Walt Disney Studios Park

Walt Disney Studios Park
The Earffel Tower and entrance to Walt Disney Studios Park
Location	Disneyland Paris, Marne-la-Vallée, Paris, France
Theme	Showbusiness
Website	Disneyland Paris homepage
Operated By	Euro Disney S.C.A.
Opened	March 16, 2002

Disneyland Paris
Disneyland Park Walt Disney Studios Park Disney Village
Resort hotels
Disneyland Hotel Disney's Hotel New York Disney's Newport Bay Club Disney's Sequoia Lodge Disney's Hotel Cheyenne Disney's Hotel Santa Fe Disney's Davy Crockett Ranch
Euro Disney S.C.A.

Walt Disney Studios Park is the second theme park to open at Disneyland Paris, owned and operated by Euro Disney S.C.A.. It is located to the west of the hub, next door to Disneyland Park at the heart of the resort in Marne-la-Vallée.

Since 2011, the Magic Moments Festival has been the park's theme.

Dedication

“	To all who enter this studio of dreams...welcome. Walt Disney Studios is dedicated to our timeless fascination and affection for cinema and television. Here we celebrate the art and the artistry of storytellers from Europe and around the world who create magic. May this special place stir our own memories of the past, and our dreams of the future.	”
—Michael D. Eisner, March 16, 2002

History

The park opened on March 16, 2002 and is themed after a working film studio, with the "lands" being studio lots. Most of its attractions are imported from the other Disney parks in California, Florida and Tokyo, although the park had original attractions including Moteurs... Action! Stunt Show Spectacular, which was later exported to Disney's Hollywood Studios at the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida.

It was traditional for a period of time for Walt Disney Feature Animation to have a satellite animation studio at each of the company's resorts, but the Paris studio was located in Montreuil, at the city limits of Paris and was never associated with the park. Originally the Brizzi studio owned by brothers Paul Brizzi and Gaëtan Brizzi, Disney purchased the studio in the early 1990s and renamed it Walt Disney Feature Animation Paris (WDFA). WDFA Paris' first films were A Goofy Movie and the Mickey Mouse short Runaway Brain.

WDFA Paris contributed sequences to every Disney film from The Hunchback of Notre Dame to Atlantis: The Lost Empire, most notably producing the Firebird Suite sequence for Fantasia 2000. It was closed in 2004 following Walt Disney Feature Animation Florida and Walt Disney Feature Animation Japan, when the division was downsized to save production costs.

Early Projects

Disney-MGM Studios Europe was the original plan for a second theme park and was scheduled to open in 1996. However, these plans were cancelled around mid-1992 due to the resort's financial crisis of that time. After the resort began to make a profit, plans for a movie themed theme park went into development again but on a much smaller scale. In 2002, the Walt Disney Studios Park opened.

Recent Growth

In June 2007, a brand new "land" opened in the Animation Courtyard area of the park. Called Toon Studio, the new area is themed as a "toon backlot", apparently representing the film studio work place of animated characters, where they produce their animated classics. Including favorites such as Little Mermaid, 101 Dalmatians, and The Jungle Book. The concept has been created exclusively for Walt Disney Studios Park and features two brand new attractions, not seen in any other Disney Theme Park, along with small merchandising locations and many character meet-and-greets.

The key attractions in this expansion phase are Crush's Coaster, a custom-designed Maurer Söhne SC 2000 indoor spinning roller coaster, and Cars: Race Rally themed to the 2006 Disney/Pixar film Cars, with the ride taking the form of an enhanced tea cups ride. Similar attractions can be found in Mermaid Lagoon at Tokyo DisneySea and a bug's land in Disney's California Adventure. On December 22, 2007, The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror attraction soft-opened with the new Hollywood Boulevard on Production Courtyard. Stitch Live! imported from Hong Kong Disneyland has replaced the Disney Channel Studio Tour.

In 2009, new attractions and entertainment opened at Walt Disney Studios to run alongside with Mickey's Magical Party, which began in April 2009. A new attraction Playhouse Disney Live On Stage! opened next to Stitch Live! and is presented in French, English and Spanish. For the first time, Walt Disney Studios Park received a full parade, Disney's Stars 'n' Cars is a smaller version of Disney Stars and Motor Cars Parade, which had previously come from Disney's Hollywood Studios park in Walt Disney World Resort, Florida.

In August 2010, Toy Story Playland opened to coincide with the new Disney·Pixar film Toy Story 3. This land "shrinks" the guest to the size of a toy, and comprises three attractions, as well as several photo opportunities. The three attractions are a Half pipe coaster named RC Racer, a parachute jump style ride named Toy Soldiers Parachute Drop and a Music Express train named Slinky Dog Zigzag Spin, all themed intricately around the first 2 Toy Story films.

Studio Lots

Studio 1 at the Walt Disney Studios Park

Walt Disney Studios Park is divided into 4 main 'studio lots' each representing a different area of Hollywood. When the park originally opened in 2002, they were Front Lot, Animation Courtyard, Production Courtyard and Backlot. However with the opening of Crush's Coaster and Cars Quatre Roues Rallye in 2007, as part of the parks 5th Anniversary, and Disneyland Resort Paris' 15th Anniversary, Animation Courtyard was redesigned and renamed to Toon Studio.

Front Lot

Main article: Front Lot (Walt Disney Studios Park)

Modeled after the Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, Front Lot is the main entrance way into the Walt Disney Studios Park (the equivalent of Main Street USA for instance). It features Disney Studio 1, a covered walkway themed after a studio lot with a recreation of Hollywood inside, complete with a restaurant and a shop. Outside, La Place des Frères Lumière, a tribute to the French inventors of cinema, also has a number of shops surrounding a central Fantasia-themed fountain.

• Attraction
  • Disney Studio 1
• Restaurant :
  • Restaurant en Coulisses
• Shops :
  • Legends of Hollywood
  • Studio Photo
  • Walt Disney Studios Store

Toon Studio

Main article: Toon Studio (Walt Disney Studios Park)

Themed to classic Disney films and characters, Toon Studio replaced Animation Courtyard in 2007. The area was once again updated in 2009 with the opening of Toy Story Playland.

Studio 5, home to Crush's Coaster

• Flying Carpets Over Agrabah
• Crush's Coaster
• Cars Quatre Roues Rallye
• Art of Disney Animation
• Animagique
• Ratatouille Ride (2013)

Toy Story Playland

Main article: Toy Story Playland

• Toy Soldier Parachute Drop
• Slinky Dog Zig Zag Spin
• RC Racer

Production Courtyard

Main article: Production Courtyard (Walt Disney Studios Park)

The Moteurs... Action! arena

Production Courtyard is one of the original lands of Walt Disney Studios Park. Its theme revolves around the Hollywood mythos, including its glamorous atmosphere or movie legends. It contains two distinct parts : Hollywood Boulevard (featuring a nostalgic Hollywood-inspired area, with the rides Studio Tram Tour: Behind the Magic and The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror) and Place des Stars (home to the following attractions : CinéMagique, Stitch Live! and Playhouse Disney: Live on Stage!, last both located inside the building that used to feature the Walt Disney Television Tour).

• Attractions :
  • CinéMagique
  • Stitch Live!
  • Playhouse Disney: Live on Stage!
  • The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
  • Studio Tram Tour: Behind the Magic
• Former Attractions :
  • Walt Disney Television Tour (a walkthrough attraction inside Disney Channel Studios)
  • Postshow of the Television Tour (featuring Cyber Space Mountain)
• Restaurants :
  • Restaurant des Stars
  • La Terrasse
  • Café Cafés

Backlot

The Backlot features attractions about high thrills in movies. As such, the area is targeted towards older children and adults. Here, guests can discover the thrills of a stunt set in Armageddon - Les Effets Speciaux or a stunt show in Moteurs... Action! Stunt Show Spectacular, which features a variety of vehicles, and the legends of Rock music in Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Avec Aerosmith. They can also have meals in Blockbuster Café, themed to Pirates of the Caribbean. The Backlot also features soundtracks from blockbusters such as Mission: Impossible II, Planet of the Apes, Batman, or Independence Day.

• Attractions :
  • Armageddon – Les Effets Speciaux
  • Moteurs... Action! Stunt Show Spectacular
  • Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Avec Aerosmith
• Restaurants :
  • Blockbuster Café
  • Café des Cascadeurs

Sister parks

Walt Disney Studios Park is considered a sister park to Disney's Hollywood Studios (formerly Disney-MGM Studios) in the Walt Disney World Resort, which opened in 1989. Both parks feature a show business theme, and the two parks share numerous attractions. The Earffel Tower, Walt Disney Studios Park's water-tower icon structure, is basically identical to Hollywood Studios' Earful Tower; Hollywood Studios' icon formerly was the Earful Tower prior to the construction of The Sorcerer's Hat in 2001.

See also

• Disneyland Park (Paris)
• Disney's Hollywood Studios
• Incidents at Disneyland Paris

External links

• WDS Fans - The Secrets, History and Magic of the Studios
• DLRP Magic - Guides to the Park
• Photos Magiques - Walt Disney Studios Park
• Imagineering Files - Disney MGM Studios Europe

Coordinates: 48°52′2.28″N 2°46′44.43″E / 48.8673°N 2.7790083°E / 48.8673; 2.7790083