D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event will begin the bulk of its events on August 9, 2024. Ahead of this weekend of all that is Disney, members of the media were invited to go to the Anaheim Convention Center for a preview of what guests will be experiencing throughout the weekend. This included some incredible storytelling, a look at the merchandise opportunities, and a whole lot more. Below is a look through the lens of Mr. Daps at many of the experiences that media were able to have during this preview. This will give a look at what fans will be experiencing throughout the weekend of D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event. Daps Magic will be providing comprehensive coverage throughout the weekend and it will be posted on our D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event page.
The media preview began at the D23 Marketplace. There, Daps Magic was able to get a look at what merchandise will be available for fans throughout the weekend. See a tour of the D23 Marketplace here:
After touring the D23 Marketplace, the formal remarks began for the night. The first person to speak was Asad Ayaz, the Chief Brand Officer of The Walt Disney Company.
The next stop was the Marvel Pavilion. This is where the TV Walkthrough Experience will be found. Before checking out this experience, the media heard from Sarah Beers – VP, Franchise Creative & Marketing at Marvel.
Following Sarah Beers remarks, members of the media were able to experience the TVA Walkthrough Experience. This included getting to interact with Rocket Raccoon. Check it out the experience here:
The next destination was the Disney+ pavilion. There, Joe Early, President of Direct to Consumer at Disney Entertainment spoke. He shared about his experience helping launch Disney+ and his experience at the D23 Expo five years earlier. Bluey and Bingo also showed up right after his presentation. This video includes his remarks, a tour of the pavilion, and the arrival of Bluey and Bingo.
Here is a video of just Bluey and Bingo for those that don’t want the remarks and tour:
The Lucasfilm Pavilion was the next destination. This is where the ILM Stagecraft experience is found. As the media arrived, an R5 droid was found on the stage.
The formal remarks at the Lucasfilm Pavilion included a demonstration of the ILM Stagecraft experience courtesy of Rob Bredow, SVP, Creative Innovation at Lucasfilm. This was pretty amazing as movie magic was shown.
The next stop was the Disney Experiences Pavilion. This year the focus on this is what Walt Disney Imagineering is doing. There are a lot of exciting things here. This includes a demonstration of the holofloor. For the media preview, Imagineer Lanny Smoot was on hand to talk about this invention. The BDX droids also made a surprise appearance for the media preview as well. It is not expected that they will be appearing during D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event. Bruce Vaughn, Chief Creative Officer of Walt Disney Imagineering, introduced the pavilion and droids. He made it very clear that there are some exciting things coming in the next ten years and that it won’t just be blue sky but shovels will be going into the ground.
Here is Bruce Vaghn’s introduction to the pavilion:
Here is a tour of the full pavilion with the two presentations:
The final destination was the Walt Disney Archives pavilion. This year, there was an exhibit called “A Great Big Beautiful Car Show.” This had some famous cars from Disney’s history through the years. This includes Herbie, a car of Walt Disney’s, a TRON Lightcycle, some Muppets vehicles, and many other vehicles. It really was incredible. The exhibit was opened by Michael Vargo, Head of D23: The Official Disney Fan Club & Becky Cline, Director of Walt Disney Archives. The introduction ended with a cutting of a ribbon to open the exhibit.
This is a tour of ” A Great Big Beautiful Car Show” from the media preview:
D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event will be filling the Anaheim Convention Center from August 9 through August 11, 2024. This will see thousands of fans descending on Anaheim for this ultimate Disney fan event. In the evenings, the focal point will be on the Honda Center where there will be presentations for the future of Disney Entertainment and Experiences along with the Disney Legends Award Ceremony. Daps Magic will be covering all of this. Be sure to not miss any of it by subscribing to the Daps Magic newsletter and also following along on social media!
What do you think of what you are seeing of D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event? What are you most excited about? Share your thoughts and opinions in the comments below!
