Saturday, June 25, 2011

New Pixar Short " Hawaiian Vacation "



It had to happen: just one day after Hawaiian Vacation - the new Pixar short animated - was released in front of Cars 2 the first "full video" appeared on Youtube. The image quality could be worst but if you're living in a country where Cars 2 was released last Friday and intend to go see it anytime soon it's really better to wait to see in perfect condition in theatres as it is a very cute short animated movie.

Also, and as usual, Hawaiian Vacation should be available in high-def on iTunes very soon which is another good reason to don't watch the video below. That said, if you really want to watch it, then don't wait too long as i'll be surprised if this video is still on Youtube tomorrow evening!


Edited 6/28: That's it, the video has been removed from Youtube, so i think all you have to do now is to see it in theatre with Cars 2 or wait for its release on iTunes!

Picture and video: copyright Disney - Pixar

New for your Smart Phone : Disney and more Mobile Version !



I always try to improve Disney and more and i saw that Blogger recently added a new feature which allows the Blogger blogs to have a mobile version of the blog, lighter and faster to download on a mobile phone. So, because the front page of Disney and more is usually pretty long and "heavy" to download i choose this new option and if everything works well at Blogger the mobile version of D&M should be the one appearing on your smart phone.

How does it look? Well, it's a lighter version of the D&M front page and normally what you should see first is something like the above picture. Then, after you choose the article you want to read you'll see a page like the one below, and all you have to do is to scroll down. The text should be bigger, so easier to read,and as i've said the mobile version is much lighter and it'll take less time to download each page. Of course it's free - it's not an app- and if you own a smart phone - and not only an iPhone but any smart phone including one working with the Android OS, please try it and let me know if it works...or not, and also if you think that this mobile version of Disney and more is better for your mobile phone, thanks!



Pictures: copyright Disney

Friday, June 24, 2011

J.K Rowling announces new Pottermore Web Site - Including Official Video !



Two weeks ago a teaser page appeared on the web: J.K Rowling was going to announce a new web site called Pottermore.com. And basically that's all we could knew about it. Finally yesterday, J.K Rowling appeared in person at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London to announce Pottermore during a press conference - see picture picture below which is not an ad for Sony(!) the VAIO laptop is here because Pottermore has been made possible "with the support and partnership of Sony".





So, yesterday Thursday 23rd June, J.K Rowling answered mounting speculation about the nature of her new project and Pottermore will be a unique and free-to-use website which builds an exciting online experience around the reading of her hugely successful Harry Potter books. For this project, J.K. Rowling has written extensive new material about the characters, places and objects in the much-loved stories, which will inform, inspire and entertain readers as they journey through the storylines of the books.



Later, Pottermore will incorporate an online shop where people can purchase exclusively the long-awaited Harry Potter eBooks and is ultimately intended to become an online reading experience, extending the relevance of Harry Potter to new generations of readers, while still appealing to existing fans. As the Pottermore Shop will develop it is intended that it should include further products designed specifically for Harry Potter fans, offering a potential outlet for services related to Pottermore.



In keeping with Harry Potter’s international appeal, the site will launch in English, French, Italian, German and Spanish, with more languages to follow. In the new website, the storyline will be brought to life with sumptuous newly-commissioned illustrations and interactive ‘Moments’ through which you can navigate, starting with the first book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s (Sorcerer’s) Stone. On entering, you'll choose a magic username and begin your experience. And as you will move through the chapters, you will read and share exclusive writing from J.K. Rowling, and, just as Harry joins Hogwarts, so can you. You'll be able to visit Diagon Alley, get sorted into a house, cast spells and mix potions to help your house compete for the House Cup.



At the press conference, Rowling revealed some key features of the website. She described how she hasbrought to life both the Sorting Hat and Ollivanders experiences from her books for the first time on Pottermore, by revealing the questions asked by the Sorting Hat - which places newcomers into their Hogwarts houses according to their characteristics - and the magic behind the Wand Chooser – which finds the right wand for each user from over 33,000 possible combinations. She also revealed glimpses of the new information she has provided on some of the best-loved characters.



Pottermore (along with the Pottermore Shop) will be open to all users in October 2011. From today, 23rd June, Harry Potter fans can submit their email addresses on Pottermore.com in order to be contacted by the site following the opening of registration on 31st July, Harry’s birthday. Also on that date, an online challenge will be launched, whereby the first million people to complete their registration will gain early entry into the website, and help put final touches to the experience.

The storyline of the second book, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, will go live on the site in early 2012. The Pottermore Shop opens when the site opens to all in October, selling complete ranges of the eBooks and digital audiobooks in a selection of languages, exclusively.

J.K. Rowling commented, “I wanted to give something back to the fans that have followed Harry so devotedly over the years, and to bring the stories to a new digital generation. I hope fans and those new to Harry will have as much fun helping to shape Pottermore as I have. Just as I have contributed to the website, everyone else will be able to join in by submitting their own comments, drawings and other content in a safe and friendly environment – Pottermore has been designed as a place to share the stories with your friends as you journey through the site.”

Don't miss below the J.K Rowling Pottermore announcement video as it includes magical animation!




All pictures and video: copyright J.K Rowling - Pottermore.com




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Thursday, June 23, 2011

Cars 2 released today in the U.S !



Cars 2 is released today in the U.S and most of the reviews are good, which is great for all Pixar animators who worked on the movie. If just like me you were not at the Hollywood Premiere you might be interested to watch the video below...




...and also to have a look at this last Pixar - Disney Parks video presenting the main characters of Cars 2.




Picture and videos: copyright Disney - Pixar

Unique views of HKDL new lands on The Theme Park Guy web site



Some webmasters shoot pictures in a Disney park the easy way - and i'm part of them, most of the time! - and others are ready to make every necessary sacrifice to get the unique shots. Stefan Zwanzger, my good friend from The Theme Park Guy website is one of them and recently on his new trip to Hong Kong Disneyland he was decided to get the perfect shot of HKDL new lands currently under construction.

And to achieve this, Stefan and his local hiker friend Michael decided "to trek for seven hours over mountains on hiking trails that ceased to exist". According to Stefan this trek was just like hell, but at the end of the day he got some unique shots of HKDL as you can see above. It's interesting to note that the beautiful Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel will be just behind the new lands. There is dozens of other great pictures on Stefan's site and you can see all of them HERE.

While you are on The Theme Park Guy website, don't miss one of Stefan previous report in which you can see great aerial pictures (shot from a plane, this time) like this one below which is particularly interesting as you'll see the land which is still available for a future expansion of the resort and a second park. I remind you that this land in the foreground was not existing before, there was only the sea.



Pictures: copyright The Theme Park Guy

" The Imagineer " a great video with Imagineer Kevin Rafferty



Drea Cooper put on line on Vimeo a beautiful short video called "The Imagineer". Kevin Rafferty, Senior Concept Writer, Director, Walt Disney Imagineering tell his personal story as an Imagineer at WDI and whether or not it's an undirect Disney marketing video, it really worth to be watch, so here it is below.

THE IMAGINEER from Drea Cooper on Vimeo.



Picture and video: copyright Drea Cooper




Click HERE for the direct access to the TDS Wallpapers HD iTunes page.

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Rare Video of Disneyland Paris Zorro Show in 1993



Three years ago i've posted the rare pictures below of the DLP Zorro show, but today - thanks to vaultdisneyreturns - you'll see an even more rare document, i.e a video of this show which happened at DLP's Frontierland only during two years after the park's opening.

In 1992-1993 Disneyland Paris guests could enjoy a "Zorro" show on the rooftop of Frontierland buildings, more specifically on the roof of the Fuente del Oro restaurant. This little show only last a few minutes each time, but the Zorro character is highly popular in France, so it was a real good idea and like it happen sometimes unfortunately with good ideas, the Zorro show ended shortly after the pictures below were shot, in August 1993.



As you can see, Zorro was fighting against soldiers - probably soldiers of the evil Monasterio commandante!





Of course, Zorro was victorious...





And before he left, he salute one last time the audience!



And now, here is this rare video showing the Zorro show on the roof of the Fuente del Oro restaurant, filmed in 1993.




The good question is: Why DLP don't put back this show again, even if it's only during summer...Only three persons were involved in the show, so it's not very expensive to produce. The main reason probably is a "licensing" problem. Apparently a company named Zorro Productions Inc owns the rights of Zorro - see their web site here - and although Disney owns the rights of their Zorro TV series they don't necessarily owns the rights foe this kind of theme park show, so perhaps DLP would have to take a license if they wanted to do the show again.

One last great news: Guy Williams who played Don Diego de la Vega / Zorro in the beloved Disney TV series will be honored at the next D23 convention as he will become a "Disney Legend".



Guy Williams died May 7, 1989, so unfortunately he won't be here in person to receive this highly deserved award, but for me he always was the best "Zorro" i've ever seen on screen.

Video: copyright vaultdisneyreturns

Photos: copyright Daniel Rous

Guy Williams picture: copyright Disney




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Monday, June 20, 2011

Five New Cars 2 clips !



Less than a week before the Cars 2 release in the U.S and Pixar just released new clips, and the first one is called "Japan Fast Dirt Section", which of course is all about the race in Japan. Have a look!




Always in Japan, the "Wasabi" clip in which Mater will discover what Wasabi really is...




This next clip shows what is probably the beginning of the Paris sequence, with a song of French singer Bénabar.





Pixar also released two videos about Cars 2 music, this first one shows Robbie Williams singing "Collision of Worlds" and the video include some never-seen-before short clips of Cars 2.




In this next video John Lasseter and other musicians who participated to Cars 2 music score, always with new short clips from the movie.




Picture and video: copyright Disney - Pixar




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Editor's Note: I'll be back soon with new updates but in the meantime do you want to know a bit more about me and why i created Disney and more? I usually don't speak about myself but in this interview i answered to questions asked by the Disney Report web site.