New Disney and more updates are now over - the last article was about Disneyland Paris future and you'll find it below - and as promised here is a "Farewell post" in which i'll try to answer some questions that you'd like to ask me. And, as there has never been an article on Disney and more without pictures i add to this farewell post a selection of photos that i''ve personally shot at Disneyland Paris last September. Just for the fun i tried that day to shoot some of the pictures on a different angle than we usually do either to have simply a different frame or to bring a bit of strangeness and have some of them not instantly recognizable, although it won't take long to you to identify from where i've shot these pics. Okay, let's go for the questions and answers!
Will i come back posting on D&M? : Frankly, the honest answer is : i don't know. Simply because no one knows what the future is made of, but we know that he generally brings surprises. That said, I’m incredibly exhausted and it is almost a matter of life or death for me to stop posting each day. As usual when i do something i invest myself « body and soul » at 100%, and if you add that there was also a lot of invisible « wizardry » in D&M and that wizardry always eats a lot of energy then you’ll know that it’s time for me to take a looong break. But i don’t know if i will resist to do special posts when something really "big" will be announced like a Star Wars or Marvel lands, for instance. I may do also something about Shanghaî Disneyland as i own quite a lot of good domain names about SDL and it’ll be a pity to don’t use them… :-) But a new article each day as i did the last seven years is absolutely out of question. Anyway, do not delete Disney and more from your bookmarks now as, who knows, you might need the link again in the future...
Will all Disney and more websites be shut down? : Certainly not, all D&M sites will remain open, they are a gold mine of pictures, artworks and informations and it will be a shame to close them.
Will i stop posting on Facebook? : During the next weeks, most probably. I may post again on Facebook but may be not as many daily posts as i used to do. Keep looking anyway on the D&M Facebook page from time to time.
Will i post new articles on the others D&M sites? : This i may do, as i still have pictures for instance of Tom Scherman that i must post on the Tom Scherman website, or it might be interesting posts about new technologies on my Innoventions Blog, or anything related to Star Wars on my Star Tours website. You'll find the links to all these websites by scrolling down on the right column of D&M.
Do i have Disney related books projects? : Well, it's a question everyone is asking me since the Disneyland Paris book was published 13 years ago and there is no doubt that i'd like to do others books. But "IF" i do new ones it'll be a different kind of books, not necessarily related to Imagineering but it'll be gorgeous books anyway, the kind of books you can't live without them! I promise to let you know if it becomes real.
What will i do now? : Well, i have several projects - not related to Disney or even theme parks - that i really want to do, most of them "pictorial" books projects, and either it will be printed books or eBooks but they're gonna take me sometime and i'm afraid i also will have to learn to use new softwares to create them which will take additional time, too. I also have plenty of rushes i've filmed around the world the last ten years that i really want to edit. And not to mention some documentaries about David Lean movies as i am a big David Lean specialist.
How do we do without you? : C'mon, there is plenty of good websites about Disney theme parks on the web! But here are the ones i suggest you to check each day to make sure you don't miss anything. If you check all these daily, you'll do exactly what i was doing to be sure i didn't missed any precious infos: First, check daily the choice of good articles links that Lance is posting on Screamscape, i've always learned a lot about new projects that i didn't knew thanks to him. Of course, also check the great articles that our good friends on Mice Age are posting, and especially don't miss their Tuesday update when they talk about DL and DCA future. Then, go each day on Disney News Central, the best way to find easily what are the new posts on a selection of the best sites related to Disney or Universal. But there is a price to pay: you must not be lazy to scroll down the Disney News Central page! Check also ThemeparX on which are posted each day or so new pics of all theme parks projects in development.
About Disneyland Paris: You have a list of DLP related websites on the right column of Disney News Central but check regularly DLPWelcome where Max is posting his great DLP pictorial updates that you've seen on Disney and more. Max will continue to post at least two or three times per month great pictures about what's happening out there. Also make sure to check Hello Disneyland!, the site of Maureen who did the great pictorial updates you saw recently on D&M as she will have more gorgeous pictures of the parks for you. Always about DLP, the Disney Central Plaza and ED92 forums will bring you fresh infos about DLP projects whether it is in their forums or on their Facebook pages. And there is of course plenty of others websites and forums about DLP in each European countries, so make sure to check the ones of the country you live in.
And about anything else non Disney related, whether it is about movies, artworks, etc... i'm going to reveal you my source, the one i was keeping secret and that other sites i'm sure were wondering about - "where does he find all this?" - : it's Geek Tyrant, a great site talking about anything geek whether it is movies, collectibles, artworks, etc... and Joey post almost instantly when the news are released. Most of the Disney Princesses artworks posted on D&M or on the D&M Facebook page, for instance, were found there. So make sure to check Geek Tyrant each day as you'll find always something interesting, even if it's not about Disney.
Will the Disneyland Paris book remain available? : Yes, but as long as there will be copies available, of course. So far, there is still copies available whether it's the new regular and updated english edition or the french collector edition, so if you don't own it yet you can order the book. It's also the best way to find back the Disney and more "spirit" if you miss it as not only the book talks about Imagineering but it also include 750 pictures of the park and among them 250 fantastic WDI artworks. Check on the book website HERE to learn more and order this beautiful book!
Well, i think i did not forget any question but if it's the case feel free to ask me in the comments! And, most of all, i want to thank you "from the bottom of my heart" - as good old' Sammy Davis Jr would have say - for your fantastic support all along these years, Disney and more wouldn't have been the same without you, really!
Love to everyone.
Alain
Pictures : copyright Alain Littaye - Disney and more
All pictures were shot with the Sony RX 100 M3, an amazing 20 MP professional compact camera that, once again, i highly recommend to each of you.