206. Imagineer Mk Haley on the Power of Disney Research and Educating the Next Generation

Mk Haley speaks at the Te Papa Museum in New Zealand on Storytelling in the Museum Space.

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Walt Disney Imagineering draws the most attention from its big theme park attractions, but there’s a lot more happening beyond the headliners. For example, they have worked closely with educational institutions and industry organizations on research and many other activities. Imagineer Mk Haley worked at the center of many of these projects during more than 25 years at Imagineering. Her roles in R&D, Disney Research, FX, and Academic Outreach have tackled numerous interesting challenges.

Mk is my guest on this episode of the Tomorrow Society Podcast to talk about her background and experiences as an Imagineer. She studied computer animation in college, which was early for that degree in 1990. Her first role as an intern for WDI was at Innoventions as part of the Aladdin’s Magic Carpet VR attraction. Mk had never visited a theme park and had the right timing to join Disney and that EPCOT project. Her computer animation work and engineering background fit perfectly at WDI.

During this episode, we talk about Mk’s work at Disney Research, which is public-facing and different than the R&D team. She explains the differences with this group and why she fit so well in this space. Mk also worked on Academic Outreach and connected directly with institutions like Carnegie Mellon and organizations like the Themed Entertainment Association (TEA). We also discuss a variety of issues currently facing the industry and how students are approaching things differently today. I had a great time speaking with Mk and learning more about her story.