Shanghaî Disneyland Update : New Pictures of Disney's Most Awaited Project !

And here we go for a new Shanghai Disneyland update with brand new pictures found on a Chinese blog. All pictures were shot outside the park this time and we'll start by new pics of SDL Enchanted Storybook Castle.

Next, pics of Adventure Isle Roaring Rapids mountain. As you'll see they've started to "theme" the mountain by adding vegetation on the "rocks".

One picture of the TRON ride show building and cover as seen from backstage, so from a side that SDL guests will never see.

The buildings you can see raising behind the grass in the foreground are the one of Disney Town. The red one is most probably the building of the Lion King musical theater.

We've got new pictures too of the Shanghai Disneyland Hotel!

But what can we find on the other side of the road nearby the SDL Hotel? Some white cranes birds...

And thefe is plenty of them keeping an eye on the works...

Now, i have a "one more thing" for you. You've seen two days ago the renderings for the Shanghai Village project, a huge art-deco style mall built at the other end of Shanghai Disneyland lake. Nice digital renderings and some of you may wonder when it will be built, considering the delay they already have on the park and resort. Well, it IS built already!!! And we've got the proof with the pics below!

O-Kay, that's all for today about Shanghai Disneyland, make sure to stay tuned on D&M, the only website bringing you each week new pics from Disney's most awaited project!

It's Official! Universal Studios Japan Reveal the "Greatest Dinosaur Ride in the World" !

It's official! Universal Studios Japan revealed today the name of the major E-Ticket ride which will open next year for USJ 15th Anniversary. Announced a few months ago as "the greatest dinosaur ride in the world" the new ride will be a "flying coaster" in the Jurassic Park land and is titled "The Flying Dinosaur". Universal announces it as the highest flying coaster in the world. As you can see on the picture above guests will be suspended under a Pteranodon and here is the synopsis / storyline of the ride:

"Since its opening in 2001, Jurassic Park has been popular to all guests around the world. Actually within the site, they avoided human management in the area where wild Pteranodon were living to keep it secret.
"Jurassic Park" development team, to make true the dream of an attraction where you'll fly with them, have been through many years of research. Finally, they disciplined the wild Pteranodon and succeeded in having him fly in a stable state. However, it is said that even well-trained, they are wild dinosaur so during the flight, be careful because it is said that sometime you can suddenly lose control..."

No need to say that this is a major announcement and this Jurassic Park flying coaster will be amazing, i'm curious to see what scenes / species will await guests who will fly around the land next year... and to see if this new Universal ride will be "imported" in Universal Studios parks in the U.S!

Picture: copyright Universal Studios Japan

Shanghai Village, the Other BIG Project of Shanghaî Disney Resort

Something else really big is currently being built at Shanghaî Disney Resort, right at the other end of SDL lake, and it completely escaped to our sight until now. And it's not because it hadn't been announced, it was announced last year but the location of the luxury Shanghaî Village - as it is named - was not disclosed explicitly so we couldn't knew that in fact this huge luxury shopping destination will be in fact located so near to Shanghaî Disneyland.

And don't think that Disney is not involved in it as it is a joint venture between Value Retail China and Shanghai Shendi Group, the developer of Shanghai International Tourism and Resorts Zone (SITRZ). Shendi as we know is the joint venture with Disney and it is master planning SITRZ with premium hotels, health spas, recreation facilities and restaurants that cater to affluent tourists and residents, and of course Shanghai Disney Resort.

Shanghaî Village will be located within the core zone of SITRZ, adjacent to Shanghai Disney Resort, at the other end of the lake. Accessible by car, metro, train and bus, Shanghaî Village will also enjoy the excellent transport links of Shanghai International Tourism and Resorts Zone.

Public transport to the Village will be provided by local buses and by Metro line 11. Metro line 11 is the first cross-provincial metro line in China. In the future, there are plans to extend Metro line 2 into a tail of the existing metro station.

From the local Shanghai Disney Resort metro station ( bottom left on the picture above ) a dedicated shuttle will transport visitors to Shanghai Village. Visitors may also choose to walk along the lakeshore paths or arrive by boat across the lake.

Shanghai Village will ultimately have more than 50,000 square metres of outlet retail and restaurant space. It will serve tourists visiting the Shanghai Disney Resort (an estimated 15 million visitors in the first year), the international and domestic tourists visiting Shanghai, as well as the catchment area of the Yangtze River Delta region, with a population of approximately 140 million.

But what i find really exciting with this Shanghaî Village is its architecture. If just like me you like art-deco style you'll be i heaven as they cleverly did the choice of a style which will remind the old romantic Shanghaî of the 20-30's, still visible on legendary Shanghaî Bund. I let you have a look at the pictures below as pictures as we know worth a thousand words...

Looks great, isn't it? Sure, it's one more place inside Shanghaî Disney Resort where they expect you to buy, eat and spend money but it will be the only luxury outlet shopping destination within the Shanghai International Tourism and Resorts Zone - you can be sure that Disney won't have any competitor miles around - and it will be defined by "a distinctive offer of international luxury, fashion and lifestyle brands and by an authentic European shopping experience, consistent with the nine Villages by Value Retail in Europe.cShanghai Village will be one of the most important luxury shopping destinations in Asia. Shanghaî Village reflects a rewarding 15 year history shared between Disneyland Paris and the popular La Vallée Village, also developed and operated by Value Retail.

Shanghai Village will be home to a unique mix of leading international and Asian luxury and fashion brands, offering their previous seasons' collections with exceptional savings throughout the year. Fashion for men, women and children, together with luxuries for the home, will be available. A suite of carefully prepared amenities will include restaurants and cafés, offering local and international cuisine.

Shanghai Village will be located in Pudong New District, 40–60 minute drive from central Shanghai and if you think it's a long term project for SDL, you're wrong. At the time i write this article Shanghaî Village is currently being built and has an opening scheduled for ...Spring 2016! May be they'll be a bit late but the goal is to open as soon as possible after Shanghaî Disneyland opening. One more good reason to go to ShanghaI Disneyland? Probably and we'll end this article with the video below showing the project and from where the screen captures below are coming.




Pictures and video: copyright Shendi - Value Retail

Disney's Africa, a Third Theme Park Concept for Disneyland Paris

I'm always amazed how Disney fans can create amazing theme parks or attractions concepts thanks to new softwares and their own talent. JameS Studios is one of them and did this really good concept of a third theme park for Disneyland Paris which would be called "Disney's Africa". The video was posted in December 2013 so i'm a bit late on this one, but better too late than never as they say...

With Pride Rock at its center and rides or shows based on The Lion King, Tarzan, and more, this Disney's Africa would also include a Jungle Cruise version, the Kilimandjaro Safaris, etc.. The software have limits so it was obviously hard for him to create ride scenes in 3D but the creation of the park architecture and vegetation is excellent and  the whole thing has a really good editing as well as smooth camera moves.

In addition there is an excellent idea for a nighttime show with projections on Pride Rock and additional fountains and fireworks, and the whole thing is very pleasant to watch, if you accept the technical limits. Very good choice of music too. At the end James and his team did such a good work that you will surprise yourself thinking you would be pleased if this Disney's Africa was existing in real at Disneyland Paris!

So, have a look at the video which is the "complete tour" of this park concept!




There is more as James also did an excellent RCT3 creation of a Grizzly River Run re-titled "Sequoia River Run" which he envision for DLP Frontierland, of course.




Videos: copyright JameS StudioS

New Revised Renderings For George Lucas Museum of Narrative Art

Nearly one year after initial designs by China's Ma Yansong were unveiled to the public, refinements to the George Lucas Museum of Narrative Art planned for a lakefront site in Chicago have been released. The site will be located between Soldier Field and McCormick Place and is currently a parking lot, When MAD Architects' design was unveiled last year happened some controversy about its size and alien form. Actually it looks a bit like Imagineer John Hench early concepts for Disneyland Space Mountain, but considering that the museum will include rare memorabilia pieces from Star Wars, the "space" style of the architecture is almost logical!

Jump to my Innoventions Blog to read the full article with plenty of artworks HERE.

New Shanghaî Disneyland Pictures !

New pictures of Shanghaî Disneyland seen "from the ground" have been posted on Twitter! The first one above shows for the first time pictures of Disney Town, SDL shopping, dining and entertainment area. The picture on the top right shows the 5 Stars Shanghaî Disneyland hotel, on the other side of the lake.

As i told you when i saw the aerial picture i still think that the "streets" of Disney Town are too narrow and i won't be surprised if they have some guest flow problem when it be will open. However there might be a reason why the streets are narrow and, apart the question of land available, it might be to keep a kind of intimacy to the town to remind the old Chinese towns... we'll see.

The other picture shows the constructions site in SDL Tomorrowland. As you'll see in the background the TRON dome  - or "cover" as they call it - is now partially covered and i think it will look much better than we thought previously.

Details About Dubai Motiongate Theme Park Rides

We've got some news about Motiongate, the theme park which will be part of Dubai Parks and Resorts which plan to become the largest leisure destination in the Middle East. Motiongate is set to open in Jebel Ali in October 2016 and will be 1.9 million square feet. This one will be the  “Hollywood” theme park with 27 attractions inspired by 13 blockbuster films. Check out the new park artwork above.

DreamWorks Animation, Sony Pictures and Lionsgate will have licensed rides in the park with films like The Hunger Games, Ghostbusters, Hotel Transylvania, The Smurfs, Zombieland, Shrek and more, see the list on the screen capture below. Attractions will include rollercoasters, multimedia theatre and a massive water ride which will use 793,000 gallons of water.

Here are some pics showing some of the lands, starting by Sony Pictures Studios land...

According to a comment on Themeparx, the Hotel Transylvania ride will be in a 2,800 square metre indoor space and will be seven minutes long. During it you’ll be seated in a carriage that holds four people. The ride is ‘trackless’, and there are 27 separate carriages going around at once, which means you’ll never know which way you’ll turn and you’re likely to have near-misses with other punters. The highest point of the ride is 42 metres (about the same height as the Statue of Liberty). The ‘story’ of the ride will be a surprise party hosted by the monsters in the movie.

The Smurfs land...

The Dreamworks zone...

"Studio Central"...

The Hunger Games attraction … hopefully let's hope that a bunch of teenagers will not be chasing us with weapons.

Guido Zucchi, Motiongate General Manager said of the park, “It’s going to be like Hollywood in the desert.” Let's hope they'll have air-con! When the full Dubai project will be finished i will include also a Bollywood theme park, a retail centre, a hotel operated by Marriott, and a separate Legoland park. More than 11,000 people are currently working on the parks to get them ready for the grand opening next year.

Last but not least here is a short video demo for part of the rides.




Pictures and video: copyright Dubai Parks and Resorts