181. Imagineer Mark Gilbert on Working on the Ground to Create Disney's Theme Parks

Imagineer Mark Gilbert stands by the new Harold from the Matterhorn at Garner Holt's shops.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

When creating theme park attractions, you can have amazing ideas. That’s only part of equation, however. There’s still the matter of making that vision a reality. The teams of talented Imagineers that work in the field deserve more attention. During his 25 years at Walt Disney Imagineering, Mark Gilbert was responsible for producing Show Elements for countless major projects. His work on managing the design, fabrication, installation, and more played a key role in their success.

Mark Gilbert gets to meet one of his idols, the great Mecha Godzilla, at Toho Studios in Tokyo.

Mark is my guest on this episode of the Tomorrow Society Podcast to talk about his background and many projects on the ground for Disney. He started on Disneyland Paris and was closely involved in Disney’s Animal Kingdom, Hong Kong Disneyland, and Tokyo DisneySea. Mark explains the challenges of bringing those complex parks to life sometimes far from home. Working in Tokyo did lead to cool moments like meeting the real Mecha Godzilla at Toho Studios (pictured above).

This tie fighter is one of the more impressive parts of the massive space inside Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance.

We also talk about two of Mark’s big recent projects with Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at New Fantasyland and Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance at Galaxy’s Edge. Mark managed all the show disciplines for both projects, and each had its own challenges to overcome. He describes the evolution of Rise of the Resistance, one of the most complicated attractions ever built. The work of so many teams came together to deliver a stunning and groundbreaking experience. We conclude by talking about Mark’s current work at Universal Studios Hollywood, including Halloween Horror Nights. I really enjoyed talking with Mark and learning what it was like to work on site as theme parks came to life.