First off..college. You really need to learn your stuff and be amazing at what you do. So a good degree of talent is of course also a requirement. They usually don't even consider anybody with less than 8 years of "in buisness" experience. Thats a loose term since in essence you really cant get "in buisness" (meaning theme park concept work) that easy...so what they mean by that is something related to what it is you want to do. Architectural design, story writing, janitorial services etc
Ive heard of a few different angles involved for getting in to WDI..
First..as noted above...be the best at what you do. They seem to like that
Alternativly, you could start small. A few CMs have really worked hard and have grinded their way up (with a few brown nose moments im sure) to a position that opens the door to a possible interview with WDI (Yes, that was intended to sound like a long journey..cuz it is)
The best option Ive seen is to do internships and the college program. Get your name out there and it usually helps when you try and snag a position with them. This also shows some experience " in the field" which definatly isnt a bad thing.
Any good work history with Disney is definatly a plus..especially if you worked with WDFA at all (well..thats apparently not the best option anymore eh?).
WDI isnt what it used to be, in fact its a fraction of the greatness it once was. Far less employees and far less hiring. They dont really consider "Rookies" when it comes time to bring in a new member of the team (ever see a young imagineer?...not in the past few years im sure).
You dont have to be based out of Florida.
As an imagineer (as well as with ANY disney theme park position), yes...you get free access to the parks.
