'Disney Animation: Immersive Experience' takes over former 'Van Gogh' space in Cleveland

Jan. 20—Van Gogh has taken a hike, and Mickey Mouse and his pals have moved into his recently vacated Cleveland digs.

After hosting the highly successful, several-times-extended run of "Immersive Van Gogh" — built around large projected images of the works of 19th-century artist Vincent Van Gogh — Lighthouse ArtSpace Cleveland has begun hosting "Disney Animation: Immersive Experience."

During its VIP preview on Jan. 18, some young ones gazed in amazement as bits and pieces of myriad movies from Walt Disney Animation Studios, complemented by music and dialogue, were projected on the four tall walls of a huge, rectangular, carpeted warehouse space. Other little attendees ran and jumped along a floor that was constantly changing — stars, leaves and more projected from above — while wearing illuminated bracelets that frequently changed colors.

The man charged with sewing together all that Disney magic is Toronto-based J. Miles Dale, the producing partner of acclaimed filmmaker Guillermo del Toro. Dale has helped turn the latter's visions into movies that include 2021's "Nightmare Alley" and 2017 Academy Award winner "The Shape of Water."

Speaking just after the roughly 45-minute show's Cleveland debut, Dale says he was approached about a year ago by Corey Ross, founder of Starvox Entertainment and Lighthouse Immersive, which has spaces in several North American cities. Ross wanted Lighthouse to move beyond art-based shows such as "Van Gogh."

"We talked about what would work, and I said I thought the best thing would be Disney," Dale says, adding that Ross already had "tried to take a run at Disney."

Fortunately, Dale had made films for Fox Searchlight Pictures and its successor, Disney-owned Searchlight Pictures, and knew folks with Disney StudioLab, a division of the House of Mouse that deals with state-of-the-art tech.

It also didn't hurt that Walt Disney Animation Studios was founded in 1923.

"It happened to be their 100th anniversary this year," he says. "They wanted to do something to honor the hundred years of Disney animation, per se, from 'Steamboat Willie' and 'Pinocchio' and 'Snow White' through 'Encanto.'"

Job No. 1: Figuring out what to include from a whopping 61 feature films.

"In a way, it was an embarrassment of riches, but then, in another way, it's hard to cut it down," Dale says, adding that about 45 movies are represented. "Do you include 'Let It Go' (from 'Frozen'), or do you (use) 'Show Yourself' (from 'Frozen II'), which is on the theme and is really a showstopping, end-of-show number?"

Dale and his team chose the latter route, with "Show Yourself" being one of a handful of songs presented in its entirety — or close to it — and with animation solely belonging to the movie from which the tune comes.

It's hard to argue with such other choices, including the smash hit "We Don't Talk About Bruno," from 2021's "Encanto," and "When You Wish Upon a Star," from 1940's "Pinocchio."

He made another key choice right away.

"I always envisioned starting the show with the sun coming up (in 'The Lion King') and (the song) 'The Circle of Life,'" Dale says. "That's a natural."

The rest of the show, he says, was trial and error, the team sprinkling this and that into the pot and stirring it around for a while to cook up a narrative about dreams and wishes.

"A lot of people say 'Oh, it's just a jukebox musical,' but it's really not," he says. "Some people will get the narrative and the rhythm of the show and some people won't, and it doesn't really matter to me because you're having a good time."

The show made its debut in December at Lighthouse ArtSpace Toronto, with Cleveland being the second opening and eight other cities — including Boston, Denver and Detroit — in the first half of 2023. Tokyo is slated to be the first city outside North America to be immersed in this Disney experience.

But if you think Dale's work is done, think again. It's still a work in progress.

"We're actually adding 'Under the Sea' (from 'The Little Mermaid') — everyone wants it," he says.

"This show you saw tonight — last week it was not as good, and next week it's going to be better," he adds a bit later in the conversation.

Editing the movie is one major part of the equation; all the technology used to present it in the Lighthouse Immersive way is another. We're talking 56 projectors and eight lidar scanners — the latter used to detect movement in the room and make the ever-shifting floor effects react to it.

The 'immersive' part of the assignment was part of the fun for Dale.

"I'm used to making things for one screen," he says. It's really just looking at this new medium, which was obviously successful with 'Van Gogh,' and saying, 'What do we do to create a 360-degree Disney experience where it feels like Disney magic, where it's emotional — you can laugh, you can cry and you can sing?' That was kind of the dream.

His team got a big helping hand in that department from Mexico-based Cocolab, he says.

The projections, the adapting floor, the color-popping bracelets — they're neat, but kids also went wild for the work done by what a news release refers to as "the Gazillion Bubbles special effects team," which filled parts of the space with bubbles a few times. (Breaking news: Children love bubbles.)

While waiting to enter the main show space, visitors can check out panels that educate on elements of animated movies — effects, character creation, story and world-building — as well as a re-creation of an animator's work area and spaces where young future animators can get in a little drawing of their own.

In the news release, the aforementioned Ross talks of a life-long love of Disney movies and being thrilled when he saw the debut in Toronto.

"I've grown up with these characters and worlds since childhood and so has my family," he says. "The work lends itself brilliantly to the immersive experience. Our team has created something truly special here, and we can't wait to give American audiences the opportunity to experience it."

Also in the release, President of Walt Disney Animation Studios Clark Spencer says the collaboration with Lighthouse Immersive has been tremendous.

"It's a dream to bring the best of animated storytelling together with the top experts in the immersive art experience," Spencer says. "We can't wait for audiences around the world, of all ages, to experience the great moments from our legacy of feature films in this incredible way."

For his part, Dale has been involved with making very visual movies — films that, yes, look nice when streamed on your big 4K TV but are meant to be experienced in theaters.

"People are increasingly home, and so I love getting out in a room where you can laugh together and cry together and dance and sing," he says. "That's what movies are about to me, so that was another part of the appeal."

He adds that while you have to leave home for this experience, you don't have to go too far.

"I was lucky enough to go to Disneyland as a kid. I took my kids to Disney World a couple of times and sort of relived that joy that I had as a kid through their eyes. And I think for someone who can't go to the parks, you can have some Disney magic here at home, and I think that's the beauty of it," Dale says. "That's why we want to take this around the country — because there are only two parks. Even though, obviously, this isn't a park, you get that hit of Disney — more than you can on Disney+.

"To watch the kids run around joyously like that, popping bubbles, it's so gratifying to me."

'Disney Animation: Immersive Experience'

Where: Lighthouse ArtSpace Cleveland, 850 E. 72nd St.

When: Through April 10.

Tickets: Starting at $39.99.

Info: DisneyImmersive.com.