several years, leading up to the 20th Anniversary in 2012, currently seems the most likely option.

So, what could the future hold for Toon Studio?

The rumours pointing to a Ratatouille dark ride of some kind now seem too strong to ignore. Indeed, the film was unsurprisingly an instant and massive success in France and picked up great box office figures all over Europe. Just one glance at the queue to meet the characters Rémy and Emile in Toon Studio — which regularly outnumbers that for even Mickey Mouse next door — shows the popularity of this film with guests here.

Another, mostly ignored, type of expansion could be something aimed at younger children. Way back at the end of 2003, then-CEO André Lacroix announced a “playground” for the Studios at the same time as The Legend of the Lion King. The new Videopolis show began the next year, but what of the playground? Currently, the park has only Flying Carpets and Cars aimed squarely at this audience, with mega-hit Crush’s Coaster taking itself out of the market — and upsetting some younger Nemo fans — with its 1.04m height restriction and reasonably intense thrill. This is definitely an area to watch.

Finally, what about an import? The Studios has an incredibly low number of “clone” attractions and its first expansion phase didn’t do much to change that, with both Crush and Cars Imagineered exclusively for the park. The most likely important would be Toy Story Midway Mania, the 4D carnival games dark ride which sees you ride past giant 3D screens armed with an interactive cannon to score points. Whilst the attraction, developed at the same time for both California and Florida, has opened well at both parks, it doesn’t seem like a strong contender for Paris.

A similar attraction, the upcoming Monsters, Inc. Ride & Seek dark ride for Tokyo Disneyland’s Tomorrowland also seems unlikely, with no rumours suggesting its consideration for Paris. Indeed, since Bob Iger took over The Walt Disney Company and executives such as John Lasseter from Pixar came over to Imagineering, the focus seems to be more on unique experiences for each park, with only attractions such as Midway Mania appearing in two locations when developed at the same time.

The reports of balloon height tests from Grandmath throws some question to all the existing rumours for Phase 3, however — even the Ratatouille attraction. A building attached to the ImagiNations Costuming building, pushing out onto the Studio Tram Tour route, almost as tall as Crush’s Coaster?

Just like the spinning Maurer Sohne coaster (with whom Disney had never worked before), the attraction themed to an almost unreleased film (Cars began construction before the film was in cinemas) and the extra little Toon Town gate of the park’s second phase, expect a few surprises… and even more Walt Disney Studios Park exclusives.

[Photos: DLRP Today; Google Maps]

The confirmation comes not from Disneyland Resort Paris themselves but a third-party travel company, Thomas Cook. Their latest UK brochure, released just last week, continues to put the 15th Anniversary logos and promotions at the heart of its pages, despite the edition serving trip planning as far in advance as December 2008.

Brochures such as these primarily use images, logos and texts provided by Disneyland Resort Paris themselves, and so the official texts and taglines of the extended 15th Anniversary are also revealed already. With a double page dedicated to the events, the introduction reads:

15th Anniversary… Celebration Continues

Party on… the anniversary celebrations continue… Big time!

Disneyland Resort Paris is celebrating its 15th anniversary with the biggest party ever and you’re invited! It’s a celebration work celebrating even longer so they have extended it for 2008!

For French promotions the tagline is expected to use the words “En Grande!”, whilst English promotions have to settle for the rather less “grand” wording of — “The 15th Anniversary Celebration continues… big time!” The words “big time!” are to be featured throughout the texts and promotions.

The second page features a large visual for The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, with the tagline “Drop In If You Dare” included above the Tower. As previously reported, confirmation of the ‘Stitch Live‘ name is given with a brief description of the experience, whilst High School Musical On Tour is now given a prominent placement at the request of Disneyland Resort Paris, following its exceptional guest satisfaction and feedback in the parks.

Elsewhere in the new brochure, official images show Disney’s Once Upon a Dream Parade, Disney Characters’ Express and Toon Studio in their final, realised forms for the first time.

Also of note is the small amount of information given for Summer 2008 — with a photo of the spectacular 15th Anniversary launch fireworks, the text reads simply “…and for our grand finale, fireworks that’ll make a great day even more magical. It’s a summer worth celebrating… big time!”. With no mention of the ‘Wishes‘ name or even photography of the show, a return for 2008 looks very unlikely. In addition to this probable change of ‘feux d’artifice’, the Summer season is slated to run longer than it has for many years, dates confirmed as 5th July to 31st August!

The official brochure for the next Spring/Summer season is due to be released as usual in around December of this year, whilst additional advertisements and promos will announce the extention online and through media such as Disney DVDs.

An official closing date of the 15th Anniversary is now no longer confirmed — it could well be that the resort will be fast approaching its 17th year when the final pieces of the 15th are removed! It looks like Disneyland Resort Paris really hit the… “big time!” with this idea.

Brochure images © Thomas Cook/Disney; Scanned by DLRP Today.

…And, in classic Walt Disney Studios Park style, they did it on budget with just a bit of clever thinking.

Rendez-Vous des Stars Restaurant becomes Buffet Service

Like Disneyland Park in the early nineties, a simple change of service can solve the restaurants problem. Luckily, this doesn’t mean downgrading a restaurant (such as Explorer’s Club to Colonel Hathi’s), but rather turning the park’s “highest” class restaurant – the Art Deco cafeteria-style Rendez-Vous des Stars into a fixed-price unlimited buffet.

The original idea was that the restaurant served as the dining place for the more prestigious stars and directors during their time at Walt Disney Studios. However swanky the interior, though, there’s only so much magic you can get from a canteen-service. As a Buffet Service from 27th August 2007, the restaurant will provide one menu price of € 23 and a dining quality very similar to that of Plaza Gardens Restaurant at Disneyland Park. Quite a step up for the actors and crew of the Studios!

Since the restaurant is already set up with long serving counters, the change will likely take place overnight at the end of the Summer season. Et Voilà – Walt Disney Studios finally has a buffet service!

Toon Studio’s first merchandise location!

It’s bizarre that as the park’s most popular land, filled with popular and marketable Disney and Pixar characters, Toon Studio has before now only had the Disney Animation Gallery to its name – a boutique so small you fear for your life (or at least wallet) every time you try to navigate around the delicate glass ornaments and snow globes. Meanwhile, groups of large retail trucks populate areas such as Disney Bros. Plaza and Backlot.

The balance has begun to shift – again in typical “small budget but clever thinking” Walt Disney Studios style. The sligthly barren piece of courtyard between Animagique and Flying Carpets Over Agrabah is now finally home to a brand new retail location. Simple in design, but nestled amongst the trees with colours and a curved roof matching Disney Studio 3 itself. The location is clearly more along the lines of “La Petite Maison des Jouets” in Fantasyland, though currently without its own name.

If you’ve ever spotted those merchandise trucks in Backlot, the sheer quantity of merchandise hanging out in the street might have given you the feeling of being at some kind of jumble (rummage) sale. Strangely, the Toons are being much more restrained with the amount of goods on their shelves, and the location even appears to be slightly understocked.

Now they have a place to sell merchandise, and have seen the hundreds of guests running to Crush’s Coaster each morning, will they finaly realise the Studios could have a mega franchise to exploit, and make some more merchandise? Not everyone can fit into a 7-year old’s T-shirt, after all…

Toon retail photos by Maarten on magicforum.

This special official footage has been prepared by the resort for posting on their Disneyland15.com Official Anniversary Blog. An article featuring the video was originally posted last week, though disappeared soon after following technical problems with the video. The video has now “resurfaced” and gives a (you guessed it) turtally unique view of the very first thrill ride based on any Pixar movie, anywhere – Crush’s Coaster. This will also be the footage we’ll see for years to come, whenever the attraction is featured in motion…

The footage is presented fairly “raw” – simply the resort’s new official footage of the new Walt Disney Studios Park attraction with some sound clips from the Toon Studio press kit over the top. The music is therefore rights-free, created for any press use on television, and not the music heard at the attraction itself – which is based on the film’s original score.

For anyone who hasn’t had the chance to take a dive on Crush’s Coaster yet, the video gives an excellent view of how the Walt Disney Imagineering-developed digital projection technology blends seamlessly with the coral reef and rocks surrounding the two identical projections – Nemo and Squirt appear completely believable, floating in the water-less undersea dark ride. The dazzling jellyfish are also shown, however the video footage available so far fails to feature either the Angler Fish or any of Bruce’s submarine attack.

As you will have noticed, the footage of the ‘EAC’ roller coaster segment is not taken directly from the ride itself, but created using one of the real ride vehicles against greenscreen – with some humorous faces from the actors on-board as they attempt to act out the ride. This version of the footage made available to the public doesn’t show the spinning effect, nor the true intensity of the ride, but allows us to see a very professional piece of promotional footage that will no-doubt be well-used long into the future with added voice-overs, etc in places such as the resort’s Disney Hotels information tv channel.

For fans, there’s no doubt it brings back fond memories of the 1995 Space Mountain footage, where the Disneyland Park roller coaster’s trains were shown flying through a virtual space, rather than the true ride.

Video footage © Disney.

The set of photos released for the opening of Toon Studio is fairly small compared to the set featuring VIPs and celebrities against backdrops within the land, but the quality and amount of locations featured is far better than the frankly quite disappointing publicty photos of the 15th Anniversary launch.

Overall, the resort’s audio-visual teams have captured rather well the quirky style and impressive new attractions of the area… but what do you think?

Here is the full set of publicity photos, be sure to click on them to see the photos full-size!

General Toon Studio

A new angle on the Sorcerer Mickey marquee captures the Peter Pan characters behind,
an incredibly colourful view of the Toon Town gate area with its twisted lamposts.

‘Now in Producion’ sign next to Crush’s Coaster

Cars Quatre Roues Rallye

Welcome to Radiator Springs sign, the famous Cars logo, framed by trees.

The lovely blues and yellows (with a hint of red) of the Quatre Roues Rallye entrance,
the interior themeing, focusing on the amazing detail of Lizzie’s curios display.

A sunny angle on Luigi’s Casa Della Tires (notice the fabric canopy was finally added,
just in time), and a low-down view of the canyon area.

Views in the canyon. Notice the Sorcerer Mickey marquee included in the background,
along with – in the first photo – the Disney Cinema Parade passing by. This looks
like a favourite angle already to capture Cars from, with the iconic Studio 1 looming behind.

One of the excellent on-ride captures from the special camera seen being installed
on the front of this vehicle here.

Two brand new publicity shots only just added to the collection today.

Some official video footage of Cars has also been released, via the Disneyland15.com blog:

Crush’s Coaster

The rusted and sea-sprayed entrance sign, a busy crowd shot showing the Crush area, but
not very many guests who look impressed.

Two views of the turtle shells departing the big blue of Studio 5 – which one wins?

The very first official photos from inside the attraction, we’ll probably see these used frequently,
as they show very well the colourful underwater sets and good lighting.

An “in-production” shot of Crush undergoing final work from above the track, a final shot
positioning Crush against a big blue backdrop of Studio 5.

So, what do you think? A good selection of photographs and footage to advertise Toon Studio, or could they have done better? Whilst this set of official publicity shots has only just been released, we’ll likely be seeing them for years to come, especially as Walt Disney Studios Park continues to grow in visitors…

All photos © Disney.

Whilst the extended opening hours of the park to 7pm have given guests more time at the Studios, they still don’t go far enough to allow regular visitors to see the park at what almost everyone agrees is its very best – fully illuminated at night. From the flashing neons of CinéMagique‘s grand entrance to the flames of Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster‘s entrance and the searchlights of Disney Studio 1, Walt Disney Studios is more than a match for anything at Disneyland Park once darkness falls.

And the new Toon Studio developments? They look just as good…

Toon Studio entrance / Sorcerer Mickey statue

A hidden detail we’ve never spotted before suddenly comes to life on the wand of Mickey Mouse – the star-shaped tip glows and shimmerings in a blue fibre optic effect. The “marquee” itself is also very subtely and lovingly illuminated, with lights positioned inside the several circular bases shining upwards.

Sorcerer Mickey marquee / Crush’s Coaster entrance

Notice the purple lighting effects in Animagique in the background, and the rainbow colours of the Flying Carpets Over Agrabah backdrop, appearing to glow from behind when illuminated. The marquee of Crush’s Coaster is illuminated similar to Sorcerer Mickey, with low lighting on the signage itself and a single spotlight on his character figure. Through the lush beach planting behind, notice the well-chosen hanging lamps and even spotlights positioned throughout the sandy planters, illuminating the greenery.

Colours of the Toon Town gate / Toon Studio from Flying Carpets lookout

Over at the Toon Town gate, the lighting department of Toon Studio have done an equally fantastic job, illuminating all of the multi-coloured buildings and even several parts of the Toon Town hills. Notice that the “Toon Town” lettering is fully illuminated for a very professional effect, and entire forced perspective design of this “street” seems much more convincing. The icing on the Toons’ cake would have been a few lights inside the security booth…

From the newly-reopened viewing platform by Flying Carpets Over Agrabah, the land’s countless lighting touches can be seen glowing in the distance. There aren’t actually any blazing spotlights here at all – just subtle lighting such as the many customised neons of Cars Quatre Roues Rallye – it’s green tower and red glowing logo standing out in particular.

When or if the Studios ever welcomes enough visitors and extra attractions to warrant a late-night opening, the Imagineers have prepared Toon Studio – and the entire park – with more than enough beautiful sights to keep them there until the gates close.

» You can see an excellent video giving a walk around the nighttime illuminated Toon Studio over at our partner site magicblog, along with several extra photographs. Click here.

All photos by Photos Magiques.

It’s a rare and special event in the world of Disney parks, when a brand new pair of characters joins the meet ‘n’ greet schedule for the release of a new Walt Disney animated feature. The last time we saw such an event was way back in late 2005 with the release of Disney’s own Chicken Little. All cogs in the great synergy and marketing machine of The Walt Disney Company, for sure, but nobody is going to turn down the chance to meet a new Disney star, especially a Pixar creation – even when they’re rats!

First, meet Rémy. He’s the star of Ratatouille, the budding chef who isn’t content with eating garbage like his sewer system family. He has dreams and aspirations… and, after being caught by a untalented kitchen hand Linguini, cooking up a soup which goes on to be served to a delighted food critic, he must share his knowledge to create the greatest chef in all of Paris – without anyone even knowing of his work.

Rémy / Emile in their Pixar CG designs

The second character to be taken from CGI to reality is Emile, Rémy’s best friend and familiar from the film’s teaser trailers as the tubby brown rat who doesn’t particularly care what he eats, so long as it fills him up. No doubt when the film is released (initial US release due 29th June), we’ll find out even more about these two new furry faces.

Rémy & Emile debut at the inauguration ceremony / Fun and games at the Toon Town gate

Since opening in 2002, all of the new Disney characters have immediately arrived in Walt Disney Studios Park, from Monsters Inc and Treasure Planet to Narnia and Chicken Little. Rémy and Emile were given their first step into the spotlight during the inauguration ceremony earlier during the press event, before arriving on-stage at the Toon Town gate later, and fighting between themselves for the waiting cameras.

The plaza around the Toon Town gate of course features two dedicated photo locations for character meets, but guests attending the press event who’d already visited the park would have been surprised to see two brand new backdrops installed just for this event. Mickey’s Toon Town House, on the right of the gate, was replaced by a Toon Studio production stage setting, whilst especially for the arrival of Rémy and Emile, The Incredibles’ rather plain logo backdrop was replaced with a stunning view over Pixar’s glowing CGI recreation of Paris.

Emile poses in front of Pixar’s grand Paris backdrop / Up-close with Rémy, in perfect rat pose

The following day, however, guests would need to jump on the RER for 40 minutes to experience a view like this. Both backdrops had been reverted to their original designs, with no sight of Rémy or Emile making appearances, despite the heavy Ratatouille advertising introduced around the park. If you like the look of this rodent pair, however, don’t be too worried – the film isn’t due out in France for over a month, so it’s likely Rémy and Emile will be fully introduced at the next meet ‘n’ greet schedule shake-up in a couple of weeks.

The quick change of the photo location backdrops is also exciting to see for regular guests, showing that these two locations will now become frequently updated as each new Disney film hits cinemas. Perhaps, if Walt Disney Studios ever joins its neighbour in full seasonal events, we’ll see even more special backdrops created in the future.

Disney-Pixar’s Ratatouille is due for release on 1st August 2007 in France, the Netherlands and Belgium, 2nd August 2007 in Austria and 3rd August 2007 in Spain. Then, later in the year, 3rd October 2007 in Germany, 5th October 2007 in the UK and 19th October 2007 in Italy. This creates quite a spread of dates across the key markets of Disneyland Resort Paris – one which is mirrored almost in reverse by Disney’s recent CG hit ‘Meet the Robinsons’.

Already released in March to the UK and most European markets, the film won’t reach the Netherlands until 10th October 2007 and France and Belgium until as late as 17th October 2007. Three characters from this film – Lewis, Wilbur and Bowler Hat Guy are due to begin appearances at Walt Disney Studios Park in the Autumn, following a preview during the press conference of 1st April 2007. Luckily, this will then tie into the DVD release in the earlier markets.

All photos by Photos Magiques; Ratatouille character visuals © Disney-Pixar.