SXSW Was Disney’s Festival of Friendship
The Walt Disney Company just sent a presentation to the vaunted SXSW, aka South by Southwest.
Disney Entertainment Co-Chairman Alan Bergman joined Disney Experiences Chairman Josh D’Amaro onstage for the event.
Photo: SXSW
We’ve seen D’Amaro at SXSW before, as it’s where he debuted the real-life Star Wars lightsaber and the Judy Hopps gymnastic robot.
But the union with Bergman signified something larger. Currently, Disney’s top executives are competing to succeed Bob Iger as CEO.
Photo: Disney
Dana Walden recently performed a Q&A session at the Morgan Stanley Conference, which was seen as something of an audition.
Now, Bergman gets his shot, while D’Amaro tries to prove that he’s a team player who can run the Disney Flywheel effectively.
Photo: Disney
How did the two individuals perform, and what did we learn about Disney theme parks?
Well, the truth is that we didn’t learn much about the former, but on the latter point, this was legitimately like a mini-D23!
Photo: Disney
Let’s discuss Disney’s SXSW presentation, but I expected to be competitive but turned out to be a Festival of Friendship.
The Future of World Building at Disney
First, I’ll mention that this was a professional presentation, with every smartphone in the crowd recording.
I hadn’t anticipated the level of detail and production Disney brought this to year’s event.
Photo: Disney
The company pulled out all the stops by bringing Marvel’s Kevin Feige, Pixar’s Peter Docter, and several Imagineers to the show.
Also, a couple of people who were crucial to the success of Iron Man appeared.
Photo: Disney
We’ll get to them in a moment, but you know them. So, SXSW received MUCH more significance in 2025.
The event started with BDX Droids, The Mandalorian, and Grogu.
Photo: Disney
What everyone noticed was that the BDX Droids moved well with their stubby little robot legs.
That aspect proved important, as the executives revealed that the BDX Droids are coming to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.
Photo: Disney
This fact underscores the reality of research and development (R&D) at Walt Disney Imagineering.
We’ve seen this droid tech several times, including at Disneyland. Imagineers revealed the creative process, which I found fascinating.
They computer-animated countless droids, allowing their machine learning to understand real-world physics.
The best ones become the AI for the BDX Droids. So, only the best and the brightest will get to Walt Disney World this year.
When Film Meets Theme Park Design
This conversation was a bit different in that Bergman revealed his excitement over the process.
As the person who runs Disney’s film division, Bergman only works with Imagineers on occasion, unlike D’Amaro, who does it daily.
Photo: Disney
Bergman expresses his delight when he watches ideas from his films become parts of theme park experiences.
He’s not the only Hollywood fixture who feels this way. Bergman brings two Imagineers and actor/director Jon Favreau onstage!
Photo: Disney
I’m not joking when I say that Favreau couldn’t hide his smile and delight throughout the BDX Droid part of the presentation.
The creator of The Mandalorian describes the similarities between special effects in films and Imagineering R&D.
Disney’s Next Generation of Attractions
Favreau appeared to highlight the symmetry between Disney Imagineering and the various film divisions.
The director of 2026’s The Mandalorian & Grogu detailed the similarities between his special effects and WDI’s processes.
Photo: Disney
For their part, the Imagineers on stage sounded delighted with their jobs as they detailed a new venture.
On the same day The Mandalorian & Grogu debuts in theaters, Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run debuts a new mission.
View this post on Instagram
If you pay attention to this Instagram clip, you’ll notice one of its most exciting elements. You visit the wreckage of a Death Star!!!
One of the Imagineers mentioned they had access to the vast special effects library at Industrial Light & Magic (ILM).
Photo: Disney
So, they could draw from previously created characters and backgrounds for the new Smugglers Run mission.
The Imagineering team and various Disney luminaries also recounted details about other upcoming attractions.
Photo: Disney
Disney revealed some steps they’ve taken to create authentic ride experiences.
A group of Imagineers went off-road riding as a planning session for the upcoming Cars attraction at Frontierland.
Photo: Disney
The goal of such brainstorming sessions is to identify the fun parts of the experience while dropping the ones riders may not enjoy.
For those who aren’t from rural areas, off-roading is a joy until you hit a bump so big you nearly lose your lunch.
Photo: Disney
The Imagineers put on their safety helmets and took a lot of bumpy roads to save you from future aggravation.
Disney’s Other New Rides
That’s just one new project under development. Pixar’s leader, Pete Docter, appeared to discuss a project dear to his heart.
Docter’s directorial debut was Monsters, Inc., and he relayed an anecdote about envisioning the door scenes as a Disney ride.
Now, life imitates art with the creation of Disney’s first-ever suspended roller coaster. Take a look:
Yes, the ride lifts you into the air and then…carries you into the wall.
My wife noted that it’s basically a high-tech roller coaster version of the premise at Peter Pan’s Flight.
Since that ride design has stood the test of time, turning 70 in July, Disney could do a lot worse.
Photo: Disney
Then, Kevin Feige appeared to discuss the Avengers Campus expansion, and a surprising individual joined him on stage.
Robert Downey Jr. came out to discuss Stark Flight Lab, and he has taken a personal interest in its success.
Photo: Disney
According to the actor, he has provided insights about the experience.
Not only does RDJ sound heavily invested in the ride experience, he openly campaigned to work on more Disney projects.
Photo: Disney
At the end of the presentation, D’Amaro returned to the stage and made a public promise to have RDJ do more with Imagineering.
Symbolically, that one gesture embodied the unification between Disney’s film and theme park divisions.
Photo: Disney
The Imagineers love working with the ILM/Lucasfilm tools, while RDJ, Docter, and Favreau live out childhood fantasies by working on rides.
About Bergman and D’Amaro’s Performances
When announced, Disney’s SXSW appearance seemed like an audition for D’Amaro and Bergman.
In reality, they acted eerily similarly to Conan O’Brien last week at The Academy Awards.
Photo: Disney
D’Amaro and Bergman performed a brief introduction but then ceded the floor to other Disney dignitaries.
They’d return a couple of times to connect segments, but their presence at SXSW was largely symbolic.
Photo: Disney
Anybody else at Disney could have done the same thing. But I doubt Favreau, Docter, and RDJ would show up for a nobody.
The celebrity presences here served a secondary purpose to reinforce the title and theme of the 2025 presentation.
View this post on Instagram
The Disney Flywheel requires all the company’s pieces to work together.
A theme park attraction like Stark Flight Lab makes RDJ more famous and extends his recognition.
Photo: Disney
We’ve witnessed the same thing happen at Muppet*Vision 3D for Jim Henson and Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith.
So, despite outward appearances heading into the event, Disney’s SXSW presentation was much more about “WE” than expected.
Photo: Disney
D’Amaro and Bergman didn’t really do much, which means this event won’t move the needle any with Disney’s CEO succession.
As with Dana Walden’s Morgan Stanley Conference Q&A session, this presentation’s individual value was largely overstated.
Photo: Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images
Rather than a competitive affair, it was proof that Disney’s various divisions get along swimmingly.
For Disney itself and its fans, this was like Christmas on a random Saturday, though.
Photo: Disney
We just learned more about theme park expansion today than we will at any point other than a D23 parks presentation.
Thanks for visiting MickeyBlog.com! Want to go to Disney? For a FREE quote on your next Disney vacation, please fill out the form below, and one of the agents from MickeyTravels, a Diamond Level Authorized Disney Vacation Planner, will be in touch soon!
