EPCOT Origins

Great stuff over at Progress City USA on the early EPCOT Center designs

Waking Sleeping Beauty

Looks to be an interesting documentary coming out next month called Waking Sleeping Beauty

Waking Sleeping Beauty is no fairytale. It is a story of clashing egos, out of control budgets, escalating tensions… and one of the most extraordinary creative periods in animation history. Director Don Hahn and producer Peter Schneider, key players at Walt Disney Studios Feature Animation department during the mid1980s, offer a behind—the—magic glimpse of the turbulent times the Animation Studio was going through and the staggering output of hits that followed over the next ten years. Artists polarized between the hungry young innovators and the old guard who refused to relinquish control, mounting tensions due to a string of box office flops, and warring studio heads create the backdrop for this fascinating story told with a unique and candid perspective from those that were there. Through interviews, internal memos, home movies, and a cast of characters featuring Michael Eisner, Jeffrey Katzenberg, and Roy Disney, alongside an amazing array of talented artists that includes Don Bluth, John Lasseter, and Tim Burton, Waking Sleeping Beauty shines a light on Disney Animation’s darkest hours, greatest joys and its improbable renaissance.

Disney goes goth for Alice

Love it.  Disney has a line of Goth mechandise coming out for Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland.

LegoLand Florida

There's a new theme park on it's way to the Orlando area...

Central Florida will be home to the world's largest Legoland by the end of 2011, Merlin Entertainments Group said Thursday.

The park, which is planned for the former site of Cypress Gardens, is expected to include between 40 and 50 main attractions. In addition to Lego's signature attractions -- such as kid-powered rides and giant Lego brick models -- some of Cypress Gardens' top draws are expected to stick around. The historical gardens will stay intact, according to Nick Varney, Merlin's chief executive officer.

PTex as open source

Ok, in Disney technology geek news...looks like the Walt Disney Company has released it's texture mapping system as open source with promised of more to come at http://www.disneyanimation.com/

Ptex is a texture mapping system developed by Walt Disney Animation Studios for production-quality rendering:

Madame Leota

Wormwood Hollow's wonderfully done sculpture of one of my favorite scenes from my favorite attraction.

1943 Org Chart

Over on BoingBoing there's an interesting graphic of the 1943 Walt Disney org chart or workflow.

Windows on Main Street

Friend was lucky enough to get down to WDW for New Years Eve and brought me back a present this morning.  Got a copy of Windows On Main Street by Chuck Snyder.  Great little book (only 25 pages so don't pay the crazy Amazon price) that covers all the Mainstreet windows in WDW and Disneyland.  Some great photos and a handy map of both Mainstreets with index of all the names.