Lasseter Taking Leave of Absence

[TROR]

Yes, when you think about what it must have taken to bring this land to life, I'm convinced it is.

If done with the same quality, don't you think this would be better than Cars Land?

There's also a photo of a model for the original Car Land in the Walt Disney Imagineering - A Behind the Dreams Look at Making MORE Magic Real on page 57, if you happen to own the book. There's a lot of concept art for the original land as well as layout schematics on the wall behind the model and Imagineer. For whatever reason, a lot of these photographs on the wall as well as the photograph of the model itself are nowhere to be found online, as far as I can tell. Would love Disney to release them at the next D23 like they sometimes will with concept art.

 

[TROR]

Look, these authors write for strongly progressive publications like Huffington and esteemed colleges like Stanford.

Both are highly educated college graduates.

I would think they know more than you about systems of power and how to properly represent marginalized groups.

Obviously Pete Doctor, who has his own issues with gender and racial representations in his personal and professional life, which are reflected by his work (overweight little asian kid in up? Recurring heterosexual relationships with weal female characters playing some role related to being a sexual object of a lackluster male figure? And, don’t get me started on his shallow representations of race!)

What exactly is he trying to portray here?

I am so glad to live in a time when people are not afraid to step forward and address issues such as these that have kept our society at a standstill on social issues for decades.

We have much work to do. And, that work begins by overturning the patriarchy that oppresses us all!

 

[Pixieish]

Look, these authors write for strongly progressive publications like Huffington and esteemed colleges like Stanford.

Both are highly educated college graduates.

I would think they know more than you about systems of power and how to properly represent marginalized groups.

Obviously Pete Doctor, who has his own issues with gender and racial representations in his personal and professional life, which are reflected by his work (overweight little asian kid in up? Recurring heterosexual relationships with weal female characters playing some role related to being a sexual object of a lackluster male figure? And, don’t get me started on his shallow representations of race!)

What exactly is he trying to portray here?

I am so glad to live in a time when people are not afraid to step forward and address issues such as these that have kept our society at a standstill on social issues for decades.

We have much work to do. And, that work begins by overturning the patriarchy that oppresses us all!

Okay, I'm sorry. I forgot. All white men are evil. White people are evil. Typical husband/wife combinations are evil. Any characterizations that don't include marginalized portions of society are evil.

We're talking about ANIMATED FILMS HERE. We're not talking about laws that affect people's real lives or literature/media that is meant to change society. The purpose of these films and shorts is to entertain. JEEBUS.



EDIT: And if you don't believe that Huffpost or Stanford have ever made mistakes, or have any kind of bias...guess again.

 

[TP2000]

I hope that out of respect for the people he made so uncomfortable that they don't allow him back.

Yup. If he had been an assistant manager at Tomorrowland Terrace, he would have already been fired dozens of harassments ago. But he was John Lassetter, so he was allowed to harass women repeatedly, allowed to show up drunk at company functions, allowed all these indiscretions and creepy habits.

If it's not okay for a Tomorrowland Terrace manager to do any of these things, it can't be okay for a senior executive to do any of these things. For years and years and years.

 

[Pixieish]

Look, these authors write for strongly progressive publications like Huffington and esteemed colleges like Stanford.

Both are highly educated college graduates.

I would think they know more than you about systems of power and how to properly represent marginalized groups.

Obviously Pete Doctor, who has his own issues with gender and racial representations in his personal and professional life, which are reflected by his work (overweight little asian kid in up? Recurring heterosexual relationships with weal female characters playing some role related to being a sexual object of a lackluster male figure? And, don’t get me started on his shallow representations of race!)

What exactly is he trying to portray here?

I am so glad to live in a time when people are not afraid to step forward and address issues such as these that have kept our society at a standstill on social issues for decades.

We have much work to do. And, that work begins by overturning the patriarchy that oppresses us all!

Also..."progressive" doesn't automatically make something good or equate to what's best for society. Sorry, it just doesn't. Are we making some strides - of course. But that whole debate is for another thread.

 

[TwilightZone]

2. His involvement with the Disney Parks was completely unnecessary. I was sick of seeing him in interviews talking about past attractions, or the importance of current attractions, as some kind of poster boy for the resort. The only thing he contributed was adding characters he created, nothing more.

I mentioned before that pixar pier was actually planned for a long, long time. The first sign of it was john mentioning how cool it would be to have that in dca on a dvd extra. I guess he probably pushed the buttons on the imagineers and executives enough for it to happen. If that is the case, they are probably cheering right now.

 

[TROR]

Pixar Pier really should've been indication that Lasseter likes to force his hands where they don't belong

 

[Californian Elitist]

Yes, when you think about what it must have taken to bring this land to life, I'm convinced it is.

In terms of construction, definitely. It took years for the project to be completed.

I guess I’m looking at it from a creative standpoint. Radiator Springs had already been “conceived and delivered” in another medium, so Cars Land doesn’t scream imaginative or creative necessarily to me.

 

[lazyboy97o]

In terms of construction, definitely. It took years for the project to be completed.

I guess I’m looking at it from a creative standpoint. Radiator Springs had already been “conceived and delivered” in another medium, so Cars Land doesn’t scream imaginative or creative necessarily to me.

Isn’t that one of the great ironies of so many Disney fans? They gush about Walt Disney Imagineering and the Imagineers, but they don’t actually want them to be creative storytellers, just set builders copying the work of others.

 

[Californian Elitist]

Isn’t that one of the great ironies of so many Disney fans? They gush about Walt Disney Imagineering and the Imagineers, but they don’t actually want them to be creative storytellers, just set builders copying the work of others.

Yes. But as long as Disney’s name is stamped on any and everything in the parks, it’s okay and the rest of us should just shut up and deal with it.

 

[Deleted member 107043]

I'll be the first to day, I'm happy he pushed for Cars Land. It is an Imagineering masterpiece.

I wasn't thrilled with Cars Land when it was first announced, but the finished product is impressive and currently the finest example of Imagineering at DLR. The Flying Tires were a huge and expensive misstep though, and I think the land could have benefitted from a couple of more substantial rides or shows besides RSR.

 

[Deleted member 107043]

If done with the same quality, don't you think this would be better than Cars Land

How would it be better? It looks the same to me.

 

[Pixieish]

In terms of construction, definitely. It took years for the project to be completed.

I guess I’m looking at it from a creative standpoint. Radiator Springs had already been “conceived and delivered” in another medium, so Cars Land doesn’t scream imaginative or creative necessarily to me.

I think the problem many of us have is that we love the original way Disney used IP-based attractions placed into a themed, over-arching land. I'll use MK as an example...

• Cinderella's Golden Carrousel - Cinderella movie
• Country Bear Jamboree
• Diamond Horseshoe Revue
• Dumbo the Flying Elephant - Dumbo
• Frontierland Shooting Gallery
• The Hall of Presidents
• The Haunted Mansion
• It's a Small World - World's Fair, NY
• Jungle Cruise - The African Queen
• Mad Tea Party - Alice in Wonderland
• Mickey Mouse Revue - Cartoons
• Mike Fink Keel Boats - Davy Crockett Stories
• Mr. Toad's Wild Ride - Wind in the Willows
• Skyway
• Snow White's Adventures - Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
• Swiss Family Treehouse - Swiss Family Robinson
• Tropical Serenade
• Grand Prix Raceway
• Walt Disney World Railroad
• Admiral Joe Fowler Riverboat
• Peter Pan's Flight - Peter Pan
• 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Submarine Voyage - 20,000 Leagues
• Flight to the Moon
• America the Beautiful

So, that's 24 attractions with 12 of them having direct IP tie-ins. Go-carts were everywhere, as were haunted houses, so we'll cross them off the list as well. We'll also cross off the Railroad and Skyway, as there HAS to be a way to transport guests. That leaves 8 out of 24 attractions/experiences with no obvious IPs. That isn't very many, and those have tie-ins to eras in American history and culture.

• MK is a prime example of taking IP-based attractions and building a "land" that creates harmony among and around them. The land itself may have an overall theme, but it's not IP-based. The six lands are: Main Street USA, Tomorrowland, Fantasyland, Frontierland, Liberty Square and Adventureland.
• Epcot has a Future/Space "land" and a world's fair "land".
• AK has Asia, Africa, Dinosaurs and a discovery "land".
• HS was the only one that didn't really divide itself into lands, so the whole park was basically a "land" themed after old Hollywood.

Unfortunately, the parks already cover most of the "loose" themes attractions could fit into unless you start narrowing the "land's" focus - like deserts, tundra, mystery, etc., and then you'd still likely have attractions that seem misplaced or shoehorned in. So, creating generically themed lands today is a very problematic proposition. Thus, we get lands themed after IPs, ie: Harry Potter/Star Wars/Pandora/Marvel.

 

[TROR]

How would it be better? It looks the same to me.

• Layout is more than just a single road
• Actually set in California
• Multiple dark rides
• Not tied to a single movie
• Set in 1950's and 60's
• Herbie the Love Bug
• Vintage cars on display

 

[EPCOTCenterLover]

• Layout is more than just a single road
• Actually set in California
• Multiple dark rides
• Not tied to a single movie
• Set in 1950's and 60's
• Herbie the Love Bug
• Vintage cars on display

Just for fun:
There is more than just a single road.
One "F Ticket" instead of multiple C Ticket dark rides
Other points well taken,

 

[EPCOTCenterLover]

My bet is that Pixar Pier was not forced by JL. Just a sign of the IP infested times.

 

[TROR]

Just for fun:
There is more than just a single road.
One "F Ticket" instead of multiple C Ticket dark rides
Other points well taken,

Well even Car Land had Radiator Springs Racers so you'd still be getting that "F ticket" but you'd also, from what I gather, have Goofy's road trip dark ride, Junkyard Jamboree (no Mater), and another Cars ride set behind Luigi's that would wind guests through a scaled down Radiator Springs.

And yeah I know Cars Land does actually have a cross street in it, but the cross street doesn't have any shops or restaurants or attraction entrances on it, as far as I recall, so it really is just one stretch with the cross street being a walkway, at least in my eyes.

 

[EPCOTCenterLover]

I haven't seen art for a Car Land RSR ride. If you've got it, I'd love to see it. I'm into concept art!

 

[Californian Elitist]

I think the problem many of us have is that we love the original way Disney used IP-based attractions placed into a themed, over-arching land. I'll use MK as an example...

• Cinderella's Golden Carrousel - Cinderella movie
• Country Bear Jamboree
• Diamond Horseshoe Revue
• Dumbo the Flying Elephant - Dumbo
• Frontierland Shooting Gallery
• The Hall of Presidents
• The Haunted Mansion
• It's a Small World - World's Fair, NY
• Jungle Cruise - The African Queen
• Mad Tea Party - Alice in Wonderland
• Mickey Mouse Revue - Cartoons
• Mike Fink Keel Boats - Davy Crockett Stories
• Mr. Toad's Wild Ride - Wind in the Willows
• Skyway
• Snow White's Adventures - Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
• Swiss Family Treehouse - Swiss Family Robinson
• Tropical Serenade
• Grand Prix Raceway
• Walt Disney World Railroad
• Admiral Joe Fowler Riverboat
• Peter Pan's Flight - Peter Pan
• 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Submarine Voyage - 20,000 Leagues
• Flight to the Moon
• America the Beautiful

So, that's 24 attractions with 12 of them having direct IP tie-ins. Go-carts were everywhere, as were haunted houses, so we'll cross them off the list as well. We'll also cross off the Railroad and Skyway, as there HAS to be a way to transport guests. That leaves 8 out of 24 attractions/experiences with no obvious IPs. That isn't very many, and those have tie-ins to eras in American history and culture.

• MK is a prime example of taking IP-based attractions and building a "land" that creates harmony among and around them. The land itself may have an overall theme, but it's not IP-based. The six lands are: Main Street USA, Tomorrowland, Fantasyland, Frontierland, Liberty Square and Adventureland.
• Epcot has a Future/Space "land" and a world's fair "land".
• AK has Asia, Africa, Dinosaurs and a discovery "land".
• HS was the only one that didn't really divide itself into lands, so the whole park was basically a "land" themed after old Hollywood.

Unfortunately, the parks already cover most of the "loose" themes attractions could fit into unless you start narrowing the "land's" focus - like deserts, tundra, mystery, etc., and then you'd still likely have attractions that seem misplaced or shoehorned in. So, creating generically themed lands today is a very problematic proposition. Thus, we get lands themed after IPs, ie: Harry Potter/Star Wars/Pandora/Marvel.

Since this is the Disneyland forum, I’m familiar with Disneyland, and it is the only park that Walt Disney saw built from the ground up and open, I will refer to the original. I never denied there was some use of IP’s always in Disneyland. However the way it was incorporated into Disneyland then and now are completely different. We can use Cars Land as an example. It’s a land that is a physical replica of a place in a movie. None of the five original lands fit that description.

That’s just one example. I find nothing problematic about creating more original lands. It can be done, there’s plenty to work with. But Disney is currently riding the lazy train.

 

[TROR]

I haven't seen art for a Car Land RSR ride. If you've got it, I'd love to see it. I'm into concept art!

In the overview I posted earlier, you can see a large orange mountain range with cars racing side by side on a track. Obviously the rock work is very different from what we finally got, but it certainly is a precursor to Radiator Springs Racers. You can even see the fins of Cadillac Range to the far right and rock work that's mimics the front of an old car.

Here's another piece of art from this 2006 WDC Annual Report