We were lucky enough to get tickets for the D23 D100 The Exhibition Preview event at Excel London on 12th October.
The event started with check-in at 11:30, where we were given our event lanyards and a gift bag, we were then shown upstairs for beverages and nibbles.
The gift bag contained a D100 plush (Mickey, Minnie or Chip and Dale), Disney+ ear hat, D100 The Exhibition tote bag, Charlotte Tilbury blush (not what Beans wanted), D100 Mickey pin, D100 The Exhibition pin and a Walt Disney cartoonist mug.
At 11:45 we were welcomed by Michael Vargo the head of D23 and Kelsey Williams the curator of the exhibit. We were then shown up to the top floor where we got to meet Mickey and Minnie in their D100 outfits.
12-1:30 was the scheduled time for the exclusive preview of Disney100: The Exhibition begins. Private shopping was also scheduled for this time.
On going down to where the exhibit was located we were asked to stand in front of a green screen for a picture, then given a Photopass to take to the photo machine at the end of the exhibit.
We then went down a corridor to a holding area where we waiting for the exhibit to open.
When we were allowed in we went into a smallish room with a screen, which had an intro with Walt himself.
The exhibit is based over 10 rooms, and reflects on 100 years of Disney. From the very beginning, Walt’s passion, through the decades of the company.
Representatives from Walt Disney Archives, and beloved Disney luminaries were on hand. Bret Iwan the voice of Mickey Mouse was also there, sadly we didn’t get a chance to meet him.
We did however meet a Disney legend, the great Eric Goldberg. Eric is an animator, voice actor and director and worked on animation for Aladdin, he was the lead animator for the Genie, he was the lead animator on Phil in Hercules, he was the co-director on Pocahontas, director for Fantasia 2000’s “The Carnival of the Animals” segment, he has worked on ride animation and the nighttime spectaculars, these are just a small a few of his incredible works.
The exhibit had lots of areas you could interact with, lots of points you could listen at. There was so many photo opportunities and so many amazing things you would want to photo.
The layout was really well done. And really showcased Disney at its best. You could see the thought that had gone into each space.
At the end of the exhibit there was an animation area where you could use light boards to copy a picture, and pictures to colour in. There was another photo location, the booth to purchase your photos from and the exhibition shop.
We felt the only downside to the day was an hour and a half was not long enough to really explore the exhibit to its full potential, so we are already planning on booking tickets to go back and see it all again, and take our time over it.
TTFN, Titch
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