CONFIRMED: Kodak Leaving Imagination

[Mr.EPCOT]

Yes, but wait for visible changes before you get excited.

Wait for visible changes? Like if the pavilion gets a new paint job or something?

 

[TheDisneyMagic]

Wait for visible changes? Like if the pavilion gets a new paint job or something?

A nice blue scheme could be nice.

 

[Brian Noble]

Disney can't afford to lose all capacity the pavillion gives to the park.

They could easily slap all of Imagination with the dreaded Seasonal tag, and dust it off for the busiest portions of the year. In slow to moderate times, the place is already a near ghost-town.

I suppose the pavilion could be doing better numbers than it seems to, but I'd be more surprised by that than by hearing that TTA actually draws well.

 

[JWG]

Any updated photos? Has "presented by Kodak" been removed from the main sign as well as "Kodak What If Labs"? Have the directional signs throughout the park had "presented by Kodak" covered up?

 

[Mr_Incredible]

Really? It seems like Im always the only person on it...but god how I love that thing. I seriously think it might be one of my favorite rides in all of WDW! Its just so relaxing and enjoyable.

same here, i could ride it all day long.

 

[Bravo 229]

Any updated photos? Has "presented by Kodak" been removed from the main sign as well as "Kodak What If Labs"? Have the directional signs throughout the park had "presented by Kodak" covered up?

As of this afternoon, everything still had its Kodak logos.

I overheard a guest ask an Imagination Pavilion CM today what they're going to do with the Imageworks, and she said "I don't know what they're going to do." This could mean either they're unsure yet (unlikely) or they are just keeping it under wraps. And I'm not sure, but I did hear what sounded to be a few hammer strikes in the JIYI entrance coming from behind the circular wall where the staircase to original Imageworks is - could they be building something up there? Anyone know?

 

[BrerFrog]

As of this afternoon, everything still had its Kodak logos.

I overheard a guest ask an Imagination Pavilion CM today what they're going to do with the Imageworks, and she said "I don't know what they're going to do." This could mean either they're unsure yet (unlikely) or they are just keeping it under wraps. And I'm not sure, but I did hear what sounded to be a few hammer strikes in the JIYI entrance coming from behind the circular wall where the staircase to original Imageworks is - could they be building something up there? Anyone know?

Maybe Raven would have some info on that.

 

[raven]

Maybe Raven would have some info on that.

Things have been going on behind a wall up there for a couple of years now. Mostly just tests for NextGen. I've seen the doors open to the area and nothing has been "built" inside. There are some of the signs from HISTA stored up there but it's looked the same for a few years now.

 

[BrerFrog]

Things have been going on behind a wall up there for a couple of years now. Mostly just tests for NextGen. I've seen the doors open to the area and nothing has been "built" inside. There are some of the signs from HISTA stored up there but it's looked the same for a few years now.

It seems that there are a lot of NextGen testing happening on the unused buildings of FW. I knew WoL was housing some tests, but had no idea they were also happening upstairs on the Imagination pavillion.

Thanks for the info.

 

[ms7479a]

If Kodak would have renewed their sponsorship a rehab would have happened. Now all we can do is hope this doesn't turn into WoL.

That is not necessarily true. Remember, the Living with the Land boat ride got a refurb recently after losing Nestle as a sponsor for the Land pavilion. The Living Seas also got a large refurb to become The Seas with Nemo and Friends without having a sponsor.

 

[GymLeaderPhil]

I overheard a guest ask an Imagination Pavilion CM today what they're going to do with the Imageworks, and she said "I don't know what they're going to do." This could mean either they're unsure yet (unlikely) or they are just keeping it under wraps.

The majority of costumed Cast Members that are in roles with constant guest interaction are usually the last to know about changes or news. They are not involved in the decision making process or actively pursue/have an interest in reading about work rumors online when they get home (mostly.)

 

[raven]

The majority of costumed Cast Members that are in roles with constant guest interaction are usually the last to know about changes or news. They are not involved in the decision making process or actively pursue/have an interest in reading about work rumors online when they get home (mostly.)

Very true.

 

[SMRT-1]

Very true.

unfortunately a great deal of CM's don't have any idea about any sort of history of the parks either. question for the CM's here....do they put you guys through some sort of history of Disney in the training process?

 

[tirian]

unfortunately a great deal of CM's don't have any idea about any sort of history of the parks either. question for the CM's here....do they put you guys through some sort of history of Disney in the training process?

It lasts one day and barely covers the theme parks, let alone the rest of the company.

 

[duff527]

I can't see them ever bringing back Figment/Dreamfinder because I honestly don't think it has mass appeal. Die hard fans like the people on the message board would love it because it's old school and ties in to what we perceive as being "Disney". But to the typical family or visitor who comes down every 4 or 5 years, a dark ride featuring Dream Finder is not going to pull people in.

 

[Evil Genius]

I can't see them ever bringing back Figment/Dreamfinder because I honestly don't think it has mass appeal. Die hard fans like the people on the message board would love it because it's old school and ties in to what we perceive as being "Disney". But to the typical family or visitor who comes down every 4 or 5 years, a dark ride featuring Dream Finder is not going to pull people in.

See here's the thing though, WAY back when EPCOT Center was bright shiny and new Figment and Dreamfinder were brand new characters created specifically for the attraction and the public had no clue who they were before taking in the attraction. It didn't take long for both characters to become not only synonymous with the JII...but with EPCOT as a whole and they became as popular I'd dare say as many other Disney characters. Which is why people want them back so much to begin with. That's a testiment to the characters themselves as they transcend the attraction.

My point being. While there are those who may not remember Figment and Dreamfinder as they were...I seriously doubt it would take long for the new generation to find their appeal as well.

 

[Sloan]

Figment & Dreamfinder

I've seen a few questions about the creation / ownership of the Figment and Dreamfinder characters. I posted this back in June in a thread entitled "KODAK wanting out of Imagination" or something to that effect:

"After a cursory, quick search of official records, it appears that the Dreamfinder and Figment characters are owned by Buena Vista Distribution Company & Walt Disney Productions. (Though I guess that there could be some licensing agreement that gave Kodak some special rights or interest in the characters ....)"

I never did any follow-up or more in-depth search, but I'm still of the impression that those characters are available to Disney even with Kodak out of Imagination.

 

[raven]

unfortunately a great deal of CM's don't have any idea about any sort of history of the parks either. question for the CM's here....do they put you guys through some sort of history of Disney in the training process?

"Traditions" is the first class that CM's go through. It's an 8-hour class and the first half of the day is an abriviated history lesson about the company. But the class moves very quickly as they also have to fit in Guest Service, the Disney Look, Safe D and many other things work-related items that CM's need to know before being sent off to their location.

 

[Disneyfanman]

What I'm having trouble understanding, and never understood in regard to WoL, is that in no other Disney park is something just shuttered due to no sponsorship. I don't think there's very much sponsorship in MK or AK that I can recall with a few exceptions (Small World, Space Mtn, and I think GE used to sponsor CoP). Yet everything there pretty much remains open. Why not do without sponsorship altogether?

If a company asks to do it, fine. But if there isn't a company to do it, why ruin the look and flow of the park?

Saying that, I'm totally against Apple having any presence in the parks. I'm not a fan of their products, after a bad expereience with an ipod mini (my 1st and only Apple product), and the overtaking of the parks to the mighty I-things is something that gives me the chills.

But I wonder what, if any, rights Kodak holds to Figment. That could put a jam in any future redo or keeping the pavillion with him open.

The way it was explained to me years ago is that the Epcot Business model is a bit different from the other parks. They have more land (thus upkeep) and more high cost, high maint. types of attractions, but due to a high percentage of sponsorships, plus a ton of expensive restaurants and retail shopping experiences, Epcot has always been profitable. I don't know if that is true or not, and I don't pretend to be an expert, but I have heard it over and over again.

Epcot doesn't have rides, they have experiences. So the loss of a sponsor is the loss of an extremely lucrative revenue stream. Epcot doesn't do 16 million visitors a year; they do between 9 and 10 million.

The loss of Kodak is a really big deal, regardless of what you think of the pavillion.

 

[EpcotTraveler]

We need some "Over the wall pics". Get someone to jump 4 feet and you'll be good to go.