News Paradise Pier Becoming Pixar Pier

[GiveMeTheMusic]

Walt Disney Imagineering revealed many of the designing choices for Pixar Pier in the Pixar Party Blog Meet-Up this past evening:


• WDI choose Pixar Pier for three reasons: 1) Pixar is in California 2) Emeryville is near Piers 3) Pixar has the color and energy common to boardwalks in California

• "Pixar is a "California company"; "Located near the famous piers we researched." Pixar Pier is a "collection of moments" and a "neighborhood strategy"

• “Pixar Pier has been here all this time but has evolved over the years”

• Santa Cruz Boardwalk is the color inspiration for Pixar Pier. It's "California kitsch". Wanted to bring some "water elements", hense the rotating Pixar marble water ball

• Imagineering was inspired by Tokyo DisneySea for Pixar Pier. Specifically Toyville Trolley Park. California Adventure's "domes are bigger"

• Pixar Pier is set in modern day, since it's changed with inspirations from most films which take place in current, contemporary times.

• Incredibles Park "We had to put a simple story on there"

• Boardwalk went from pastels (Paradise Pier) to jewel based tones (Pixar Pier - Toy Story Boardwalk Neighborhood)

• Dante’s Churros was one of the themes considered for Señor Buzz Churros, but it wasn’t able to be located in a neighborhood that matched. Apparently it was impossible to move (mostly due to health laws and sinks)

• Pixar Promenade took inspiration from (again) DisneySea; some classic bandshells from old California boardwalks. Over 30 feet of new building (compared to Sideshow Shirts)

• Lamplight Lounge drew inspiration from Nomad Lounge through a similar backstory - instead of sharing stories of adventures to Africa and Asia, it’s a place where Pixar employees would hang out

• The Pal-A-Round marquee is four times as large as the Fun Wheel marquee

• Dylan's candy shop in New York is inspiration for Bing Bong's Sweet Stuff

Can you imagine saying all that on stage with a straight face

 

[nevol]

Walt Disney Imagineering revealed many of the designing choices for Pixar Pier in the Pixar Party Blog Meet-Up this past evening:


• WDI choose Pixar Pier for three reasons: 1) Pixar is in California 2) Emeryville is near Piers 3) Pixar has the color and energy common to boardwalks in California

• "Pixar is a "California company"; "Located near the famous piers we researched." Pixar Pier is a "collection of moments" and a "neighborhood strategy"

• “Pixar Pier has been here all this time but has evolved over the years”

• Santa Cruz Boardwalk is the color inspiration for Pixar Pier. It's "California kitsch". Wanted to bring some "water elements", hense the rotating Pixar marble water ball

• Imagineering was inspired by Tokyo DisneySea for Pixar Pier. Specifically Toyville Trolley Park. California Adventure's "domes are bigger"

• Pixar Pier is set in modern day, since it's changed with inspirations from most films which take place in current, contemporary times.

• Incredibles Park "We had to put a simple story on there"

• Boardwalk went from pastels (Paradise Pier) to jewel based tones (Pixar Pier - Toy Story Boardwalk Neighborhood)

• Dante’s Churros was one of the themes considered for Señor Buzz Churros, but it wasn’t able to be located in a neighborhood that matched. Apparently it was impossible to move (mostly due to health laws and sinks)

• Pixar Promenade took inspiration from (again) DisneySea; some classic bandshells from old California boardwalks. Over 30 feet of new building (compared to Sideshow Shirts)

• Lamplight Lounge drew inspiration from Nomad Lounge through a similar backstory - instead of sharing stories of adventures to Africa and Asia, it’s a place where Pixar employees would hang out

• The Pal-A-Round marquee is four times as large as the Fun Wheel marquee

• Dylan's candy shop in New York is inspiration for Bing Bong's Sweet Stuff

Sad. I appreciate the effort, but, it still lacks so much depth. Even BVS falls flat though. Naming shops after disney characters or neighborhoods in LA doesn't actually mean anything the way disneyland means things. What I'm afraid of is that this team thinks they built this thing up with enough backstory and significance but its really just checking things off a list of elements that manifest sometimes when a themed/entertainment project is successful for other reasons.

 

[TROR]

Walt Disney Imagineering revealed many of the designing choices for Pixar Pier in the Pixar Party Blog Meet-Up this past evening:


• WDI choose Pixar Pier for three reasons: 1) Pixar is in California 2) Emeryville is near Piers 3) Pixar has the color and energy common to boardwalks in California

• "Pixar is a "California company"; "Located near the famous piers we researched." Pixar Pier is a "collection of moments" and a "neighborhood strategy"

• “Pixar Pier has been here all this time but has evolved over the years”

• Santa Cruz Boardwalk is the color inspiration for Pixar Pier. It's "California kitsch". Wanted to bring some "water elements", hense the rotating Pixar marble water ball

• Imagineering was inspired by Tokyo DisneySea for Pixar Pier. Specifically Toyville Trolley Park. California Adventure's "domes are bigger"

• Pixar Pier is set in modern day, since it's changed with inspirations from most films which take place in current, contemporary times.

• Incredibles Park "We had to put a simple story on there"

• Boardwalk went from pastels (Paradise Pier) to jewel based tones (Pixar Pier - Toy Story Boardwalk Neighborhood)

• Dante’s Churros was one of the themes considered for Señor Buzz Churros, but it wasn’t able to be located in a neighborhood that matched. Apparently it was impossible to move (mostly due to health laws and sinks)

• Pixar Promenade took inspiration from (again) DisneySea; some classic bandshells from old California boardwalks. Over 30 feet of new building (compared to Sideshow Shirts)

• Lamplight Lounge drew inspiration from Nomad Lounge through a similar backstory - instead of sharing stories of adventures to Africa and Asia, it’s a place where Pixar employees would hang out

• The Pal-A-Round marquee is four times as large as the Fun Wheel marquee

• Dylan's candy shop in New York is inspiration for Bing Bong's Sweet Stuff

This seals it for me: Pixar Pier is just a return to 2001 DCA but no charm.

The comments about the domes and sign being large feels like a Trump tweet.

Sad. I appreciate the effort, but, it still lacks so much depth. Even BVS falls flat though. Naming shops after disney characters or neighborhoods in LA doesn't actually mean anything the way disneyland means things.

Thought you were talking about the Snyder movie for a second. I agree with naming the shops after Disney character's, that's stupid, but at least BVS is charming.

 

[nevol]

This seals it for me: Pixar Pier is just a return to 2001 DCA but no charm.

The comments about the domes and sign being large feels like a Trump tweet.



Thought you were talking about the Snyder movie for a second. I agree with naming the shops after Disney character's, that's stupid, but at least BVS is charming.

It reminds me of Future Business Leaders of America conferences/competitions I took part in in high school. Students nervously throwing together mock business plans and presentations in a competition and dressing up in awkward professional attire to compete for prizes against a panel of volunteer "businesspeople" and teachers. Except this is real.

having said that, pixar promenade is pretty. The pixar connection might be weak but the facade is pleasing.

 

[vancee]

pixar promenade is pretty

it is... but i don't think anything is going to be behind the walls !!!

 

[vancee]

it looks like some of the disneyland gangs are claiming their turf in the different pixar pier areas. saw a "gang" sitting by the incredibles fountain while i was waiting in line to get me a delicious cookie. meanwhile, a few from a different gang in line next to me were talking **** about someone's girlfriend from the other gang. when they walked by i thought there was gonna be a shootout or something.

 

[nevol]

it looks like some of the disneyland gangs are claiming their turf in the different pixar pier areas. saw a "gang" sitting by the incredibles fountain while i was waiting in line to get me a delicious cookie. meanwhile, a few from a different gang in line next to me were talking **** about someone's girlfriend from the other gang. when they walked by i thought there was gonna be a shootout or something.

Pitiful lol

 

[vancee]

Pitiful lol

they have to survive in the hood somehow

 

[nevol]

I wish they'd just say that they were looking to create disney california adventure's version of fantasyland so they used the pier as its anchor. insert something about pixar bla bla. Approach it from the theme park design/operations angle and they might actually sound like they know what they're talking about rather than pretending that it all started with story, which disney likes to say when it oversimplifies things, and that it started with pixar, then their brains magically landed on the pier, etc. They want to sound like they're being true to theme park design principles and theres this great justification backstory but it is so obviously fake. Ditch that angle, merely say that you needed to dedicate one area of the park to family attractions and that you chose to make paradise pier dca's answer to disneyland's fantasyland, and that it will be a great place to bring more pixar stories to life in the future. boom. okay Disney where should I send the invoice?

 

[lazyboy97o]

Thought you were talking about the Snyder movie for a second. I agree with naming the shops after Disney character's, that's stupid, but at least BVS is charming.

Burns Vista Street sets up the premise that Walt Disney was a plagiarist. That’s not charming.

 

[FerretAfros]

Sad. I appreciate the effort, but, it still lacks so much depth. Even BVS falls flat though. Naming shops after disney characters or neighborhoods in LA doesn't actually mean anything the way disneyland means things. What I'm afraid of is that this team thinks they built this thing up with enough backstory and significance but its really just checking things off a list of elements that manifest sometimes when a themed/entertainment project is successful for other reasons.

I agree. It's all too common for modern WDI to name something after a character (existing or original) and call it a day. Instead of evocative names like Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, The French Market, or Rushin' River Outfitters, we get ham-fisted repetition like Mater's Junkyard Jamboree, Ariel's Undersea Adventure, and Sarge's Surplus Hut. It seems like everything these days is always [character]'s [adjective] [whimsical noun] as though that excuses them from finding a way to make something fit harmoniously in its surroundings.

Heck, even simple things like ODV get pulled into this nonsense, with Laod Bhang and Don Tomas only serving to draw more attention to themselves, rather than blend in with their environment. It's almost as though the current designers don't realize that their work is just one element in a larger tapestry that creates the whole experience, and instead create every little thing as though it's the most important element, which leads to discord rather than harmony. To have a well-rounded orchestra, somebody has to play second fiddle.

The BVS "backstory" has always rubbed me the wrong way. The land itself is beautifully detailed and full of charm. Although limited by its small size and openness to other areas, I think it has a stronger sense of place than Main Street at DL. Then they went and slapped a bunch of awkwardly self-referential names and atmosphere entertainment that do their best to rewrite the company's history for no apparent reason, other than "It's fun! See how much fun we are!?". They did all the hard stuff right, and then screwed up the easy stuff.

 

[MisterPenguin]

Walt Disney Imagineering revealed many of the designing choices for Pixar Pier in the Pixar Party Blog Meet-Up this past evening:


• WDI choose Pixar Pier for three reasons: 1) Pixar is in California 2) Emeryville is near Piers 3) Pixar has the color and energy common to boardwalks in California

• "Pixar is a "California company"; "Located near the famous piers we researched." Pixar Pier is a "collection of moments" and a "neighborhood strategy"

• “Pixar Pier has been here all this time but has evolved over the years”

• Santa Cruz Boardwalk is the color inspiration for Pixar Pier. It's "California kitsch". Wanted to bring some "water elements", hense the rotating Pixar marble water ball

• Imagineering was inspired by Tokyo DisneySea for Pixar Pier. Specifically Toyville Trolley Park. California Adventure's "domes are bigger"

• Pixar Pier is set in modern day, since it's changed with inspirations from most films which take place in current, contemporary times.

• Incredibles Park "We had to put a simple story on there"

• Boardwalk went from pastels (Paradise Pier) to jewel based tones (Pixar Pier - Toy Story Boardwalk Neighborhood)

• Dante’s Churros was one of the themes considered for Señor Buzz Churros, but it wasn’t able to be located in a neighborhood that matched. Apparently it was impossible to move (mostly due to health laws and sinks)

• Pixar Promenade took inspiration from (again) DisneySea; some classic bandshells from old California boardwalks. Over 30 feet of new building (compared to Sideshow Shirts)

• Lamplight Lounge drew inspiration from Nomad Lounge through a similar backstory - instead of sharing stories of adventures to Africa and Asia, it’s a place where Pixar employees would hang out

• The Pal-A-Round marquee is four times as large as the Fun Wheel marquee

• Dylan's candy shop in New York is inspiration for Bing Bong's Sweet Stuff

They left out "placating Lasseter."

 

[dweezil78]

I wish they'd just say that they were looking to create disney california adventure's version of fantasyland so they used the pier as its anchor. insert something about pixar bla bla. Approach it from the theme park design/operations angle and they might actually sound like they know what they're talking about rather than pretending that it all started with story, which disney likes to say when it oversimplifies things, and that it started with pixar, then their brains magically landed on the pier, etc. They want to sound like they're being true to theme park design principles and theres this great justification backstory but it is so obviously fake. Ditch that angle, merely say that you needed to dedicate one area of the park to family attractions and that you chose to make paradise pier dca's answer to disneyland's fantasyland, and that it will be a great place to bring more pixar stories to life in the future. boom. okay Disney where should I send the invoice?

Who cares what they say it is/should be? Back in the day, projects were never presented much more than what we saw on the surface. Today’s Disney likes to have hokey little back stories. I tend to ignore it because more often than not it’s obvious that they came up with most of it after the fact and just retrofit it to fit the end product. I prefer to interpret things based on what I see with my own eyes.

It’s something PR likes to have for press purposes, but it’s not something we as guests need to treat as some biblical law.

 

[Deleted member 107043]

it looks like some of the disneyland gangs are claiming their turf in the different pixar pier areas. saw a "gang" sitting by the incredibles fountain while i was waiting in line to get me a delicious cookie.

I don't think I'll ever be able to wrap my brain around this level of fanaticism. On Sunday, upon my return from Catalina Island, I took a cab from San Pedro back to LA. Before we even hit the freeway my cabbie made it known that he was a Lakers fan and that he couldn't contain his excitement over the announcement that LeBron James had signed a deal with the team. This guy was so wildly passionate that he continued to blabber non-stop about every aspect of the news imaginable on the 30 mile journey to my hotel. At first I didn't mind, but his enthusiasm was so over the top that I was anxious to escape by the time we arrived at my destination. God help me if get trapped with a vocal Disneyland gang driver.

 

[Rich T]

Walt Disney Imagineering revealed many of the designing choices for Pixar Pier in the Pixar Party Blog Meet-Up this past evening: • Santa Cruz Boardwalk is the color inspiration for Pixar Pier. It's "California kitsch".

The Santa Cruz Boardwalk kicks Pixar Pier's tacky rear end in every conceivable way, including color and signage. Ironically, what Disney's labeled the Boardwalk's "California kitsch" is, in reality, a hundred times classier and more charming than anything they've done at Pixar Pier. You won't find urine gags at the sno-cone stands at the boardwalk. You *will* find two great coasters, three excellent dark rides, more flat rides than Magic Mtn. and Knott's combined, a terrific log flume, a skyride, one of the world's largest arcades and an indoor Pirate-themed mini golf course that's more lovingly designed and clever (and with better special effects) than anything at Pixar Pier.

 

[Rich T]

I don't think I'll ever be able to wrap my brain around this level of fanaticism. On Sunday, upon my return from Catalina Island, I took a cab from San Pedro back to LA. Before we even hit the freeway my cabbie made it known that he was a Lakers fan and that he couldn't contain his exitement over the announcement that LeBron James had signed a deal with the team. This guy was so wildly passionate that he continued to blabber non-stop about every aspect of the news imaginable on the 30 mile journey to my hotel. At first I didn't mind, but his enthusiasm was so over the top that I was anxious to escape by the time we arrived at my destination. God help me if get trapped with a vocal Disneyland gang driver.

You: "Actually, I think some elements of DCA could be done a bit better..."
*SCREECH OF BRAKES*
Driver: "OUT! OUT OF MY CAB, MAGIC-KILLER!"

 

[Rich T]

Who cares what they say it is/should be? Back in the day, projects were never presented much more than what we saw on the surface. Today’s Disney likes to have hokey little back stories. I tend to ignore it because more often than not it’s obvious that they came up with most of it after the fact and just retrofit it to fit the end product. I prefer to interpret things based on what I see with my own eyes.

It’s something PR likes to have for press purposes, but it’s not something we as guests need to treat as some biblical law.

And those Imagineer execs do love their vitally-important-and-super-necessary-for-authenticity paid "Research Trips".

 

[NateD1226]

The Santa Cruz Boardwalk kicks Pixar Pier's tacky rear end in every conceivable way, including color and signage. Ironically, what Disney's labeled the Boardwalk's "California kitsch" is, in reality, a hundred times classier and more charming than anything they've done at Pixar Pier. You won't find urine gags at the sno-cone stands at the boardwalk. You *will* find two great coasters, three excellent dark rides, more flat rides than Magic Mtn. and Knott's combined, a terrific log flume, a skyride, one of the world's largest arcades and an indoor Pirate-themed mini golf course that's more lovingly designed and clever (and with better special effects) than anything at Pixar Pier.

I agree with you so much! I went to the Santa Cruz Boardwalk in April and it is nothing like Pixar Pier. The SCB is not the color inspiration of Pixar Pier.

 

[SSG]

"Emeryville is near Piers"

 

[SteamboatJoe]

Walt Disney Imagineering revealed many of the designing choices for Pixar Pier in the Pixar Party Blog Meet-Up this past evening:


• WDI choose Pixar Pier for three reasons: 1) Pixar is in California 2) Emeryville is near Piers 3) Pixar has the color and energy common to boardwalks in California

• "Pixar is a "California company"; "Located near the famous piers we researched." Pixar Pier is a "collection of moments" and a "neighborhood strategy"

• “Pixar Pier has been here all this time but has evolved over the years”

• Santa Cruz Boardwalk is the color inspiration for Pixar Pier. It's "California kitsch". Wanted to bring some "water elements", hense the rotating Pixar marble water ball

• Imagineering was inspired by Tokyo DisneySea for Pixar Pier. Specifically Toyville Trolley Park. California Adventure's "domes are bigger"

• Pixar Pier is set in modern day, since it's changed with inspirations from most films which take place in current, contemporary times.

• Incredibles Park "We had to put a simple story on there"

• Boardwalk went from pastels (Paradise Pier) to jewel based tones (Pixar Pier - Toy Story Boardwalk Neighborhood)

• Dante’s Churros was one of the themes considered for Señor Buzz Churros, but it wasn’t able to be located in a neighborhood that matched. Apparently it was impossible to move (mostly due to health laws and sinks)

• Pixar Promenade took inspiration from (again) DisneySea; some classic bandshells from old California boardwalks. Over 30 feet of new building (compared to Sideshow Shirts)

• Lamplight Lounge drew inspiration from Nomad Lounge through a similar backstory - instead of sharing stories of adventures to Africa and Asia, it’s a place where Pixar employees would hang out

• The Pal-A-Round marquee is four times as large as the Fun Wheel marquee

• Dylan's candy shop in New York is inspiration for Bing Bong's Sweet Stuff

Lol at Pixar is a California company as if the parent company isn't.

Also, everything is based on California except, for some reason, Bing Bong's.