This article, written by Luke Roberts, summarises the content of Zsolt Hormay’s NextGen Showcase presentation on Rockwork and Themed Scenery, from 26th February 2024.

This educational session was brought to us by Zsolt Hormay, Creative Executive at Walt Disney Imagineering. In this role, he oversees the Themed Finishes Art Studio encompassing rockwork, character paint, character façade and hardscape including artificial foliage. Zsolt is a world-renowned expert in the design, creation and construction of themed environments.

Cars Land at Disney California Adventure. Image courtesy of Zsolt Hormay / Disney

The Themed Finishes Art Studio at Walt Disney Imagineering (WDI) is the team responsible for making sure the storyline of a land or attraction is supported by the visual surroundings, something they refer to as ‘Place Making’.

A global WDI advisory service for design development and implementation, the team comprises an international group of the most experienced experts in themed finishes, supporting various projects to create the visual experience and ensure quality is consistent across all Disney Parks.

Their work primarily sits within five different disciplines:

Rockwork

Used in a wide range of cases, such as natural or sculptural, this work can vary hugely. The team is tasked with making similar materials - usually cement or carvable epoxy- look different depending on the surroundings they are required to fit into. This is one of the more subjective crafts, as the intention is often to try and recreate a natural environment, rather than following an exact design.

Character Façade

This comprises all architectural elements visible to the guest, such as architectural ornamentation. Unlike rockwork, character façade follows architectural plans to achieve the final product and must adhere closely to the exact design details. Different materials are used depending on the desired effect; for example, wood textures or metal finishes. Ageing techniques such as distressing are also used to make buildings look as though they’ve been in situ for hundreds of years.

This team also oversees the delivery and installation of each part of a new castle, using reference numbers to keep track of the individual elements.

Theme Paint

Because everything visible has colour on it, the field of theme paint covers every surface of a land or attraction (literally); both interior and exterior, from rockwork to ride vehicles, and showsets to signage.

The team uses digital colour boards, which have long been used for reference, to describe the look of a design and make decisions about exactly which colours will be used. Contemporary technology is leveraged to enhance existing techniques: for example, it makes it easier to track the colour of each element of an entire building, rather than selecting just one elevation and making colour decisions from that.

3D scale models are also used to show what the finished product will look like, and are often used as a point of reference in the field.

Other finishes, such as mosses and lichens or rust are recreated using a variety of materials and paints to create a natural, lived-in or aged feel.

Hardscape

Even a sidewalk should help to immerse guests, and can be an important part of the visual storytelling within a land. For example, the bioluminescent hardscape in Pandora - The World of Avatar at Disney’s Animal Kingdom was designed with the intent of making guests feel like they are in the movie.

Artificial Foliage

Increasingly, the team turns to a system of artificial foliage initially developed while creating the scenery for Pandora - The World of Avatar, which required the appearance of a significant amount of greenery that didn’t need the maintenance of actual foliage. This is the same process they are using in various attractions today.

The overall goals of the Themed Finishes Art Studio include:

Creating something beautiful, and the most convincing product imaginable.
Recruiting, training and maintaining a worldwide workforce, so that wherever WDI builds a park or attraction, they can have a base of skilled workers locally, as well as working with universities to help develop the next generation of talent, often leading into an internship program.
Constantly innovating and incorporating new technology. Even in traditional disciplines such as sculpting and painting, new techniques and developments are used to improve quality and efficiency.
Constantly striving for efficiency and maintainability, with the understanding that theming should last for a long time. This means developing themed finishes that are durable enough to be enjoyed safely by guests for decades despite the local environment and weather conditions (using techniques such as accelerated fatigue testing, wind tunnel testing, and UV testing among others).
Collaborating with all disciplines across the company, which includes dozens, if not hundreds of different roles such as ride engineering, structural engineering, audio, show lighting, operations, architecture, show set, interior design, project management and more.

The main task of the studio is to help create convincing worlds, which could be anything from whimsical and cartoonish to realistic and authentic. Even Mickey’s house in Toontown starts with a normal building and needs to comply with regulations and strict building code inspections.

These regulations - along with environmental factors such as climate, weather, and pollution, and other considerations - vary from location to location, so an understanding of local requirements is required wherever a new park or land is being built. For this reason, what appears to be the same attraction - for example, the Tower of Terror, which exists in three separate parks, each on different continents - will be designed and built differently in another in order to comply with these restrictions.

Additionally, the team strives to create a vocabulary of techniques and designs from project-to-project, with the goal of providing a range of different experiences to keep things continually interesting for guests.

Every project brings a new set of challenges, and specific techniques and even production facilities are developed to meet the goals of the project (for example, creating artificial Pandoran plant life that takes its lead from the Avatar film franchise).

Left: Venice, Italy | Right: Mediterranean Harbor, Tokyo DisneySea, Japan
Image courtesy of Zsolt Hormay / Disney

The team’s process usually begins with in-depth research. Following the blue sky phase, the team starts researching ways the landscape can be authentic and faithfully support the narrative. This can include books and internet research, reference images, and research trips to the places they’re trying to recreate. For example, in creating the Venice area of Tokyo DisneySea, they had to learn how to replicate the richness of the real environment.

In the example of Pandora - The World of Avatar, once the concept was finalised, the team created 3D scale models. These usually begin small and are eventually scaled up to 1⁄2 inch to 1ft, which were scanned and rendered in a digital format.

The steel was then put in place using an updated ‘chip and tab’ method also used for projects like Expedition Everest and Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, to ensure a high level of accuracy based on the design details.

The team then worked on-site to complete the finish, using sculpted rockwork and theme paint techniques, to achieve the final look of the land.

Field Art Directors

Projects are led by experienced Field Art Directors (F.A.D.s): accomplished artisans with extensive experience, and a vast knowledge of production and construction methods, so they understand what is required to carry out what is being asked.

They are tasked with ensuring each project is delivered within schedule and budget, looking after every detail and inspecting the site from top to bottom. They must be successful leaders to a team of artisans and contractors, often communicating through interpreters in different languages.

Zsolt often communicates onsite via a translator in his role as Field Art Director.
Image courtesy of Zsolt Hormay / Disney

The training and sample program ensures that the relevant workforce, vendors and subcontractors are available for each discipline locally, and understands the scope and needs of the project. Additionally, a selection of samples helps to ensure the right materials are chosen for each element of the work. Given that the choice of materials can vary depending on the location of the project, this work is often carried out locally.

Additionally, interfacing with the operations team in each location is also important, as they have the greatest understanding of guest safety and expectations, methodically checking every element of a project to ensure it adheres to their strict guidelines.

Zsolt Hormay’s first project with WDI was Typhoon Lagoon (1989) at Walt Disney World.

Examples of other projects Zsolt and the Themed Finishes Art Studio have worked on over the years include Big Thunder Mountain and the Dragon’s Lair at Disneyland Paris (1992), Blizzard Beach at Walt Disney World (1995), the Tree of Life at Disney’s Animal Kingdom (1998), Mount Prometheus on the Mysterious Island, and the Hotel MiraCosta Fountain Sculpture at Tokyo DisneySea (2001), Expedition Everest at Disney’s Animal Kingdom (2006), Tower of Terror at Tokyo DisneySea (2006), and Cars Land at Disney California Adventure (2012), Enchanted Storybook Castle and Adventure Isle at Shanghai Disneyland (2016), and Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge (2019) at Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Disneyland Park.

We at NextGen Showcase would like to express our gratitude to Zsolt Hormay for his contribution to our Educational Program as a Speaker. Thank you! For more information on the NextGen Showcase Educational Program, go to: NextGenShowcase.com

This article was written by Luke Roberts, with support from our Editor, Rosie Willoughby.

Themed entertainment rocks!