Meet the Residents of Zootopia!| #Zootopia

Meet the Residents of Zootopia!

By Erin

*I was invited as a guest of Disney to the early press day of Zootopia for purposes of this post*

ZOOTOPIA – FLASH, THE FASTEST SLOTH AT THE DMV -- When rookie rabbit officer Judy Hopps (voice of Ginnifer Goodwin) has only 48 hours to crack her first case, she turns to scam-artist fox Nick Wilde for help, but he doesn't always have her best interests at heart. Their investigation takes them to the local DMV (Department of Mammal Vehicles), which is staffed entirely by sloths. Directed by Byron Howard and Rich Moore, and produced by Clark Spencer, Walt Disney Animation Studios' "Zootopia" opens in U.S. theaters on March 4, 2016. ©2015 Disney. All Rights Reserved.

Last month I introduced you to the World of Zootopia, a city filled with different neighborhoods that celebrate the various animal cultures. So who lives here then, you’re probably thinking?  Zootopia is a melting pot where animals from every environment live together—a place where no matter what you are, from the biggest elephant to the smallest shrew, you can be anything. Let’s take a look then at some of the critters we will find running around in Zootopia!

ZOOTOPIA – JUDY HOPPS, an optimistic bunny who’s new to Zootopia’s police department. ©2015 Disney. All Rights Reserved.

Judy Hopps

Zootopia’s first bunny officer Judy Hopps (voiced by Ginnifer Goodwin) is the first bunny ever to join Zootopia’s police department, but is sidelined into a boring career as a meter maid as she is not as big and tough as other members on the force. Judy is determined to prove herself and she jumps at the chance to crack a case, even if it means teaming up with a con-artist fox. 

ZOOTOPIA – NICK WILDE, the scamming fox who Judy reluctantly teams up with to crack her first case. ©2015 Disney. All Rights Reserved.

Nick Wilde

Con-artist fox Nick Wilde is voiced by Jason Bateman and is a charming, small-time, con artist fox with a big mouth and a lot of opinions. But when he gets outsmarted by a rabbit cop, he suddenly finds himself helping her solve a mystery.

HAVE YOU HERD? -- Zootopia's biggest pop star Gazelle will be voiced by Grammy?-winning international superstar Shakira in Walt Disney Animation Studios' "Zootopia." Shakira performs an all-new original song, "Try Everything," for the film. Directed by Byron Howard (?Tangled?) and Rich Moore (?Wreck-It Ralph?), and produced by Clark Spencer (?Wreck-It Ralph?), "Zootopia" opens nationwide March 4, 2016.

Gazelle

International superstar Shakira is the voice of Gazelle, and performs an all-new original song, “Try Everything.” Gazelle is very popular in the world of Zootopia, and has many adoring fans, including Judy Hopps and Clawhauser. She is very socially-minded and is all about acceptance and equality for all.

Continue reading »

Disney’s Aladdin-Musical Spectacular- Comes to an End this Sunday!

Disney’s Aladdin Musical Spectacular

By Erin

After nearly a 13 year run, Disney’s Aladdin Musical Spectacular will be taking a bow as the final curtain will fall this Sunday, January 10th. I was lucky enough to get in to see a special showing of Aladdin last month at a Disney Parks Blog meet-up.

This musical spectacular stars the spunky Princess Jasmine and the unstoppable street urchin Aladdin that we have all come to know and love in this stage show, but it is time to bid farewell to Agrabah as Aladdin takes his last musical, magical carpet ride. Make sure if you are trying to get in to see this for the last time that you get a *FASTPASS*. It is highly recommended that you do this to guarantee your seats for the show! You surely wouldn’t want to miss the unbelievable sights and indescribable feelings all because you forgot to get one would you? The last adventures of Aladdin, Jasmine and Genie will open your eyes to a whole new world for one last time. Experience the shining, shimmering, splendid song-and-dance extravaganza as the final curtain closes on this beloved show. So be sure to grab your FASTPASS tickets near the entrance to the Hyperion Theater—there will be limited stand-by viewing for each performance. If you haven’t been able to come into the parks to see the show for one last time, don’t fret, I got some amazing photos from the show, to give you a glimpse into the magic. 🙂

Aladdin-Hyperion-Theater-Disney-CA

The Hyperion Theater where all the magic takes place.

Aladdin-Curtain-Show-Theater-Disney-CA

Waiting for the curtains to rise for the show to begin!

Aladdin-Jafar-Disney-CA-Shows

Jafar makes his appearance.

Aladdin-Market-Theater-Disney-CA

The marketplace.

Continue reading »

Star Wars: The Force Awakens! The Cast, Costumes and More!

Star Wars: The Force Awakens!

By Erin

*I was invited as press by Disney to the Global Press Day for Star Wars: The Force Awakens for purposes of this post.*

The wait is almost over. The most anticipated film of the year; Star Wars: The Force Awakens is about to blast into theaters everywhere. Die-hard fans have been camping out for days in the cold and the rain, awaiting the arrival of the next installment of Star Wars. Everything for this film has been kept top-secret, in order to keep it fresh and new for everyone to enjoy without any spoilers. This included the press junket for Star Wars and its location. I’ve done a lot of press junkets now, and this was by far the most secretive and under wraps one yet! We were even instructed not to Geo-tag any of our posts, or we would be asked to leave. Usually there are signs once we get to the location telling us which way to go to get to the correct room for the junket, but not this one! Everything was secret. In the email it said to go upstairs and look for a white curtain. No signs anywhere, nothing. Just this white curtain, so unless you knew what to look for, you’d never know by just walking by, what was behind this very magic curtain.

starwars565e4e07cd18b

This junket was very different from the rest, as usually we are able to see the movie before the junket. This one we didn’t. We didn’t get to see it until just yesterday. Everything was top secret! So I will be giving you a little different perspective on the Star Wars: The Force Awakens than in other junket posts. This is more what my experience was and some information and thoughts from the cast on creating this masterpiece. So don’t worry, no spoilers here about the actual film! 😉

Star Wars Press Junket

The set for the Star Wars: The Force Awakens Global Press Day! We wait in anticipation for the cast to walk out!

Mindy Kaling

Eeek! Mindy Kaling (From The Office & Inside Out) was the moderator for the press conference! The conference was in two groups. The first group she introduced us to interview was: Carrie Fisher (“Leia”), JJAbrams (Director/Producer), Daisy Ridley (“Rey”), Adam Driver (“Kylo Ren”), Lupita Nyong’o (“Maz Kanata”), Lawrence Kasdan (Screenplay By).

Star Wars- Daisy Ridley-Rey-Adam-Driver-Kylo-RenSince we did not talk about the film directly (as no one had seen it), one of the things we did discuss that really caught my interest was about the costumes. We asked the cast how long it took them to get into costume.

Daily Ridley (Rey): “Twenty minutes. Does that seem long or short? Cause putting the arm things on and everything takes a while, and the wraps and everything. Had a wonderful woman called Callie helping me.”

Adam Driver (Kylo Ren): “The first time took like an hour and a half. Then we got it down to like 20 minutes, I think.”

Lupita Nyong’o (Maz Kanata):For me it took about – well, I didn’t have a costume because I was a motion capture character, but to get suited up it took about – in the beginning it took like two and half hours, maybe three. And then by the end we had it down to about an hour or an hour 15.”

Lawrence Kasdan (Screenplay): “I was ready like that. Show up ready to go.”

Carrie Fisher (Leia): “How long did it take to get into costume? About 10 minutes for the 20. I’m older and I do it faster. No, really, 20 minutes. I have a kind of classy gas station attendant look. So that doesn’t take long to put on.”

The-Force-Awakens-Costumes-Cast-Ren-Poe

They had many of the costumes on display for us to see just how detailed and intricate each one was. From left to right you have: Captain Phasma, Rey, and Poe. What does each character have to put on to complete their costume?

Captain Phasma

  • Helmet – Chrome vacuum-plated 3D printed nylon
  • Cape – Cotton canvas and painted with binder
  • Armor – Chrome vacuum-plated molded polyurethane
  • Undersuit – Cotton lycra
  • Gussets – Molded rubber and cotton lycra
  • Collar – Neoprene and rubber
  • Belt – Rubber
  • Gloves – Chrome painted 3D printed fingers over leather
  • Boots – Chrome vacuum-plated polyurethane armor over leather

Rey

  • Wrap Dress-viscose
  • Head Wrap-cotton
  • Top-hemp and cotton jersey
  • Trousers- silk
  • Backpack-leather
  • Wrist Cuff and Belt- leather
  • Pouch-canvas
  • Arm Wraps-cotton
  • Gloves-leather
  • Boots-wool and leather
  • Staff-3D print

Poe

  • Flight Suit-Orange Nylon Canvas
  • Boots-Rubber Nylon
  • Gloves-Leather Gauntlet with padded detail
  • Belt-Grey webbing with nylon and metal
  • Vest-Off white life vest with plastic clip fastenings and alliance detail on the left shoulder
  • Helmet-Molded Polyurethane Helmet

Continue reading »