The Disney Frontier Blog

Posts have been a little sparse this week and last. This has been because I’ve been working on a new site feature - The Disney Video Browser. It allows you to view Disney related videos quickly and easily on this site. You can choose from a few keywords I’ve set up, or enter your own search term. You will then see a list of YouTube videos - specific to Disney - that match your keyword.

Once you select a video, you will be taken to page to play the video.

My favorite feature is on the play page, you will see a list of tags for that video. These are tags that were added by the owner of the video. You can then click on one of those tags and see a new list of videos. You can spend a lot of time browsing videos in this manner.

I have many ideas on where to take this next, but check it out and let me know your thoughts.

In honor of the 70th Anniversary Walt Disney’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Great American Ink has created an online video and exhibition that you can see at their site. Snow White was Walt’s first feature length film and he received much criticism while making it, even from his wife Lilian. But, obviously, taking a big risk and having a great vision paid off.

Read the full press release from Great American Link after the jump

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John Frost over the TheDisneyBlog.com has created The Disney Fan Network. It aggregates the member blogs into one feed as well as adds a search engine to be able to search them. Seems like a great tool for Disney fans to keep up on multiple blogs at once. If you’re interested, I’ve added the badge in the left sidebar. It’s not very attractive but hopefully you will find it useful. Let me know what you think and thanks John for setting it up.

From Disney’s PR Group:

Highly Anticipated Free-to-Play Massively Multiplayer Online Game Launches for PC and Mac Platforms

NORTH HOLLYWOOD, Calif. – October 31, 2007 – Disney Online today announced that Pirates of the Caribbean Online (www.PiratesOnline.com), an immersive massively multiplayer online game (MMOG) and virtual world inspired by the popular film franchise, has launched for the PC and Mac platforms. Pirates of the Caribbean Online allows thousands of players to fully experience the adventures made famous in the films and explore beyond these boundaries in a quest to become the most legendary pirate on the high seas.

“The launch of Pirates of the Caribbean Online opens up an entirely new world of pirate adventures to thousands of fans who can now play alongside their favorite characters in a fully-immersive environment that builds on and goes beyond the epic stories created in the films,” said Paul Yanover, Executive Vice President and Managing Director, Disney Online. “We believe the game’s focus on action and adventure, combined with many customization options will appeal to a broad audience of both gamers and fans of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise as they set out on their own course to live the legend.”

In Pirates of the Caribbean Online, players create and customize their own pirate, captain their own ship, and assemble a crew of their fellow rogues in an effort to become the Caribbean’s most legendary Pirate. Along the way, players will interact with characters made popular by the films, like Jack Sparrow, Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann, and will also encounter a host of new characters and enemies unique to the game. To become the most notorious pirate, players must forge alliances, hunt for buried treasure, battle evil undead forces, and use cunning and strategy to outwit their foes.

Game features include:

• Create your own Pirate character – Players choose from over a million combinations to fully customize their own Pirate (body type, face, hair, clothing, names, etc.).
• Set sail on your own Pirate ship - Captain your own ship then recruit a crew of fellow players to set sail for the adventure of a lifetime.
• Quest for adventure and treasure – Embark on ship and land-based missions to locate buried treasure. Explore lush jungles, volcanic caves, and vast tropical islands but beware of traps, ambushes, and double-crosses which are an every day occurrence when keeping company with Pirates.
• Use advanced weaponry – Players engage in epic battles using a variety of weapons such as cutlasses, grenades, pistols and cannons and can unlock more powerful weapons as they improve their reputation as a fighter to be reckoned with.
• Become a legend – Master a variety of skills, including sword fighting, card playing, and treasure hunting to become the most notorious pirate in the world.
• Work your Voodoo Magic – Voodoo magic is used to heal, travel and cast curses on enemies.
• Get some Booty – Earn extra loot by competing in parlor games such as poker and blackjack.
• Build a notorious crew or guild – Players band together with others for expanded adventures and added power, forming a crew for quick battles or joining a guild for longer-term strategy.
• Grow your wealth with money and rare items – Hunt for buried treasure including gold, precious gems and mysterious artifacts.

The successful Pirates of the Caribbean film franchise, including Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl (2003), Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest (2006) and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End (2007), has grossed close to $2.7 billion at the worldwide box office.

Pirates of the Caribbean Online, developed and published by Disney Online, is rated E10+ and features lower PC and Mac system requirements than most other games in this genre, allowing for easier access to a broader audience of players.

Players can download the game directly and access additional information at the game’s Web site, www.PiratesOnline.com. A portion of the game is available for free and players can get unlimited access for a monthly subscription fee. At launch, Disney Online is offering new players subscriptions to Unlimited Access for a first-month fee of $4.95 and continuing with a $9.95 fee for following months

I had previously blogged about this almost a year ago. I hope they got it right considering how long it took them.

I received an email from Tim, the owner of AfterTheMouse.com. Here is what he had to say about his new site:

For more details contact:

Tim Jennings (site Owner)

(Rather than post his email address, contact me if you want it)

London 30th October

Disney Cast Members get their own independent web community.

After the Mouse is an independent, non-Disney affiliated community portal for past and present Disney Cast Members.

The site was founded to answer the one question guaranteed to be asked at any Disney Reunion, “I wonder what happened to that kid we used to work with…?”

The site is founded by English ex-Cast Member Tim Jennings who says “The idea behind the site is simple; many of us who worked for the Mouse have very fond memories of this special time in our lives, and the friends we made. The community allows members to find each other, make contact and renew friendships.”

The community is open to all Cast Members regardless of where or when they worked. Parks, Resorts, and Disney Store employees are all welcome to join and find their place in the group.

Blogs

Blog posts and links to http://afterthemouse.com/ would be really appreciated. All links will be reciprocated. Specialized blogs of particular interest may be added to our “news and Rumor” pages

Since I am not an ex-cast member (just a wanna be), this site isn’t for me. However, if you are, check it out and give Tim some feedback.

Walt Disney World is asking Mom’s to join in on educating guests. They are looking for 10-12 individuals - I would assume females since the site is called Walt Disney Moms - to help with a new forum set to launch in 2008. Here is some copy from their site:

Have you and your family experienced Walt Disney World® Resort? Are you a self-proclaimed expert on all there is to see and do? Well, if so, then we’d like to hear from you!

Walt Disney World Moms Panel

If your kids graduated from Baby Einstein DVD’s to Little Einstein’s on the Disney Channel, you’ll be happy to hear there is a new Little Einstein’s DVD coming out August 21st. Rocket’s Firebird Rescue features 51 minutes of Rocket and his new mysterious friend, Firebird, as well as June, Annie, Quincy, and Leo.Here are three video clips from the new DVD that you can watch today:

• Ballet
• Try to Stop Rocket
• Instruments

There are a few bonus features on the DVD.

• “Magic Mission Mode” — In this alternate viewing experience, discover new animated pop-up fun facts while enjoying the movie
• Bonus Episode: “Rocket Soup”

I’m curious to see what the alternative viewing experience is all about. I have received an advanced copy and hope to have a review up in the next day or so. Stay tuned!

I don’t think all of you will like some of these photos, but some of them are very good. These artists took some liberty with the image and likenesses of Mickey Mouse. Appreciate it as art.

Walt Disney Feature Animation is now Walt Disney Animation Studios. Thanks for the heads up Cartoon Brew: Cartoon Brew: Leading the Animation Conversation » Disney Feature’s New Name

Universal is opening a Harry Potter themed amusement park called “The Wizarding World of Harry Potter” in Florida, in 2009. I can see this drawing crowds and attention, but the problem I forsee is it’s built around one story. There won’t be ways to change or evolve the park over time, unless more books are released.

One of the best parts of the Disney resorts is that they are constantly fueled by new stories, new movies and new characters. More generic parks, like a six flags for example, can create their own stories or borrow from those outside the park. A Harry Potter themed park will be contrained to the actual story.

Here are some links to stories about the park:

BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Harry Potter theme park planned

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18950473/

http://www.cnn.com/2007/SHOWBIZ/Movies/05/31/potter.park.reut/index.html

Earlier, I apologized for some server downtime - 7 days to be specific. Because of the release of the new Pirates movie, traffic to this site almost doubled. So my jenky hosting provider shut me off. You can read the whole story at my other blog. Now I know how John felt when he got delisted from Google last year.

My birthday was back in May, but due to my move to Phoenix and recent server downtime, I didn’t get a chance to post this. This came via email on the day of my birthday. I know it’s automated, but thanks.

That was excruciating. I will have a blog post up shortly explaining what happened.

If you’re reading this through my RSS feed, come check out the new site design. If you’re reading it on the blog, you already see it. What do you think?

I have created a site over at tumblr.com for more frequent quick posts. The url is http://disney.tumblr.com/. I am trying to get it so those posts display over on this site, but it’s giving me trouble. Anyway, check it out.