A First Look at the Walt Disney Studios Paris
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The Walt Disney Television Studios

Production Courtyard
The Art Deco buildings of this section of the park are already in full use by its tenants. The Disney Channel has moved into the Walt Disney Television Studios where taping of several of the channels’ programs has already commenced. Guests will be able to go behind the scenes of the production studios and even participate in the filming. Guests will see the control room to see the editing process and the recording studios where demos are mixed.

The second attraction in this Land is Cinemagique, a one-of-a-kind show that highlights the first century of cinema making. The show will combine stage actors with film excerpts and special effects to cover all genres of movie-making. WDI has promised that the show will not have a Hollywood bias and feature many European classics, demonstrating the rich diversity of European cinema and the influence it has had on Hollywood productions.

Catastrophe Canyon

Studio Backlot Tour
The trams have already begun arriving in Paris and early photographs suggest that they are similar in design and colouring to those of their Florida counterparts. The tour will kick-off from the loading bay and take guests on a tour that covers much of the western limits of the park. The tour will encompass much of the same attractions as the Walt Disney World version including the boneyard for movie vehicles and props, the studio greenery department and costuming. The costuming building is already in operation and is a huge warehouse where Cast Member costuming for the resort is being maintained. The tram will pass through a series of bay windows to see the wardrobe department in action. The final stop is one beyond the limits of the park itself. After passing through a series of sets, the trams will stop at the gates of Catastrophe Canyon. For many Disney enthuisasts, the rumours circulating over the last 5 years concerning the redevelopment of this attraction in Florida has wetted the appetite. Many of us expected WDI to change the theme to that of “Journey to the Center of the Earth” and there was a possibility that this would first debut in Paris. Alas, WDI have settled on Catastrophe Canyon as a clone of its Florida cousin.

Restaurants and Stores
It seems that the EuroDisney management team have settled on the Disney’s Animal Kingdom model for restaurant facilities. That is, the park will feature not a single full service facility. The full service restaurants were the hardest hit in 1992. Very quickly management closed the Explorer’s Club in Adventureland and reduced the menu selections in the remaining quality restaurants. Although, Walt’s on Main Street, the Auberge de Cendrillion in Fantasyland, the Blue Lagoon in Adventureland and the Silver Spur Steakhouse in Frontierland were spared from the axe, their menus have only just recovered from ten years of poor selection and quality. The restaurants in the Disney Village have continued to grow with McDonalds, the Rainforest Cafe and Planet Hollywood as new tenants since the project's debut as Festival Disney in 1992.

“En coulisse Restaurant” will be located at the entrance with a film shoot ambience, while “Rendez-vous des Stars” is believed to be located within the “Lights, Camera, Hollywood” building and will pay homage to celebrities in an Art Deco setting. The largest single facility is the shared building that includes the Studio Commisary facing the Production Courtyard and Backlot Express in the Backlot adjacent to Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster. The latter will be a self-service sandwich shop, divided into several areas, each representing the activity of film technicians. The Company has also bought twelve buses that have been converted into food and beverage carts that will be moved from location to location as necessary, much like their brethren in Florida.

Merchandise also suffered through the economic downturn. Huge swathes of lines were cut including collectibles and much of the Land merchandise. The merchandisers kept the majority of the stores, but every store sold similar product and there was little product based on individual attractions or the Lands themselves. This achieved the economies of scale required to maximize profitability during the early years which was necessary to stave off bankruptcy. Although the product lines have not recovered to that of the park’s peak in 1992, the fifth birthday merchandise sold extremely well and the lines are expanding with each season. Halloween merchandise can barely stay on the shelves and once more the Emporium is a crush of guests by park closing. The largest store at the Studios will be the Studio Store at the entrance courtyard, but there will be several smaller boutiques in the “Lights, Camera, Hollywood” building. There will be no other major store within the park, but watch out for the standard Disney carts selling selected products that will be scattered throughout the property. Expect to see about 1,500 lines of Studio-specific merchandise, but the designers are keen to emphasise that the lines will be complementary with those of DLP, but with a more adult-focus. In addition, the park-specific product will be available at all locations across the resort.