So, You Want to be an Imagineer Season 18 HYPE THREAD!

TheOriginalTiki

TheOriginalTiki

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
NigelChanning09 said:
Are you only allowed to share one concept per challenge?
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I honestly hadn't considered people posting multiple ideas, haha. I tell you what, feel free to post multiple concepts but let me know which one you want to apply to your final tally. The only thing that makes matters tricky is the fact that there's a prize for the person who racks up the most points at the end of the five rounds, so I only want to have one project per person that actually counts towards your score. Other than the concept you want counted towards the score though, you're welcome to post as many more as you want. The weekly challenges are mostly meant to be a nice warm-up to the main game so if a particular prompt strikes your interest I say go nuts :)
 
NigelChanning

NigelChanning

Well-Known Member
Bald Mountain: A Disney Villains Adventure

Exterior:
The Exterior of this E-Ticket attraction is Maleficent’s Castle at the bottom of Bald Mountain, which is about the size of Expedition Everest. Maleficent’s Castle looks about the size of Hogwarts Castle as IOA.
Queue:
The Queue has guests traveling through Maleficent’s Castle, which is now headquarters for Maleficent, Evil Queen, Ursula, Captain Hook, Jafar, and Cruella Devil. Guests pass through the castle corridors until they reach the pre-show.
Pre-Show:
The Story of the attraction is conveyed through a spell book with moving pictures (screens) and Maleficent’s voice booming over the audience as she explains that the heroes that once defeated them will pay at the hands of Chernabog, the spirit of evil. But first, they must deal with you, the trespassers.
Ride Experience:
You board your boat in the castle dungeon (boarding area) and embark on your journey, leading to your inevitable doom. You pass through an outdoor portion of the attraction on your way to the base of Bald Mountain. You pass by Hook’s Ship and enter a cave. You see stalagmites and stalactites in the shape of the Disney Villains before coming face to face with all the villains (as Animatronics) in a meeting. Ursula orders Flotsam and Jetsam, Ursula’s goons, to take you under water (an effect achieved through screens like POTC in Shanghai). you see a giant Ursula Audio-Animatronic. After coming back to the mountain, your ride vehicle is attacked by Jafar in his snake form. Then come in between two of Hook’s ships as they try to hit you with a cannonball. All of a sudden, the ride switches to a Rollercoaster as you fly through the mountain and come face to face with Chernabog himself. As you escape his clutches, Maleficent as a dragon doesn’t give up that easy. She makes one final swipe at you before you escape and make your way back the castle. You exit through the gift shop selling Disney Villains merch.
 
Pi on my Cake

Pi on my Cake

Well-Known Member
In the Parks
Yes
mickeyfan5534 said:
Question of the Day: What's an under-represented IP that should have more?
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I'm gonna go a slightly different angle with this and say Kingdom Hearts.

Not only could they be doing so much more with the games and characters in that universe than they are, but the franchise has so much potential for tv, movies, other storytellers, theme parks... It deserves a lot more than 2 games a decade.
 
TheOriginalTiki

TheOriginalTiki

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Pi on my Cake said:
I'm gonna go a slightly different angle with this and say Kingdom Hearts.

Not only could they be doing so much more with the games and characters in that universe than they are, but the franchise has so much potential for tv, movies, other storytellers, theme parks... It deserves a lot more than 2 games a decade.
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I've had a ten film series that covers the first two games in my head since KH2 first came out. It's so mapped out in my head that I could basically write beat by beat summaries of each of them. I take a lot of liberties with it. Most notably having all the locations be within one big world. For some random reason I also built in an incredibly intense rivalry between Sora and Squall that lasts the whole saga and is the root of a lot of the conflict. I have no idea how that came about, it's not in the games at all, but slowly but surely it became embedded in the DNA of my movie concept haha. Other cool ideas I have are crossovers like Tarzan and Aladdin facing off against Hades or a whole crew of different Disney characters joining Sora and Jack Sparrow on a movie aboard the Black Pearl which would essentially be a mini Disney Avengers.
 
NigelChanning

NigelChanning

Well-Known Member
TheOriginalTiki said:
I've had a ten film series that covers the first two games in my head since KH2 first came out. It's so mapped out in my head that I could basically write beat by beat summaries of each of them. I take a lot of liberties with it. Most notably having all the locations be within one big world. For some random reason I also built in an incredibly intense rivalry between Sora and Squall that lasts the whole saga and is the root of a lot of the conflict. I have no idea how that came about, it's not in the games at all, but slowly but surely it became embedded in the DNA of my movie concept haha. Other cool ideas I have are crossovers like Tarzan and Aladdin facing off against Hades or a whole crew of different Disney characters joining Sora and Jack Sparrow on a movie aboard the Black Pearl which would essentially be a mini Disney Avengers.
Click to expand...
The Disney Cinematic Universe. Kingdom Hearts is the Avengers and the solo films are the live action Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and more. All leading to the first Kingdom Hearts film where Angelina Jolie’s Maleficent fights the heroes in Hallo Bastion.
 
TheOriginalTiki

TheOriginalTiki

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
orlando678- said:
This is a concept I imagined in order to replace the standard Haunted Mansion attraction at Tokyo Disneyland's Fantasyland. I always felt there was so much more potential for a Haunted Mansion type of attraction in Fantasyland, like how Phantom Manor was altered for Frontierland's setting in Disneyland Paris.
The Haunted Chateau​
Story:

A long, long time ago in a kingdom far, far away, lived in this chateau the fourth count and his beautiful daughter. He collected stories, myths and legends from over the whole world and even conducted the gift of magic. He could make flowers sing and make walls dance. But… There was one plague in his life: the evil witch Visculamia. She lived far away from civilization in a dark forest. She wanted to take the Count’s his stories away. A dark day struck the kingdom on which the witch had disguised herself as a beautiful young woman. However, the loyal gardener of the county had discovered her wicked sorcery and let her be arrested. She was then taken into court where she was given capital punishment to be burnt at the stake on the East Wing of the Chateau. Right before her death, she casted one last spell which doomed the count to be seeking for his last story, his daughter Esmeralda. And every time the water in the river rises and the enchanted crow of Visculamia rings the chateau’s castle bells. Then the lifeless corpse of the gardener, who betrayed the Witch’s disguise can be seen hanging from the castle bells. The judges who convicted her to the staple start to growl and complain in the attic and in the catacombs, the count can be seen chasing his daughter Esmeralda, without ever finding her. While the flowers sing and the walls dance, the witch swing her spells into the sarcophagus and tombs where the bodies of the count and the chateau’s former inhabitants and servants lay, trapped in their graves. On the most southern hill of the chateau’s cemetery, Esmeralda can still find no peace, and that will remain so for many years to come. Until the song of the flowers closes the eyes of the owls, the evil enchanted crow has come to rest and the spell is broken.

The Attraction:

Located atop a steep, wooded hill at the back of Fantasyland, looking over the rest of the kingdom lies a mysterious chateau. With its dreamy spires, mock battlements and square clock tower, the chateau somewhat still makes Guests believe that Fairy Tales come true at this wondrous place. It looks like a cross between a medieval castle, a Gothic cathedral and Big Ben, but it will mostly remind us of Schloss Drachenburg in Köningswinter, Germany. Guests pass through the gates, on which two stone gargoyles of griffons are perched atop its pillars, occasionally turning their heads to look at them. Although the property looks generally well-maintained, some of the exterior hints at the tragedy that has taken place here – broken windows, ruined crypts and overgrown gardens. A small cemetery can be found at the side of the residence which includes the graves of fantasy characters and creatures, as well as characters from the Chateau’s backstory.
The queue passes these tombstones, but also the remains of the Chateau’s garden, featuring fountains and statues of for example golden deer and dragons, re-telling the folklore of a knight who slayed a dragon tormenting the kingdom. Looking closely at the exterior of the Chateau, a number of faces can be seen in the ruins. The largest can be seen above the main entrance: two windows are the eyes and the entrance itself is a gaping mouth, through which Guests enter. When it rains, one window appears to be crying. As Guests are welcomed to the Chateau, they enter a dimly-lit area, with several spooky items of sorcery and witchcraft. Among these items are a crystal ball and a large book of spells. As soon as all the Guests have found their way in, the book opens with a spark of magic, bringing several objects to life and our narrator introduces them to the history of the chateau, about the Count who used his magic to collect Fairy Tales. We notice that the voice comes from the crystal ball, in which a head of a man slowly changes into a skeletal one. He then urges us to move into the next room.
In the Tower Hall, a hairy arm stretches from the roof, holding a big chandelier. On the walls, you’ll see four medieval styled tapestries depicting the Fairy Tales that the Count collected. On one you'll find a young blonde princess wearing a blue dress in a forest setting, on another Guests will find a mother with her baby in a medieval bedroom, another shows a wealthy man near the coast and lastly two lovers in a boat. The narrator starts again and notices that the room is starting to stretch, an effect of a spell that still takes its toll on the Chateau. The narrator tells us that after Visculamia’s curse, the fairy tales and stories that were collected by the Count, were re-written to change their happy endings and kind appearance. As the room stretches, the tapestries stretch with it, revealing how they have changed from happy stories to gruesome or lost ones; the young blonde princess is revealed to be hiding in a tree from three angry bears trying to attack her, the mother and her baby are being tormented by an imp, the wealthy man near the sea is revealed to be Bluebeard sitting on a tomb where the faces of his 6 former wives can be seen and the lovers seem to be nearing a waterfall. Once the room reaches its ultimate state, lightning flashes as the narrator warns us of all the creatures and lost characters roaming the Chateau. The chandelier starts moving and the roof turns transparent to reveal the presence of three horrible demon-like characters leering down at the Guests. But as soon as it happened, it stops again and the chandelier hangs still and the creatures disappear. However, the narrator does warn us that if Guests will not leave now, they’ll simply meet their doom. Of course there is always his way! The room turns dark again and the clock tower bells ring, with a dead corpse hanging from the rafters, revealing that the Gardener betrayed Visculamia. A loud laugh and then a scorching scream surrounds the Guests before the candles start burning again on their gargoyle candelabra holders. Guests then walk through a secret passage that opens once the pre-show ends, leading Guests into a Portrait Gallery.
In the Gallery Guests will find several paintings hung upon the right-hand wall. On the left, Guests can see stained glass windows, with an eerie landscape outside. As Guests walk the path, the portraits change appearance. The first portrait is of a young Grecian woman walking away from an Ancient temple, but she soon changes to appear as a forest nymph, morphing her to become a tree (inspired by ancient Greek myths of Daphne). Another one portrays a piper playing a joyful tune for dancing children, but changes to the image of a creepily smiling pied piper surrounded by terrifying rats (inspired by the Pied Piper of Hamelin). The next portrait is of an emperor, wearing a French wig, almost as if he’s from the Age of Enlightenment. The portrait changes from a fat emperor to a man with a ram’s head (inspired by the Emperor’s New Clothes). The fourth portrait is that of a ship proudly braving the waves at open sea, yet it changes to become the legendary ghost ship, The Flying Dutchman. The last portrait is of a little man standing next to his spinning wheel, with golden straw. However, the image transforms with the man changing into an imp dancing until he goes up in flames. At the end of the corridor hangs a large painting of Esmeralda, daughter of the magical Count. It seems as if her face turns more upset, the closer you get. Guests near the loading area where the Ghost of the Gardener will announce the safety spiel.
The loading area is themed to look like a grand medieval hall with a mysterious wind moving the tapestries and spider webs. From time to time the suits of armor seem to be moving slightly as well. As Guests board their Doom Buggies, they’ll ascend to the second level of the attraction. As they ascend the staircase, they’ll pass by portraits of creepy fantasy characters that will follow you with their eyes. At the top of the staircase lies the entrance to the Chateau’s library, where books float around or open up to reveal strange creatures crawling from them. Gargoyles and small statues come to life and busts of famous literary stars like Homerus and Shakespeare follow our every move. Guests move further to find themselves in the glass Conservatory filled with dead, withered plants and flowers. In the middle of the room is a floating violin with a phantom hand playing a macabre version of Grim Grinning Ghosts. Guests then move up another staircase, past what seems like a thousand spider webs, inhabited by huge green and red spiders, with glowing red eyes. From time to time a spider drops down at a Doom Buggy, nearly missing the Guests. Yet, the creepiest ghoul that inhabits this part of the Chateau is the Spider Eater. This creature appears and disappears on one side and then moves to another, where a spotlight reveals a troll or goblin like creature trying to eat a spider. Another light focuses on a victim of the Chateau's spiders, a corpse that is based on the long-forgotten web man, who moans and shrieks as Guests pass by his rotting remains. The spider webs slowly transition into the mystic wallpaper of the chateau.
We are now upstairs and passing through various hallways of the residence. Guests would find themselves passing by a long hallway where they see Esmeralda’s spirit being chased by the Count’s spirit in a way that almost reminds us of the old Scooby Doo chase scenes in which characters cross each other from one way to the other, moving from the front to the back or the other way around, yet never meeting one another. The haunting laugh of the witch Visculamia can be heard as well as she enjoys the torment she has caused to the Chateau and its inhabitants. Doom Buggies then pass by a series of doors which seem to be moving, being knocked on or actually opening to reveal terrifying sights. One of them shakes intensely, while others have their knockers moved or their handles shaking. Another one seems to be bending and the next seems to be breathing. The last one has broken open slightly and reveals two hairy claws emerging from the chamber behind it. The creature that tries to break out of it, seems to be growling, in search of its next victim. We continue to pass through the corridor and pass by a bell which is being rung by the enchanted raven of the witch. This enchanted raven looks like a demon-like creature and has only maintained its wings from its original appearance. It is as if it is sending a signal to the witch herself who awaits us in the next room.
​

This scene replaces the Madame Leota Séance Circle but is very similar to what we know from other Haunted Mansion versions. A gigantic figure of the witch, similar to Ursula and the Na’vi Shaman, sits at a round table, in front of a crystal ball as she conjures evil spirits, warlocks, witches, ghouls, demons and creatures. Around her, floating candles burn to offer some light in this ominous dark scene. Inside the crystal ball she’ll reveal the face of the beautiful Esmeralda, yet it changes to an old and decayed corpse. Behind the Doom Buggies glowing orbs seem to morph into creepy faces, like the ones seen in the Night on Bald Mountain segment in Fantasia. The floor seems to be covered in a thick mist and the pillars, as well as the walls seem to be moving. We then pass by a series of arches overlooking a hallway on the other side, where a group of faceless cloaked figures sing a Gregorian version of Grim Grinning Ghosts. Doom Buggies will then turn around and enter the attic, where they are surrounded by enchanted objects, which start moving and pop-ups scare Guests. The scariest inhabitants of the attic, however are the three zombie-like spirits of the judges that were cursed by the witch before she was burnt at the stake. These advanced audio animatronic figures are similar to the hammerhead pirate in Shanghai’s Pirates of the Caribbean attraction. They jump up to reveal themselves, pronounce a haunting judgement, laugh and disappear. The last judge seems to be pushing the Doom Buggies out of the Chateau and into the castle’s catacombs where we pass by coffins and graves that are opened by their skeletal inhabitants.
Through one of the passageways we see the spirits of Esmeralda and the Count once again, but when the crypt of the Count opens to reveal the skeletal remains of the Count, their spirits disappear. We then emerge from the catacombs and are now in the Castle Courtyard. Tombstones and walls seem to be dancing, flowers seem to be singing and about 999 happy haunts and creatures seem to be roaming the property in a swinging wake. Replacing the regular singing busts are five skulls, one of a pirate with a covered eye, one of a tribal chief, one of a French aristocrat, one of a gypsy and one of an old man, with snake emerging from his eye socket. They sing their version of Grim Grinning Ghosts. We also pass by a series of Ghostly couples that waltz to the music in the castle courtyard. Owls with glowing green eyes are lurking from the trees and castle walls. Hands seem to be emerging from some of the graves as the dead are eager to join the celebration. The phantom Violinist has returned with a small orchestra and a ghost conductor performing the instrumentals for the scene. Dancing witches and all kinds of creatures surround the Doom Buggies as well as creepy trees with faces that bend over the Guests with their intimidating looks. In one corner of the courtyard we seem to be re-living the last few moments of the Witch Visculamia as we see a figure being burnt at the stake.
We then pass into a cavern where a spirit dragon, similar to the one that can be found in La Taniere du Dragon at Disneyland Paris appears to be fighting a headless knight. This will be a truly spectacular sight and one of the most impressive scenes of the attraction. Instead of passing by the Hitchhiking Ghosts, we will instead pass by Esmeralda’s grave. Esmeralda’s restless spirit emerges from the grave and leads us out of the Chateau. Before we do so, we pass by a series of mirrors in which we find the enchanted Raven following us home in our Doom Buggy. We exit the vehicle and pass through a series of dungeons. In one of the dungeons, the restless spirit of a moaning green man in chains can be seen floating. In another, the witch Visculamia urges Guests to hurry ba-ack…hurry ba-ack… before happy endings are written.
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Now this is what the game is all about! The creativity here is absolutely bursting at the seems. The only reason I'm not giving it a perfect 10 for creativity is it not being an entirely original idea from top to bottom. That being said, the concept of a Haunted Castle is something that's long sense perplexed me as to why Disney hasn't invested into it. The Santa Cruz Boardwalk actually has a Haunted Castle dark ride that I really love, for example.

I think the best strength of this project is the dark tone you commit to and go with. Clearly some effort went into establishing the backstory. I think you really restrained yourself in terms of striking a balance between the fan favorite scenes and entirely different takes on familiar scenarios. I honestly think this might be next evolution of Phantom Manor if it actually got built. Phantom Manor had a dark tone and backstory, but most of the scenes until the end are pretty familiar in concept. Incorporating other supernatural creatures and monsters into the castle is a great stroke and really helps set this apart from other versions of the mansion. Lastly, the prose here is absolutely spot-on, with some fantastic descriptions especially towards the beginning. The hairy arm holding up the chandelier and the windows crying when it rains were particularly striking imagery to me.

Creativity: 9/10
Realism: 8/10
Detail: 8/10
Presentation: 8/10
Total: 33/40
 
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Orange Cat

Orange Cat

Well-Known Member
mickeyfan5534 said:
Question of the Day: What's an under-represented IP that should have more?
Click to expand...
PerGronStudio said:
I think Princess and the Frog gets the shaft way too much. Between a definite need for a Cajun restaurant themed to Tiana’s Place or a dark ride or something like that, I really think Princess and the Frog deserves better
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I agree with @PerGronStudio . But also Tangled (at least as far as theme park representation goes). Like theres all this Tangled theming in MK, but it’s only for a bathroom, why?!
 
DashHaber

DashHaber

Well-Known Member
spacemt354 said:
@DashHaber @NigelChanning09 you both have been really great new contributors to the forum - I just wanted to introduce you to this game if you're interested and you're more than welcome to join in our imagineering questions of the day!
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Thanks for giving me the head's-up on this. I just might take part in this. It sounds like a fun idea, and sounds like a fun space to practice some armchair imagineering, even if my ideas might not be as fully fleshed-out as some of the right ones I already see here.
 
Pi on my Cake

Pi on my Cake

Well-Known Member
In the Parks
Yes
Based on this official Beach City map I found, the vacation home I went to last summer for a family reunion at Rehoboth would be right about here! The fry bits were great

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NigelChanning

NigelChanning

Well-Known Member
This isn’t my final contribution to the weekly challenge but I thought I’d share it anyway.
Toy Story Land Expansion Ideas:

Buzz Lightyear: Mission of Star Command:

Exterior:
The exterior of the attraction looks like a Star Command HQ play set. In the Toy Story canon, Buzz has a cartoon called Buzz Lightyear of Star Command (shoutout to anyone who’s seen it) and I figure a popular show like it would have a lot of toys.
Queue:
The queue contains Audio-Animatronics of Rex (biggest fan of the Buzz Lightyear video game) and Trixie (probably the second biggest fan) telling the guests that they will play the popular new video game, “Buzz Lightyear: Mission of Star Command”, through the Optimum X (as seen in Toy Story: That Time Forgot) to battle Zurg and his minions. Guests will put on Augmented Reality Goggles that will put images on top of reality so the ride gives off the video game feel. Rex and Trixie will assure the guests that they will be boarding toy spaceships and the realistic effects on the goggles may make them feel like they’re actually in the game.
Ride Experience:
Guests enter their ride vehicles meant to look like spaceships and embark on their intergalactic adventure. Their goggles will show Buzz flying around fighting Zurg on top of practical sets and Animatronic robots. The ride vehicles will be trackless so they’ll have more freedom to move around. Overall the ride will be a suped up version of Space Ranger Spin.

Battlesaurs: Battle for Battleopolis!:

Exterior:
Enter Battleopolis, home of the Battlesaurs from Toy Story: That Time Forgot.

Queue:
Pass by the weaponry and other landmarks of Battleopolis.

Ride Experience:
Shoot water canons at your opponents in the arena to appease the Cleric. This is a splash battle ride so you may get absolutely soaked during battle!
D49D3E42-01FB-4CBF-A28C-045004178B5F.jpeg

Duke Caboom’s Stunt School:
Join Canada’s greatest stuntman as he teaches you how to perform death-defying stunts in the name of his old owner Rejean! Jump through hoops on your very own motorcycle on this Barnstormer sized family coaster.
 
spacemt354

spacemt354

Chili's
DashHaber said:
Thanks for giving me the head's-up on this. I just might take part in this. It sounds like a fun idea, and sounds like a fun space to practice some armchair imagineering, even if my ideas might not be as fully fleshed-out as some of the right ones I already see here.
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I'm sure @TheOriginalTiki can explain more - but I think this is a great opportunity to imagineer with some friends. This competition has been going on since 2006 and people still return!
 

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