How is WDI doing currently?

[Magenta Panther]

I've been scouring Twitter about D23 and supposedly someone there asked Joe Rohde about "disco Yeti" and whether it would ever be fixed. Joe apparently said yes, then backtracked, then said that it's "very difficult" but that he's "hopeful".

 

[lazyboy97o]

Unfortunately this is common in other companies as well. Bring in the new who are paid less and are more open to change and newer management techniques etc and if the older dont adapt, they are usually pushed out the door

I see it where I work too and know of others doing the same

I don't agree with it but its the new world we live in

The toxicity at Walt Disney Imagineering is hardly business as usual. It also has yet to infest the rest of the industry, where Disney's "has beens" continue to find work.

 

[WDWDad13]

yeah... I'm not disagreeing that it's a problem... I blame poor leadership/management

 

[Travel Junkie]

IMO WDI remains great at placemaking and creating visually pleasing environments. For Carsland they had to translate a film and creating a 3D world from a 2D environment is not an easy thing and they succeeded. Buena Vista Street, Fantasy Faire also have a great sense of place. For all of its issues NFL is a nice place visually. I'm sure Disney Springs and Avatar will be great places to be placed in. Disney's horticulture department is top notch.

Where WDI has seemed to have lost a step or 2 is in creating a emotional impact in their attractions. While they employ the use of high tech, they lack giving a strong emotional connection to its audience. RSR is a very nice ride, but doesn't give you the same emotional impact that a Pirates or Haunted Mansion does. TSMM, Tower of Terror, and Everest are all very well done attractions but lack something the previous generation E-tickets had.

While WDI employs extremely talented individuals there are things you can't teach and those things are missing from today's attractions. This generation does not have a Tony Baxter, Marc Davis etc. They possessed an unteachable way of creating memorable attractions. The only current Imagineer I can think who still has this ability is Steve Davidson.

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

When allowed off the leash a bit, i've no doubt there's still some great talent left in WDI. Their international projects have been a testament to that, most recently Mystic Manor which looks fantastic.

That being said, the modern group definitely aren't AS talented as the ones responsible for many of the great projects spanning from the 1960's and early 1990's. And WDI has also become unquestionably bloated and wasteful with their budgets, their projects cost immensely more than they used to (even factoring in inflation) and just don't end up as impressive as their projects 20-30 years ago.

 

[WDW1974]

The toxicity at Walt Disney Imagineering is hardly business as usual. It also has yet to infest the rest of the industry, where Disney's "has beens" continue to find work.

That is really it. Take a look at DLP, at TDS. Two of the highest examples of immersive theme design work in the business.

Now, look at how many of the key folks who created those magnificent parks are still employed by Disney. Almost none would be the correct answer.

And when they have the talent on staff, they have opted to marginalize it. What could Tony Baxter have done in the last 15 years of his career if Disney let him? Hell, what could he do in the next 15 years if he were still employed by them? Maybe at @Eddie Sotto will actually venture out of his thread and offer an opinion?

Sure, talent remains. And DCA 2.0 as well as recent projects in the Asian resorts show they can still put out quality work.

But there has been a guiding hand on those projects of folks who still understand how to create some of the best themed entertainment property in the world. An understanding of what came before them and what legacy they are being entrusted with.

That is becoming less and less a factor as time goes by. A true test will come in Shanghai as it is largely being developed by Bob Weis and a team of nobodies.

And this is just anecdotal but my observations are the creatives working for UNI (either directly or by contract) seem a whole lot happier and secure than their Disney counterparts.

 

[lazyboy97o]

IMO WDI remains great at placemaking and creating visually pleasing environments. For Carsland they had to translate a film and creating a 3D world from a 2D environment is not an easy thing and they succeeded.

Radiator Springs already existed as 3D digital models. Pixar already had a lot of the information.

 

[the.dreamfinder]

Radiator Springs already existed as 3D digital models. Pixar already had a lot of the information.

Also Pixar has a Theme Park division that knows what it's doing and makes sure SQS are upheld.

 

[WDW95]

Also Pixar has a Theme Park division that knows what it's doing and makes sure SQS are upheld.

And in terms of Imagineering they really didn't do much in terms of the design. While it is amazing how they were able to built the environment, all design and research was done by Pixar. The crafstmen and builders at Imagineering can really build an amazing product but on the design side they basically just took everything from Pixar while adding Test Track and two carnival rides.

 

[the.dreamfinder]

And in terms of Imagineering they really didn't do much in terms of the design. While it is amazing how they were able to built the environment, all design and research was done by Pixar. The crafstmen and builders at Imagineering can really build an amazing product but on the design side they basically just took everything from Pixar while adding Test Track and two carnival rides.

I'd love to see Pixar create its own theme park design division with folks like the Kirk Bros., Tim Delaney, UNI folks and see what they would build.

 

[Walt 1901]

Until WDW parks fall out of the top 5 in attendance there will be no major investment in the domestic parks. The financial side of the company in in charge and making the shareholders happy is more important then the 15 million people that visit the MK every year.

 

[HMF]

I am by no means an insider but it appears that WDI is divided into two factions. One faction which are the people who believe in the old Disney way and have grown up with Disney and are very loyal to people like Tony Baxter and have a respect for the Disney heritage. Then there is the faction who preach "Relevance" "Storytelling" "New Technology" "Interactivity" etc. These people are less likely to have strong opinions and are more likely to find favor with management. People like Bruce Vaughn, Tom Fitzgerald and Eric Jacobson. There is a lot of back and forth friction between these two factions and that is why it takes forever for projects to get built. Contrast that to Universal Creative where everyone is on the same page and committed to make their Resort a world-class destination.

 

[NoChesterHester]

And in terms of Imagineering they really didn't do much in terms of the design. While it is amazing how they were able to built the environment, all design and research was done by Pixar. The crafstmen and builders at Imagineering can really build an amazing product but on the design side they basically just took everything from Pixar while adding Test Track and two carnival rides.

I've been as critical of WDI as anyone on here. Partially due to being in a similar industry... But...

Your statement however is grossly over simplified and just not true. There is a massive difference between the digital world created for a movie and the real world theme park environment that is Cars Land. Pixar provided the theme and character designs - just taking what they provided and adding Test Track and two carnival rides would not have yielded the same results.

 

[NoChesterHester]

The toxic work environment at WDI is well documented and long discussed. It not only makes getting quality projects pushed forward difficult due to a political process that makes the US Congress appear functional - it shortens the tenure of the quality people the name "Walt Disney Imagineering" attracts.

For the young hot shot designer the WDI past work experience on the portfolio is what they are really after. Partially due to the fact that Disney actually doesn't pay very well and it really isn't a fun place to be in upper middle management (which is where it should start to get really awesome). Unless things change it isn't the current generation of attractions we need to fear - because there is still some experienced people there that know how to do world class things - but rather it is the next generation. WDI isn't mentoring and building a future brain trust. They are all leaving or being phased out.

 

[HMF]

Partially due to the fact that Disney actually doesn't pay very well and it really isn't a fun place to be in upper middle management .

What would actually be considered Upper Middle Management at WDI,The Portfolio leaders? My understanding of the way things work is
Bruce Vaughn & Craig Russel are at the top followed by the individual portfolio leaders Fitzgerald, Jacobson, Mangum, Rohde, Lanzisero and Weiss followed by the various Show Producers who put the creative teams together. Is that structure accurate or are there more layers of bureaucracy to go through?

 

[tare]

I'm sure there will be something great in the future. Just hope the future isn't too far away!!!

 

[Thrill]

I am by no means an insider but it appears that WDI is divided into two factions. One faction which are the people who believe in the old Disney way and have grown up with Disney and are very loyal to people like Tony Baxter and have a respect for the Disney heritage. Then there is the faction who preach "Relevance" "Storytelling" "New Technology" "Interactivity" etc. These people are less likely to have strong opinions and are more likely to find favor with management. People like Bruce Vaughn, Tom Fitzgerald and Eric Jacobson. There is a lot of back and forth friction between these two factions and that is why it takes forever for projects to get built. Contrast that to Universal Creative where everyone is on the same page and committed to make their Resort a world-class destination.

The problem is that the former faction is (from what I understand) out. Baxter resigned (on reasonably bad terms, from what I recall), and only a handful of the older generation Imagineers remain.

And I still hold that WDI is at least partly at fault for not getting things built -- not due to internal conflict, but because they have no clue how to do something at a reasonable budget. New Fantasyland was $400 million, Harry Potter phase 1 was $200 million. Find a way to get things done at industry standard costs, and we could be looking at way more expansion.

 

[Turtle]

I think Imagineering is still great and they WANT to do the next ground-breaking thing, they WANT to swat away Potter, they WANT to make original attractions. But TDO doesn't let them.

Mystic Manor. Cars Land. Grizzly Gulch. Buena Vista Street. New Fantasyland.

My theory!

 

[HMF]

The problem is that the former faction is (from what I understand) out. Baxter resigned (on reasonably bad terms, from what I recall), and only a handful of the older generation Imagineers remain.

I would think there are more of them then you would think. The question is "How much are you willing to risk your job standing up for artistic integrity." That is what is really concerning. People tend to be less creative and tend to use their brain a lot less when they are afraid and apparently there is a lot of fear and uncertainty within WDI, Supposedly, a place founded on creativity. It takes brains to create great things and most companies and the culture in general seems to be more in favor of keeping people afraid and stupid because people who are afraid and stupid are less of a threat to the status quo.

 

[lazyboy97o]

I think Imagineering is still great and they WANT to do the next ground-breaking thing, they WANT to swat away Potter, they WANT to make original attractions. But TDO doesn't let them.

Mystic Manor. Cars Land. Grizzly Gulch. Buena Vista Street. New Fantasyland.
My theory!

New Fantasyland and Buena Vista Street are probably the truest examples of how Walt Disney Imagineering operates on their own. Ornate experiences that just don't quite work. Mystic Point, Grizzly Gulch and Cars Land all had external players who were able to demand more of these projects.