Post for January 2017

This is the last of three articles focuing on EPCOT. Note to Epcot fans: I use ‘EPCOT’ to refer to what is now considered ‘Epcot’. I know it’s technically wrong, but I’m ok with that. Please don’t judge me too harshly.

The first article makes the case that leadership should find imaginative ways to differentiate WDW from its competitors.

The second article outlines the type of big-picture plan that leadership could hand down to Imagineering to keep WDW in a class of its own.

In this article we’ll try to look at EPCOT from the perspective of Imagineering. It’s fun to dream big about what EPCOT could become, but I want to focus on a conceptual plan that could be possible for Imagineering to pitch to leadership. It attempts to respect EPCOT’s roots, reinforce its strengths, while also surviving the requirements imposed by leadership/reality. There are many interesting opinions out there in the theme park community about what is wrong with EPCOT, why it’s not being handled in the right way and how it could be done differently. I too enjoy this kind of thinking, but I also think the best approach to these issues is to have a business plan drive the decision making. The redevelopment of EPCOT must be governed by a strategic, imaginative and risk-taking business plan. Here I’ll attempt to outline what something like that could look like and how that plan could drive decision making. Also note that while it’s fun to armchair imagineer, it’s difficult (or impossible) to reach any practical design solution from the outside; There are too many unknowns. Any one of these unknowns could invalidate outside speculative designs or concepts.

Now after having said all that, it’s still a lot of fun to think about what EPCOT could become!

This is the kind of pitch I’d make to leadership:

EPCOT is truly a unique park that deserves to remain that way. EPCOT is unique in that it has a central and cohesive message. Bringing in IP, having character meet-and-greets and doing all the other things that are successful in the other three WDW parks would probably help EPCOT, but it would do nothing to differentiate WDW from competitors. With EPCOT (more than any other park at WDW) Disney has the opportunity to actually grow its market beyond its consistent demographics. Let me explain. First, let’s consider the obvious and single most important factor for growth over the next 20 years: Millennials. The US theme park market is mature and grows at single digit rates similar to population growth, yet Universal has seen double digit growth in the last few years. This is primarily due to appealing to people outside the typical theme park demographic. They have been producing more adult oriented content as well as bringing on beloved IP. It goes without saying that the single most important factor here was the deal to bring in the Harry Potter franchise. Universal was so desperate to get their hands on the franchise that they were willing to work under the considerable constraints imposed by JK Rowling. I honestly don’t think they realized or perhaps still don’t realize that it was those very constraints and vision (not the IP in and of itself) that led to the overwhelming success of their efforts. Disney has seemed to answer by attempting the same scheme of pushing well performing IP. Pandora and Star Wars Land should be built, but even more can be done and they have the perfect asset already in place to do so: EPCOT. My pitch to leadership would center on this argument: Reaching Millennials and growing beyond typical theme park demographics is possible. Building on well performing IP is necessary, but the IP that resonates with this target group and that is ‘buildable’ is finite. In addition to bringing the best performing IP to the other 3 parks also consider the message of EPCOT and how it can resonate with Millennials in ways that film franchises cannot and in ways that are far more powerful. Much has been written on Millennials. What sticks out for our purposes is that they are thought to mature into the single greatest civic-minded and idealistic generation since the 1950s. They spend money overwhelming on experiences over goods. They are a generation of pragmatic idealists that believe real change is possible and that our brightest days are ahead. Sound familiar? In many ways EPCOT was built for them. I’m going to attempt to show that EPCOT could be nurtured to appeal to this generation in ways that are more powerful and relevant than any IP could ever be and that because of this it would be worth taking a chance on EPCOT. WDW has 2 or even 3 other parks in which it can directly compete with Universal. It’s worth taking a chance on EPCOT. Let’s allow EPCOT to compete in ways that could truly separate it from the competition and lead to greater growth. Having said this Disney must appeal to Millennials while also creating an environment that appeals to their base.

Next let’s consider the guest “in”. The “in” is what you ask people to accept ahead of entering the park or riding an attraction. For example: the “in” for a ride like “Star Tours” is that the guest is a passenger boarding a shuttle in the Star Wars Universe. Many rides set up the “in” during the queue and this often asks guests to become “recruits”, “rebels”, etc in order to accept the premise of the attraction and to suspend disbelief. Importantly, the “in” for the the entirety of EPCOT does not ask people to be anything other than themselves. This dramatically lowers the barrier of suspension of disbelief, allowing Disney to connect with far more guests outside the typical theme park demographics. If Disney brings EPCOT into the same style as its other parks, they will be throwing away an asset that allows them to differentiate the property from competitors and more importantly allows them to reach beyond their current guest demographics. If tended, EPCOT could become the property that allows WDW to see growth above population growth. By bringing to EPCOT the same types of experiences available in their other parks they will also be competing with themselves. So how could EPCOT be put on course to accomplish these goals? Start by allowing the central message of EPCOT to guide its development. Secondly, resist the idea that every attraction should have a different story, “in” or IP. Instead, keep the message consistent throughout the park and importantly vary the physical ride experience. For example, continue to tell the history and future of technology & communication in Spaceship Earth by using a slow moving dark-ride. Now keep the premise and use different ride experiences for other attractions. For example, for Universe of Energy tell the story of the history and future of Energy by radically changing the ride system to say “a fast-moving roller coaster type ride” (more later). Guests will find the attractions and ride systems that appeals the most to them and this will be their “in” to message of EPCOT. What I’m proposing is a move away from an omnimover park. Keep the message of Future World and World Showcase and bring a multitude of different ride experiences to bear (each selling the EPCOT concept). Importantly vary the experience within each attraction to play with guests expectations of scale, speed and scope. In short, awe the guests with the ride system and keep the message consistent.

Next, market EPCOT(not WDW) and the proposed transportation systems (outlined in a previous article) directly to Millennials. Focus on its history while also showcasing its utopian message and vision. Don’t market EPCOT as a theme park. Don’t market EPCOT in connection to the other three parks. Create a marketing identity that puts EPCOT in a class of it’s own. Show it as a vacation destination in and of itself. Show it as a place where a hopeful and bright future is not only seen as possible, but one that can be experienced now. Show EPCOT’s relevance and energy. Showcase unique cuisine offerings and innovative modes of transportation. Show EPCOT as the center of technology and society-minded futurism that it was always intended to be. Show the other theme parks as amenities to EPCOT.

Lastly, I’m going to work under the assumption that IP and characters must come to EPCOT. I’m also going to die on the hill that is Future World. I’ll be proposing that only relevant IP be brought into Future World. This leaves World Showcase to take the burden. IP can better absorbed by the physical layout and concept of World Showcase. These IP based attractions and experiences would be pulled to the back of the World Showcase pavilions.

So with all of that said, here we go:

EPCOT site plan – a work in progress

Future World Development Plan: Within EPCOT immediately focus energy on Future World. Do not change the Future World concept. Critically, for reasons argued above, expand the Future World concept and create an environment similar to what I’ve outline on the Save Tomorrowland page: lush gardens, water features and streams, living walls, rooftop gardens and broad sense of vitality and life. I’ve been a strong advocate, ever since first writing about theme parks, that they must be parks first: shade, life and a deep connection to physical experience. Special care would be taken to tie the individual pavilion’s narratives together such that guests take in all of Future World as a cohesive and connected experience. I’m tempted to get a bit pragmatic and change the themes of existing pavilions in order to keep ride systems and cut costs. While tempted to do this, I’m instead going to propose that pavilion themes stay attached to their current buildings and locations where possible. The pavilion names would be simplified down to their essence. This will allow each pavilion to have more flexibility and would also allow more than one attraction or experience to be located within. Also the concept of Innoventions would be taken into each of the pavilions themselves. This would decentralize the interactive elements, give them more weight and give clear direction as to the type of content they should be based upon. Corporate funding would be sought only for the ‘Innoventions’ or interactive areas of the pavilions. The attractions themselves would be off-limits to corporate design input. Corporate sponsorship funds could partly fund or maintain attractions, but the sponsorship deals themselves would limit corporate design input to the interactive and exhibit areas of each pavilion. This would allow for easy updating and changes in sponsorship while maintaining the integrity of each pavilion and it’s connection to the overall narrative of EPCOT.

Create separate thematic identities within Future World – Here I’m proposing creating separate identities for each hemisphere of Future World. Future World East would broadly be based on technology and tools, Future World West would be based on environments. In the center of Future World, all of Innoventions would be replaced with four smaller pavilions that are representational of the mind and the human experience. Having these smaller, thematically similar areas his would create a better opportunity for guest wayfinding. It would also allow each pavilion to better reinforce the overall story of Future World. Here’s a quick breakdown of the five proposed zones of Future World. We’ll look at each of these in detail below.

Entry

Future World – East (technology & exploration)

Future World – West (environment)

EPCOT Center (completely new development replacing Innoventions East and West)

World Showcase / Future World Transition

Pavilion zones – Future World could benefit greatly from local theming around each pavilion. The entirety of Future World should be park-like and the areas around the pavilions could be enhanced to embed each pavilion into the environment. For example:

Water Features – The various water features around Future World do not make a cohesive whole. I firmly believe that these water features should be treated as a parts of a greater concept. We instinctively understand how water flows and responds to the environment. We instinctively observe water to wayfind and to better understand our environment. We are more acutely attuned to water than most other environmental cues because it is so closely tied to deeply rooted survival instincts. Here I’m proposing a hierarchical approach. In this plan we’ll be completely reconstructing the center of Future World. This would mean removing and replacing both Innoventions buildings. In this central place, construct a large and calm pool of water surrounded by the four new pavilions. The pool would be at the ground plane (not elevated as the Fountain of Nations). This fountain would not contain jets, only bubblers. Guest would be able to venture out onto the pool via elevated walkways. This pool would be the collector and calm repository of new, spring-like water features located at each of the Future World pavilions. These springs (themed to each pavilion) would in turn feed streams running from each pavilion, adjacent to pathways, into the central pool. There would be three zones: pavilion springs, streams and central pool. In this way there would be a gradient of energy and motion from the springs at the various outer pavilions inwards to the central pool. The flow of water would always takes guests to the central space. In this way the pavilions would be the fonts of knowledge while the central pool would be symbolic of the mind, understanding, wholeness and abstraction.

Berm – Establish and plant a partial earthen berm around the park. This would give a greater sense of place and enclosure to the park and would importantly make it possible to bring development closer to the park while keeping sightlines clean. It would also be useful in controlling the already considerable outside visual intrusion.

EPCOT Entry – Connect the entry directly to the new transportation hub (described in my Transportation article) via tree lined and park-like paths. Relocate the “Leave a Legacy” structures to inside the park (more later). Renovate the central fountain such that it contains verdant greenscape and is as much a meticulous succulent garden as it is a water-feature. The experience would be that of walking along tree shaded garden paths that look onto the brightly lit area around the central water-feature with a gleaming Spaceship Earth in the near distance.

Spaceship Earth

This is much more than the park’s icon, it contains the central message of EPCOT. The attraction would for the most part remain as is. The narration, descent sequence and interactive portion would be renovated. The narration would be performed by a series of recognizable and authoritative voice actors, forming a diverse lingual whole that is in keeping with the attraction’s epic story. The goal in bringing many voices to the experience is to broaden the attractions feeling of scope and importance. The final interactive component would be replaced with an experience that places guests in a broad overview of themes explored by the various other pavilions of Future World.

Retail Corridor – Expand the development at the entry to encircle the area around Spaceship Earth with restaurants and shops.

Future World East

Energy Pavilion

The assumption here is that leadership wants to bring “Guardians of the Galaxy” or other unrelated IP to the Universe of Energy pavilion. For the reasons mentioned above, my overall approach to EPCOT (and this pavilion specifically) is an argument against that kind of move. Having said that, my assumption is that Universe of Energy must go. This is an attempt to do the most good. Here’s the plan: shut down Universe of Energy and renovate part of the show building into the Energy Pavilion. This pavilion would showcase the history and future of energy production. Engage with an artists like James Turrell, Gabriel Dawe and Bruce Munro to create interior and exterior installations that incorporate natural and artificial light. Inside the pavilion, the different types of energy production systems would be placed within the context of the fundamental types of energy: chemical, mechanical, thermal, electromagnetic, nuclear, etc.  This would allow for an exploration of the true nature of energy. This would culminating with the concept that all energy comes from a small subset of fundamental forces. Current theories and contemporary physics experiments that attempt to unify all of energy would be the central message of this pavilion. This would be told in various ways throughout the various interactive elements of the pavilion. The interior of the pavilion would be lit from all directions, including the walls and floors. General lighting would be a consistent 4200k color temperature (neutral white), soft and diffuse. Lighting would not be uniform. The dim, homogeneous general lighting would be punctuated with bright and contrastingly lit exhibit areas. The colors scheme of the interior surfaces would consist only of glossy white and matte black. No hard corners would be in the details. Small radius and curved forms would be used in detailing. The exhibits and interactive elements would use a controlled color scheme that represents the entire rainbow spectrum all with consistent saturation. This color palette would extend into barely visible reds and violets with the greens and yellows being the most vibrant. No color would come from paint or other reflective materials. Color would only come from vibrant, back-lit graphics and video screens. All reflective surfaces would be either gloss white and matte black. The physical layout and art direction of the space would all reinforce a radial and circular plan that would be taken into the primary attraction itself. The exhibits and interactive elements describing the history and future of various energy solutions would be grouped generally by their fundamental type. These energy production displays and interactive elements would be arranged radially around an inner set of displays and interactive elements that showcase the various types of fundamental energy: chemical, mechanical, thermal, electromagnetic, nuclear, etc. These in turn would be placed radially surrounding the innermost exhibit featuring the fundamental forces of nature and attempts to unify them. This would in turn would form the gateway to the centralized, large opening in the floor plane of the pavilion where a descending circular ramp would lead to the pavilions premiere attraction:

Universe of Energy AttractionThe queue would have guests descend into a dimly lit underground section that is punctuated by brightly lit displays. The queue would prepare guests for a journey to explore the smallest scales of matter and energy. The queue would be themed to that of operational areas of a particle collider similar to the LHC. The huge coils and arrays used to consolidate and accelerate fundamental particles up to near the speed of light would be seen as guests move through the queue. Through layout and mirrors used for set extension, guests would feel that they are in just a small part of an incredibly large and circular machine. Guest would board 6 person ride vehicles attached together in a coaster train. Once loaded, these ride vehicles would take guests through a series of show scenes where they are taken down in scale similar to the defunct ‘Adventure thru Inner Space’ attraction. This would all happen quite quickly and would have more of a seamless “Powers of Ten” feeling. There would be no launch. Instead, vehicles would start off slow and would then gradually gain speed and energy as to enhance the effect of traveling down in scale and going faster and faster in the process. This would be accomplished via grading and a series of linear induction systems. Once down to the size of atomic particles guests would be traveling at high speed. Guests would experience a countdown and vibration as they enter the realm of the atom. As guests pass into the scale of the atom they then emerge into pure, dark quiet and expansive space. This section of the attraction would be housed in a large blacked-out, highly soundproofed, backstage show building and would feature a large radius curve that slowly tightens in radius increasing angular momentum to a critical point and speed where the vehicles travel through 3 consecutive loops, all surrounding a central point, with the last loop leading into a perfectly vertical section of track where the ride vehicle slows down due to gravity and comes to a stop and guests experience a moment of weightlessness in the innermost and brightly lit chamber of the attraction. For this brief moment they are within a spherical chamber where projections show a brilliant and vibrating central atomic nucleus. The train would then reverse down the track to a switch track all the while flying backwards through projection scenes then through physical show scenes. These scenes would take guests back up in scale to our physical world all while the vehicle is traveling backwards and slowing. Guests would deboard and follow a dimly lit, ascending circular ramp back up into the heart of the pavilion. While being another roller coaster in the dark, I think that the ride vehicle and the sensations of continually increasing forward motion and energy into the heart of the atom followed by reverse motion and gradual slowing would be a truly unique experience and more importantly one that perfectly fits the narrative of the attraction.

Technology PavilionThe history and future of tool-making. From stone tools to computers, robotics, AI and beyond. More coming soon!

Space PavilionI’m going to borrow some aspects of a Space Pavilion concept developed by WDI in the 90’s. Here’s what we’ll do: Develop a new pavilion that encapsulates the existing Mission: Space attraction, adds an internal, isolated pavilion and adds an additional attraction behind the existing structure. The two attractions would play off each other. The first would be a thrilling introverted experience. The second would be a communal and epic experience taking place inside a massive show building. Guests entering the Space Pavilion would enter a holding/pre-show area. This area would set the stage for the journey to come. Guests would feel that they have entered a spaceport in the near future and are getting ready for a journey into space. Once ready, guests would enter the queue for what is currently the Mission: Space attraction. This attraction would be renovated and would now take guests on a simulated rocket launch from EPCOT to an orbiting space station. Something would of course go wrong, but guests make it safely to the station. Upon exiting the attraction, guests make their way into the pavilion itself which is in fact a large recreation of the space station: Brava Centauri. Large windows give guests views of the Earth, moon and stars. Spacecraft can be seen docking to the station through the windows, astronauts and robots float past performing repairs etc. The art direction here is not realistic, but stylized to give space dimensionality through the use of subtle gas fields, colors, depth queuing, brilliant novae, scaling to foreshorten distances, etc. The pavilion itself is set within a large 360 sphere that acts as a projection screen to set the environment. This would provide continuity and truly expansive views. Nods to the Brava Centauri scene from Horizons would occur via art direction. In the space station, guests would find unique dining and shopping options only available in this location. Special care would be taken to vary the scale and proportions especially of corridors such that the structure has the feel of an actual space station floating in space not a building. Guests could look through windows and see guests in other portions of the station, all appearing to be floating in space. Several interactive features that are completely integrated into the environment welcome guests to become immersed in the experience. These would include: a docking station where guests can help guide in a supply shuttle through a spotting scope and control, several different types of visual and radio telescopes for guests to explore the universe, repair robot station, sick bay sensors and scanners, command center controls, mischievous stow-away robot interactions, etc. Upon entering the station guests would be given ‘pagers’ to get them into the main attraction. This would control guest flow such that there are no back-ups or overcrowding within the station itself. Guests could take an ‘Earth return’ pod if they did not want to experience the second attraction which would be similar to the old Seas ‘Hydrolators’ or the Gringott’s elevators. The second attraction has guests board a large spaceship (which can be seen through the windows of the station) from here guests are taken on a tour of our solar system. The attraction would use Madhouse ride technology, but in a new way. Guest would board what appears to be a part of the spacecraft that is at the end of a long rotating arm which is what would supply the feeling of gravity on board. This pod would be inside a completely spherical show building. Scenes would projected in a complete sphere around the ride vehicles while at the same time the vehicle (and independently the seating areas) could be moved Madhouse-style to create the feeling of acceleration, deceleration, moving upside-down, etc without the nausea sometimes associated with centrifuge systems.  Transitions would take guests through an asteroid belt, a dust cloud, etc. The attractions would end as the vessel returns to Earth and lands at EPCOT. Departing guests disembark and find themselves back on Earth in a large room with museum quality relics and artifacts recounting the history of space exploration. These objects would represent both NASA and private space ventures such as SpaceX, etc. This area would have several interactive games, merchandise, etc. Upon exiting this area guests find themselves back outside in Future World East.

Transportation PavilionThe goal here would be to return to the original storyline and historical elements while also making this a compelling and thrilling adventure. Wait until Test Track is up for another major renovation before closing the attraction. Scrape off the tacked on shade structure at the entry and return the exterior of the pavilion to it’s original, exquisite state. The new attraction would mostly be housed in an attached show building. Importantly the attraction would not be open to the elements and would not face the types of downtimes Test Track experiences. The new attraction would follow the storyline of World of Motion: the history and near future of transportation. The difference would be that the ride system would not be a continuous speed, slow moving omnimover, but rather 2 person pods that are mounted to a concealed track-mounted kuka arm (similar to Forbidden Journey). Critically, in this case, the arm would be mounted to an overhead track. Guest views from the ride vehicle would be out, down and nearly 360 degrees. This system would not just take guests through vignettes of various transportation systems, but would put them in the middle of the action where the ride vehicle transforms from scene to scene to behave like the the transportation system being shown. The basic form of the attraction would be the tracked ride system, moving through scenes that are comprised of physical sets and animatronics with projected set extensions behind. In EPCOT tradition, a narrator sets and describes the scenes as the attraction progresses. The attraction would start off slow and very small in scale as guests ‘walk’ quietly along with a group of hunter-gathers in pre-dawn light as they pull loaded travois across a lush wilderness. A member of the group stops and points out a bright comet in the sky. The guest’s attention focuses on the comet and an abstract transition occurs through a projection tunnel into a scene where guests find themselves in a horse-drawn wagon. The horses begin to trot then start galloping along through a renaissance-era, cobblestone street scene with lively characters and animals all around and lit in sharp morning light. The ride vehicle bumps and bounds along behind the horses. In the distance, hovering above the scene, are a pair of early hot-air balloons. Next, a river scene materializes (again via a projection tunnel transition) and the guests move into a 19th century scene that sets them on a small river boat with actual water effects. Boats float along with them, full of cargo. Flute music and laughter fills the air…then a sharp cry as one of the figures on a nearby boat spots mist and a waterfall ahead. The guests ‘boat’ bobs along in the increasingly turbulent waters. Mist rises on all side and the midday sun is muted out as guests plunge over the waterfall only to find themselves in the next misty transition scene and soaring into the sky! The important thing here is the dramatic change in scale and the freedom of moving above the landscape. This would be the most emotionally powerful scene in the attraction. The mist clears and the guests are flying close to the ground alongside a barnstormer plane in the last light before sunset. Guests dodge around a barn as the companion aircraft races through it, they hear a roaring crowd, then perform barrel roll above the crowd just as it comes into view (the crowd is set among several early Model-T automobiles).The ride vehicle then performs a dramatic full loop with the end of the loop bringing them straight up and away from the Earth and into the next transition which sets the stage for a flight to the edge of space. The ride vehicle enters the second to final scene high above Earth. The show-room here is immense and guests feel the expansiveness of space while looking down onto a huge and dynamic planet. A spacecraft launches from a futuristic city on the surface and rockets just past the guest’s pod. The art direction of the spacecraft would be linked to the launch vehicle over at the Space pavilion. Tracking the rocketing craft, guests watch as it passes into space. The bright comet from scene one comes back into view. Another comet transition and guests are in the final scene where a futuristic city out of a Robert McCall painting has come to life. Guests find themselves floating in for a landing among futuristic cars and public transportation systems that take art direction from the autonomous pods and transportation systems that service the wdw transportation center. The ride vehicle floats through the streets of the moonlit city before returning to the unload platform. Once off the attraction guests find themselves in the large exit room of the pavilion showcasing new and prototype cars, new and innovated public transportation systems, etc . Guest also find interactive games, merchandise, etc.

Future World West

The pavilions on this side of Future World would based on the physical environment. A series of large connected ‘Project Eden‘ style greenhouses would be set behind the pavilions. Collectively these would from an attraction that would showcase some of the Earth’s most dynamic biomes: tidal pool, coastal desert, grassland, taiga, tropical forest and cloud forest (sky island). Each of the pavilions of Future World East would attach directly to a section of the greenhouse and would contain a portion of it’s attraction therein. The greenhouse would also have walking paths and restaurants located directly within.

Seas PavilionA return to original concepts and futuristic trip to the ocean’s floor. There would be a direct walkway connection from the pavilion’s main space to the ‘tidal pools’ biome of the greenhouse attraction located directly behind. More coming soon!

Life PavilionFirst, a biology based pavilion is a must for Future World. A new pavilion would added between the Land and Season pavilions. The main space would be a spur off of the back-of-house greenhouse attraction. The interior would be botanical gardens, mushroom beds, pools and warm springs that features living fossil plant species such as Lycopodium, ferns, lotus, cycads, etc. Within this lush, primordial garden would be high-tech, interconnected pockets of guest spaces where the various interactive elements would be placed (more below). The ground plane would be organically-shaped, hexagonal, basalt pavers. These guest areas would be comprised of glossy white materials that visually connect them with the interior of the dome and that contrast with gardens. From this central space guests could enter the ‘tropical forest’ section of the greenhouse via footpaths or could enter the queue for this pavilions primary attraction: Wonders of Life.

Wonders of Life Attraction

The ‘Wonders of Life’ would be a new attraction set in a backstage show-building that is accessed from within the Life Pavilion. Ellen Degeneres is a relatable and talented performer that’s an incredibly effective guest proxy. She’s staying on at EPCOT but this time for Wonders of Life. This attraction would depart from the human-centric roots of it’s predecessor. It would explore the origins and development of life on Earth. The queue would feature Ellen. She would set the stage for the attraction that is to come. Her performance would of course be humorous and self-referential. She would appear only in the queue and in the various interactive games located throughout the pavilion itself. The attraction would be narrated by a trio of scientists: Brian Cox, Alice Roberts and Neil deGrasse Tyson. While biology is not their individual fields of expertise, this attraction would rely on a larger view of life, incorporating aspects of chemistry, geology, astro-physics and more to explain the truly amazing story of life on Earth. These three scientists would also add diversity, authenticity and authority to a sometimes controversial topic. The attraction itself would be a new take on the Universe of Energy ride system. A pre-show area would be accessed from inside the pavilion. This would then lead guests into what appears to be a dimly lit theater. It would start off with guests seated in four person sections each facing a central screen. This large, conventional, central screen starts the show with an introduction to Alice Roberts in a biology lab. She is to be the main narrator and is soon joined on two separate screens by Neil and Brian. These screens would be to the sides such that the conversation is occurring across the guests. While this happening the 4 person seating sections, which are in fact the individual ride vehicles, begin to slowly rotate inward such as to be all facing the center of the theater. The three screens would be large, mostly flat projections on a yet unseen full-dome screen that comes all the way down to the ground. An overview of the formation of our solar system is given with each scientist taking a turn. This is followed by the projections slowly transforming into a fully circular panoramic film telling the story of the origin of life, it’s development into multicellular organisms, through the different epochs through to age of land plants and the rise of fish in the seas. The projection would expand and eventually the entire dome would be used, completely immersing the guests in the environments shown. Emphasis would be placed on elements where other pavilions around Future World would tie into the narrative such as the Living Seas, etc. Emphasis would also be placed on establishing a time scale and a sense of deep time. Among many reasons, this time-centric narrative will place the story within the context of all stories told at the various Future World pavilions such that each experience will build off of one another, in a non-linear fashion, giving guests a better understanding of the world around them as well as a cohesive experience throughout Future World. Once the film and narration has brought guests up to the Cambrian explosion, the era from which life truly diversified into what we see today, the individual 4 person ride vehicles begin to lower into the ground one at a time with the hosts saying something like: ” To fully understand this story, you’ve got to imagine a world that is deep, deep in time.” The ride vehicles would be lowered down through darkened tubes located under each vehicle such that the theater overhead becomes just a small point of light over 20 feet above them. The next section would take the 4 person vehicles, along a track, through a large show building containing several different scenes depicting the evolution of life. The vehicles would be attached to the track with an 8′ rigid arm such that the guests are suspended within the environment and such that the track can be a very small opening in the environment and such that the environment can wrap down and under the guests while still maintaining minimum required clearances. The ride vehicles would dramatically speed up, dip and turn during the dark transition sections to provide a physical sensation that works with the speeding-through-time narrative. Importantly, this whole experience would be deeply personal and in contrast to the communal first act of the attraction. Guests would be taken right into the environments. This would allow for a much closer and immersive experience than say ‘The Great Movie Ride’ or ‘Universe of Energy’ where sets and figures are set at a distance. This dark-ride section would be meticulously crafted to dovetail into the narrative of Spaceship Earth. The final dark-ride scene would describe the origins of homo sapiens and culminate in a scene similar to Spaceship Earth’s first cave scene. All the ride vehicles would then ascend from the depths into a second theater where the vehicles all face inwards once again. Efforts would be taken here to imply that the guests are all part of the story being told; an extension of the final homo sapien dark-ride scene. In this theater the attraction would conclude with the hosts contemplating life beyond our planet and the future and extension of our own biosphere. Guests would exit into the Life pavilion where a multitude of interactive components would explore the various themes of the attraction. The three narrators, along with Ellen, would appear on transparent displays in and around the area, guiding guests through the interactive components and bantering with each other. Some of these interactive components could be: a virtual pond projected on a large ‘table’ at standing height where guests can walk up all around, watch and interact as creatures swim in the pond, diversify and evolve. Another would be a set of displays and consoles where guests can explore and create creatures that might live on alien worlds. Once done, they could release into the alien environment (which would be a projected interactive table display) and much, much more.

The Land

First things first. Set up retaining walls around the front of the building and ramp up the ground such that the pavilion appears to a large formal mound within the earth itself. Plant this mounded ground with grass, shrubs and flowers. New skylights feeding the covered entry would be formally placed within this natural feature. The existing skylight roof structure would appear to be the only above ground element of the pavilion. Entering guests would have the experience of walking into the earth through a high walled slot in the location of the current entry. Remove the partial glass/ partial cladding from the main roof structure and replace all with insulated ETFE membrane panels such that the entire structure allows light in. This would allow guests to see the same structure from inside as they can see from outside. The queue, dining area and main space of Land pavilion would essentially become an climate-controlled greenhouse. Transform the interior to that of a lush tropical Eden, one that blurs the line between built-form and true wilderness. Create a series of small streams that cascade into the lower spaces of the pavilion. Break up the floor space into interconnected seating pockets. Break down the monolithic large scale space into human scale elements and experiences. As described below, eventually disconnect Soarin’ from the Land and reconnect to the Atmosphere Pavilion.

New Botanical Attraction – Bring a Project Eden style attraction to the Land Pavilion ($100m) to act as a living botanical Conservatory of each of Earth’s distinct climate zones. Similar to the original concept for the pavilion, it would employ an overhead track mounted ride system similar to attractions like Peter Pan’s Flight to take guests through the grasslands, deserts, meadows and up into the cloud forests portion of the attraction. This attraction would focus on nature and supplement the Land’s current agriculture based attraction. There would also be walking paths within the domes where guests could enjoy the experience at their own pace. A new table service restaurant would be placed within the cloud forest section of the structure.

Living with the Land – This classic attraction would renovated to take guests on a boat-ride through three of the greenhouse biomes. It would continue to tell the story of cultivation and farming technology via 2 small greenhouses and the darkride portions of the ride.

Atmosphere Pavilion

Repurpose the current Imagination Pavilion into a place centered on the Earth’s atmosphere and weather. The queue for Soarin’ would be rebuilt to connect to this pavilion. This would create a shorter distance for guests to walk and would also be in-theme with this pavilion. This pavilion would also contain a new attraction, restaurant, shops and interactive exhibits. The exhibits would explore atmospheric phenomenon of not only the Earth, but also other planets and even stars. There would be a direct walkway connection between the main space of this pavilion and the ‘cloud forest’ biome of the greenhouse attraction located directly behind. More coming soon!

EPCOT Center

Demo Innoventions East and West at the center of Future World. These buildings are conventional, block sightlines, and do conform with the pavilion/object language of Future World. Replace these buildings with four smaller, related pavilions that showcase the human experience. Intentionally bicameral, these pavilions would paired together forming gateways to Future World East and West. The form of the buildings would be such that they would appear as tilted and folded sections of the Earth itself. From the perimeter, the ground plane would ramp up over the buildings and they would be covered in lush gardens. The spaces between the pavilions (canyons) would be pathways and stream channels from the surrounding springs (previously described). Surrounding these pavilions would be gardens and radial paths connecting them and central space to the outer pavilions. The very center would be left open to guest pathways, seating areas and the central pool as to show that collectively we are the center of EPCOT. This entire area of EPCOT would be dedicated to the mind and human experience. The pavilions and exhibits would explore health, genetics, storytelling, psychology, sociology, myth, etc. The four pavilions would be:

Imagination Pavilion

Real image projection is well known at small scale, at large scale it would be awe-inspiring.

This pavilion would move imagination to the center of EPCOT. Various aspects of the ability to visualize and create would be explored here. Figment would return for the pavilion’s premiere attraction. The ride would heavily incorporate musion technology and life size, real image projection from unseen huge parabolic mirrors to create holographic objects and characters.

Only two (well placed) large mirrors would be required to create all of the real-image illusions within the attraction. The principle is well known, but is limited to mirror size. The mirrors required would exceed 10m in diameter. Importantly these mirrors would not have to be optically perfect. Large scale mirrors could be formed inexpensively using reflective mylar and a partial vacuum. I have built and tested a scale 1.4m mirror this way. I’m surprised this technique has not been used by Disney yet. The result would be holographic animatronic characters and objects that would seem real in a dark environment, but when guests attempt to touch they find that they pass through the object. ‘Figment’ would exclusively be depicted as a hologram or as a musion effect. More coming soon!

Expression Pavilion

This pavilion would be dedicated to human expression: music, art, dance, performance, storytelling, etc. The main pavilion floor would contain a restaurant, shops and interactive displays where guests can take part in performances, play musical instruments from around the world, etc. The pavilions primary attraction would be centered on storytelling.

Storytelling Attraction This pavilion would house a new attraction that would follow the history and future of storytelling. It would showcase immersive storytelling and would showcase the most advanced animatronics ever created.  Once passing through the interactive main section of the pavilion, guests would enter one of two semi-circular theaters. The ceiling would be low and non-descript. The ground would be flat and unbroken for ease of guest circulation and seating. Guests would be seated in concentric semi-circles around an empty central space. The show would have narration throughout describing the scenes and sometimes acting as the segway between scenes. Once guests are seated and buckled in, the theater would darken. Crickets and woodland creatures would be heard in the darkness that would last several long moments. Stars would begin to appear far overhead where only a short time before a low ceiling had been. Suddenly a campfire springs brilliantly to life in center of theater. The dark, back-lit outlines of a small clan of figures is seen sitting in various poses around the fire. Their fire-lit faces punctuating the darkness. Children are held and comforted by parents. An older figure dressed in fur garments rises and begins to speak. Sparks from the fire rise up into the air becoming stars. The stars change shape forming figures as the shaman tells her ancient story about the creation of the Earth. As her recitation concludes the fire slowly dies out and only the stars remain. Soon they dim as well, leaving the theater in near darkness as it begins to invisibly transform. The concentric rings of seating rise invisibly taking guests up and silently into the air such as to form an ancient Greek amphitheater. Projection effects produce the various materials and surfaces. The sky brightens to a bright, pale blue morning tone, birds chirp from the trees that now surround the theater. A Greek Orator begins his story complete with deus ex machina theatrical effects. After this the theater transforms several more times taking guest around the World. Japan, Indian and other cultures are explored through spoken word as the guests move closer to modern time. With each new story the theater transforms around the guests taking them along for the ride. As the attraction progresses, the environment of the theater becomes more modern and ever more abstract. In the darkness just before the third to final scene the wall between the two theaters is removed. The audience doubles, the room becomes a theater-in-the-round and the scale of the experience is greatly expanded. This next scene is a modern theater-in-the-round performance. In the second to final scene the central space is taken over by a 360 degree circular screen. The screen is mostly dark and small tv sized areas light up and begin playing segments from early television programs. A collage begins to form as black and white tv pieces begin to give way to colorized ones. More and more ‘screens’ appear on and forming the collage; each of the separate images growing larger, getting closer together and being replaced by ever-more modern content. Finally, one large film consumes the entire visible screen. The screen expands outwards until it nearly touches the front rows. It quickly becomes pixelated. Pixelated projection effects begin to light up the entire theater as if guests are entering into the screen. This is the segway to the final scene. The background music, provided by a modernist composer such as Philip Glass, rises into a crescendo. The projection effects become more coherent as they begin to form stars and constellations overhead. While guests attention is drawn upward, the fire reappears along with a lone figure (pixelated with projection mapping) chanting into the fire as sparks race overhead into the heavens. The background music cross-fades and is replaced by the chanting of the shaman. The two musical pieces are in time with one another as the cross-fade occurs. The shaman comes into clearer focus as the projection effect begins to subside. She suddenly looks and gestures skyward as her oration abruptly ends. In this final scene guests are shown storytelling where they have entered the story themselves through immersive experiences such as those created by Disney. The theater goes dark and in what feels like an instant the theater has returned to normal. The house lights come on, guests unbuckle and exit to explore the rest of the pavilion.

Mind Pavilion

This pavilion would contain an interactive area, a shop and an attraction. The pavilion would explore various aspects of the mind from psychology and neurology to sociology. Upon entering the pavilion guests would find the interactive display space. This area would act as the queueless-queue while guests wait their turn for the attraction. Amongst other things, guests would be given personalized ‘Inside Out’ type personality characters that represent the emotion they want to explore. Guests begin by choosing an emotion and then taking a type of quiz. Guests would then find their individualized “Inside Out’ emotion character. Many variations and colors would be pre-designed with interchangeable features, etc. The guests personalized character would be one of several hundred possibilities, all of which would be available in the shop through a special ‘finding’ experience.

Inside Out AdventureMy ideas here are probably going to sound crazy, but I’ll be using only existing technology or in one case technology that is in the works. I’m proposing the kind of cutting-edge, multi-media attraction that would be not-to-be-missed and one that would showcase the ability of Imagineering and Disney to create truly unique experiences. Once ready, guests would enter the attraction itself. The attraction would consist of three large exploration/play areas. Central to the experience would be augmented-reality via visors that would allow guests to see and interact with the world of ‘Inside Out’ as a layer over the built environment. The rules of the movie would be violated in that the visors would allow guests to ‘see’ emotions in the real world. I’m going to go out on a limb and count on the emotion-sensing technology that Disney is purported to be developing. This tech would be built into the visors via face-facing cameras and a remote facial-recognition system. This would give guests the ability to summon various emotional characters and communicate with them simply through facial expressions. These emotional characters would interact with the physical environment via augmented reality and actuators built into props, etc. These emotional characters could also interact with each other. Guest’s physical positions would also be individually tracked via the spacial position of their visor such that the emotional character(s) they had previously made would exist in the augmented space around them and such that they can see the emotions of other guests as well! These individual characters would not talk, but would rather emote and use body language to play off each other. Thousands of different interactions between guests, the emotional characters and the environment would be possible. This would be accomplished via technology similar to crowd-emulating software such as Massive, where the initial states are described, but each agent is allowed to individually act and react such that programming would be limited to the description of the much simpler initial states. Importantly, this system would be ‘loose’ where the augmented reality components and the emotional characters appear to have agency and act on their own. This way if guests are not immediately adept at using the technology the experience would still be rich as the environment would still be changing and evolving even without direct guest action. This independence would also create a greater sense of immersion and suspension of disbelief. Guests would explore each of the three spaces in turn at their own pace. Each group would spend 5 minutes in each area before being ushered into the next area by ‘hero’ AR characters from the movie. These characters would be much more complex and capable than the guest’s emotional characters and would be achieved via technology employed in ‘Turtle Talk with Crush’. The attraction would operate similar to ‘Enchanted Tales with Belle’. Beyond that, there would be a continuous storyline, where guests would also be exploring each area in between the narrative. The first area guests encounter would be a story setup space and themed to Riley’s House. Lots of Easter Eggs and hidden content would be placed throughout. After playing in the area (and getting accustomed to the technology), guests would suddenly be interrupted by Riley. She would appear, plead and convince that guests help her find Sadness who has gotten herself lost! She would let them know that she can’t remember the last time she felt Sadness and that she needs here back. “Please go with Joy and go look for her!” Joy appears on Riley’s shoulder and via a transition scene via AR the guests are transported with Joy into the world of Riley’s emotions. Again these ‘hero’ characters would employ ‘Turtle Talk with Crush’ technology and voice actors. The second area would be much larger than the first and would be themed to a room containing Riley’s memories. Guests could interact with the mostly AR environment. Grabbing glow spheres, playing memories, etc. The transition to the last scene has one of the guests finding the memory. It gets played and guests are taken into the third and final scene. This area would have guests taking the Train of Thought to Imagination Land. Using the clues from the memory, guests search the area for Sadness all while encountering other beloved characters from the film. Sadness is eventually found by a guest and Joy brings everyone back out. Thanking them she opens a door which leads to a post show area/shop themed to Riley’s house which is located with the in main interactive area of the pavilion itself. Where we see a slightly confused and sobbing Riley thanking us for finding Sadness. Thanks? Visors are returned and guests are off to explore the interactive portions of the pavilion.

Body Pavilion

This pavilion would explore the connection between the mind and body, health and genetics. The Body Pavilion’s attraction would feature Baymax from Big Hero 6 and would center on the human body and health. More coming soon!

Future World / World Showcase Transition

Legacy of EPCOT

Rebuild the defunct Odyssey building to create a state of the art exhibit and festival facility. Keep the hexagonal forms of the original building, but create landforms and planted areas using the same hexagonal shape such that the building appears to rise out of the earth and that blurs the boundary of this being a building or a series of large elevate planters. The interior of the pavilion would be themed to the history of EPCOT. Importantly, the original Robert McCall mural, the Prologue and the Promise (from Horizons and shown at bottom of page), would be returned to EPCOT and remain on permanent display along with a comprehensive collection of not only McCall’s work, but also original concept art by imagineering. Guests could wander the air conditioned pavilion much as they would a museum. The hexagonal form of the building would be brought into the interior such that each of the formal hexagonal shapes would have a distinct ceiling height and volume. The various galleries of the pavilion would be house within each of these individual hexagonal sub-forms. This pavilion would become a permanent exhibit space dedicated to the legacy and future of EPCOT. It would also serve as an event venue. Snacks and refreshments would be available to guests at a newly built and modern bar centrally located directly beneath main hexagonal skylights.

 Blue Sky Pavilion

Within this pavilion I’m suggesting to use Imagineering as a lens through which to explore EPCOT. This is an obvious and powerful concept that is in keeping with the ideals of EPCOT. Local WDW Imagineering offices and workspace would be relocated immediately back stage of this pavilion. The upper level of the pavilion would be a table service restaurant where guests could dine, enjoy the views  and could also experience the lunch/dinner with an Imagineer service sometimes available in DHS. Imagineers would in a way become the meet-and-greet face characters of EPCOT. A new theater would show a newly developed film centering around the history of EPCOT, Imagineering and the power of imagination. New concept art and displays would showcase current Disney projects similar to DCA’s Bluesky Cellar. Importantly, Imagineering staff would be encouraged to interact with guests in Future World and would also give guided tours. From a management standpoint, each of the individual pavilions in EPCOT would be given an annual maintenance and enhancement budget along with a dedicated Imagineering team. The idea here is to keep things fresh by never moving people off the pavilions while at the same time fostering friendly competition between the individual pavilion teams. This would lead to a sense of pride and ownership within Imagineering that could keep EPCOT on top of it’s game indefinitely. In the area just east of the Soarin’ show buildings, construct an elevated berm. The ground level tunnel within this elevated berm would provide access between the WDI pavilion and newly constructed back-stage Imagineering offices. Large trees would be planted on the elevated area of this berm to obscure the Soarin’ show buildings from the rest of EPCOT.

International Pavilion – This pavilion would be the physical and philosophical connection between Future World and World Showcase. More coming soon!

World Showcase Development Plan 

Start by orienting World Showcase towards American heritage. The current approach leans on sponsorship deals that are not directly aligned with WDW’s goals. Consider using American heritage as an approach to how World Showcase is experienced and expanded. Guests would learn about the cultures and countries that built America. American’s interest in ancestry could be leveraged. Future pavilions would be based on American immigration demographics, not sponsorship deals. Use the powerful lens of engaging Americans interest in their ancestry to engage and close sponsorship deals within the individual countries. Guests viewing World Showcase countries through an ancestry lens could be better engaged and companies that represent these countries could effectively be approached for sponsorship. This would attempt to step over the conflicts traditionally seen in trying to engage with the countries themselves and the discrepancy between each country’s tourism goals and those of WDW. Also, World Showcase Lagoon is too large. Consider creating building pads on the interior of the existing pedestrian loop around World Showcase. These could be used to expand pavilions to either side of the path or as pads to situate new pavilions, viewing areas, boat launches, gardens, etc. As described in the ‘Transportation’ article, add three new pedestrian and watercraft entrances around World Showcase to newly developed resort and DVC pedestrian zones. Add up to five additional Pavilions using American demographics as the guiding principle.

Pavilions – New pavilions, expansions to existing pavilions and new attraction concepts coming soon!

Summary

While this plan is not financially viable it attempts to present a broad picture of how EPCOT, on it’s own terms, could continue to be relevant and contribute to the growth and prosperity of WDW. The big idea is not any of the specifics. The idea I’d like to get across is that a visionary business plan could be implemented that leverages the existing assets and unique qualities of EPCOT and uses them to push growth beyond the single digits now seen in the mature US market.

Questions or Comments? Feel free to reach me at wesley@thelinelab.com or through one of the social media buttons below. Thanks!

www.thelinelab.com

Robert McCall’s The Prologue and the Promise