These have been on the official HKDL site for a while now, but I never noticed them (I doubt anyone has) until Weird One posted them at MouseInfo. Credits go to him for uncovering these articles.
>>>Disney Imagineer Offers Sneak Peak of Fantasyland,
Unveil Hong Kong Disneyland Commemorative Stamp Collection
-- Fantasyland, “The Happiest Kingdom of All,” Will Spotlight Dreams,
Fantasy and Classic Disney Characters –
– Special Stamp Set Launched to Commemorate
Hong Kong Disneyland’s January 2003 Groundbreaking –
HONG KONG (December 12, 2002) – In the fourth press briefing prior to breaking ground on Hong Kong Disneyland, Walt Disney Imagineering (WDI) today provided a look at the creative design and stories behind Fantasyland, the fourth land inside the theme park destination resort planned for Penny’s Bay on Lantau Island. Also unveiled was a set of four special stamps, one stamp highlighting each of the park’s four themed lands, which will be issued on January 12, 2003 to commemorate the theme park’s Groundbreaking taking place on the same day on Lantau Island. Hong Kong Disneyland is targeted to open in 2005/06.
At three previous briefings over the last several months, Disney has revealed designs, storyboards and sketches from the three other themed lands inside Hong Kong Disneyland — Main Street U.S.A., Adventureland and Tomorrowland. Along with the newly unveiled Fantasyland, these lands will make up Hong Kong Disneyland, which is the fifth Disneyland-styled theme park in the world and the first to use many of the exact designs that Walt Disney personally supervised from the original Disneyland (which opened in 1955 in California.)
Fantasyland
Disney Imagineer Tom Morris, vice president and executive producer for Hong Kong Disneyland, displayed conceptual renderings and storyboards from Fantasyland, a timeless realm of imagination and enchantment where childhood dreams come true.
“Fantasyland, a quaint, European fairytale village, is the living embodiment of Walt Disney’s most popular animated film classics where guests will meet many of the beloved characters from classic and recent Disney films, such as Winnie the Pooh, The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Snow White, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Dumbo, Mulan and, of course, the head mouse himself, Mickey Mouse and his pal, Donald Duck,” explained Morris.
Morris went on to discuss Fantasyland’s place in Walt Disney’s vision and its importance within Hong Kong Disneyland. More than any other land in the park, Fantasyland truly represents the colorful, whimsical, “once-upon-a-time” settings of Disney’s animated classics where timeless fairy tales are told and everyone lives “happily ever after.”
Fantasyland owes much of its picturesque look to Walt Disney’s fondness of European folktales, and where on his many family expeditions he experienced the charm and antiquity of the villages of France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom. These locales became the settings of such classic animated films as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Cinderella, Winnie the Pooh, Mary Poppins and others, as well as the more recent hits Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid and The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Combining his admiration of these villages with his appreciation of fantastic gardens, astounding mechanical toys and extravagant light and water displays, Disney created Fantasyland as a land of enchantment for all ages.
Visitors to Fantasyland will begin their journey by entering the storybook castle of Sleeping Beauty, which serves as the centerpiece of Hong Kong Disneyland and lies at the end of Main Street U.S.A.. With its pink and blue parapets and towers, the castle is an imaginative composite of Bavarian and French medieval palaces.
Morris elaborated, “Fantasyland began with Walt Disney’s idea to create a world of imagination, that he could share with his entire family. We’ve continued with his vision and expanded on it — it is literally a place where stories come to life. Visitors who enter through Sleeping Beauty Castle will find themselves enveloped in a colorful storybook world, almost like stepping into a watercolor painting from one of the animated classics. The centerpiece of Fantasyland will be the brand new Fantasy Gardens, which is unique to Hong Kong Disneyland. This is the first time that a Disney park will have opened with dedicated meeting spots for our characters, and in this form, with its whimsical plantings and sweeping floral displays, it will be the most fantastic and elaborate such venue to meet the characters we have ever conceived.”
Fantasy Gardens is a one-of-a-kind attraction where children and kids of all ages will be able to stroll and relax in a fancifully landscaped setting while experiencing the joy of meeting their favorite Disney friends. In addition, guests can discover and take pictures of the unusual garden follies and plant formations, some of which will seem to dance and cavort right across the rolling glades. It consists of five gazebos, each built in a different style, that serve as meeting places for park visitors and the Disney characters: “Toon Fair” Gazebo, with its slight toon influence and Mickey Mouse motif, will usually star the land’s most famous couple—Mickey and Minnie Mouse; “Hundred Acre Wood” Gazebo, styled in the architecture of Owl’s and Kanga’s houses from the animated movie The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, is the place where Pooh and his friends will mingle with guests; “Heart” Gazebo is a charming country-lattice structure adorned with motifs in the shape of hearts for the romantic characters from Disney’s animated films; “Disney Hero’s” will feel at home in the “Crown” Gazebo, with its many crown motifs; and an exotic influence permeates the “Pagoda”, where a myriad of characters might appear under its high-pitched roof.
In addition to Fantasy Gardens, numerous attractions and adventures await park-goers on the other side of the castle: guests board “hunny pots” for a charming trip through the Hundred Acre Wood, home to Pooh and his friends, on The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh; Dumbo the Flying Elephant offers everyone the chance to fly aloft with Dumbo and his friend Timothy Mouse; Mad Hatter Tea Cups whirl riders in oversized cups inspired by the Mad Hatter’s tea party sequence from the movie Alice in Wonderland; the castle courtyard boasts Cinderella Carousel, a revolving attraction offering guests graceful rides astride one of 60 prancing steeds and two chariots.
Dining fit for Kings (and Queens) can be had at King Stefan’s Banquet Hall, a Gothic structure decorated with shields, heraldry, banners and portraits and sculptures of royal Disney couples. The 720-seat restaurant (inspired by the great dining hall of Sleeping Beauty’s father, King Stefan) features 340 seats inside a large dining hall festooned with murals and windows that pay homage to classic Disney story icons, as well as 320 exterior seats under colorful tournament tents at the front of the building and 60 additional exterior seats on a patio at the rear of the facility.
Other diners (including knights, soldiers and commoners of the kingdom) may also choose to patronize a 240-seat eatery inspired by the Festival of Fools scene from the movie The Hunchback of Notre Dame that features vibrant colors and playful iconography in a festive, topsy-turvy atmosphere. The restaurant is a rustic beam-and-plaster structure with seating under tents and umbrellas.
Shoppers may choose among the three charming Fantasyland shops: A royal workshop in the castle courtyard themed as an artisan’s studio; Pooh Corner, a shop that literally brings Pooh and his world to life (as if a Blustery Day has picked them up and blown them right off the pages of a storybook), where guests also have the opportunity of purchasing a photo of themselves taken while riding The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh; and Merlin’s Treasures, housed in an old English cottage, a workshop and home of the great wizard Merlin.
Visitors will also experience special surprises and discoveries (The Sword in the Stone and Snow White Grotto) and additional attractions and entertainment including an experience combining favorite Disney characters, music and state-of-the-art special effects which will be revealed at a later date.
“Fantasyland brings to life Walt Disney’s animated features, which are his most unique contribution to filmmaking,” continued Tom Morris. He also noted that of the themed lands inside Hong Kong Disneyland, the extensive ornamentation and level of detail of Fantasyland represent the most challenging for WDI to design and produce—it’s a “dream world” that features such things as flying elephants, soaring castles, plants that resemble sea serpents, enormous teacups that spin their riders and other leaps of fancy that have no real-world counterparts and that have to be entirely invented. Fantasyland, therefore, will embody the best of Disney’s skilled architects, engineers and animators; elaborately designed from day one with particular attention paid to storybook detail, Fantasyland will also boast the most fanciful landscaping ever completed for a Disney park (featuring shrubs and trees that “dance” and morph across the landscape).
Hong Kong Disneyland Commemorative Stamp Collection
During the same briefing, Disney Imagineer, Tom Morris, gave insight into the design and production of the first set of Hong Kong Disneyland Special Stamps, which will be officially issued to coincide with the Hong Kong Disneyland Groundbreaking Ceremony on January 12, 2003 at Penny’s Bay on Lantau Island. The beautiful and unique stamps were designed by Disney artists and issued in conjunction with the Post Office.
Morris explained that the Postal Gallery at the ground floor of the General Post Office has been providing the public with a first look at the special stamps with an on-going exhibit on the stamps and the design processes behind them. The exhibit opened on December 2, 2002, and features design concepts, sketches and conceptual renderings of the Hong Kong Disneyland project.
The Hong Kong Disneyland Commemorative Stamp Collection features artwork of the four themed lands that make up Hong Kong Disneyland adapted from WDI artists’ sketches and renderings. From early drawings of Adventureland’s Tarzan’s Treehouse® to magnificent depictions of Tomorrowland’s Space Mountain, these artists’ works provided inspiration for the eventual final designs of the four stamps.
Morris said, “We’re producing this one-of-a-kind set of stamps to memorialize the historic occasion of the Groundbreaking of Disney’s third international theme park destination resort. Not only is it a milestone in our company’s history, but it is a landmark in the history of Hong Kong as well, and these special stamps will serve as treasured reminders of this historic convergence.”
The set of four stamps will include one stamp of differing postage from each land: $1.4 Main Street, $2.4 Fantasyland, $3 Adventureland and $5 Tomorrowland. Stamp products that will be available on and after January 12, 2003 include mint stamps, stamp sheets, souvenir sheets and presentation packs; serviced first day covers will be offered at the 38 philatelic offices on issue day only.
The design team working on the set of four stamps celebrating Hong Kong Disneyland agreed, from their very inception, that the stamps should highlight each of the four themed lands, showcasing one attraction (or “icon”) to represent Main Street U.S.A. (Train Station), Fantasyland (Sleeping Beauty Castle), Adventureland (Tarzan’s Treehouse®) and Tomorrowland (Space Mountain). Originally, the designers considered illustrations in the drawing style appropriate only to that land. However, it became clear that the stamps needed to be unified in style, while maintaining a distinct color palette and flavor of each land. A circular center motif joins the four stamps and serves as the unifying element, with each land title, illustrated icon, project logo and text artfully arranged to create an artistic yet readable stamp. Each stamp illustration went through several iterations until all details were realized to the team’s exacting specifications.
Following the finalization of the four commemoratives, the designs of the souvenir sheet and other philatelic products were completed. Since the mint stamps are complex in their layout, fairly simple designs and backgrounds were chosen for the other products. The team selected a strikingly deep, vivid red as a main color for the additional stamp products. Magical pixie dust swirls around Mickey Mouse as he presents new theme park lands on the souvenir sheet; we see on the souvenir cover that the dust originates from Mickey’s magic wand.
Morris concluded, “The Hong Kong Disneyland Commemorative Stamp Collection celebrates the spirit and the magic of what Walt Disney created in Disneyland 50 years ago, and what Disney Imagineers are creating today right here in Hong Kong.”
Walt Disney Imagineering is the master planning, creative development, design, engineering, production, project management and research and development arm of The Walt Disney Company. Its talented corps of Imagineers is responsible for the creation — from concept initiation through installation — of all Disney resorts, theme parks and attractions, real estate developments and regional entertainment venues. It is headquartered in Glendale, California.
The Hong Kong Disneyland project was announced in November 1999 as a venture between The Walt Disney Company and the Hong Kong SAR Government. Currently under reclamation by the Hong Kong Government, Disney is targeted to begin construction in early 2003 with the project scheduled to open in 2005/06. The opening day program for Hong Kong Disneyland will include a 5.6 million annual visitor Disneyland-style theme park, two hotels and retail, dining and entertainment uses. The project is estimated to create 18,000 new jobs at opening, both Disney and other employment, growing to 36,000 once the first park reaches build-out. The Government economist estimated that the first phase of the project will generate a present economic value of HK$148 billion (US$19 billion) in benefits to Hong Kong. At the completion of Phase I, the project will include a 10 million annual visitor Disneyland-style theme park, 2,100 hotel rooms, and 28,000 square meters (300,000 square foot) of retail, dining and entertainment.<<<
>>>Disney Imagineer Offers Sneak Peak of Fantasyland,
Unveil Hong Kong Disneyland Commemorative Stamp Collection
-- Fantasyland, “The Happiest Kingdom of All,” Will Spotlight Dreams,
Fantasy and Classic Disney Characters –
– Special Stamp Set Launched to Commemorate
Hong Kong Disneyland’s January 2003 Groundbreaking –
HONG KONG (December 12, 2002) – In the fourth press briefing prior to breaking ground on Hong Kong Disneyland, Walt Disney Imagineering (WDI) today provided a look at the creative design and stories behind Fantasyland, the fourth land inside the theme park destination resort planned for Penny’s Bay on Lantau Island. Also unveiled was a set of four special stamps, one stamp highlighting each of the park’s four themed lands, which will be issued on January 12, 2003 to commemorate the theme park’s Groundbreaking taking place on the same day on Lantau Island. Hong Kong Disneyland is targeted to open in 2005/06.
At three previous briefings over the last several months, Disney has revealed designs, storyboards and sketches from the three other themed lands inside Hong Kong Disneyland — Main Street U.S.A., Adventureland and Tomorrowland. Along with the newly unveiled Fantasyland, these lands will make up Hong Kong Disneyland, which is the fifth Disneyland-styled theme park in the world and the first to use many of the exact designs that Walt Disney personally supervised from the original Disneyland (which opened in 1955 in California.)
Fantasyland
Disney Imagineer Tom Morris, vice president and executive producer for Hong Kong Disneyland, displayed conceptual renderings and storyboards from Fantasyland, a timeless realm of imagination and enchantment where childhood dreams come true.
“Fantasyland, a quaint, European fairytale village, is the living embodiment of Walt Disney’s most popular animated film classics where guests will meet many of the beloved characters from classic and recent Disney films, such as Winnie the Pooh, The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Snow White, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Dumbo, Mulan and, of course, the head mouse himself, Mickey Mouse and his pal, Donald Duck,” explained Morris.
Morris went on to discuss Fantasyland’s place in Walt Disney’s vision and its importance within Hong Kong Disneyland. More than any other land in the park, Fantasyland truly represents the colorful, whimsical, “once-upon-a-time” settings of Disney’s animated classics where timeless fairy tales are told and everyone lives “happily ever after.”
Fantasyland owes much of its picturesque look to Walt Disney’s fondness of European folktales, and where on his many family expeditions he experienced the charm and antiquity of the villages of France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom. These locales became the settings of such classic animated films as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Cinderella, Winnie the Pooh, Mary Poppins and others, as well as the more recent hits Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid and The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Combining his admiration of these villages with his appreciation of fantastic gardens, astounding mechanical toys and extravagant light and water displays, Disney created Fantasyland as a land of enchantment for all ages.
Visitors to Fantasyland will begin their journey by entering the storybook castle of Sleeping Beauty, which serves as the centerpiece of Hong Kong Disneyland and lies at the end of Main Street U.S.A.. With its pink and blue parapets and towers, the castle is an imaginative composite of Bavarian and French medieval palaces.
Morris elaborated, “Fantasyland began with Walt Disney’s idea to create a world of imagination, that he could share with his entire family. We’ve continued with his vision and expanded on it — it is literally a place where stories come to life. Visitors who enter through Sleeping Beauty Castle will find themselves enveloped in a colorful storybook world, almost like stepping into a watercolor painting from one of the animated classics. The centerpiece of Fantasyland will be the brand new Fantasy Gardens, which is unique to Hong Kong Disneyland. This is the first time that a Disney park will have opened with dedicated meeting spots for our characters, and in this form, with its whimsical plantings and sweeping floral displays, it will be the most fantastic and elaborate such venue to meet the characters we have ever conceived.”
Fantasy Gardens is a one-of-a-kind attraction where children and kids of all ages will be able to stroll and relax in a fancifully landscaped setting while experiencing the joy of meeting their favorite Disney friends. In addition, guests can discover and take pictures of the unusual garden follies and plant formations, some of which will seem to dance and cavort right across the rolling glades. It consists of five gazebos, each built in a different style, that serve as meeting places for park visitors and the Disney characters: “Toon Fair” Gazebo, with its slight toon influence and Mickey Mouse motif, will usually star the land’s most famous couple—Mickey and Minnie Mouse; “Hundred Acre Wood” Gazebo, styled in the architecture of Owl’s and Kanga’s houses from the animated movie The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, is the place where Pooh and his friends will mingle with guests; “Heart” Gazebo is a charming country-lattice structure adorned with motifs in the shape of hearts for the romantic characters from Disney’s animated films; “Disney Hero’s” will feel at home in the “Crown” Gazebo, with its many crown motifs; and an exotic influence permeates the “Pagoda”, where a myriad of characters might appear under its high-pitched roof.
In addition to Fantasy Gardens, numerous attractions and adventures await park-goers on the other side of the castle: guests board “hunny pots” for a charming trip through the Hundred Acre Wood, home to Pooh and his friends, on The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh; Dumbo the Flying Elephant offers everyone the chance to fly aloft with Dumbo and his friend Timothy Mouse; Mad Hatter Tea Cups whirl riders in oversized cups inspired by the Mad Hatter’s tea party sequence from the movie Alice in Wonderland; the castle courtyard boasts Cinderella Carousel, a revolving attraction offering guests graceful rides astride one of 60 prancing steeds and two chariots.
Dining fit for Kings (and Queens) can be had at King Stefan’s Banquet Hall, a Gothic structure decorated with shields, heraldry, banners and portraits and sculptures of royal Disney couples. The 720-seat restaurant (inspired by the great dining hall of Sleeping Beauty’s father, King Stefan) features 340 seats inside a large dining hall festooned with murals and windows that pay homage to classic Disney story icons, as well as 320 exterior seats under colorful tournament tents at the front of the building and 60 additional exterior seats on a patio at the rear of the facility.
Other diners (including knights, soldiers and commoners of the kingdom) may also choose to patronize a 240-seat eatery inspired by the Festival of Fools scene from the movie The Hunchback of Notre Dame that features vibrant colors and playful iconography in a festive, topsy-turvy atmosphere. The restaurant is a rustic beam-and-plaster structure with seating under tents and umbrellas.
Shoppers may choose among the three charming Fantasyland shops: A royal workshop in the castle courtyard themed as an artisan’s studio; Pooh Corner, a shop that literally brings Pooh and his world to life (as if a Blustery Day has picked them up and blown them right off the pages of a storybook), where guests also have the opportunity of purchasing a photo of themselves taken while riding The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh; and Merlin’s Treasures, housed in an old English cottage, a workshop and home of the great wizard Merlin.
Visitors will also experience special surprises and discoveries (The Sword in the Stone and Snow White Grotto) and additional attractions and entertainment including an experience combining favorite Disney characters, music and state-of-the-art special effects which will be revealed at a later date.
“Fantasyland brings to life Walt Disney’s animated features, which are his most unique contribution to filmmaking,” continued Tom Morris. He also noted that of the themed lands inside Hong Kong Disneyland, the extensive ornamentation and level of detail of Fantasyland represent the most challenging for WDI to design and produce—it’s a “dream world” that features such things as flying elephants, soaring castles, plants that resemble sea serpents, enormous teacups that spin their riders and other leaps of fancy that have no real-world counterparts and that have to be entirely invented. Fantasyland, therefore, will embody the best of Disney’s skilled architects, engineers and animators; elaborately designed from day one with particular attention paid to storybook detail, Fantasyland will also boast the most fanciful landscaping ever completed for a Disney park (featuring shrubs and trees that “dance” and morph across the landscape).
Hong Kong Disneyland Commemorative Stamp Collection
During the same briefing, Disney Imagineer, Tom Morris, gave insight into the design and production of the first set of Hong Kong Disneyland Special Stamps, which will be officially issued to coincide with the Hong Kong Disneyland Groundbreaking Ceremony on January 12, 2003 at Penny’s Bay on Lantau Island. The beautiful and unique stamps were designed by Disney artists and issued in conjunction with the Post Office.
Morris explained that the Postal Gallery at the ground floor of the General Post Office has been providing the public with a first look at the special stamps with an on-going exhibit on the stamps and the design processes behind them. The exhibit opened on December 2, 2002, and features design concepts, sketches and conceptual renderings of the Hong Kong Disneyland project.
The Hong Kong Disneyland Commemorative Stamp Collection features artwork of the four themed lands that make up Hong Kong Disneyland adapted from WDI artists’ sketches and renderings. From early drawings of Adventureland’s Tarzan’s Treehouse® to magnificent depictions of Tomorrowland’s Space Mountain, these artists’ works provided inspiration for the eventual final designs of the four stamps.
Morris said, “We’re producing this one-of-a-kind set of stamps to memorialize the historic occasion of the Groundbreaking of Disney’s third international theme park destination resort. Not only is it a milestone in our company’s history, but it is a landmark in the history of Hong Kong as well, and these special stamps will serve as treasured reminders of this historic convergence.”
The set of four stamps will include one stamp of differing postage from each land: $1.4 Main Street, $2.4 Fantasyland, $3 Adventureland and $5 Tomorrowland. Stamp products that will be available on and after January 12, 2003 include mint stamps, stamp sheets, souvenir sheets and presentation packs; serviced first day covers will be offered at the 38 philatelic offices on issue day only.
The design team working on the set of four stamps celebrating Hong Kong Disneyland agreed, from their very inception, that the stamps should highlight each of the four themed lands, showcasing one attraction (or “icon”) to represent Main Street U.S.A. (Train Station), Fantasyland (Sleeping Beauty Castle), Adventureland (Tarzan’s Treehouse®) and Tomorrowland (Space Mountain). Originally, the designers considered illustrations in the drawing style appropriate only to that land. However, it became clear that the stamps needed to be unified in style, while maintaining a distinct color palette and flavor of each land. A circular center motif joins the four stamps and serves as the unifying element, with each land title, illustrated icon, project logo and text artfully arranged to create an artistic yet readable stamp. Each stamp illustration went through several iterations until all details were realized to the team’s exacting specifications.
Following the finalization of the four commemoratives, the designs of the souvenir sheet and other philatelic products were completed. Since the mint stamps are complex in their layout, fairly simple designs and backgrounds were chosen for the other products. The team selected a strikingly deep, vivid red as a main color for the additional stamp products. Magical pixie dust swirls around Mickey Mouse as he presents new theme park lands on the souvenir sheet; we see on the souvenir cover that the dust originates from Mickey’s magic wand.
Morris concluded, “The Hong Kong Disneyland Commemorative Stamp Collection celebrates the spirit and the magic of what Walt Disney created in Disneyland 50 years ago, and what Disney Imagineers are creating today right here in Hong Kong.”
Walt Disney Imagineering is the master planning, creative development, design, engineering, production, project management and research and development arm of The Walt Disney Company. Its talented corps of Imagineers is responsible for the creation — from concept initiation through installation — of all Disney resorts, theme parks and attractions, real estate developments and regional entertainment venues. It is headquartered in Glendale, California.
The Hong Kong Disneyland project was announced in November 1999 as a venture between The Walt Disney Company and the Hong Kong SAR Government. Currently under reclamation by the Hong Kong Government, Disney is targeted to begin construction in early 2003 with the project scheduled to open in 2005/06. The opening day program for Hong Kong Disneyland will include a 5.6 million annual visitor Disneyland-style theme park, two hotels and retail, dining and entertainment uses. The project is estimated to create 18,000 new jobs at opening, both Disney and other employment, growing to 36,000 once the first park reaches build-out. The Government economist estimated that the first phase of the project will generate a present economic value of HK$148 billion (US$19 billion) in benefits to Hong Kong. At the completion of Phase I, the project will include a 10 million annual visitor Disneyland-style theme park, 2,100 hotel rooms, and 28,000 square meters (300,000 square foot) of retail, dining and entertainment.<<<
