Images Credit: DisneyEPCOT’s transformation is well underway. We’ve seen the four new neighborhoods begin to take shape as we await the arrival of the highly-anticipated Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind roller coaster, a new restaurant, and a Moana-inspired experience. With all the buzz around the Disney Park, we’re thrilled to see a behind-the-scenes look and new details for a brand-new statue coming to EPCOT.
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In case you missed it, Disney fans celebrated Walt Disney’s birthday on December 5. This year, Walt would have been 120 years old! And while the iconic Partners statue featuring Walt and Mickey has recently been refurbished at Magic Kingdom Park, EPCOT has also announced it will soon be welcoming a new Walt Disney statue to the World Celebration neighborhood.
Walt may have never seen his dream of EPCOT become a reality, but he was in fact the dreamer behind the Theme Park. A new statue called “Dreamers Point” has been announced for EPCOT to be placed near Spaceship Earth. Walt said, “EPCOT will always be in a state of becoming…” and that is exactly what it is right now.
Disney Parks took to Twitter to share, “To celebrate Walt Disney’s birthday, enjoy a behind-the-scenes look at the making of a brand-new statue, coming to Walt Disney World at Dreamers Point as part of the historic EPCOT transformation.” Check out the video in the tweet below:
Disney Imagineer, Zach Riddley, provided further details about the Imagineering behind Dreamers Point:
Today we celebrate the birthday of Walt Disney. EPCOT was a special dream of Walt’s – a place that stands for big ideas. From its very beginning, when Walt Disney himself dreamed up a grand vision of an experimental prototype community of tomorrow, EPCOT has been based on a set of aspirational ideas rooted in a deep respect for people
Central to these ideas is a belief that ingenuity and imagination can lead humanity to achieve the impossible.
One of the first decisions we made as a team dreaming up this next chapter of EPCOT was to create a space dedicated to Walt. That lead us to the idea of Dreamers Point – and a statue of Walt that would live in this place. Recently we shared this video of Imagineer Scott Goddard sculpting what will later become the model for this full sized bronze sculpture. I have had the honor of watching Scott make his magic, a true artist, dreamer, Imagineer creating something that will inspire all who come to this place.
The statue of Walt Disney shows him at the time of his life when he was dreaming up EPCOT and the overall Florida Project. He’s older, positioned as one of us, sitting at Dreamers Point off axis, looking out at the park he never saw in person but created in spirit.
Walt founded WED Enterprises – later known as Walt Disney Imagineering – to create reality from dreams. We continue his legacy through work like the EPCOT transformation and in commitment to craft from artists like Scott.
We owe Walt so much, as do the countless creators and dreamers and storytellers who follow in his footsteps.
Thank you Walt.
Disney has yet to announce when the new Walt Disney statue will be ready for display.
Do you like the look of the new Dreamer Point statue coming to EPCOT? Let us know in the comments.