Here We Go Again - The D23 Expo - In 2013?

Here we go again.  Disney last week made a large press announcement for their D23 Expo at the Anaheim Convention Center with dates August 9 - 11, 2013.  That's right - August 2013- book it.  Oh, and by the way, you can't even buy tickets for the Expo until August of this year. Now granted there are people who come from long distances to attend the Expo and this does require planning so the more time you can have in advance of the dates of the event, the more people can make actual plans.  But a year and a half?  Is there something else at work here?

The Disney D23 "exclusive" fan club started in March 2009.  D23 requires an annual membership.  For many, D23 hasn't exactly delivered the goods and may be sitting on the fence as to whether they want to renew.  Nothing like putting out a press release of the the organization's signature event to remind peole to renew membership (not once but probably twice) in preparation of something that is still along way off.  D23 Expo - Be there or be square...

D23 Expo Day 2 - Random Takes From A Distance

More bits & pieces from the D23 Expo gathered from around the web..... The presentation from Walt Disney Studios was easily the highlight of Day 2 at the Expo......No electronic devices were allowed inside the Disney Studios panel......god forbid, clips of their upcoming movies make it onto YouTube.....Anyway, John Lasseter head honcho at Pixar (as well as Walt Disney Animation and few other hats that Disney hung on his head) announced 2 new Pixar projects - untitled films about dinosaurs and a trip through the human brain.....He also gave updates on the 3 Pixar films that are in various stages of production.....Brave, Monsters University (with Billy Crystal), and Planes (kind of like Cars only about, well.... planes).

Got a preview from Disney Animation's Wreck-It-Ralph which is a horrible title for a movie but the crowd loved the clip that was shown......Walt Disney Studios showed clips from John Carter on Mars and brought out the cast.......They also talked about Tim Burton's latest Disney project., an update of his short film Frankenweenie - in black and white and 3D.......sounds weird.....consider the source.

Last but not least was the chance to roll out the red carpet for Marvel Studios.  The Avengers is expected to be one of next year's biggest movies and the first Marvel production that is 100% Disney owned....Many of the cast members appeared., but the standing ovation was reserved for Robert Downey Jr. and the huge success he has had through Iron Man.....Most of the throngs of people attending the Expo are Disney people, not necesssarily Marvel fans but the Marvel segment got a very positive reception.

The other big highlight of Day 2 was the panel discussing the details of Buena Vista Street, the new walkway the enters you in to DCA.....The lessons have been learned from DCA's hideous entrance and BVS looks to give a more immersive experience similar to Main St. Disneyland.....Main focal points of BVS, the Carthay Circle Theater, a new fountain, and a small park that will be home to a new Partners statue that are offset in such a way so the grand park across the esplanade will not be seen....nice idea.....

They announced the new parade route that will start at the Tower of Terror, go down Hollywoodland around the Carthay Circle Theater (actually a high end restaurant with parade viewing dining packages), then head up towards Paradise Pier.....no announcement about what parade will be coming.

While many have enjoyed the Expo, you are beginning to hear about how much Disney has scaled back from the 2009 Expo with reduced seating leading to long waits in line - sometimes 2 hours or more.....and you are beginning to hear more about how the lack of new information has given way to much more mass merchandising of Disney goods.......Again, we're back to the same old D23 story....you pay to join, pay to get into the Expo, then pay for all kinds of D23 exclusives once you are in........ $$$$$$

Model for the new DCA Partner's statue

D23 Expo Day 1 - Random Takes From A Distance

I'm not at the D23 Expo being several hundred miles away, but thanks to the miracles of the internet and twitter, I was pretty much able to follow the goings on from the convention floor from the various Disney websites and their reporters giving all the details complete with pictures.  I'm not a D23 fan but I kind of wish I were there because, while there was a lot of reporting of disappointment compared to the previous Expo in 2009, overall it seems like a fun event (if you like to stand in long lines).

No Bob Iger.  The CEO of Disney gave his opening remarks by video as he decided this was a perfect time to take his family on a vacation (i.e."I'm an important guy and something like a convention for Disney fans just doesn't fit my schedule").....Tom Staggs, Chairman of Disney Parks and Resorts, was there and looked quite comfortable in his presentations.....And yes, he was introduced by the talking Mickey just as he was when WOC premiered.....People like Tom.....they weren't really sure if they liked the things he and others talked about when they gave the overview of the Parks and Resorts.

There was no groundbreaking news.....just updates to projects in the works or in progress.....all of them were well known......For Disneyland, they are expanding Fantasyland into the Carnation Pavillions area and setting up a new Fantasy Faire (by day - at night, it will be continue to be used by private groups).....so you get a little extra theming in kind of a dead area.......no announcements about new Tomorrowland or Frontierland projects were made to great disappointment......nothing even remotely resembling the line of stormtroopers that came out to announce the new Star Tours in 2009.....more updates on the WDW MK Fantasyland expansion, the Aulani Resort in Hawaii, and Shanghai Disneyland.....who cares, not me......And more updates on Carsland but nothing new.....

They had the presentation of this year's class of Disney Legends......when Regis Philbin is the most recognizable name (living), not a very good year......except for the Disney Legend designation for the late Jim Henson with his family on hand and Kermit to sing Rainbow Connection......Now there's a legend.

Apparently everything under the sun was up for sale and what was a convention has partially morphed into shopping mall - the part of D23 I loathe.....I would have liked to have seen the Disney archives collection as there is something special about seeing a costume or prop you remember from a movie being a few inches in front of you......

Anyway, apparently today's D23 Event is sold out as the highlight of the day will be what Hollywood celebrity types come out to show their faces to the crowd as part of the Walt Disney Films presentation.....I'm betting Robert Downy Jr. will be today's biggest appearance.....now if he would only show up in a full Iron Man suit.

D23 Expo 2011: Where's the Buzz?

So we're a week away from the D23 Expo at the Anaheim Convention Center. Regular readers of this blog know that I am not a fan of Disney D23 fan club for a whole list of reasons but I don't have anything against anyone who wants to be a D23er. It's your money. But I do follow D23 from a distance and keep track of what is being written about the Expo on various Disney websites, blogs, and forums. Compared to the 2009 D23 Expo, the one thing that is most noticeable is the incredible lack of "buzz" about this year's Expo. In 2009, excitement was everywhere and rumors were running wild. In the end, Disney ended up losing money on the deal even with all the excitement.

This year everything about the Expo seems to be manufactured, attempts to generate some grassroots enthusiasm that doesn't seem to be there. The website owners and reporters will be there in full force trying to be the "first" with a D23 exclusive through Twitter. They promote their own meet-ups and lounges at the Expo but their readers seem to have taken the build up with a great big "Yawn". (Note: If you follow D23 reporters via Twitter, make sure you set your Twitter account to not except tweets during your normal sleeping hours. Nothing like getting a text tweet at 12:30 in the morning with some D23 reporter saying he just got on Matterhorn).

Now I'm sure the Expo will be great. Disney excels at delivering great shows but the question will be "does anyone really care enough the invest in the cost of attending the Expo and what is available for purchase inside?". In a brutal economy where almost everyone is effected, Disney is pricing out a large segment of its base from D23 and the Expo. The Expo will be well attended I am sure but there is no way of telling of how many people will be there with discount ticket provided by Disney to prop up the crowd numbers. Disney never, ever, announces numbers. And what is the future of D23? I have my theories but it comes down to unless the D23 model changes, it is not sustainable in the long term.

D23 and the Almighty Comic-Con

While Disney prepares for next month's D23 Expo, 130,000 people will be descending on San Diego this week for the truly great Comic-Con. You see, Comic-Con is the convention and exposition that Disney's D23 Expo only wishes it could be. Comic-Con is such a fan experience that Disney sent people down there to see just how they do it. The Anaheim Convention & Visitors Bureau tried to steal it away fro San Diego. Film and TV studios fall over themselves trying to promote their latest efforts to the masses at Comic-Con. Nobody walks away from the Comic-Con experience without thinking "that was one great time".

In the meantime, I've heard very little build up to this year's D23 Expo as the concept of the D23 exclusive fan club seems to be running out of steam and quickly. It was just the wrong idea at the wrong time. Comic-Con promotes "experience", D23 comes off as another Disney money grab. D23 might have worked in the the late 90's or early 2000's when people really did have some disposable income. For most people, money is tight and the D23 concept of paying Disney an annual membership fee for the rights to pay them more money for "D23 exclusives" is tough to swallow. Just ask Netflix about what happens when people see an opportunistic money grab - "cancel my membership" was a popular phrase in Netflix accounting computers after they increased their subscriptions fees this past week. Will this be the last D23 Expo? If the sustainable numbers aren't there, then I would suspect it would be the last event for Anaheim. They may give it a try in WDW but the logistics just aren't as good back there because the "home office" just isn't up the road like it is in California. I tend to think D23 will morph itself into something else, something that opens up Disney to the masses outside who don't think about Disney and Mickey night and day. I keep hearing the word "Marvel" for some reason.