Believe it or not, there’s one ride at Disney World that never has a long line.
It features one of the greatest comedic talents alive, Eric Idle.
It was designed by the most talented “imagineers” on the planet, the ones at Disney.
And its subject is one we associate with Disney itself — imagination.
Yet the ride, Journey Into Imagination, sucks.
It’s not fun. It’s not funny. And nothing about it seems especially imaginative.
How could this be?
I can only guess, but I suspect it’s the result of having too much of what we think we can never have too much of: talent, ingenuity, money, resources.
And not enough of what we think we should always overcome: limits.
To stimulate creativity, imagination needs limits as much as corn flakes need milk.
Give me an unlimited budget to create an ebook on anything that comes to mind, and I’ll draw a blank. Or worse, write bloated copy that sinks under its own weight.
But charge me with a specific audience. A precise proposition. A sharply defined budget and production schedule. And suddenly, my imagination will come alive as it rises to the challenge. And the resulting product will be stronger for it.
Imagination is not a butterfly that flitters about. (And it’s certainly not a “figment,” as Disney would have it.) It’s a battle-scarred bruiser that needs something to wrestle with to stir it into action.
In these dark and troubling times, we marketers face formidable limits. Embrace them. The resulting rough-and-tumble may lead to our most genuinely imaginative work.
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It’s somewhat like rules for sports. Think if there were no rules to, say, basketball. You could dribble, or you might not. You could be gentle, or just punch some guy in the stomach. But it wouldn’t be fun; it would be chaotic.
Rules and limits are simply a framework, not inhibitors.
Great post.
Thanks, Brett!
Robert Frost similarly said that writing verse without rhyme or meter was like playing tennis without the net. His point was that these impositions or restrictions create a necessary tension. Without it, there’s no game — or no poem.
Kinda like the structure of a sonnet or haiku, huh? The form is strict, but the beauty and creativity that can come from it is inspiring.
Just a sec, as I raise my geek flag.
The Journey Into Imagination ride used to have very long wait times. (In fact, I was a cast member working next to Imagination at The Land pavilion in the early 90s and remember the lines).
The original ride took guests on a ride through the imagination process… how we collect bits of ideas and store them… Then the ride shows us how these ideas can be combined to create works of art, literature, performing arts and applied to science and technology.
The original challenge of the ride was to take something abstract (the imagination/creativity) and create a metaphor that would resonate with Guests.
Since the ride opened in the 80s it has been changed several times… each time, it seems, the message has been watered down.
Eric Idle is a relatively recent addition – an attempt to add celebrity/comedy to make the ride more fun.
The character Figment (the purple imagination dragon) is a polarizing character… Either you love him or hate him. They removed Figment from the ride at one point… and had to put him back due to Guest complaints.
Long story short… I agree that Disney does a better job executing great imagination than it does explaining it in a ride attraction.
The Imagination ride is like the rest of the attractions at EPCOT… they try to teach you about communications, energy, the ocean, the land… One of the reasons why EPCOT isn’t as popular as the other theme parks is that it’s a blend of education + entertainment, not just pure fantasy.
Paul,
I salute your geek flag!
However, I challenge you to apply this acid test to any amusement park attraction: as guests get off the ride, look at their faces.
With successful attractions, people climb out giddy and excited. They shout, giggle, laugh and smile.
The Imagination ride? You’d think you just passed a wake. No one leaves smiling.