News and Media

Published: Jan 20, 2012

Student team to travel to Walt Disney Imagineering in Glendale, California, Jan. 30-Feb. 3 for finals

SAVANNAH, Georgia - SCAD is one of the six finalist teams selected to compete in the 21st ImagiNations design competition. ImagiNations is an annual program designed and sponsored by Walt Disney Imagineering, the creative arm of all Disney parks and resorts worldwide. It allows participants to showcase their talents and gain practical knowledge in design from leaders in immersive storytelling and themed entertainment. Walt Disney Imagineering uses ImagiNations as a way to reach out to the widest possible talent pool for its future.

This year's design competition

For this year's ImagiNations design competition, students from American universities and colleges were given a unique challenge:

"Imagine it's the year 3011. Disney has entertainment experiences all over the world, many which don't even exist today. The human race is finally living on the moon, and Walt Disney Imagineering wants to provide the first entertainment and/or recreation to the new citizens there. What would you imagine that this new Disney experience could be?"

The competition finalists

SCAD's team consists of:

• Jason Clark (graduate student, sequential art)
• Marissa Garner (B.F.A., sequential art, 2011)
• Ben Gray (B.F.A., interactive design/game development, 2012)
• Geoff Shaw (M.F.A., sequential art, 2011).

The other finalists are California State Polytechnic University/Pomona, Carnegie Mellon University, North Carolina State University, University of California/Berkeley and Utah State University.

The SCAD team's design

The SCAD team designed an experience they called "Mirrors on the Moon: Hench's Discovery" - a futuristic visit to a destroyed alien city below the moon's surface.

Guests escape from the hyper-efficient living required of an existence on the moon's surface at the excavation site "Hench's Discovery." Here, guests can enjoy expansive, lush vistas and views with a story that adds history and wonder to the moon. They arrive at a complex designed to imitate a restored alien ruin, with a factory that produces strange glowing water that flows abundantly through the area, allowing plants to thrive in the harsh environment.

As guests explore vast parks, they realize that not everything is as serene as it first appears. As they descend through passageways to a destroyed alien city below the moon's surface, a giant chasm reflects a disaster that occurred long ago.

It is up to guests to discover the hidden mysteries of these ruins through various attractions above and below ground but especially on Cave Crawlers. Cave Crawlers is the park's E-ticket attraction, where riders are thrown into an exciting adventure where they have to save scientists from great peril by working together in an interactive game.

Other finalist designs

Finalist designs included:

• A hands-on approach to astronomy and space travel across the planets
• A park finale set in an underground lunar city constructed in pre-existing lava tubes
• An interactive adventure ride encompassing two separate moon parks to communicate the sweeping story of Molly Mouse, Mickey Mouse's descendant
• The first Disney Interactive Resort and Entertainment Center located in space
• A galactic cruise line, which tours the solar system

Judging the entries

The judges apply the same criteria to the entries as they would to their own work, beginning with the team's ability to collaborate across different disciplines and backgrounds. Other criteria includes:

• The mastery of their individual skills
• Whether it provides an engaging guest experience
• The ability of the experience to demonstrate respect and inclusion for the diverse array of families who visit Walt Disney parks & resorts
• Not limited to what guests already experience in Disney parks and resorts.

The projects and concepts presented are not necessarily intended to be built by Disney; they are a way for the entrants to demonstrate their skill and creative abilities.

The finalist teams are awarded five-day trips to Imagineering in Glendale, California, from Jan. 30-Feb. 3. There they will:

• Present their projects to Imagineering executives
• Meet and network with technical and creative Imagineers
• Go behind the scenes of where Disney magic is created
• Interview for paid internships
• Attend an awards lunch/ceremony on Feb. 3.

Cash prizes for top three teams

The top three teams will be awarded cash prizes with the first-place team receiving $3,000. An additional $1,000 grant will be awarded to the first-place team, to be equally divided among its sponsoring universities and/or organizations.

About Walt Disney parks and resorts

Walt Disney parks and Resorts are where dreams come true. More than 50 years ago, Walt Disney created a new kind of entertainment families could experience together, immersed in detailed atmospheres and vibrant storytelling. His vision now includes a collection of five of the world's leading family vacation destinations

• Disneyland Resort, Anaheim, California
• Walt Disney World Resort, Lake Buena Vista, Florida
• Tokyo Disney Resort, Urayasu, Chiba, Japan
• Disneyland Paris, Marne-la-Vallée, France
• Hong Kong Disneyland Resort, located on Lantau Island

A sixth resort, Shanghai Disney Resort, is currently under construction in Pudong New District, Shanghai.

In addition, Walt Disney parks and resorts includes the world-class Disney Cruise Line; Disney Vacation Club; Adventures by Disney, a guided group vacation experience to some of the world's most popular destinations; and Walt Disney Imagineering, which creates and designs all Disney parks, resorts and attractions.

About Walt Disney Imagineering

Walt Disney Imagineering is the unique innovative organization that creates - from concept through construction - all Disney theme parks, resorts, attractions, cruise ships, real estate developments, and regional entertainment venues worldwide. The name Imagineering combines imagination with engineering.