Disney vacation details are everywhere when you visit Walt Disney World. Often it's a bit surprising when you stumble upon a detail that you weren't expecting. I was met with yet another Disney Vacation detail when I recently checked into their Art of Animation resort.
Disney's newest resort complex is their Art of Animation. Every Disney property is built around a particular theme. The theme here celebrates Disney Animators and pays tribute to some of Disney's most beloved animated characters. This 87 acre resort is divided into 4 sections - The Little Mermaid, The Lion King, Finding Nemo and Cars each with Disney story themed rooms decorated to reflect these movies. The Little Mermaid section offers standard value rooms that sleep four but the The Lion King, Nemo & Cars sections offer amazing new family suites that give parents privacy while accommodating a total of 6 guests.
As guests arrive at Disney's Art of Animation they enter Animation Hall which is home to most of the resort's main public areas. One of the first things guests see is the check in desk area. I was with several other travel agents and one immediately commented..."I love how bright and colorful the wall is here at check in - The stripes are so cheerful". Surprised by yet another Disney vacation detail, my response to her was "Those aren't stripes, it's a PMS color chart".
Admittedly I deserved the confused stare I got and the comment "What do you mean PMS?".
You see, I am the proud mother of an artist and digital animator. Parents of children who are passionately obsessive about a particular topic find that we get to learn all sorts of new things through the eyes of our kids. I'm the type of person who cannot draw a stick figure but thanks to my son, I've learned a decent amount about the world of artists and animators.
One year when he was in junior high, my son's Christmas list contained a request for a pantone color guide. Considering the only presents this kid ever asked for were pencils and sketch pads I knew it had to have something to do with his artwork. A trip to our local art supply store gave me some schooling.
Long story short, Pantone was a N.J. printing company that created a system of standardizing colors called a PMS color chart. In printing (and even photography) all the colors are created by the blending and mixing of just 4 colors - Cyan, Magenta, yellow and black (CMYK for short - They use the last letter in blacK as not to confuse people with the color blue). The pantone company created a numberic color recipe guide that has become an industry bible for artists. Every shade of every color in the rainbow was given a precise number based on the amount of CMYK ink it takes to create this EXACT color. An animator or art director would never say "make the flower yellow"...they would say "make the flower PMS 108".
Having a precise color recipe or formula takes a lot of the guess work out of any color art. This is especially true when it comes to animating films. No two computers are set the same. Colors on one computer may appear completely different on another moniter screen. When it comes to animating films, there might be hundreds of artists in several studio locations all working on different aspects of the same feature film. By having an exact pantone color palette mapped out for each character, it insures that Mickey will always be the same color black and Donald will always wear the exact same color blue jacket in every poster, website, film and video game.
So... if you're a artist (or you have given birth to one) you will notice and appreciate the pantone details behind Disney's Art of Animation Check in desk.
If you're not artistic, you'll still appreciate the bright, cheerful and colorful welcome.
If you are the parent of a young child who is obsessed with drawing and watching cartoons, encourage your child with their passions. Ever since he was little, I've always enjoyed watching animated films with my son. It's not just for the entertainment value but because his love for the art of animation. I am sure the two of us may seem like an odd pair today walking into the premier of a Disney movie now that he's a grown, 6 foot tall man with a beard. Still he is still my favorite person to watch a Disney film with. Afterwards we usually enjoy a meal together while he chats for hours about all the animation details, special effects and things that I neglected to even notice. It's always great when your kid teach YOU a thing or two. I have a feeling if Disney's Art of Animation resort was around when Jared was little, I might not have been able to get him to leave!
