Avatarland? scaleback

[eeyorepixie]

posting because it is interesting and because when I read this article I thought of the discussion on this thread:
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/the-...rks-capital-spending-20120614,0,7260737.story

 

[lockedoutlogic]

posting because it is interesting and because when I read this article I thought of the discussion on this thread:
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/the-...rks-capital-spending-20120614,0,7260737.story

that article...unlike most puff pieces that are written about disney that attempts to wow you with "big" numbers....cuts right to it.

And i'm not cutting into Garcia...who i respect and who seems to always stay as level headed as one can be when you work for the Sentinel...which has been a near extension of the marketing department in LBV for over 45 years now.

This article basically mirrors what i read in the wall street journal (the devil's gazette) about a month ago: they spend too much...now we want our dividends.

It has the "happy" resolution at the end for the central florida market...that things won't "decrease THAT much"...which he has to do because disney holds the area's economic health by the throat...because they practically created it...

but nonetheless, all the numbers and trends stated are really bad for ME!!!

and by "me"...i mean "us"...the WDW traveler/ consumer.

The reality is that fantasyland expansion will be nice....but it is framed by the backdrop that development at WDW has otherwise been ground to a halt...and the prices are increasing for the same product with more mileage on it.

If you take the tact that i do: that the expanded magic kingdom merely offsets the dismantling of pleasure island and the closures on the west side...then you are at the same point you were circa 2000...with only soarin and toy story mania as enjoyable additions...

oh yeah...and the yeti

exactly how much is my annual pass going up?

 

[Figment632]

Eisner was great and had a bad ending!
He gave us DHS and DAK and half the hotels we have!!!!


He did kill the refurb of Horizons in 94 however that would have kept it around

 

[veritas]

I can't say I would be surprised if the Avatar push was scaled back. I think the "currency" of Avatar has dimished over the last few years and given it would take 3 or 4 years to really djinn anything up here would be round about a 10 year gap from when Avatar was a hot commodity to any attractions opening. That is too much of a time divide. Will that many folks actually feel a draw at that point?

 

[mike the canuck]

http://behindthethrills.com/2012/06...l-pointing-to-major-changes-at-florida-parks/

"Avatar is in trouble. James Cameron wants a land that blows Wizarding World away. To do that you need money and space. Cameron's plans are looking like they will cost half a billion dollars and take up much of the back of the park. Disney wants to keep it at $250 at most and take up just Camp Minnie Mickey. At the most we can probably expect a huge blow your socks off dark ride with some sort of great themeing."

 

[johnGorski]

http://behindthethrills.com/2012/06...l-pointing-to-major-changes-at-florida-parks/

"Avatar is in trouble. James Cameron wants a land that blows Wizarding World away. To do that you need money and space. Cameron's plans are looking like they will cost half a billion dollars and take up much of the back of the park. Disney wants to keep it at $250 at most and take up just Camp Minnie Mickey. At the most we can probably expect a huge blow your socks off dark ride with some sort of great themeing."

Thanks for sharing!
If we don't get some plans by end of this year, this could be "dead" They just need to come out say what this avatar land is going to be about. If the project is now being cut down to 250mil vs 400-500mil it seems this may be just a very expensive ride thats fine, take a the other 250mil to epcot and DHS.

 

[lockedoutlogic]

Thanks for sharing!
If we don't get some plans by end of this year, this could be "dead" They just need to come out say what this avatar land is going to be about. If the project is now being cut down to 250mil vs 400-500mil it seems this may be just a very expensive ride thats fine, take a the other 250mil to epcot and DHS.

I don't know that this "news" means its in trouble...
but i wouldn't doubt it also...

The problem with Cameron is he is every bit as eccentric and control freak as Lucas....
and that lucuas partnership is far below what it could be at this point.

I can see the same thing happening. I bet Cameron really wants a blank check and a "hands off" creatively from disney...
And i bet disney is all accountant meddling and saying things like "well...yeah...that idea would be great, but whats the benefit of going THAT FAR on this?"

my take...just how it seems.

The other problem is that avatar has no lasting characters or appeal on the levelo of harry potter and probably won't ever...so this idea is already fighting an upward battle. Avatar was very forgettable...box office is only an indicator of initial box office popularity and a lack of significant pop culture draw away from it at that moment...it is in no way an indicator of staying power.

 

[mike the canuck]

Disney Is Testing A Top Secret Flying Dragon; Is It For ‘Avatar’ Land?

http://www.slashfilm.com/disney-testing-top-secret-flying-dragon-avatar-land/

 

[DumbosMagicFeather]

Disney Is Testing A Top Secret Flying Dragon; Is It For ‘Avatar’ Land?

http://www.slashfilm.com/disney-testing-top-secret-flying-dragon-avatar-land/

Probably too much to hope for, but there are other projects hiding in Imagineering's shelves that used Dragons....ones I would very much rather see come to fruition over Avatar-land.

And after looking at that dragon in comparison to the other creatures, there aren't as many similarities to the look as there are towards traditional dragons. The face shape, wing design, and overall construct of the dragon look different from those creatures they rode in the movie. The only thing that I can see being more similar to Avatar is the tail design, and that's in the concept sketches, not in the actual model that was spotted in the air.

 

[mike the canuck]

Probably too much to hope for, but there are other projects hiding in Imagineering's shelves that used Dragons....ones I would very much rather see come to fruition over Avatar-land.

And after looking at that dragon in comparison to the other creatures, there aren't as many similarities to the look as there are towards traditional dragons. The face shape, wing design, and overall construct of the dragon look different from those creatures they rode in the movie. The only thing that I can see being more similar to Avatar is the tail design, and that's in the concept sketches, not in the actual model that was spotted in the air.

I would assume it's unrelated but you never know. It is a prototype of some sort so looks are not that important.

 

[DumbosMagicFeather]

Apparently the dragon prototype can also breathe fire...could the creatures in Avatar breathe fire...?

 

[bellanotte10]

Apparently the dragon prototype can also breathe fire...could the creatures in Avatar breathe fire...?

I don't believe so. They also looked quite different than that. But if its just a prototype they can change the appearance I guess.

 

[johnGorski]

Apparently the dragon prototype can also breathe fire...could the creatures in Avatar breathe fire...?

No, but the sequels there could be creatures that breathe fire. IMHO, that flying dragon has nothing to do with Avatar land, maybe its for a upcomming movie or a new theme park show.

 

[MJMcBride]

Some say its not happening at all.

lets go beastlie kingdomme

 

[ChrisFL]

Disney Is Testing A Top Secret Flying Dragon; Is It For ‘Avatar’ Land?

http://www.slashfilm.com/disney-testing-top-secret-flying-dragon-avatar-land/

From what I've heard.....no.

 

[mike the canuck]

From what I've heard.....no.

What have you heard?

 

[DumbosMagicFeather]

lets go beastlie kingdomme

Beastlie Kingdomme! Now THAT is what I'm cheering for/have been cheering for for years! That entire land is what makes me want to pursue an imagineering career when I'm done with school.

(Not to mention, I'm entering ImagiNations next year...having Avatar-land would really kill our entry we've been working on for years. Beastlie Kingdomme however... )

Also, I doubt the imagineers would have bothered implementing a fire mechanism in the robots only to take it out later. And the second Avatar movie is supposedly going to be set underwater...so I don't see fire happening there...hmm....

 

[johnGorski]

Beastlie Kingdomme! Now THAT is what I'm cheering for/have been cheering for for years! That entire land is what makes me want to pursue an imagineering career when I'm done with school.

(Not to mention, I'm entering ImagiNations next year...having Avatar-land would really kill our entry we've been working on for years. Beastlie Kingdomme however... )

QUOTE]

You never know if a Avatar only attraction in the camp Minnie-Mickey area could be a table setter for BK.

 

[pilferk]

I wonder if the "Moving away from capital expenditures" is a note about all expenditures.... Or just the MASSIVE expense they poured into DCA to "fix" the park. From the grand scheme of things, 150-500mil poured over a few years on several projects at different parks at WDW probably won't have the same bottom line impact that the huge amount of $$ on the DCA fixes had.

Capital expenditures are typically from your capital budget (ie: large scale project planning).

R&D and other expenditures are usually part of your operating budget.

I'm sure they're looking at cost cutting, too (everyone is), but I think the statement can be taken at face value, to some extent. They're looking to shake the money tree after some petty big capital budget items/projects come to a close.

 

[super mike b]

The other problem is that avatar has no lasting characters or appeal on the levelo of harry potter and probably won't ever...so this idea is already fighting an upward battle. Avatar was very forgettable...box office is only an indicator of initial box office popularity and a lack of significant pop culture draw away from it at that moment...it is in no way an indicator of staying power.

This is exactly why I don't understand them wanting to do anything "Avatar". I really don't think that it is a good fit. In ten years I really doubt many people will even remember Avatar.