Christmas Parade Taping

[SweetMagic]

Does anyone know when they tape the Christmas parade that is shown on tv on Christmas morning. If my memory serves me correctly they skipped a year or two, but it was back last year? I could be way off on that, my memory isn't the greatest. But I've always wanted to attend the actual taping day and never know when I should go. They also tape in other locations, and I never know when those take place either. Does anyone have any info?

Thanks,
Katie

 

[Vernonpush]

Anyone with information, please post! I would like to be there for the taping also.

 

[friendofgoofy]

I know who dose the tapeing but the date always changes. The group that dose it is light ship wich has a a office at universal studios. there web site is www.lightship.com if you like to know.

 

[MrNonacho]

I'd expect it to be taped sometime during the first or second week of December. That's when they did that last two, at least.

 

[Matt Dog]

My wife an I were there last year for the taping. I found out when they were planning to tape it about two days before on this site. My wife and I arrived about an hour before park opening and the CM were telling extras to go in one gate and other guest to go in the others. Also, a CM said that you could signup to be a extra or get on a list to be notified when they plan to tape the parade. Does anyone else know anything about this???

 

[disneytati]

Does anyone know when they tape the Christmas parade that is shown on tv on Christmas morning. If my memory serves me correctly they skipped a year or two, but it was back last year? I could be way off on that, my memory isn't the greatest. But I've always wanted to attend the actual taping day and never know when I should go. They also tape in other locations, and I never know when those take place either. Does anyone have any info?

Thanks,
Katie

I've already been to the taping day, and I didn't like it at all!!! Well, I was attending the first MVMCP of that year (2002), and they were there, at the Town Square hub, in front of the christmas tree, videotaping. The camera guy was really annoying and disrespective to us guests, and kept crossing and standing in front of us all the time, blocking our view! He just crossed, without any warning, and actually ruined 4 of my pictures!!!! I only had 9 shots left in my camera, didn't have any money (as usual :lol: ) to buy more films and I was coming back to Brazil on the following day. So I only have 5 pictures of the parade. All the guests who were next to the taping crew were ed, people started complaining, standing up in front of him too, and he stopped being so rude, but the parade was almost at its end.

 

[Mary Poppins]

I've already been to the taping day, and I didn't like it at all!!! Well, I was attending the first MVMCP of that year (2002), and they were there, at the Town Square hub, in front of the christmas tree, videotaping. The camera guy was really annoying and disrespective to us guests, and kept crossing and standing in front of us all the time, blocking our view! He just crossed, without any warning, and actually ruined 4 of my pictures!!!! I only had 9 shots left in my camera, didn't have any money (as usual :lol: ) to buy more films and I was coming back to Brazil on the following day. So I only have 5 pictures of the parade. All the guests who were next to the taping crew were ed, people started complaining, standing up in front of him too, and he stopped being so rude, but the parade was almost at its end.

I really don't see how the cameraman was being disrespectful. The taping of the Christmas Parade isn't there for the guests. If you choose to sit and watch it, fine but you should expect for it to be run as any filming would be done. He was just doing his job which did not consist of alerting you every time he was going to move.

 

[PhotoDave219]

I really don't see how the cameraman was being disrespectful. The taping of the Christmas Parade isn't there for the guests. If you choose to sit and watch it, fine but you should expect for it to be run as any filming would be done. He was just doing his job which did not consist of alerting you every time he was going to move.

Thats how most photographers and videographers work. They try to keep out of the way but theyre certainly not going to tell you theyre going to move or miss a shot thats part of their job because of you. That just how these things go....

 

[disneytati]

Yeah, but they kept standing in the middle of the street in front of people... I don't know, didn't like it. And many people were complaining a lot too. Maybe the area should be isolated then, or people should be warned that they would cross in front of them all the time, and then we could choose to stay there or not.

 

[Mary Poppins]

Yeah, but they kept standing in the middle of the street in front of people... I don't know, didn't like it. And many people were complaining a lot too. Maybe the area should be isolated then, or people should be warned that they would cross in front of them all the time, and then we could choose to stay there or not.

Again, just doing his job. Like I said before, the taping of the parade is not done for the benefit of the guests in the park that day. It is not a published event meaning they don't do it to draw the guests in. If they were going to isolate the area that means they would have to isolate half of Main Street. Which means no guests coming in. Of course, they're not going to do that. They're just going to trust that people will realize that during a filming for television there will be guys with big cameras everywhere.

 

[barnum42]

Sounds like a standard film crew to me - most treat extras as disposable cattle, so unpaid bystanders will be even lower down their foodchain:lol:

Just to backup what Mary & Dave said - if the prime reason of the event is to film it, then that will take precedence over everything else.

 

[disneytati]

I understand what you are saying, guys. I just didn't like it! And no, they were not filming along main street, they were stopped by the Christmas tree, so that small area could be easily isolated. I guess they should treat regular guests well anyway, since we are paying to watch that... But that's just my opinion... I came back home really frustrated because I couldn't watch the parade properly, and haven't been able to come back yet to watch it again...

 

[Mary Poppins]

I understand what you are saying, guys. I just didn't like it! And no, they were not filming along main street, they were stopped by the Christmas tree, so that small area could be easily isolated. I guess they should treat regular guests well anyway, since we are paying to watch that... But that's just my opinion... I came back home really frustrated because I couldn't watch the parade properly, and haven't been able to come back yet to watch it again...

1. They film at the tree every year...on Main Street
2. It could be isolated...by only allowing the extras they are paying to be
there.
3. You did not pay to watch the parade. You paid to enter the park on a
day when they happened to be filming an annually televised event.
4. What you were watching was not the actual Christmas parade that runs
in the park. It is filmed out of order and with extra elements.

I can understand if you didn't like watching the filming because the parade kept stopping causing it to run all day. There really isn't any reason to say the crew working on the filming should treat regular guests better. They could probably care less about the guests. They're just doing their job. That's like someone being angry at a cast member for not permitting a child on a ride because they don't meet the height requirements. You also really can't blame Disney as they do not advertise the filming of the parade.

 

[disneytati]

1. They film at the tree every year...on Main Street
2. It could be isolated...by only allowing the extras they are paying to be
there.
3. You did not pay to watch the parade. You paid to enter the park on a
day when they happened to be filming an annually televised event.
4. What you were watching was not the actual Christmas parade that runs
in the park. It is filmed out of order and with extra elements.

I can understand if you didn't like watching the filming because the parade kept stopping causing it to run all day. There really isn't any reason to say the crew working on the filming should treat regular guests better. They could probably care less about the guests. They're just doing their job. That's like someone being angry at a cast member for not permitting a child on a ride because they don't meet the height requirements. You also really can't blame Disney as they do not advertise the filming of the parade.

Look, I really don't come here to argue, I just expressed my opinion. So ok, you are right, I give in, let's not spend more time with useless discussions. Anyway, I am not blaming Disney for anything, I love Disney, that's why I am here in these forums... I am not really sure if this filming you are talking about is the same I was in... by what you are saying, I guess the situation I went through was just a normal TV broadcast for that day, not that "filming day". Sorry, just a stubborn foreigner who sometimes has trouble understanding american mind...

 

[barnum42]

who sometimes has trouble understanding american mind...

Film crews the world over work this way. Please do not take it personally.

 

[gbakerab]

Last year the majority of the taping took place on Saturday Dec 6, 2003 with some on the next Morning. (According to a CM I talked to, Kelly Ripa was stranded in New York due to the big storm that week and was late for the taping. Her parts were taped Sunday Morning). The taping of this show has been on the Saturday at this time for three or four years that I know of. (I was in another park at these times so I didn't see the filming) You can tell when it's about to happen because you can see camera cables appear a few days before. There were numerous cables down the side of the Emporium leading to the Christmas Tree, down the gutters to backstage, they sometimes had carpetting or boarding over them or potted plants placed in front of them. More cables by Casey's Corner. The stage where Reege and Kelly were was in front of the bulletin board where they tell you the wait times for the rides with high scaffolding for camera positions and lighting. A large tent was on the grassy area behind the bulletin board (for storage of equipment) In 2002 the stage was on the grassy area between the hub and tomorrowland.
The taping in other parks takes place at other times that week. One I came across was it an outdoor cafe in Animal Kingdom It took place after hours with extras so I didn't see it but they were setting it up while the park was open (and it was poring that day, the Christmas decorations they set up were soaked and falling down as I left the park)
The show has been on in various forms for 20 years or so, mostly with a special parade filmed in the daytime. A few years back they showed a night parade which was filmed going the opposite direction that in was going normally for better camera angles.
As for that cameraman he probably wasn't aware he was walking in front of you, he would be concentrating on what he was filming. This is a multi-million dollar tv production (Reege ain't cheap) and it is planned in every detail. Each cameraman would have a "shot sheet" which is usually on his person somewhere or often attached to the camera itself. The shot sheet tells him what he is supposed to be filming (eg: a closeup of Mickey, or headon looking down a row of toy soldiers) So he is actually not just wandering around taking pictures, he's has been told where to be and what to film.

 

[wannab@dis]

I'll try to get a few of my pictures from last year to show the filming, but I don't have them with me right now.

Disney had several signs up before you even entered the park explaining the taping and that it could interfere with your day. They had CM's greeting guests both inside and outside the park telling them about the taping, where to go to get around the taping, and where best to see the parade if you wanted. They also told us that there would be a "special" parade following the taping for the guests to see since they were inconvenienced by the taping.

There were plenty of warnings posted / given and the primary reason for the parade during the morning was for tapings. It didn't even move "normally" so they can retake sections and get many shots of the same part of the parade. I stood halfway down main street and got some pretty good shots.

 

[disneytati]

Disney had several signs up before you even entered the park explaining the taping and that it could interfere with your day. They had CM's greeting guests both inside and outside the park telling them about the taping, where to go to get around the taping, and where best to see the parade if you wanted. They also told us that there would be a "special" parade following the taping for the guests to see since they were inconvenienced by the taping.

There were plenty of warnings posted / given and the primary reason for the parade during the morning was for tapings. It didn't even move "normally" so they can retake sections and get many shots of the same part of the parade. I stood halfway down main street and got some pretty good shots.

Your post confirms my thoughts: we are not talking about the same thing... :lol: When that happened to me, there were no signs whatsoever! And the parade was totally normal, it was the night parade, at MVMCP. So that was not "the taping day", just a regular tv broadcast. It was the first day of MVMCP, so tv probably showed it that day, like fragments of the parade, and some decoration...