219. Davy Feiten on Animating Figures for Attractions at Walt Disney World, Disneyland Paris, and More

Davy Feiten programs the figures for the stagecoach scene on World of Motion.

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We’ve all marveled at audio-animatronic technology at Disney’s theme parks, particularly at the original EPCOT Center. But we rarely think about how much work it took to bring them to life. Davy Feiten was a key part of animating figures around the world for Walt Disney Imagineering. He has great stories about challenges and ingenuity needed to succeed. Davy is my guest on this episode of the Tomorrow Society Podcast to talk about his experiences with classic Disney attractions.

Davy Feiten programmed figures at numerous attractions during more than 15 years at Walt Disney Imagineering. — Photo by Davy Feiten

During this episode, Davy talks about his background in the famous CalArts class with Tim Burton, Joe Lanzisero, and Brad Bird. He joined Disney as an animator and soon moved over to WED. Davy had no animatronics experience prior to sitting in front of the auctioneer from Pirates of the Caribbean. He was a quick study and worked with Ward Kimball on World of Motion. His stories from the Tujunga facility in California and on site in Florida are so much fun. The programming machine required serious focus, which wasn’t always possible during the push to open EPCOT Center.

Ben Franklin and Mark Twain were complicated animatronics to program for the American Adventure. — Photo by Davy Feiten

Davy also talks about his work programming many animatronics for the American Adventure. This show was more involved than World of Motion with cutting-edge moves like Ben Franklin walking up steps. We talk about the challenges with this motion, making Will Rogers’ lasso twirl, and other hurdles. Davy also describes his experience animating the dragon beneath the castle at Disneyland Paris. We close the podcast with listener questions about major changes in animatronic technology and Davy’s work at Pixar. I really enjoyed talking with Davy; we barely scratched the surface of his career.