Originally Posted By RoadTrip Well, maybe I'm odd (probably am), but "Impressions de France" made me decide that I WOULD visit France some day... something I had never really considered before.
Originally Posted By FerretAfros As a quick updated, I was contacted by WDW today in response to my letter. I was particularly impressed that I got both an email and voicemail (both of which offered to set up a time to talk further), especially since the original letter only contained my mailing address. It's probably not too hard to find me in the MM+ system, but I'm impressed that they took the time to do it In general, the response seemed to be exactly what I expected: that they heard and understood my comments, but were going to press ahead with their plans anyway. The guest relations representative assured me that they had "shared it with the leadership regarding your disappointment with it" and "shared your feedback", which makes me think that they passed along the gist of the letter, but not the document itself. I'm a little disappointed with that, since I think there were several points that they probably missed, but I'm not surprised Although I'm sure I wasn't the only one, I really appreciated getting a semi-personalized response from them. I know it won't make a bit of difference to what they actually build, but it did seem like they were taking the effort to listen She specifically mentioned that I had sent the letter to George and Meg, which makes me wonder if I'll get any responses for the letters addressed to Tom (the original, since his name was on the announcement), Bob, Sam Lau, or Bruce Vaughn Here's the text (with potentially sensitive information omitted) of the email response if anybody is interested: >>Dear [Redacted], Thank you for your letter to Meg Crofton and George Kalogridis regarding to Walt Disney World Resort. Your correspondence was forwarded to me so that I may personally respond to you. We appreciate your feedback about the Frozen attraction and understand your concern for Epcot's Norway Pavilion. We are fortunate to have so many passionate fans like you and we don't take that for granted. Walt Disney himself always intended for our parks to evolve, and we regularly find ourselves balancing the things Guests have always loved about the park with continuing to provide new experiences. We use the feedback we get from our Guests to help us make those decisions. Frozen is extremely popular with our Guests and now they will be able to experience and immerse themselves in many of their favorite moments and music from the film. This attraction will keep with our focus and tradition of providing our Guests with the best possible experiences rich in Disney storytelling. We think it's appropriate to locate the Frozen attraction at Epcot's Norway Pavilion, since this is the country that inspired the film. Norway remains open during construction, and we plan to continue to offer authentic Norwegian food, architecture, and exhibits that so many Guests like you enjoy. We respect your opinions and appreciate the continued enthusiasm you have for our products & services. I would be happy to speak to you about your feedback in more detail. Please provide me with your phone number and an appropriate time to call, and I will contact you directly. I am available today [Redacted]. Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts with us. Sincerely, [Redacted]<<
Originally Posted By Witches of Morva ORWEN: I'm glad you got a personal response to your letter, Ferret, duckling. Let's hope you and your new pen pal can keep in touch on a regular basis. There's so much they need to know about, after all. The next time you write to them, would you mind asking them why they still haven't gotten around to building a dark ride for The Black Cauldron? ORGOCH: Oh fer the love a Pete's Dragon!! Give it a rest already!!! ORWEN: Oh that reminds me, Ferret! Ask them why they haven't built a dark ride for Pete's Dragon, too!! Thanks!!!
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt "It's probably not too hard to find me in the MM+ system, but I'm impressed that they took the time to do it" So am I!
Originally Posted By CuriousConstance If you do get a response from Bob, make sure you tell him about me.
Originally Posted By Captain Neo Not sure why they are doing this when they could build a FROZEN Land in Magic Kingdom or Hollywood Studios. Hollywood Studios really could use a new anchor attraction and Frozen could have been it. Instead we are probably gonna end up with more cloned attractions. What a waste.
Originally Posted By FerretAfros On the bright side, I would assume that the ride in Norway will never be cloned, due to the unusual layout of Maelstrom (though it wouldn't surprise me if we saw something like Epcot's Nemo omnimover and DL's Nemo subs, which are the same basic premise with a different means of conveyance) But even for me, that's little consolation at this point
Originally Posted By Witches of Morva ORWEN: Hold on tight to your Dream! Somebody had to say that, too!
Originally Posted By Jim in Merced CA I don't have a skull - or bones Someone had to say that too :-/
Originally Posted By Jim in Merced CA Plus, how many youngsters are going to want to go to World Showcase to see this 'Frozen' attraction? Quite a few I would guess. And then they can check out the rest of Epcot afterward.
Originally Posted By mrkthompsn I'm sure there's benefit clauses in Lasseter's and Catmull's contracts for percentage profit claims from box office, downloads, music, merchandise, and themed attractions.
Originally Posted By oc_dean >>Frozen is extremely popular with our Guests and now they will be able to experience and immerse themselves in many of their favorite moments and music from the film. This attraction will keep with our focus and tradition of providing our Guests with the best possible experiences rich in Disney storytelling.<< TRANSLATION - We are going to transform the Maelstrom no matter what anyone says! We've made up our minds ... input means very little to us. >>We think it's appropriate to locate the Frozen attraction at Epcot's Norway Pavilion, since this is the country that inspired the film. Norway remains open during construction, and we plan to continue to offer authentic Norwegian food, architecture, and exhibits that so many Guests like you enjoy.<< TRANSLATION... Never mind the fact the Norway Pavilion (like all other World Showcase pavilions) are designed to immerse people in their real cultures. We are going to throw "fantasy" onto "reality" ... because that's The Walt Disney Co.'s new normal. Even if it doesn't make good creative sense ... that's just what we do these days. >>We respect your opinions and appreciate the continued enthusiasm you have for our products & services.<< TRANSLATION.... If we did care about your opinions and have sincere appreciation, we would think twice .. before shutting Maelstrom down. >> I would be happy to speak to you about your feedback in more detail. Please provide me with your phone number and an appropriate time to call, and I will contact you directly. I am available today<< TRANSLATION ... It's really a way street/one sided conversation anyway. Anything you say .... is just going to go from one ear and out the other. Sincerely, (not so sincerely)... 'from the staff of the happy little kiddies kingdom, where fantasy, cartoons, and more cartoons rule.' Kiss your more adult tangible, experiences we use to do .. goodbye!
Originally Posted By oc_dean Getting your message across ... the best thing one could do, Ferret. And even when responses seem to come from robots where 2-way conversations are really just "1-way" with them ..... you have to think - letters may get glossed over ... but the more there are .... the more it gets them thinking. And hope there's a longterm affect with them.
Originally Posted By oc_dean >>Not sure why they are doing this when they could build a FROZEN Land in Magic Kingdom or Hollywood Studios. << We can see why they are doing this. It's far cheaper to take an existing attraction and rework it. Why spend money on a brand new building, brand new ride system? TDO really don't give a mickey's arse if it's shoehorned into the wrong place ... and that's that! I really liked World Showcase in my trips in the 90s. The most enthralling experiences for me .. at any Disney park .. was taking real life, real situations (in this case - the history and cultures of real countries) and gave them surrealism and romanticism ... sprinkled with imaginative "know how" with Disney's technical "know-how" with shows like The American Adventure. That's what captures my imagination on a deep level. Sugar coating the Maelstrom with a fantasy story only LOOSELY based on Norway .... is nothing but superficial fanfare that only touches me on the surface level. A little giggle .. a little laugh ... done. That's good enough for Disney these days. Learning about Norway ..the REAL Norway ... was stimulating to the senses. And not just the top layers.
Originally Posted By Witches of Morva ORDDU: It's as if Norway is going away completely, now. Epcot is forced to take another blow in its face as more is done to weaken its identity. Very sad. ORGOCH: Yeah an' I think hell just got frozen over. (No offense ta Elsa but sheesh!)
Originally Posted By RoadTrip So what did you learn about the REAL Norway with Maelstrom? That they have a thing about trolls and they have oil platforms in the North Sea? Not quite as informative as Impressions de France, or even the movies in China and Canada. Yes, Norway had a (badly outdated) movie following the ride, and there is nothing to say they couldn't do the same with the new Frozen attraction.
Originally Posted By RoadTrip Disney could easily develop a short film titled 'Norway, the land behind the story'. They could introduce the real King and Queen of Norway, and briefly go into Norway's form of government and the role they play in it. They could show a real town on a Fjord and present what daily life would be like for someone living there. They could touch on the primary industries in Norway (petroleum and fishing) and the wildlife found in the country. I think it would be at least as informative as the old film and probably more enjoyable.
Originally Posted By Witches of Morva ORDDU: As long as they do something to promote Norway in Norway that's all I would ask them to do. ORGOCH: An' that ain't askin' too much!
Originally Posted By FerretAfros >>We can see why they are doing this. It's far cheaper to take an existing attraction and rework it.<< But are they actually saving all that much money with this? I've heard that the project is budgeted around $75M. I think Mermaid cost somewhere around $100M-$120M to construct from the ground up. Considering that the conversion of an existing attraction won't add anything to the park's capacity, it really makes me wonder if this money is being wisely spent >>So what did you learn about the REAL Norway with Maelstrom?<< Although it's hardly a scholarly attraction, I think it did a decent job of showing the Viking heritage, folklore of trolls, unique polar environments, and contemporary business affairs. Not bad for a ride that's only 4 minutes long. Oh, and I also learned that the spirit of Norway has been, will always be adventure! : ) >>Disney could easily develop a short film titled 'Norway, the land behind the story'.<< I agree, and it sounds similar to the exhibit they currently have in the Stave church that shows things from the film, and their real-world inspiration in Norway. I'm sure they could do something like this, and probably should if they want to have any semblance of respect for the people of Norway, but I really doubt it will happen
