Imagineering Training Class 4

Hello and welcome to the 4th “Imagineering Training Class. This week we will talk about the inner workings of parades, the magical processions that take place in all Disney parks.

First off when designing a parade you will need a few key terms (not all of these will be used to design the parade, but come in very handy when logistically setting up the parade).

Step off in parades means to begin the parade, “the parade is now stepping off, board your units”

Step On is when a unit passes the backstage gate to on stage.

Parade Staging Area (PSA) is the area where the parades are staged, lined up and units are loaded.

Valets are the people that spot the units during the parade, giving direction to the drivers (not all the time as most drivers know what they are doing). They also, during show stops, keep people from coming on to the route or going near the tow bars (aka hitches). They are also known as Parade Spotters.

Drive Stops are buttons located in the driver area, and on the corners of all the floats, that when pressed stop all the functions on the float in case of an emergency (they are also known as E-Stops)

Animation Stops are buttons located in the driver area and on the corners of the floats, that when pressed stop and start any animation that happens during show stops, again in case of an emergency. These are mainly on the Parade of Dreams units that carry show stop animations (Pinocchio, Ariel, and the Lion King).

Drive Wheels are the wheels that move the units down the route. Walt Disney World units only have the drive wheels under where the driver sits; the rest of the support comes from casters. Disneyland uses a 2 axel system like car. The drive wheels are the back axel.

Visibility in parades is key. Characters should be visible from both sides at all time, if possible. Most people view parades to see the characters.

Driver Position is the area on the unit where the driver is. The driver can be visible or hidden, depending on the unit. Most drivers are hidden viewing the route through screens called “scrim”. Scrim is used in theatre a lot. When lit from the front it becomes opaque. When lit from the back it comes see through. This works for drivers since the light is coming in from the outside making the screen see though. But this screen being see though does not always mean the driver as a clear 100% visible view. And in rain these screens fill up with water making it very hard to see. If the driver can be seen, the driver is wearing a costume and themed to the unit. For example, the driver Cinderella’s Coach in Main Street Electrical Parade is the Coachman at the front. Not many people realize he is the driver, since he is themed to the unit. Another example would be the driver of the S.S Disney Steamboat used in Walt Disney Worlds Christmas Parade. The driver is above the front of the unit acting as the captain at the helm of the ship (which is the steering wheel for the unit)

When in the midst of designing a parade, keep in mind the fact the audience is there to watch the parade to see their favorite characters. When placing a character or person, on a upper area of a float, harnesses must be attached to the characters. Lower area characters use hand rails (not all the time) to keep from falling over.

Units should have a distinct theme to them, either to a movie, character or relative theme. The units should be spaced to allow for dancers and other characters. Parades are anywhere from 15 to 25 min long. If you have a show stop then this number might rise a bit, depending on how long the show stop is.

Now for Nighttime parades things can get a bit tricky. Units are designed a bit differently. Day time units are usually made of fiberglass and other light materials with a metal skeletal structure. Nighttime parades are metal structures with mesh colored fabric to give extra color to the units.

Your assignment is to create either a Daytime parade for Magic Kingdom, or a Nighttime parade for Disneyland Park.

Your guidelines are as follows:
• Must have at least 8 units for the daytime parade and 20 for the nighttime parade.
• Must have the Fab 5 characters in the parades.
• Must contain an original storyline to the parade
• Must give me music to be used for each unit and a brief idea of what the parade theme will be.
• Must contain a list of all characters in the parade and what unit they will be on or with.
• Must contain dancers for each unit.
• List and show all driver areas on the units.
• Include a unit line-up chart (can be just simple diagrams showing character and dancer placement along with the units position in the parade)

Due date for the Class 4 assignment is Oct 13, 2007 at 7pm EST/4pm PST.

[debijeanm]

I don't have the design talent or time to participate in these imagineer contests, but I want to tell you how interesting this is. Thanks for sharing all this with us!

[Big Disney Fan]

So we need to do a daytime parade AND a nighttime parade?

Originally Posted by Big Disney Fan

So we need to do a daytime parade AND a nighttime parade?

No you do not. Either or.

[Darth_Boomer]

wow... sounds time consuming... I dunno if I can keep up with this stuff for much longer ^_^"

[Big Disney Fan]

Originally Posted by Darth_Boomer

wow... sounds time consuming... I dunno if I can keep up with this stuff for much longer ^_^"

Me either. I've already lost interest in the final Imagineering project from those contests, it's so tough. It seems like an obligation to me at this juncture.

Are you serious that this is too tough? I had to juggle work, and school when i was in college. You get used to doing things rushed to the best of your ability.

[Big Disney Fan]

Originally Posted by Lighttech1

Are you serious that this is too tough? I had to juggle work, and school when i was in college. You get used to doing things rushed to the best of your ability.

I'll never be used to it, but I wasn't talking about this particular project, though. Although, I think you seem to have an interest in forcing imaginations, which I don't think is good; you should let people come up with ideas when they come.

Originally Posted by Big Disney Fan

I'll never be used to it, but I wasn't talking about this particular project, though. Although, I think you seem to have an interest in forcing imaginations, which I don't think is good; you should let people come up with ideas when they come.

Forcing? Im forcing?. How in the world am i forcing?

And im not really liking your tone. If you keep this up, i will be forced to drop you from the class. Im mean all you seem to do is complain about everything. I never said this class was going to be easy, and imagineering is certainly not easy.

[Big Disney Fan]

Originally Posted by Lighttech1

Forcing? Im forcing?. How in the world am i forcing?

Well, sometimes, when we're short on time, we have to really rack our brains trying to come up with something, that's all. And sometimes it may not be what we like.

Originally Posted by Big Disney Fan

Well, sometimes, when we're short on time, we have to really rack our brains trying to come up with something, that's all. And sometimes it may not be what we like.

Again your feeling exaclty what imagineers think.. When given tight deadlines you tend to come up with things fast whether or not you like it. My lighting designs are always like that. Things change last minute or blocking changes and i have to make changes to the design even though i dont like them.

[Darth_Boomer]

I'm not saying the projects are too tough, its just that it's kinda tough to make time for these things when there's a bunch of stuff you already gotta do for school and such. I mean, my school is having all the Seniors do a community service thingy (im not sure if other schools do this or not...) and I'm kinda having a hard time doing things as it is.

I'm not saying that I thought Imagineering would be easy, I just thought I would have more free time in my schedule to work on these projects, which evidently I was wrong about. With so many things going on in school and at home, I'm not sure if I can spare much longer to do this kind of thing at this point.

anyways, I agree (to an extent) with BDF. Things do seem a bit rushed, but you are giving us 2 whole weeks for each project. I think it's just the lack of communication within our group that's making us feel rushed, since our group doesn't *really* get to the chit-chat until a few days into the project. The last minute racking of the brains thing would be a result of this. So BDF, maybe we should get to the PMing more often. I would imagine that the other teams are having a much easier time with their projects since it seems their ideas are thought out a bit more than ours. ^_^"

Originally Posted by Darth_Boomer

I'm not saying the projects are too tough, its just that it's kinda tough to make time for these things when there's a bunch of stuff you already gotta do for school and such. I mean, my school is having all the Seniors do a community service thingy (im not sure if other schools do this or not...) and I'm kinda having a hard time doing things as it is.

I'm not saying that I thought Imagineering would be easy, I just thought I would have more free time in my schedule to work on these projects, which evidently I was wrong about. With so many things going on in school and at home, I'm not sure if I can spare much longer to do this kind of thing at this point.

anyways, I agree (to an extent) with BDF. Things do seem a bit rushed, but you are giving us 2 whole weeks for each project. I think it's just the lack of communication within our group that's making us feel rushed, since our group doesn't *really* get to the chit-chat until a few days into the project. The last minute racking of the brains thing would be a result of this. So BDF, maybe we should get to the PMing more often. I would imagine that the other teams are having a much easier time with their projects since it seems their ideas are thought out a bit more than ours. ^_^"

Do a flow chart. Right out your ideas, show what you want to do, throw around ideas, dont stick to one idea. Make sure you have a who what when why and where, this will help tell you all the details you need for your project. Those just dont work with rides, they work with anything.

[disneyfreak59]

here's are nice tips for everyone from me. this is what i do to get ideas flowing constantly.

i take either a recorder or a small pad and pencil and as soon as i can think of something or have some small idea that i want, i jot it down or i'll speak into the recorder regardless of how silly it may sound. that way when you do sit down and start on it a little, you'll have some things to work with and put together.

i also ask people what they would like to see happen. reason being, they'll be the ones enjoying your attraction someday! why not get feedback, right? then show them your final product and tell them it's exclusive so they get excited about it, and have them give you more feedback on what should be changed. it's all about selling your idea to them and convincing them that it will work.

and, i procrastinate. i think better when its due a few days before. DONT procrastinate the entire project. if you cant think of 1 or 2 things, leave it for the end. you think a lot faster under pressure.

i would also like to say that if it's truely in your heart to be an imagineer, you would do this without complaining and always put the right attitude forward for this even though this isn't "real." this is nothing compared to what they really have to do, this is kind of candy coating on the doughnut, if you will. just have fun with this! i have 3 jobs and im a full time college student, but i still make time to do something im really passionate about because i've wanted to be an imagineer since i was five. everyone should just take this as an opportunity to learn, and even if you dont have a complete assignment in, then write at least a paragraph of what you had in mind. so this was really long and i doubt anyone will read this lol

[Darth_Boomer]

Well sadly enough, I have run out of time to participate in this class
I kinda figured it wasn't my time to start imagineering anyways -_-"
Maybe next time, I will be ready and I'll have much more time for things like this, eh?

oh, and I've been talking to BDF about my leave and he said he'd also be dropping out(not related to my leave, fyi). Just thought I'd hit 2 birds with one stone in this post. ^_^"

I haven't heard from our remaining team mate in the longest time, so unless he posts otherwise, my assumption is that he has dropped out as well.

Good luck, you future imagineers, you!