FULL REVIEW: The Magic of Disney Animation in Disney’s Hollywood Studios
The Magic of Disney Animation will come to life on September 14th in Hollywood Studios!
The building is located in the heart of the newly reimagined Walt Disney Studios Lot courtyard, boasting countless offerings and experiences that immerse guests in the world of Disney Animation.
Here, guests can step into the animation process (quite literally), enter familiar scenes from a beloved classic, view artifacts from popular animated films, and even learn to animate!
We were fortunate enough to be invited to preview The Magic of Disney Animation before it officially opens.
Curious what we think about this new experience? Here are our thoughts!
Full Review – The Magic of Disney Animation
The Magic of Disney Animation pulls inspiration from the iconic Roy E. Disney Animation Building, decorated with the building’s signature Sorcerer Mickey Hat.
To us, the resemblance to the actual animation building not only serves as an aesthetically pleasing landmark in the courtyard — it’s also a sign of the magic of animation that awaits inside.
Once you step inside the building, you’re surrounded by all 64 animated featured films, which are represented throughout the various experiences and offerings.
Seeing The Magic of Disney Animation return in such a monumental way is truly breathtaking.
Photo: Disney
One area that really captures the spirit of animation is the Animator’s Office. This might be our favorite section, representing what it feels like when an animator leaves their desk.
The room pays homage to Disney Animation, with some details more hidden/niche than others. We could easily spend hours looking for every easter egg…or just watching Stitch spin in the chair.
Every inch of the room holds nods to various films, giving us the ultimate challenge: can we find them all? (We can, and we will.)
Check out the video we took of this area — you’ll be able to see why we love it so much already:
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If you enjoy the nods to classics in the Animator’s Office, you’ll really love Treasures Untold in the Gallery Wrap Party section! (At least, we did.)
This gallery displays keepsakes, artifacts, and memorabilia from various Walt Disney Animation Studios projects.
This area also currently highlights Disney Animation’s newest film, Hexed, allowing us to enter this world before the film releases in theaters this November.
A color script and storyboard for the film are also on display, giving us an up-close look at the film’s animation process.
This is another area we could spend hours in. Seeing mementos from films close to our hearts feels like reuniting with an old friend (cheesy, but we’re sure you understand).
Viewing animated objects from our favorite films in real life is so unique and special!
Guests of all ages are going to enjoy this area.
The Emmy Award for Once Upon a Studio is on display here. We recommend visiting it after watching the animated short in the building’s Once Upon a Studio Theater to appreciate the hard work behind that award.
Speaking of Once Upon a Studio Theater, it’s a can’t-miss experience. You may have seen the short already, but we promise you’ve never seen it like this.
Once Upon a Studio Theater
Watching it in a theater enhances the viewing experience, but that’s not all! Characters also pop up along the walls, making us feel like we’re actually in this story.
Captain Hook & Simba and Nala
We recommend visiting the theater to watch the short before you do anything else in the building. The Magic of Disney Animation was created with Once Upon a Studio as inspiration, so it helps to have that context in mind before experiencing everything the building has to offer!
Outside the theater, guests enter an enchanted art gallery where some of the portraits come to life — just like they did in Once Upon a Studio!
Some of these portraits even interact with one another!
We’re inside the Enchanted Gallery in the new Magic of Disney Animation building at Hollywood Studios, and some of the portraits are coming to life!✨ pic.twitter.com/fDbtOXeEhF
— MickeyBlog.com (@MickeyBlog_) September 9, 2026
This is a fun, interactive moment in the building, allowing guests to play with characters like Baymax, Maximus, and the Kakamora. (We spent a lot of time doing this, by the way.)
We recommend bringing your kiddos by for this experience — it’s truly magical!
There are even some portraits where you can play interactive games with characters! Blow up balloons with Baymax🎈 pic.twitter.com/QX5eJRbKsi
— MickeyBlog.com (@MickeyBlog_) September 9, 2026
If you’re bringing your kids by to check out the enchanted art gallery, you definitely don’t want to miss “Drawn to Wonderland.” This indoor playground is themed after the Alice in Wonderland concept art created by Disney Legend Mary Blair!
Here, guests can step into familiar scenes like the Mad Tea Party.
This area is bright, colorful, and creative!
We appreciate that the play areas are separated by age, with kids ages 6 months to 23 months together, and kids ages 2 to 5 years together. (We also appreciate that there’s space to sit back and enjoy the air conditioning while our kids play!)
As Alice in Wonderland fans, this area really had us feeling like we stepped into one of our favorite animated films.
You don’t have to be a kid to appreciate the incredible level of detail in this section! (And kids will love this area.)
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During the soft opening, Alice appeared in the play area. We were told she’ll also be in “Drawn to Wonderland” on opening day!
Watching her interact with guests in her own film-themed section felt like Disney magic.
Step into the animation process at “Off the Page!” The area consists of six sections highlighting the animation process: Story, Layout, Hand-Drawn Animation, Computer Animation, Lighting, and Effects.
Each section hosts meet-and-greets with themed backdrops.
Here’s the full list of the characters and their meet-and-greet areas:
- Mulan: Story
- Rapunzel: Layout
- Chip n’ Dale: Hand-Drawn Animation
- Donald and Daisy: Computer Animation
- Goofy: Lighting
- Stitch: Effects
The variety of meet-and-greets is really exciting, and we had fun collecting interactions with this unique assortment of characters! Where else can you meet a princess, a warrior, beloved chipmunks, and an alien?
Goofy
We are also always happy to experience a meet-and-greet in air conditioning!
(You may also be lucky enough to catch roaming characters around the courtyard, including Pluto, White Rabbit, and Jiminy Cricket!)
Once you learn about the animation process, it’s time to start sketching! “Olaf Draws!” promises to be a fan-favorite section of the building, with the experience set to debut with a virtual queue. It will be used as needed, allowing guests to enjoy the other attractions and experiences in the park–or The Magic of Disney Animation building–while (virtually) waiting to attend a class.
(The virtual queue is a great choice — Animation Academy in Disney California Adventure has been open for decades and still attracts a huge crowd…and that’s without an Olaf audio-animatronic.)
Photo: Disney
With that said, we’ll gladly enter a virtual queue to experience this class!
Equipped with a piece of paper, a clipboard, and a pencil, guests create their own character sketch under the guidance of a real Disney animator. As if that’s not enough reason to attend, Olaf also sketches with you!
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We had so much fun learning how to draw beloved characters, including:
- Mickey Mouse, with Dan Abraham, director (Once Upon A Studio, Baymax!)
- Minnie Mouse, with Hyun Min Lee, animator (Frozen 2, The Princess and the Frog)
- Donald Duck, with Austin Traylor, animator (Once Upon A Studio, Moana 2)
- Genie, with Eric Goldberg, animator (Aladdin, Hercules)
- Moana, with Samantha Vilfort, story artist (Encanto, Zootopia 2)
- Stitch, with Fawn Veerasunthorn, director and head of story (Wish, Raya and the Last Dragon)
- Olaf, with Trent Correy, director (Once Upon A Studio, Frozen 3)
- Ursula, with Michael Woodside, animator (Big Hero 6, Encanto)
- Judy Hopps & Nick Wilde, with Byron Howard, director (Zootopia, Zootopia 2)
We’ve missed having sketching classes — we’re so glad “Olaf Draws!” was included in this building!
Olaf Draws!
If you know us, you know we love a gift shop. (We’ll take any chance to commemorate an experience with themed merchandise.)
The Studio Store offers animation-themed items and Walt Disney Studios merchandise, providing the perfect keepsake(s) for your trip through The Magic of Disney Animation!
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Overall, this is an experience you can explore over and over again and still manage to find something new to see and/or do! The easter eggs hidden throughout the entire building provide a challenge to spot them all every single time you enter, and the variety of characters to meet and draw create new experiences each visit.
Photo: Disney
Seeing Disney Animation come to life at this level is truly something you have to see for yourself. The way The Magic of Disney Animation evokes fond memories and transports you into worlds from beloved stories is beyond words.
We can see this experience inspiring children to dive into their own animation journeys and lean into their creative sides.
We’re so happy The Magic of Disney Animation has returned to Hollywood Studios, and we can’t wait to visit again…and again.
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Click Here for Our FULL Overview of The Magic of Disney Animation!
So head over to The Magic of Disney Animation when it opens on September 14th to enter the world of animation for yourself!
And we’ll keep bringing you the latest in all things Disney, so stay tuned to MickeyBlog.com.
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