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Marvel teases a Journey into Imagination comic
- Thread starter FigmentJedi
- Start date
Figments Friend
Well-Known Member
I highly recommend for anyone who is a fan of the Original 'Journey Into Imagination' Attraction to read this very recent interview with Tony Baxter, one of the masterminds behind the Attractions creation.
Here you can read some of his insightful backstories related to how the Original Attraction was designed and the creative reasoning behind it.
He also talks a lot about various areas of the Attraction where he would have liked to have done something better, 'plussing' the experience to a higher level they never had the opportunity to do.
You can also read his thoughts on the current version, and where he thinks they totally missed a real opportunity to expand on the base the Original already had established.
It's a informative interview well worth your time reading.
The best part however is towards the end of the article...which i have quoted below as i feel people here need to read his words on the matter.
Tony touches on the reason why the Original was removed, the mistakes made trying to 'replace' it, and where he thinks Disney should take the character of Figment ( and Dreamfinder ) next to place them in the public consciousness.
The entire article can be found here -
DO read it in it's entirety.
http://themacgyverproject.blogspot.com/2015/12/tony-baxter-conversation.html
Here is a quoted segment from the article that may be of particular interest to readers here -
-------------------------------------------------
NS: What was the primary motivation for scrapping the ride?
Tony Baxter ::
There was some politics in it. They were tired of the show.
It was due to be rehabbed, and I think the person in charge saw it as a time that they could show their own creativity.
But the danger of that is if you don't understand why something works and who your audience is and what the effect will be on that audience if you damage it -- you have to consider all those things.
And so much of the money they had was spent on taking out rather than putting back in. The removal of the turntable alone was a million dollars just to take it out.
That's crazy.
Why not enhance it or make something better?
All the projections behind the dream vehicles were slides for the most part, and that all could have been done in gorgeous digital stuff.
It was foolish decisions spending maybe half of the budget just to remove the track and the ride system and the turntables -- why not spend that money to make the show better?
I just couldn't understand that.
And the Image Works upstairs gave it a kind of protected environment whereas now when you just pass by the things they're just sort of like second rate exhibits in the Innoventions. You don't really pay attention to them.
But when you went upstairs to the Image Works, it was like going to Tom Sawyer's Island or like a magical place.
NS: Yeah, I totally agree. The Image Works now is just a shell of what it used to be.
Tony Baxter:
You gotta study people's psyche, and adults won't jump around on the floor and make music if they're conscious that they're on stage and people are watching them.
But when we did the stepping tones back in the dark, there wasn't anybody who didn't get hooked by that thing and go back there and dance around on the floor.
NS: I just LOVED the stepping tones in the old Image Works.
Tony Baxter:
Yeah, and now you move it out in the front and only little 4 year-olds will do it because it's too babyish, so adults will just walk by and say, "I'm too old for this."
NS: What do you think is the future of the pavilion, because it seems that no one is totally happy with it the way it is now.
Tony Baxter:
The best thing for me is that they're now in the second Figment series of comic books for Marvel, and I just think someone in the studio should wake up and say, "Let's do a Figment animated feature film."
It seems like a natural.
You've got people who already know the character, and it's Disney so you don't have to pay anything to own it.
I'd do the film and then based on the success of the film, I would then look at how do we now honor this movie and this character by making a new ride that's really really good and plays to the story, not just putting a rubber doll along a track that is shaped like a dragon and is purple.
That doesn't mean anything -- it has to be a character that you understand who it is and what they do and how they think.
I have a story where I have a little Winnie the Pooh doll and a teddy bear, and the teddy bear is clearly more expensive and better made than the Disney Pooh bear.
I say, "Which one has the appeal," and everyone points at Winnie the Pooh because you hear how he talks, you know how he moves, you care about him and all that stuff.
So it doesn't matter that the stitches and the fabric on the teddy bear are better because you care about the emotion.
And that's what you lost with the Figment you have now -- it has no emotion and you need to be able to build that back again.
--------------------------------------
Here you can read some of his insightful backstories related to how the Original Attraction was designed and the creative reasoning behind it.
He also talks a lot about various areas of the Attraction where he would have liked to have done something better, 'plussing' the experience to a higher level they never had the opportunity to do.
You can also read his thoughts on the current version, and where he thinks they totally missed a real opportunity to expand on the base the Original already had established.
It's a informative interview well worth your time reading.
The best part however is towards the end of the article...which i have quoted below as i feel people here need to read his words on the matter.
Tony touches on the reason why the Original was removed, the mistakes made trying to 'replace' it, and where he thinks Disney should take the character of Figment ( and Dreamfinder ) next to place them in the public consciousness.
The entire article can be found here -
DO read it in it's entirety.
http://themacgyverproject.blogspot.com/2015/12/tony-baxter-conversation.html
Here is a quoted segment from the article that may be of particular interest to readers here -
-------------------------------------------------
NS: What was the primary motivation for scrapping the ride?
Tony Baxter ::
There was some politics in it. They were tired of the show.
It was due to be rehabbed, and I think the person in charge saw it as a time that they could show their own creativity.
But the danger of that is if you don't understand why something works and who your audience is and what the effect will be on that audience if you damage it -- you have to consider all those things.
And so much of the money they had was spent on taking out rather than putting back in. The removal of the turntable alone was a million dollars just to take it out.
That's crazy.
Why not enhance it or make something better?
All the projections behind the dream vehicles were slides for the most part, and that all could have been done in gorgeous digital stuff.
It was foolish decisions spending maybe half of the budget just to remove the track and the ride system and the turntables -- why not spend that money to make the show better?
I just couldn't understand that.
And the Image Works upstairs gave it a kind of protected environment whereas now when you just pass by the things they're just sort of like second rate exhibits in the Innoventions. You don't really pay attention to them.
But when you went upstairs to the Image Works, it was like going to Tom Sawyer's Island or like a magical place.
NS: Yeah, I totally agree. The Image Works now is just a shell of what it used to be.
Tony Baxter:
You gotta study people's psyche, and adults won't jump around on the floor and make music if they're conscious that they're on stage and people are watching them.
But when we did the stepping tones back in the dark, there wasn't anybody who didn't get hooked by that thing and go back there and dance around on the floor.
NS: I just LOVED the stepping tones in the old Image Works.
Tony Baxter:
Yeah, and now you move it out in the front and only little 4 year-olds will do it because it's too babyish, so adults will just walk by and say, "I'm too old for this."
NS: What do you think is the future of the pavilion, because it seems that no one is totally happy with it the way it is now.
Tony Baxter:
The best thing for me is that they're now in the second Figment series of comic books for Marvel, and I just think someone in the studio should wake up and say, "Let's do a Figment animated feature film."
It seems like a natural.
You've got people who already know the character, and it's Disney so you don't have to pay anything to own it.
I'd do the film and then based on the success of the film, I would then look at how do we now honor this movie and this character by making a new ride that's really really good and plays to the story, not just putting a rubber doll along a track that is shaped like a dragon and is purple.
That doesn't mean anything -- it has to be a character that you understand who it is and what they do and how they think.
I have a story where I have a little Winnie the Pooh doll and a teddy bear, and the teddy bear is clearly more expensive and better made than the Disney Pooh bear.
I say, "Which one has the appeal," and everyone points at Winnie the Pooh because you hear how he talks, you know how he moves, you care about him and all that stuff.
So it doesn't matter that the stitches and the fabric on the teddy bear are better because you care about the emotion.
And that's what you lost with the Figment you have now -- it has no emotion and you need to be able to build that back again.
--------------------------------------
Last edited:
Cmdr_Crimson
Well-Known Member
Then make Nigel Channing the power hungry Disney villian...And all will be good...
Last edited:
Figments Friend
Well-Known Member
I personally would not cast Eric Idle as the 'villian'.
I can think of someone else who would fit that role far, far better........
I can think of someone else who would fit that role far, far better........
Cmdr_Crimson
Well-Known Member
Such as?
Figments Friend
Well-Known Member
Oh.....a un-named individual who had a role to play in getting the Original Attraction removed.
Yeah, that is who i would cast as the 'villian'.
Yeah, that is who i would cast as the 'villian'.
brb1006
Well-Known Member
Then make Nigel Channing the power hungry Disney villian...And all will be good...
The way I see it, use the nightmares of the comic as villains and save Idle for the stuffy academy head that ends up making things go wrong through their shortsightedness. I mean, Illocrant and the new guy in 2 are clearly meant to be Channing without being Idle (though I heard John Cleese in my head for Illocrant)
Cmdr_Crimson
Well-Known Member
Oddly enough he stars as Professor Horace Wells your host of a 3D simulator ride called Time Chasers...
Mike S
Well-Known Member
Any movie should have the rides title, "Journey into Imagination." It could be epic rather than just a movie about a character.
This needs to become a reality!
Figments Friend
Well-Known Member
I agree.
If a feature film were to happen, a epic title that evokes visions of something fantastic would be rather appropriate for a film befitting these characters and their premise.
'Journey Into Imagination' would fit perfectly.
It's not just about Figment...it's about the entire concept he represents, and what many have come to see him as a symbol for - the embodiment of the imagination and what using it can do.
Hopefully , in the slim chance a film is seriously considered at some point, the Studio takes the 'epic-fantasy-family orientated-adventure' route instead of the 'cheap laughs-dumbed down kiddie flick-blatant marketing sludge' route.
More on a scale and scope like any well made fantasy film, and not at all like another modern day 'Chipmunks' movie...if you follow.
The property deserves a film as well crafted as the best fantasy films out there, not reduced to a half-hearted effort filled with busy visuals and fodder for a story.
If done with some thought..and dare I say it, imagination......a film could be a wonderful way to further the story and introduce these characters to others.
But it has to be done well...and that is the catch.
To do it well, money...and a lot of it...needs to be invested in the project.
Are the uppers at Disney aware of the interest in this property, and do they feel there is enough interest in it to justify money being spent and time being invested in such a project?
The success of the comic series has indeed made some ripples out West, but is it enough to get things moving in that direction?
There is definitely potential there, story wise, with these characters for a film but the trick is getting someone higher up in the food chain at the Studio to bite on it and commit.
I'd love to see someone there take a chance.....but after the last few 'failed' fantasy-adventure films the Disney Studio released recently I have doubts anyone there will seriously consider investing in such a project now.
I would love for that to not be the case.....
-
If a feature film were to happen, a epic title that evokes visions of something fantastic would be rather appropriate for a film befitting these characters and their premise.
'Journey Into Imagination' would fit perfectly.
It's not just about Figment...it's about the entire concept he represents, and what many have come to see him as a symbol for - the embodiment of the imagination and what using it can do.
Hopefully , in the slim chance a film is seriously considered at some point, the Studio takes the 'epic-fantasy-family orientated-adventure' route instead of the 'cheap laughs-dumbed down kiddie flick-blatant marketing sludge' route.
More on a scale and scope like any well made fantasy film, and not at all like another modern day 'Chipmunks' movie...if you follow.
The property deserves a film as well crafted as the best fantasy films out there, not reduced to a half-hearted effort filled with busy visuals and fodder for a story.
If done with some thought..and dare I say it, imagination......a film could be a wonderful way to further the story and introduce these characters to others.
But it has to be done well...and that is the catch.
To do it well, money...and a lot of it...needs to be invested in the project.
Are the uppers at Disney aware of the interest in this property, and do they feel there is enough interest in it to justify money being spent and time being invested in such a project?
The success of the comic series has indeed made some ripples out West, but is it enough to get things moving in that direction?
There is definitely potential there, story wise, with these characters for a film but the trick is getting someone higher up in the food chain at the Studio to bite on it and commit.
I'd love to see someone there take a chance.....but after the last few 'failed' fantasy-adventure films the Disney Studio released recently I have doubts anyone there will seriously consider investing in such a project now.
I would love for that to not be the case.....
-
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brb1006
Well-Known Member
I'm aware of that, the title for that poster should be "Journey Into Imagination" but it was fanmade though.
Mike S
Well-Known Member
Could be Disney's "Avatar" in the sense of creating an amazing world people would love seeing. A world of the imagination. Absolutely limitless.
They just need to let their imaginations run free
Cmdr_Crimson
Well-Known Member
If they do something I would really like to see this when you enter the Glass Pyramid and really open it and bring in the natural light to the main floor...
RSoxNo1
Well-Known Member
This is why you need to let creative people create. It seems simple, but this type of placemaking makes total sense to me now that it's explained. But I'm sure no adult consciously thought about why it's ok to dance in the dark in the old image works vs. the exposed/illuminated setup that's there now.
It's why theming matters, and why so much of good theming goes consciously unrealized. It doesn't mean it's not appreciated, it's just that people don't necessarily think about it. The minute you start thinking about it and analyzing the placemaking as a guest it ruins it.
dgp602
Well-Known Member
Call me Mr. Optimistic, but could this be building for a pavilion re-do? Isn't this a pattern of subtle reference developing?
Brer Panther
Well-Known Member
The Disney Imagineers seem to agree that getting rid of Dreamfinder was a mistake. I'm guessing he'll be back eventually, but I'm not sure when.
MerlinTheGoat
Well-Known Member
I can only offer my own guess (and i've said this before), but I think that may have originally been the plan. Though that plan seems to have changed. There was a major overhaul for the ride planned to start at the beginning of 2014, rumored to harken back to the original ride somewhat (with Dreamfinder returning). My personal belief is that the comic may have been made with the intention to act as a tie in and advertisement for the new version of the ride. The plans for the new ride were scrapped sadly, but the comic was probably already in production and they decided to just go ahead with it. An easy way to cash in on fan nostalgia (and it seems to have been a larger success than they expected).
From what trusted sources on these forums are saying (at least Raven has commented on this recently), it sounds like there aren't any current plans for the ride.
brb1006
Well-Known Member
If the Imagination attraction ever get a fourth refurb in the future and open the top floor. I hope they make this an actual statue as you head to the Imageworks but looking much better than it did back in the 80's and 90's.If they do something I would really like to see this when you enter the Glass Pyramid and really open it and bring in the natural light to the main floor...