Shanghaî Disneyland Update : Latest Aerial Pictures, Scaffoldings Down on Top of Enchanted Storybook Castle, and more!

Here is a great Shanghaî Disneyland update for the week-end. On the top of Enchanted Storybook Castle, scaffoldings are now down, revealing the highest towers of the castle! And the above new leaked pictures are also showing the entrance gate at the bottom as well as close-ups on the roof and the top of some towers!

Above and below, two pictures showing the towers on the top of SDL Castle.

The same folks who did the picture above have also shot this other picture on which you can see at a distance the Roaring Rapids mountain, now apparently without the scaffoldings.

Others recent pictures now, shot just one month ago with a drone, this one showing almost the whole park. Things take shape little by little and the Alice Labyrinth at the right of the castle has now part of its vegetation in place.

A vertical shot right above SDL Enchanted Storybook Castle.

This next pic is showing Shanghaî Disneyland Five Stars Hotel. Look also at the trees already in place along the road.

Another vertical shot, this time right above the Shanghaî Disneyland Hotel. Isn't it strange that the roofs are still "open"? Well, apparently not, as readers comments confirmed that hotel roofs are often "open" to leave technical access to everything installed on the top. So basically roof structures are here to hide more than to be a "real" roof.

This other picture is showing the SDL Hotel in the background, the road leading to it from Disney Town and Disney Town Spice Alley restaurants area in the foreground. But look at the bridge on the right and the path leading to the hotel. May be it's the wide angle lens but it seems to be a long walk to reach the hotel and i wouldn't like to have to walk all this road during a rainy day... Well, actually it's probably the same distance than to go from Disneyland Paris gates to the Newport Bay Hotel...

This next picture is showing Disney Town dining and shopping area in the foreground and the park in the background...

And this other shot from a drone at the vertical of Disney Town.

I'm adding two new drone pictures just found on the web, and these were shot on September 6, so two weeks ago. They're a bit grainy but that's no big problem as they're interesting because they show the resort on a totally different angle, from the other end of the lake. We can see clearly the main avenue going all around Shanghaî Disney Resort, with at the other end of the lake the SDL Hotel on the left and the park, that you can't see clearly is on the right.

Now, on both pictures you can see in the foreground, center and left, nearby the lake two unused piece of lands, and i'm ready to bet they keep them to build future hotels.

I will end with something different but highly interesting showing a very early rendering for Shanghaî Disneyland. This one is supposed to have been done many years ago and as you'll see, even if the artwork is not sharp at all, in the early design of SDL a Main Street was envisioned as well as a Frontierland with a Big Thunder Mountain in the center of the lake just like at DLP, Adventureland was on the left instead to be on the right and Tomorrowland was on the right instead than to be on the left and included a Space Mountain. And there was a train at that time going around the park which is no longer the case as we know. The picture is supposed to have been shot at the Walt Disney Family Museum in San Francisco.

Pictures: copyright China Daily

Bryan Singer Announces He Will Direct a New 20000 Leagues Under the Sea Movie !

Bryan Singer who is currently directing X-Men: Apocalypse, the last film of the new X-Men trilogy, announced via Instagram that his next film project will be a new adaptation of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. And to make sure we get the news he posted a picture of the script he has been working on as well as the following statement:

"It's my 50th birthday (ouch), and I just put the finishing touches on the script for my next film. A story I've wanted to retell since childhood. I promise this will be an epic and emotional adventure for all ages! An adventure very dear to my heart. Not abandoning the #xmenuniverse. Very excited about #xmenapocalypse and beyond. #julesverne#20000leaguesunderthesea #nemo"

Disney's 1954 film adaptation of 1868 Jules Verne story telling the undersea adventures of Captain Nemo and the crew on the Nautilus is the most famous one and beloved by everyone. It'll be interesting to see what Bryan Singer - whom in my opinion directed some of the best movies inspired from Marvel super-heroes with the X-Men movies, and specially the ones on which he was the director - will do on a new 20000 Leagues adaptation.

Note that this is a different project than the one that David Fincher tried to do with Disney not so long ago before the project was dropped by Disney. It's not known if Singer's film project will be done with Disney Pictures or not, but probably not as Singer's production company is set up at 20th Century Fox so chances are he'll make his 20000 Leagues movie with Fox.

Back in 2010, Ridley and Tony Scott were also developing a version of the film at the studio, but nothing ever came of it. As for the David Fincher project which was telling the story of how Captain Nemo became what he was in the story we all know, may be Bryan Singer's project will rebirth the one of David Fincher.

Screenwriters Rick Sordelet and Dan Studney will help to write the script of Singer project, and they're the guys who also wrote Jack the Giant Slayer for Singer. Let's hope they'll deliver a great script for 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.

Pictures: copyright Disney, Instagram

Legendary Animation Director Hayao Miyazaki Will Create a Park

Legendary Animation Director Hayao Miyazaki has announced the creation of a Park ...but not the kind of park you're thinking about.

In 2013, Hayao Miyazaki saddened fans by announcing he was retiring from Studio Ghibli, the animation company he co-founded saying he would no longer make animated films.
So what is doing Miyazaki currently? It turns out, he’s making a park. But unlike Disney theme parks, his won’t be a corporate branded theme park and instead Miyazaki’s park will be "a serene nature preserve, created specifically to encourage children to explore and experience the natural world".

The park will open in 2018, and will be located on the remote island of Kume, reports Japan’s Kyodo News. The local town has donated ten thousand square meters of pristine forest, within which will be built accommodations for around thirty people. As we know, much of Miyazaki’s work deals with the interplay between humans (often children) and nature–either directly, as in Princess Mononoke, or indirectly, as in Spirited Away–the idea that the famed animator would put his considerable imagination and resources toward transferring that same dynamic into the real world is understandable.

Construction on the park will begin in Spring 2016 and Miyazaki has reportedly dedicated around $2.5 million dollars of his own money, and committed to using local resources and labor to make his dream a reality.

First Trailer for The Jungle Book Live Adaptation by Jon Favreau

The first trailer for The Jungle Book live adaptation by Jon Favreau is at last online, and so far it looks great!




Picture and video: copyright Disney

Tokyo Disney Resort Update : New Shows Announcement, TDL and TDS Programs Until 2017 !

I've got a special update about Tokyo Disney Resort for you today as Oriental Land did some new announcements and revealed the program for both parks up to 2017!

Let's start with Tokyo DisneySea which celebrate its 15th Anniversary “The Year of Wishes” from April 15, 2016, through March 17, 2017. And to mark the 15th anniversary of the grand opening of Tokyo DisneySea Park, a major celebration, entitled “Tokyo DisneySea 15th Anniversary: The Year of Wishes,” will be held at the Park from April 15, 2016, through March 17, 2017. For this milestone year, a variety of must-see programs will be presented. Kicking off the celebration will be a brand new show “Crystal Wishes Journey.” And the special events for summer, Halloween and Christmas will be highlighted with elements just for the 15th anniversary.

The theme of the 15th anniversary is “wishes.” “Wishes” are people’s dreams for the future and give a feeling of hope and excitement. Through a variety of new experiences this anniversary year, Guests will find that their wishes shine even brighter with the help of their navigators – Mickey Mouse and his Disney friends – as well as all of the Tokyo DisneySea Cast Members during the 15th anniversary year.

For this anniversary, colorful crystals will symbolize everyone’s wishes. The Disney characters will wear crystals, each having a different color of crystal, representing their wishes. Decorations around the Park will feature crystal motifs and merchandise will sparkle with crystals as well. Special menus will be offered just for the 15th anniversary.

Premiering on April 15, the anniversary event’s opening day, will be “Crystal Wishes Journey,” a brand new show to be presented at Mediterranean Harbor. The Disney characters, each with their own wish, will appear in this show that celebrates the start of the Guests’ journeys of adventure, sparkling with hope, this milestone year.

Also on the first day of the event, a new version of “Big Band Beat,” the popular show presented at the Broadway Music Theatre, will debut with new music, costumes and scenes, including
one with Goofy singing and dancing to jazz. Revamped for the first time since it opened in July 2006, the new show will be even more attractive while retaining all the excitement of the original.

In addition, on July 9, 2016, a brand new musical show, “Out of Shadowland” will premiere at the Hangar Stage in Lost River Delta. This colorful show with an original story created specifically for the Hangar Stage will incorporate vivid images and powerful, moving live performances as dynamic scenes unfold leading Guests to a world never experienced before.

The Tokyo DisneySea Hotel MiraCosta, where Guests can continue their journey to make their wishes sparkle, will also be celebrating its 15th anniversary in 2016. Besides the festive decorations around the hotel interior, the hotel will offer a variety of programs to celebrate this milestone. There will be special menus at the restaurants and the lounge as well as a banquet plan for small parties entitled “Private Dining Plan.” Additional banquet plans will come with items designed especially for the hotel’s 15th anniversary. Also, wedding rings with a special design commemorating the 15th anniversary will be available for a limited time.

More details on the Tokyo DisneySea 15th anniversary programs, in chronological order:

April 15, 2016 – March 17, 2017
“Crystal Wishes Journey”
Kicking off the “Tokyo DisneySea 15th Anniversary: The Year of Wishes” event will be “Crystal Wishes Journey,” a brand new show to be presented at Mediterranean Harbor during the special event period only. Appearing before the Guests who anticipate going on adventures that will make their wishes sparkle, the Disney characters, each with their own wish, will appear in this show that celebrates the start of the 15th anniversary journey of adventure guided by shining crystals.

From April 15, 2016
“Big Band Beat” at Broadway Music Theatre
This popular show presented at the Broadway Music Theatre in American Waterfront features swing jazz, which was the dominant form of popular music from the 1920s through the 1940s. “Big Band Beat” will debut in a new version, with new music, costumes and scenes. This will be the first time that the show has been changed since it opened in July 2006. This revue with swing jazz by a live big band will continue to dazzle with stunning vocals, energetic tap dancing and the climactic drum performance by Mickey Mouse. New scenes such as a jazz number with Goofy dancing and singing, as well as Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse in new costumes performing a rhythmical dance, will enhance the appeal even further.

From July 9, 2016
“Out of Shadowland” at Hangar Stage
Based on an original story by Disney expressly for the Hangar Stage in Lost River Delta, this brand new musical show is brought to life through colorful images and powerful live performances. “Out of Shadowland” tells the story of Mei, a timid young girl lost in a world of shadows who finds confidence and strength through her sojourn there.
Mei has lost her way and finds herself in Shadowland where the evil Kagetori has taken control. She meets a boy named Yu who leads her to discover within herself a mysterious power that she was unaware of. Mei’s power brings light and life back to Shadowland. Fighting against her own fear and insecurity, Mei is able to bring down Kagetori. At the end she realizes that Yu and Shadowland have helped her gain the confidence she now feels.
Through the moving live performances, vivid images and other elements that create colorful, dynamic scenes, Guests will experience a world unlike any seen before.

June 16 – July 7, 2016
“Disney Tanabata Days”
The Japanese star festival known as “Tanabata” will be celebrated with a special program in a manner
unique to the Disney theme parks in Japan from June 16, which is eight days earlier than last year. “Disney Tanabata Days” will feature traditional Tanabata decorations in the New York area of American Waterfront where Guests can write their hopes and wishes on Wishing Cards and tie them onto the Wishing Place, which will be set up for this occasion. In Mediterranean Harbor, Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse will appear in a greeting show dressed as Hikoboshi and Orihime, the festival’s two star-crossed lovers. In addition, special menus themed to Tanabata will be offered.

July 9 – August 31, 2016
Special Event “Disney Summer Festival”
This summertime festival of tropical fruit and Latin rhythms will be presented with the main venue of Mediterranean Harbor wrapped in a celebratory mood for the 15th anniversary. While volumes of water spray around the area, everyone can join the Disney characters in singing and dancing to the rhythmical music of the tropical summer carnival led by Minnie Mouse.

September 9 – October 31, 2016
Special Event “Disney’s Halloween”
This 15th anniversary year, Tokyo DisneySea will offer a “cool” but ominous Halloween with the
Disney villains. The Park will be transfigured into an eerie, other-worldly place where Mickey Mouse and his Disney friends along with the villains put on a gorgeous and stylish Halloween. Guests can enjoy a show on the waters of Mediterranean Harbor that creates a frightfully cool Halloween from the world of the villains.

November 8 – December 25, 2016
Special Event “Christmas Wishes”
In each of the themed ports, Christmas trees and other monuments put up by the Disney friends with
their Christmas wishes will create a heartwarming and romantic atmosphere in the Park. Besides a daytime show presented at Mediterranean Harbor, a nighttime show will feature colorful Christmas trees for the 15th anniversary on the waters of Mediterranean Harbor creating a fantastic atmosphere. Guests are sure to enjoy a Christmas event full of variety.

January 1 – 5, 2017
New Year’s Program
The Park will celebrate the start of the year with colorful Japanese-style New Year’s decorations at the entrance and merchandise featuring roosters, the zodiac animal for 2017. The Disney characters will be dressed up in kimono to welcome Guests in Japanese style and special New Year’s menus will be offered.

January 13 – March 17, 2017
“Sweet Duffy”
Guests can enjoy the gentle and heartwarming world of Duffy in this program that offers merchandise with cute designs, tempting sweets and photo spots where delightful keepsake photos can be taken.


Tokyo Disney Resort now, as they announced that a brand new facility for Disney character greetings and a new restaurant will be built in Westernland at Tokyo Disneyland Park in fiscal year 2016 ( April 1, 2016 to March 31, 2017 ). These facilities will be themed to the world of the “Junior Woodchucks” series as shown in Disney comics and animated short films.

The “Junior Woodchucks” series features Donald Duck and his nephews Huey, Dewey and Louie as members of the Junior Woodchucks of the World, an organization dedicated to the appreciation of nature, camping and the outdoors. The series showed them having comical adventures in the American wilderness.

With the introduction of these two new facilities, Guests will be able to enjoy the atmosphere of a Junior Woodchucks of the World campground. Guests will feel immersed in classic Disney stories that celebrate activities in a natural, rustic setting on the Rivers of America.

This new Disney character greeting facility will be the second dedicated greeting facility to open at Tokyo Disneyland since Mickey’s House and Meet Mickey opened about 20 years ago in 1996.
The new restaurant will be located at the existing Lucky Nugget Cafe that will be renovated with a new two-story indoor dining area on the second floor and a campfire setting. Guests will be able to relax and enjoy a meal while taking in the scenery of the Rivers of America.

Opening is scheduled for Autumn-Winter 2016. Total investment is estimated at 3 billion Yens. Note that TDL  Lucky Nugget Cafe will close in autumn 2015. With the opening of these two facilities, Tokyo Disneyland will have two Disney character greeting facilities and a total of 53 restaurants.

TDL also announced its annual schedule for fiscal year 2016 (April 1, 2016 – March 31, 2017), in chronological order:

March 25 – June 15, 2016
Special Event “Disney’s Easter”
This regular springtime event is back again this year at Tokyo Disneyland. At the secret Easter garden, Guests can enjoy a whimsical atmosphere full of flowers and plants, where Mickey Mouse and his Disney friends along with the Easter bunnies take part in an “egg race.” Guests will be able to celebrate the springtime season in a colorful way in the main entertainment, a parade featuring Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse and the Disney friends wearing bunny ears and new costumes. In various places around the Park, Guests will find decorations, merchandise themed to the “egg race.” Also, the popular “Egg Hunt” program can be enjoyed again this year.

June 16 – July 7, 2016
Special Program “Disney Tanabata Days”
The Japanese star festival known as “Tanabata” will be celebrated with a special program in a manner unique to the Disney theme parks. Offered from June 16, which is eight days earlier than it started last year, “Disney Tanabata Days” will feature traditional decorations in World Bazaar. Guests can write their wishes on “Wishing Cards” to be hung from the grand centerpiece. Mickey
Mouse and Minnie Mouse, dressed as Hikoboshi and Orihime, the two star-crossed lovers of this festival, will greet Guests along the parade route.

July 9 – August 31, 2016
Special Event “Disney Natsu Matsuri”
Natsu matsuri means “summer festival” in Japanese and Guests will be able to enjoy the hot summer with the Disney characters in this energizing special event. In the show presented at the Plaza in front of Cinderella Castle, everyone will get soaking wet as they enjoy the group dancing and the summertime heat. Guests can find Japanese banners as well as photo locations that enhance the festive atmosphere even more.

September 9 – October 31, 2016
Special Event “Disney’s Halloween”
The special event, “Disney’s Halloween,” will take place with a new theme featuring the Disney characters and mischievous ghosts. Guests can join the Halloween ghosts and the Disney characters in an exciting Halloween.

November 8 – December 25, 2016
Special Event “Christmas Fantasy”
Guests will be able to enjoy the special event “Christmas Fantasy” with the theme of “Christmas Storybooks.” Guests will find happy Christmas scenes with their favorite Disney characters that have come right out of a storybook world. The main parade will bring to life pages from storybooks showing the Disney characters having fun at Christmastime. Guests will find a 15-meter-tall Christmas tree at the center of World Bazaar, as well as holiday photo locations, garlands and other decorations in each themed land.

January 13 – March 17, 2017
Special Event “Anna and Elsa’s Frozen Fantasy”
This special event will be themed to the Disney film Frozen. In addition to entertainment programs, Guests will find decorations of ice and snowflakes that help transform the Park into a world inspired by the film.

Tokyo Disney Resort also announced that performances of “Once Upon a Time: Special Winter Edition” at Tokyo Disneyland will be extended through July 7, 2015 due to popular demand. While the show contents will remain the same, the title will change on March 21 to “Once Upon a Time: Special Edition.” The special version includes scenes inspired by the popular Disney film Frozen and two of the film’s memorable songs “For the First Time in Forever” and “Let It Go.”

Since the debut of this special version of the nighttime entertainment “Once Upon a Time,” an unprecedented number of Guests have visited the Park to see it. This extension will provide even more Guests the opportunity to see this spectacular program. The special version was originally scheduled for a limited period as part of the Tokyo Disneyland special event “Anna and Elsa’s Frozen Fantasy.” This special event started on January 13 and will end as scheduled on March 20, 2015.

As in the regular edition of “Once Upon a Time,” scenes from Tangled, Beauty and the Beast and other Disney films are projected onto the 51-meter-high Cinderella Castle using projection mapping technology to create a veritable “storybook come to life” on an awe-inspiring scale.

There is more as TDR announced the development of a new hotel named Tokyo Disney Celebration Hotel, with an opening in June 2016, in the Shin-Urayasu Area close to Tokyo Disney Resort. It will be the fourth Disney hotel to operate in Japan. Brighton Corporation Co., Ltd., a 100% subsidiary of Milial Resort Hotels, will redevelop the existing Palm & Fountain Terrace Hotel for this new hotel that will specialize in accommodations.

Currently the three existing Disney hotels have an annual occupancy rate of over 90%, which indicates the extremely high demand for Tokyo Disney Resort accommodations. Accordingly, the decision was made to develop a new hotel that will allow more Guests to enjoy a stay at a Disney hotel.

The development of the hotel will be based on a new concept that is different from the existing hotels. The designs will celebrate the magic and imagination of Tokyo Disneyland Park and Tokyo DisneySea Park in the guest rooms, the lobby and the courtyards. Guests staying in the Tokyo Disney Celebration Hotel will be surrounded by the ambiance of their favorite Disney Park memories, inspiring them to relive moments from their time spent in the Parks, as well as anticipating the experiences awaiting them the next day.

Tokyo Disney Celebration Hotel will offer attractive accommodations while making a casual resort stay possible by simplifying its facilities and services. With the opening of this new hotel, even more Guests will be able to enjoy a wonderful, unforgettable time at Tokyo Disney Resort.
The Disney hotels will continue to evolve as the hotels of choice that are favored by many Guests.

In preparation for the opening of the new hotel, the two buildings of the Palm & Fountain Terrace Hotel will close separately. The Fountain Terrace Hotel will close on February 27, 2016 and the Palm Terrace Hotel will close on June 1, 2016. After the new hotel opens, the management and operations will continue to be handled by Brighton Corporation Co., Ltd.

Pictures: copyright Disney, Oriental Land Co

Gorgeous Disney Movies Posters Art-Deco Style

Spanish illustrator and designer David G. Ferrero has created this gorgeous - let's say it - series of Disney movies posters, inspired by Art-Deco style.

Famous Disney characters from Cinderella to The Little Mermaid’s Ariel not to mention Peter Pan, The Lion King’s Simba and Frozen's Elsa have been recreated in the Art-Deco geometric style, with vivid colors, and superb typography for each movie title.

Scroll down to discover all these beautiful posters!

Artwork: copyright David G. Ferrero

Raiders of the Lost Ark "Well of Souls" Artwork

This piece of Raiders of the Lost Ark art comes from artist J.C. Richard. It's called "Well of Souls," and it captures a moment in one of the most iconic scenes from the movie.

The piece was released by the Bottleneck Gallery and Acme Archives on September 9th and is an officially licensed 12 x 36 inch screenprint in a signed and numbered edition of 225.

Artwork: copyright J.C. Richard