John Lasseter Visits Imagination Pavilion

[misterID]

Whether Dreamfinder comes back or not, the current attraction is horrible. The pavillion doesn't have the traffic it used to, that's a fact. Something needs to change. And this should be reiterated over and over and over to Disney management (and to the Disney folks who moniter this site, Hello!). This ride is awful. It's unacceptable considering the price they charge for a full day ticket, the same as the Magic Kingdom. You don't even need to respect the history of the attraction, which I'm sure they don't... But have some respect for your park and its current state. Even if we aren't comparing it to what it was, which now is a shadow of its former self, show some respect to the park now and try to make it relevant again. Not to mention your guests. Show something that you actually care.

 

[Pixiedustmaker]

Not that I want to get into a big divergent arguement about science, but from a neurological standpoint, external stimuli is what initiates creativity. The brain uses the frontal lobes for higher mental functions. The frontal lobes also host the prefrontal cortex (PFC), the area of the brain that plans complex cognition, personality expression, and decision-making. Research shows that creative thinkers bounce back and forth between left-brained linear reasoning and right-brained artistic thinking. Senory stimulus can give you and idea, and visa versa.


Sooooo... One little spark.. of imagination....

At some point though, too much external stimuli overwhelms any creative thought. Such as when you are in a movie theater and you're watching a new blockbuster and soaking up everything detail . . . not a lot of creative thinking happens during this time. We've all seen kids and adults "zone out" when watching television, and they aren't usually thinking up creative thoughts.

Similarly, writers working on a novel often find a quiet place to write something new (creative).

This isn't to say the outside world is unimportant, just that the brain processes everything, and has plenty of the day's memories to "play back" and organize at night when we dream, day-dream, work away in a quiet corner.

 

[Disneyfan_76]

At some point though, too much external stimuli overwhelms any creative thought. Such as when you are in a movie theater and you're watching a new blockbuster and soaking up everything detail . . . not a lot of creative thinking happens during this time. We've all seen kids and adults "zone out" when watching television, and they aren't usually thinking up creative thoughts.

Similarly, writers working on a novel often find a quiet place to write something new (creative).

This isn't to say the outside world is unimportant, just that the brain processes everything, and has plenty of the day's memories to "play back" and organize at night when we dream, day-dream, work away in a quiet corner.

That is actually not the case, but we can just agree to disagree. Everyone's personal preferences are a little different. But, as I said, this is getting off topic. No need to argue symantics.

 

[ellie-badge]

At some point though, too much external stimuli overwhelms any creative thought. Such as when you are in a movie theater and you're watching a new blockbuster and soaking up everything detail . . . not a lot of creative thinking happens during this time. We've all seen kids and adults "zone out" when watching television, and they aren't usually thinking up creative thoughts.

Similarly, writers working on a novel often find a quiet place to write something new (creative).

This isn't to say the outside world is unimportant, just that the brain processes everything, and has plenty of the day's memories to "play back" and organize at night when we dream, day-dream, work away in a quiet corner.

Wow, are you totally wrong. To this day I "zone out" while watching movies and the like because I'm thinking about them and various other things. Needless to say I did this quite often as a kid, too.

As a writer myself, we go somewhere quiet to write, yes... but generally speaking, we get our IDEAS and INSPIRATION from external stimuli. A lot of writers, in fact, go to public places such as pubs or restaurants to write and take notes on their stories, and many more listen to music. JK Rowling admitted to going out to some sort of bar while writing Harry Potter and listening to Lily Allen.

 

[ellie-badge]

Because the "Dreamfinder" has become too closely associated with one of the people who portrayed the character.

The same can be said about Nigel Channing and Eric Idle, yet Disney doesn't have a problem with having him hanging around in the parks.

 

[EpcotFanForever]

Via @therealmiketheo on Twitter:
just thought i'd let you know..John Lasseter was went through the Journey Pavilion, inlcuding the 2nd floor of Imageworks

...and while seeking "Imagination", he disappointingly found none.

 

[HDS]

Wow, some are now blaming Ron for Dreamfinder not coming back? That's just crazy talk. Did Mc D's kill off Ronald McDonald when one of the actors said he stopped playing him because he wanted to promote healthy eating? Did Aflac kill off the Aflac Duck on account of Gilbert Gottfreid? No! So this train of thinking is BS.

 

[Goofyernmost]

The same can be said about Nigel Channing and Eric Idle, yet Disney doesn't have a problem with having him hanging around in the parks.

I cannot speak for others, but, I was talking about in the park "character" interaction. I've yet to see Eric at a meet and greet.

 

[Goofyernmost]

Wow, some are now blaming Ron for Dreamfinder not coming back? That's just crazy talk. Did Mc D's kill off Ronald McDonald when one of the actors said he stopped playing him because he wanted to promote healthy eating? Did Aflac kill off the Aflac Duck on account of Gilbert Gottfreid? No! So this train of thinking is BS.

I don't think anyone was "blaming" Ron for the Dreamfinder banishment. What we are saying is that as a character Dreamfinder was an intimate, one park only character, people recognized the voice and the mannerisms that Ron conveyed. Much like, no matter how hard they tried, there is only one Music Man and only one James Bond. Everyone else was just an actor. That put a lot of pressure on Ron, but nothing compared to the problems that it presented for Disney management. So when the opportunity came to make a change, I'd bet that the first thing that came to mind was...get rid of Dreamfinder and, at the time, Figment.

Ron was a victim of the fact that he played the part too well.

 

[ellie-badge]

I cannot speak for others, but, I was talking about in the park "character" interaction. I've yet to see Eric at a meet and greet.

Oooh, well in that case you're right. I was thinking about how well-known the actors are in comparison to the characters they portray. My bad.

 

[bdearl41]

This can only be good news.

 

[The Empress Lilly]

I don't understand why Ron Schneider was suddenly propelled into superstardom amongst Disney geeks in the last two years. I mean, he sang his song at a D23 convention and suddenly he was the greatest thing in Disney's character backlog? The greatest performer ever?

I must say I think he did a great job posing and voicing for Dreamfinder, but I'm interested in Dreamfinder, not in Ron. The way I am interested in Darth Vader, and not David Prowse. The way I also don't care for the persons who voiced or stood model for the father in CoP.

 

[EpcotFanForever]

I don't understand why Ron Schneider was suddenly propelled into superstardom amongst Disney geeks in the last two years. I mean, he sang his song at a D23 convention and suddenly he was the greatest thing in Disney's character backlog? The greatest performer ever?

My kids loved the original Imagination, but found the walkabout Dreamfinder creepy.

 

[The Empress Lilly]

My kids loved the original Imagination, but found the walkabout Dreamfinder creepy.

Same with us! Dreamfinder wasn't all that popular in my family either. We liked him sure enough, but it was really all about Figment. We had Figment plush, mugs, keychains, the lot. Dreamfinder was only the sidekick, Figment was the star.

Dreamfinder worked in the ride, but as a walkaround character, an actual human, he became somewhat of a 'homeless with weird suit and unkept beard holding a ventriloquist doll'. They never really solved that. For a while they had Fighment out on his own. Figzilla, a 6 ft purple dragon, which was even worse.

Even so, Dreamfinder needs to be in the ride. One can not have Figment without Dreamfinder - of whose very imagination our dragon is a figment (or is it?).

 

[HDS]

I must say I think he did a great job posing and voicing for Dreamfinder, but I'm interested in Dreamfinder, not in Ron. The way I am interested in Darth Vader, and not David Prowse. The way I also don't care for the persons who voiced or stood model for the father in CoP.

Well that's understandable, David Prowse is a womanizing D-bag. Even Lucas doesn't want him around anymore.

 

[The Empress Lilly]

Well that's understandable, David Prowse is a womanizing D-bag. Even Lucas doesn't want him around anymore.

I also don't care for the alien who's been posing as Lucas since the early nineties! I want George back, want the aliens to admit they kidnapped him to tap into his genius while having an imposter running around pretending to be him. Then I want him to reveal there really was planned a VII-VIII-IX, and two more Indy films. Indiana Jones' films by the real Lucas, not the alien stand-in shooting his alien friends on film.

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

I've never felt disturbed by Dreamfinder. Met the walk around character as a child and he was incredibly cool (I was always more intimidated by the masked characters than the face ones as a kid). I've always been drawn in by his whimsy and never thought of him as a sidekick either. Feel like the attraction in its original form would have fallen apart without him. He's like Merlin, a wise older mentor to the younger and non-experienced Figment. And while you may consider Arthur the central focus of The Sword in the Stone, I've always considered Merlin the real star of the movie and the absolute core of what makes it so incredibly fun. Without Merlin the movie wouldn't have been anywhere near as awesome (might have even been bad). Same goes for Dreamfinder, it just wouldn't work without him. I guess i'm drawn to that type of character, but whatever. I'm getting the same vibes from Dreamfinder as I do from Merlin (or any wise old character like Gandalf, Dumbledore, etc).

Though I do feel that they really work best when together, yin and yang like you can't have one without the other. But i'm inclined to actually put Dreamfinder ahead of Figment in my opinion. He's just always seemed really cool to me and still does.

I guess I just have to go back to my feelings on the ride- the original hit every mark with flying colors. It was everything right with Disney and lived up to its name. Including creating truly great and fun new characters. What more could you ask for? The only thing I'd ask for is for it to have never been degenerated into what it is now.

 

[The Empress Lilly]

I've never felt disturbed by Dreamfinder. Met the walk around character as a child and he was incredibly cool (I was always more intimidated by the masked characters than the face ones as a kid). I've always been drawn in by his whimsy and never thought of him as a sidekick either. Feel like the attraction in its original form would have fallen apart without him. He's like Merlin, a wise older mentor to the younger and non-experienced Figment. And while you may consider Arthur the central focus of The Sword in the Stone, I've always considered Merlin the real star of the movie and the absolute core of what makes it so incredibly fun. Without Merlin the movie wouldn't have been anywhere near as awesome (might have even been bad). Same goes for Dreamfinder, it just wouldn't work without him. I guess i'm drawn to that type of character, but whatever. I'm getting the same vibes from Dreamfinder as I do from Merlin (or any wise old character like Gandalf, Dumbledore, etc).

Though I do feel that they really work best when together, yin and yang like you can't have one without the other. But i'm inclined to actually put Dreamfinder ahead of Figment in my opinion. He's just always seemed really cool to me and still does.

I guess I just have to go back to my feelings on the ride- the original hit every mark with flying colors. It was everything right with Disney and lived up to its name. Including creating truly great and fun new characters. What more could you ask for? The only thing I'd ask for is for it to have never been degenerated into what it is now.

Sword in the Stone is all about Merlin! His turn-into-animals fight with sorceres-what's-her-name-again remains one of my all time favourite Disney movie scenes.

Imagination without Dreamfinder to me is like Star Wars without Han Solo. He may not be the main protagonist, but what is the point without him?

The original Imagination ride was fantastic. Everything that was right about Disney, well said. Such a life-affirming experience. Not a trace of cynicism or the cynical self-referentialism of 90s Disney or in-yer-face commercialism of naughties WDW. I miss it terribly.

 

[EpcotFanForever]

Same with us! Dreamfinder wasn't all that popular in my family either. We liked him sure enough, but it was really all about Figment. We had Figment plush, mugs, keychains, the lot. Dreamfinder was only the sidekick, Figment was the star.

Dreamfinder worked in the ride, but as a walkaround character, an actual human, he became somewhat of a 'homeless with weird suit and unkept beard holding a ventriloquist doll'. They never really solved that. For a while they had Fighment out on his own. Figzilla, a 6 ft purple dragon, which was even worse.

Even so, Dreamfinder needs to be in the ride. One can not have Figment without Dreamfinder - of whose very imagination our dragon is a figment (or is it?).

I could not agree more. When my kids were little, they were scared of everything. We convinced them that what they saw in the rides were "just a machine" and they were happy.

One day the walk-around Dreamfinder came up to them and asked "do you know who I am?" They quickly responded -"yeah, you are just a machine, and we are not afraid of you".

And so that was our interaction with dear old Ron.

 

[The Empress Lilly]

Let's have a us a video then, that we can all see for ourselves. Dreamfinder, 1987, sadly not Ron Schneider the man himself. Starts at 11:51.

I must say, now that I watch this clip, Dreamfinder as a walk-around character looks awesome. Much better than I remembered. (And no meet and greet character spots yet, but free roaming characters. Great! You just walk up to the rotating Figment topiary and interact with Dreamfinder and Figment.)