@Hey Brickey! Those “lasers” on the roof of the castle aren’t actually lasers, they are just moving lights. There are lasers in the show, but that isn’t their location.
Hey Brickey love the videos. Keep them coming. I am like you I love to look into the inner workings of Disneyland that make the magic going. I hope to run into you some year lol. My wife & I live in the SF BayArea & hopefully be able to go next year
@@HeyBrickey I’m sorry if you were under the impression that I was just here to point out “what you think I get wrong”… this is actually the first time I’ve ever commented on one of your videos to my recollection. I really do enjoy them, actually and wouldn’t be bothered to comment a correction that I happen to have actual first hand knowledge of. Many times throughout your videos, you say things like “correct me if I’m wrong”, or “what do you think this is” so to get a response like this from you is a little odd. Keep up the good work, you’re making great content.
Great video! Live production professional here, so one note: those are just moving head beam lighting fixtures that move and shoot into the sky during the show, not lasers. Lasers MAY be utilized shooting above the crowd, but definitely not up in the air, because of obvious safety concerns :) But I love all the info! I love looking out for all this technology over at Disney World. Maybe someday I'll get the chance to go tech spotting at Disneyland, haha.
I will point out, that across the country at Disney World, they probably could shoot lasers into the air at will. The entirety of Walt Disney World is covered by a no-fly zone forbidding any air traffic from approaching the resort.
Note - the fireworks are pneumatically launched - unlike traditional fireworks that use an explosive charge to launch. There are some lasers on the castle and on Main St. But the lasers you showed are just robotic head-moving lights in weather-proof domes.
Disneys fireworks are custom in other areas as well, for example rather than using an internal fuse to time detonation, they all have a small disposable circuit board that receives a rf signal from control to cupload (technical term) at exactly the right time
@@morph- a little clarification on this. Disney did, in some shell use microchips to control burst charges but they were not RF instead they were timed from the lift of the shell... now most if not all of what they shoot is just fused bursts as normal as you can see nightly variation in bursts. You will also notice all the proximity pryo (close stuff) is timed to music while the larger shells are not.
Awesome video! Thanks for the shout out and I’m glad you enjoyed my video. I see we share a similar love for how Disneys magic is created. Keep of the great work.
Dude your video and project was so impressive! Love to see the creative things folks did during the Thanos Snap!!! Thanks for providing me with some valuable b-roll to tell my story ❤️
I've seen tons of vids like this about DisneyWorld but it's so neat to see it about DisneyLand too. Yeah it's same technology but it's cool to see how it's applied in a slightly different setting. Would be cool to see how it's done at the international parks as well.
I should have added in my previous comment that Toon Town is closed during firework shows not because they are launch fireworks from Toon Town but because the area is decidedly a fall out zone where debris from the shows rain down into the area. It is also very possible that occasionally a shell goes up but then falls back to earth unexploded. This is a serious hazard on all levels and is why Toon Town and the back stage area around the primary launch site is closed down until pyrotechnicians and the Disneyland Fire Department has a chance to carefully check these areas after each show before even cast members are allowed to enter them. If Toon Town is opened at all after a show it would have to be not only after checking for unexploded shells but also after the resulting debris can be cleaned up. For this reason, I believe Toon Town usually does not reopen after being closed in preparation for the firework show.
quick note - the fixtures shown at 8:06 are actually not lasers, but are in fact called "moving head lights". They have a "yoke" (a bracket shaped a bit like an old timey slingshot) which allows the "head" (the bit with the light itself and a lot of optics to allow it to change how it appears) to move around and change where it's pointing. Think like a robotic spotlight. They're seen in protective bubbles which protect the fixtures (which is fancy talk for lights) from the weather. Most movers now are LED, though older models are powered by discharge lamp (HiD) and some newer models use Laser sources (like an Ayrton Cobra - man i miss working with those things). The difference between a moving head and a laser is in the way they operate - movers take a plain source, and adjust it using things like fancy lenses, coloured disks and cut-out metal sheets (called GOBOs) to alter the shape of the light when it exists the light. The motors in the "yolk" then move where the lights pointing. Lasers on the other hand (at least generally in stagework) use a pair of tiny motorized mirrors called a "mirror Galvanometer", or simply a "galvo" which take the points produced by what are basically high-power laser pointers (usually magnitudes more powerful) and move them extremely quickly to make it appear as though it's a shape or image. It's a bit like when you have a sparkler and wave it around so it looks like it's leaving a trail - Galvometers can move at 10's of thousands of millimeters a second and so move the light faster than the human eye can percieve. They don't tend to do anything optically to the laser beyond moving where their pointing, and in full-colour lasers, mixing multiple laser pointers together which are different colours to give the illusion of a new colour (like how RGB LED's work). There are tons of different technologies at play in big shows like these and the engineering that allows them to work is fascinating. I am pretty certain disney actually does use stage lasers - an easy way to recognize a laser is places love making them do things like waves or flat beams that go over the audiences heads. The ways we are able to manipulate every sense to create spectacular displays is just awesome!
another fun fact - the big fancy desk shown at 15:45 is called a "GrandMA" - to be specific i think it's a full size GrandMA 2 - these desks cost hundreds of thousands of pounds and run their own operating systems (well, based on Linux) allowing you full control over every single light your using.
I am a professional pyrotech, the fireworks at Disney World are fired in air cannons, instead of with lift charges, and each individual firework has an altimeter inside to set off the busting charge to allow it to burst at the exact altitude needed. I assume Disneyland uses the same vendors for their fireworks but knowing Disney they may use different vendors for each location to further development of the art and encourage innovation by the vendors and the Imagineers.
Also air cannons also altitude triggered charges however the low altitude castle fireworks are traditional but this may have changes since I left the company
It was always fun to be backstage when they would run the check on the air cannons for the show. Running the whole fireworks show in about 30 seconds is a neat thing to see.
Those “lasers” are actually just beam moving lights. Essentially it is a light with a super narrow lens that can move around, place filters in front of them to change color, and more! They use lights instead of lasers because it is illegal and unsafe to shoot high powered lasers willy-nilly in any direction, they must be carefully angled to hit a barrier, cannot hit someone’s eyes, etc. They also can’t be shot just up into the sky because of airplanes! The lasers used in world of color are lower power, which is why they can go anywhere. The actual main laser that is used is center in the castle, shooting out down main street and hitting the roof of the main street train station!
@@SpiritOfTheSeasons yeah I realize now my dumb brain used the wrong word. But thanks for adding in all these other wonderful details. Back on tour we always called those the lasers to easily distinguish between the gels and spot lights. Should have been more specific but was so focused on all the other moving pieces to produce a video like this in 3 days by myself. It’s a lot and mistakes happen. Thanks for clarifying
@@HeyBrickey All good! I work in this industry so if you’re ever making another video like this and want to run anything by just let me know! With how powerful these modern moving lights are, it’s easy to mistake them for other more powerful technologies! Love the video and learned a lot!
Hey Brickey, really cool vid I love to see where the things are actually placed. Only wanted to tell you smth, im really familiar with stage tech and what you said to be lasers are actually Moving Head Beams which are super powerful beams of light used mainly in concerts for example, they are covered in a bubble like thing because if it rains they actually break and they are pretty expensive so thats a rain cover. Keep up the good work!! edit: the lasers actually project a way thinner beam of light which thanks to the scanner moves so fast that we see it as if it was a line or even patterns but actually its just one single "line" moving really fast
Brickey I hope you realize just how many leagues above nearly all other Disneyland content on RUclips you are. I always feel like I’m watching something really special, like an officially produced Disney behind the scenes documentary on TV, but with the added personal touch of you as the host. Keep doin what ur doin brother !!!
@Hey Brickey! The reason they set the Big Fireworks in the Toontown area is for safety. There needs to be a safe distance from the guests in case of misfiring. They used to set them off in the back parking lot area when I worked there in 1976. I would find lots of remnants in the parking lot.. They don't want this stuff falling on guests. They later built toontown on that parking lot area.
The second layer of fireworks (aerial shells) are actually shot from their backlot. They have an area just behind Toon Town where they use compressed air to launch the shells, so there is less smoke at ground level. Disney actually created the technology which was an industry first. If you look at Google Earth you'll find the area. They close that area of the park for safety reasons - in case of any errant shells or hot ash / debris after the shells detonate. Great video!
Another video I didn't think I needed, but oh, so love all the hidden mysteries that are staring at you in plain sight for your magical entertainment needs
@HeyBrickey for me it never dispels the magic of the entertainment. It actually makes me keep my eyes out looking for those details, sometimes questioning if for something later for entertainment
Thank you for all these amazingly well done videos. Fills my soul to enjoy and admire the craftsmanship involved in putting this video works of art together.
I have to say, your videos are really phenomenal! I really look forward to watching your videos every time I see one released. Keep up the great content!
Hey Brickey! What do you think of this as a video idea? I think it would be interesting for you to do a “What would Walt think?” video. Perhaps you walking the parks and commenting on what Walt would think if he walked the parks today? It would probably love that a park (DCA) is where parking was since it is reported he didn’t like having so much land dedicated to parking. He would be shocked at how everyone is staring at phones and need the phones to enjoy the parks. Alcohol? Ride upkeep? New attractions? State of Tomorrowland? Obviously a lot of speculation, but perhaps a fun video?
Hey man I really love your content! Just wanted to clear things up and provide a few quick cool facts if that's okay. One is that the lights are actually not lasers they are just regular moving heads. Crazy that they are so powerful that they look like lasers! Actualy a company called Claypaky made a laser moving light. That was a few years ago though so I had imagined that the ones that are used in the show are actually pretty old and not laser-based. Also the show is run probably off of somthing called time code which can be used to execute cues like setting off the Pyro, makeing the lights a certain color, etc. Again great video! Looking forward to the next!!
I really enjoyed your break down in detail of this show. This one was very good! You do a fantastic job. Thank you! The engineering that has gotten into these shows is amazing..
I thought that was created by Disney magic ? Only to find out it's created by a different Disney magic ! That mapping is on a Michael Angelo level, once you find out that painting on the ceiling looks flat but it's actually over a column and in a corner. Same with the castle projections. This video is great, full of great info with amazing visuals to accompany them. My favorite ones we now know about are 1-the projector at the Small World gift shop. 2- the projection in the castle to project on scrim. 3- the twinkling lights small and out there but not noticed. Keep up the good work !
This was the video I've been waiting for! Thank you! Next, I would love to know how the Disney character costumes work. How do the cast members see? How do they deal with hot temperatures?
Great episode, Brickey. Thanks for sharing the mystery of how Disney operates at night and all the great projection give us that most incredible experience. Great job👏👏
1:58 This stone pad is used as a control location for events held in the castle courtyard such as the annual New Years Eve celebration, for example. This is where the audio and lighting controls are located to support a temporary stage set up on the castle courtyard.
18:02 No, the "second layer" which is in reality the primary launch site is located well behind, or well North of Toon Town. In a satellite view of the area, it is readily visible as a square shaped area located near Ball Road and Cast Place Road, other wise known (or at least previously known) as Ball Road Gate. This launch facility is located about 600 feet South of Ball Road and about 150 feet East of Cast Place Road. Check out Google Earth view of the backstage area and you will notice this launch site about 250 feet South of the backstage parking structure where most cast members that work in the administration building park. Because of the parking structure's close proximity to the launch site, parking on the top level of the parking structure is restricted in the evening. If you're working overtime you best move your car to one of the lower levels. It is because these large aerial shells are launched so close to both Ball Road and Interstate 5 that much more than even moderate wind can cause a firework show to canceled; especially if the wind is blowing North or North East. BTW, the fireworks launched at this site are unlike those fired almost anywhere else in the world. Normally fireworks require a lift charge that shoots the fireworks into the sky well before exploding with light high above the viewers. At Disneyland the firework shells do not require this initial explosion to lift into the sky because they are shot up with a very unique, high pressure pneumatic system. This system was developed years ago as a compromise between Disney and the Southern California's AQMD (South Coast Air Quality Management District) to help reduce the smoke produced by often nightly shows. As an added bonus, the Disney shows appear more clear because of the lack of low lying smoke that normally would have resulted from the use of lift charges.
Love this video! Big lighting nerd and love to learn about all things lighting! Some more insight on the lighting systems, Disneyland only actually has one laser beam system. The laser is positioned dead center on the castle, Lasers give off a very distinct light that can travel extremely long distances but needs elements to reflect off of. The "snow" affect is yes used to simulate snow, but it's also used to make the laser and other lights appear to our eyes because the lasers will disappear if it doesn't have any area to reflect off of, like (rain, fog, smoke and "snow"). The projectors that give off the images are mostly also laser based but they are two different types of laser applications, one being image based and the other being beam based. The lights behind the castle and the ones that are set back on the roofs of main street usa are in fact not lasers, they are called "bulb beam moving head lights". In most cases these lights are not even LED powered they are powered by HID bulbs for their white light and use a motorized color filter wheels inside to change color and have a secondary wheel with other filters to change the look of the beam. The lights that look like they have the multiple little glass circles on its face that are placed on the polls and painted "go away green" are the LED lights. LED stage lighting has had limitations of the amount of power they can produce so they have been relegated to smaller low power lights and floodlights/wash lights. Only recently have LEDs been able to be used in high power moving beam lights like the ones behind the castle but since disney's lights have been in place for several years now they are most likely HID based lights. Cant wait for more videos like this from you! ❤😃
Great video on all of the projections and details as a whole, for those looking for the fireworks part of this video, jump to 16:17 and you will get it, but go back to the beginning to get all of the other goodies and details.
Overall great video. I used to do projection design and also designed nighttime shows for WDW in past jobs, so I love seeing people pay attention to how they work and wanting to learn more. It's interesting that DL went for a few close range wide angle projectors while MK went for tighter, farther throwing lenses on more projectors. I'm guessing mostly related to height, as the buildings are all taller at MK and have better line of sights of the also taller castle. Also, those aren't lasers LMAO. No one is allowed to permanently shine lasers into the sky in the US, especially at the class/wattage those would need to be. Those are moving beam lights using a regular bulb.
Another great behind the scenes video. I absolutely love these videos. I have always been a fan is these videos. One thing that I have always wondered about the fireworks is when and how do they get the fireworks to their launch sites? Any chance you got this one in your back pocket for another video?
Brother I have been waiting for this video from you. This is a hobby of mine I have been wanting to see how this has been done. This is what makes the shows that much more special. The machine make this special
Glad you enjoyed it. Most of Disney's equipment can be tracked down because their vendors always want to brag that they provide Disney with equipment. So a little reverse Google searching will normally let you know the projectors used etc
Fun Fact. The old tomorrow land rocks, we're built to hide the control room for the fireworks at the castle. There used to be a small path and door into those rocks just over by the path to pixie hollow. With the rocks being gone, it's now hidden withing the construction walls in the left planter that has the artwork for the future of tomorrowland
I am always surprised how the “kiss goodnight” thing started. Stories are at how skeptical Walt was about the original Date Night Fireworks show promotion. He must have been super impressed. But in someways I think the “Kiss Goodnight” thing came from Rolly Crumb’s description of the park, how it seemingly “Embraces” you for a “Kiss.” Not a criticism just a side riff. Good work! The projection map artist/designer is an Ohlone College graduate. I am going to show this to my students.
I was just there last week! I wasn't looking for it but I am 99% sure I remember seeing a projector out of the small world clock tower 😀 so cool to see all of this now.
Good video but I will tell you some of the information you said is incorrect. I was a stagehand at the resort for just over 10 years but still really good video and thank you for showing what we. Us stage hands don’t really get to be seen vary much
Another mind-blowing video from one of the most talented citizens on the planet! Thanks for sharing your incredible creativity, and as you close in on 50k subscribers, may I recommend that people hurry up and order the very cool Walt sweatshirt before it’s gone!! 👻Thanks & bravo Brickey! 🎉
Nice video although I think you got a few things wrong, at least back in the day the area above Great Naps With Mr. Lincoln was actually the phone switchboard for Disneyland. That may have changed but back in the day that's where it was, as far as the rooftop over Plaza point, I've seen multiple crew people up there. With a showing like that with all those fire elements on the roof of the castle you would want to have eyes on the show area and not just relying on security cameras for the same reason there is a stage manager and safety officer desk right in front of the rivers of America. As far as the main launch location for the fireworks it's actually in the middle of the backstage area well behind Tunetown, and I believe there's five or six towers that are between that launch facility in a arc around behind the backstage area to create some of those effects of fire locations of Pyro. Also, all the Pyro launches in the park are standard lift charges on the shells, but all the shells in the backstage area are all air launched through their special air launch system which I've seen in action and it's amazing. Obviously some of this may be wrong at this point as Disney is always changing things but I seriously doubt the main launch facility backstage as well as its bunker for the crew close by to the launch area would've changed as that would be a big facility move. If you look at Google maps the main backstage launch area is slightly North East of the parade storage building.
Hey! Lol… ok, you tricked me into watching this as I couldn’t think where a single launch position of the actual fireworks that would be visible from any on stage area. Then I realized that you were talking about the other gear for any Nighttime Spectacular including the firework shows. To add more detail, I would break the pyro launch positions down to even more layers. Pyro/fireworks are broken down into two basic divisions… Commercial and Proximity. Commercial effects are the large bursts seen in the sky from a distance. Proximity effects are anything that can be fired close to the public. At Disneyland these are roughly broken down into 4 main areas. Main Street are the effects on the tops of the buildings on Main Street itself. The Castle which are the effects on the Fantasyland Buildings and the castle itself including the isopar cannons. The Nine Line is a series of launch positions behind Toon Town although technically, they aren’t all in a straight line. The center 7 are on the rear of the roof of Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway. There are two outside towers that launch the “Shooting Star” effects are more inline with the front of the building. One is next to the Roundhouse and the other is at the far end of the MMRR building. The furthest most launch area is for the air launch shells where all of the large fireworks are shot from which is opposite the NW corner of the MMRR building (Hope that makes sense, look on Google Earth!). You had SO much great information about everything else. Although the SM and Pyro Tech for World of Color are on stage under the Pixar Pier sign as they require line of site, the actual control room is completely backstage but I haven’t actually seen the DL control room for these spectacles. I know the DL phone operators were in the Opera House building on the second floor in the past but could have moved to make room for a control room. I believe that the SM calls the show from the roof of the MS Photo building and I think I remember a Pyrodigital board up there so I would imagine all of the proximity effects for Main Street are controlled from there as well. That operator could be firing the Castle as well but probably not as they don’t really have good line of site to all of the launch positions on the FL rooftops. Another thing that I found interesting when we were shooting some projection content for DLP is that at the studios where they map everything for Disney worldwide, there are white scaled replicas of every castle, all of DL Main Street, the Matterhorn, etc for them to test the projections on. It allows them to tweak everything in the studio before it goes out to the parks. The level of detail was astounding. As an example, the mapping on the Mira Costa for Tokyo DisneySea’s new “Believe! Sea of Dreams” is amazing in so many ways… but I was curious if the projections would bother the guests that were staying in the rooms that face the show. They told me that they had mapped out every pane of glass in each window. There are several hundred windows, each with either 6 or 8 panes of glass. Yes, the level of detail is astounding!
So the top of the now Holiday Shoppe is the stage manager board for pyro. Or at least it was when I was working there. The room above the Main Street Opera House is more Audio Central and the old phone operators room. They control all the audio around the park from there. I wouldn’t be surprised if they have moved more show control elements into there over the years.
You know much of what you see today hasn’t actually been around that long. The 50th anniversary was when a lot of the technology was installed. But even then the projection mapping wasn’t what it is today.
When those windows on Main Street were modified to support Disneyland Forever the company that did the work never finished the job, because Disney didn’t want to pay them. We ended up finishing the work ourselves 12hours before we opened Disneyland Forever, many of the windows had to be propped open with a wooden dowel
The fireworks are now using air to push the explosive ball up instead of using an explosive charge to push it up. This makes for a quieter show for the surrounding neighborhoods. Helps pet have less stress, and less air pollution.
It’s sad all those details are hard to see because our castle is so small. As compared to all the other parks that are much easier to see even from a distance, it’s hard to see from Main Street. It’s still very cool to know how the magic happens.
Fun stuff. Brings back memories of several projects I've worked on. BTW: "Sleeping Beauty Castle." Never Sleeping **Beauty's** Castle, which sometimes slips your lips.
That area is always roped off during the show time, so there's no footage of it open, but you can see a CM opening it in the video. I assume it's the same projector in the It's A Small World segment.
The last time we were at Disneyland, the fireworks show was especially magical as mouse ears were on display high up in the sky. Disney was testing fireworks that lighted the sky with circles arranged to represent Mickey mouse.
If you're implying that Southern Californians may never have seen real snow, living in sunny Cali and all, you'd be incorrect. The San Gabriel mountains are just a few hours from Anaheim, and places like Big Bear and Lake Arrowhead are popular winter day trips.
There was one on Disney+ a while back that showed a bit of the testing the pneumatics, but no longer have D+ to give you the right link. (Maybe the one about imagineering?)
See "Disneyland Fireworks Behind the Scenes - 'Gears Behind the Ears'" About the 3 minute mark. Also includes some of the launching computers (think it was PyroDigital).
I just noticed, could it be that they fold the Banners on the walkway of sleeping beauties castle so the banners are not disturbing the view, for example on a windy day?
Hey Brickey! What a great topic! Can you talk about the parameters and requirements for canceling the fireworks! I go once a week and I’m starting to learn how to read wind patterns. I always look out for the white ballon but sometimes miss it.
The windows from inside the control room don't match the windows above Mr Lincoln. I agree with the cameras they don't need line of sight, but the other location you mention does seem more plausible with a view of main street and the castle.
I want to add that my company makes and ships every Disney park in the world some of there fireworks mortar's. All hand made by a team of 4 people. They will ask for 700+ at a time, it takes about 2 months to make them all.
@Hey Brickey! Those “lasers” on the roof of the castle aren’t actually lasers, they are just moving lights. There are lasers in the show, but that isn’t their location.
I enjoy how you only come to point out what you think I get wrong. So rewarding.
Hey Brickey love the videos. Keep them coming. I am like you I love to look into the inner workings of Disneyland that make the magic going. I hope to run into you some year lol. My wife & I live in the SF BayArea & hopefully be able to go next year
@@jeffmontero9242 keep an eye out for Hidden Brickeys hope to see you soon! Thanks.
@@HeyBrickey Didn't you ask people to tell you new things? They're spotlights, not lasers... the lasers are only on the castle
@@HeyBrickey I’m sorry if you were under the impression that I was just here to point out “what you think I get wrong”… this is actually the first time I’ve ever commented on one of your videos to my recollection. I really do enjoy them, actually and wouldn’t be bothered to comment a correction that I happen to have actual first hand knowledge of. Many times throughout your videos, you say things like “correct me if I’m wrong”, or “what do you think this is” so to get a response like this from you is a little odd. Keep up the good work, you’re making great content.
Great video! Live production professional here, so one note: those are just moving head beam lighting fixtures that move and shoot into the sky during the show, not lasers. Lasers MAY be utilized shooting above the crowd, but definitely not up in the air, because of obvious safety concerns :)
But I love all the info! I love looking out for all this technology over at Disney World. Maybe someday I'll get the chance to go tech spotting at Disneyland, haha.
Watch out, he may think you’re attacking him 🫢
@@AllTheBestVideos 😂 I did try to be constructive in a fun way, because we do all have to learn somewhere!
I will point out, that across the country at Disney World, they probably could shoot lasers into the air at will. The entirety of Walt Disney World is covered by a no-fly zone forbidding any air traffic from approaching the resort.
Yep, not lasers, just regular moving head lights underneath weather domes.
Note - the fireworks are pneumatically launched - unlike traditional fireworks that use an explosive charge to launch. There are some lasers on the castle and on Main St. But the lasers you showed are just robotic head-moving lights in weather-proof domes.
Disneys fireworks are custom in other areas as well, for example rather than using an internal fuse to time detonation, they all have a small disposable circuit board that receives a rf signal from control to cupload (technical term) at exactly the right time
Was going to say the same thing and explain that is why you don't hear the lift charge for the firework like traditional shells.
@@morph- a little clarification on this. Disney did, in some shell use microchips to control burst charges but they were not RF instead they were timed from the lift of the shell... now most if not all of what they shoot is just fused bursts as normal as you can see nightly variation in bursts. You will also notice all the proximity pryo (close stuff) is timed to music while the larger shells are not.
@doctorstomp7468 interesting, I was told by someone who worked Disney stuff in France that it was air launched with rf controlled explosives
@@morph-Saa`shbkmW \”
Awesome video! Thanks for the shout out and I’m glad you enjoyed my video. I see we share a similar love for how Disneys magic is created. Keep of the great work.
Dude your video and project was so impressive! Love to see the creative things folks did during the Thanos Snap!!! Thanks for providing me with some valuable b-roll to tell my story ❤️
@@HeyBrickey thanks man! Really appreciate it. It was a lot of fun to create. You mentioning it sent me down memory a bit! Thanks for that :-)
I've seen tons of vids like this about DisneyWorld but it's so neat to see it about DisneyLand too. Yeah it's same technology but it's cool to see how it's applied in a slightly different setting. Would be cool to see how it's done at the international parks as well.
“How it Works with Brickey!” We are here for it and the knowledge drop. Thanks as always for keeping us educated and in the know Prof. Brickey.
Thanks Jason! ❤️
Prof. Brickey!! I think this is a niche nickname we can all get behind
@@markapuan haha!!! Better than Disneyland Jesus from the other night with OG55 😂
@@HeyBrickey Right!!
I should have added in my previous comment that Toon Town is closed during firework shows not because they are launch fireworks from Toon Town but because the area is decidedly a fall out zone where debris from the shows rain down into the area. It is also very possible that occasionally a shell goes up but then falls back to earth unexploded. This is a serious hazard on all levels and is why Toon Town and the back stage area around the primary launch site is closed down until pyrotechnicians and the Disneyland Fire Department has a chance to carefully check these areas after each show before even cast members are allowed to enter them. If Toon Town is opened at all after a show it would have to be not only after checking for unexploded shells but also after the resulting debris can be cleaned up. For this reason, I believe Toon Town usually does not reopen after being closed in preparation for the firework show.
quick note - the fixtures shown at 8:06 are actually not lasers, but are in fact called "moving head lights". They have a "yoke" (a bracket shaped a bit like an old timey slingshot) which allows the "head" (the bit with the light itself and a lot of optics to allow it to change how it appears) to move around and change where it's pointing. Think like a robotic spotlight.
They're seen in protective bubbles which protect the fixtures (which is fancy talk for lights) from the weather.
Most movers now are LED, though older models are powered by discharge lamp (HiD) and some newer models use Laser sources (like an Ayrton Cobra - man i miss working with those things).
The difference between a moving head and a laser is in the way they operate - movers take a plain source, and adjust it using things like fancy lenses, coloured disks and cut-out metal sheets (called GOBOs) to alter the shape of the light when it exists the light. The motors in the "yolk" then move where the lights pointing.
Lasers on the other hand (at least generally in stagework) use a pair of tiny motorized mirrors called a "mirror Galvanometer", or simply a "galvo" which take the points produced by what are basically high-power laser pointers (usually magnitudes more powerful) and move them extremely quickly to make it appear as though it's a shape or image. It's a bit like when you have a sparkler and wave it around so it looks like it's leaving a trail - Galvometers can move at 10's of thousands of millimeters a second and so move the light faster than the human eye can percieve. They don't tend to do anything optically to the laser beyond moving where their pointing, and in full-colour lasers, mixing multiple laser pointers together which are different colours to give the illusion of a new colour (like how RGB LED's work).
There are tons of different technologies at play in big shows like these and the engineering that allows them to work is fascinating. I am pretty certain disney actually does use stage lasers - an easy way to recognize a laser is places love making them do things like waves or flat beams that go over the audiences heads. The ways we are able to manipulate every sense to create spectacular displays is just awesome!
another fun fact - the big fancy desk shown at 15:45 is called a "GrandMA" - to be specific i think it's a full size GrandMA 2 - these desks cost hundreds of thousands of pounds and run their own operating systems (well, based on Linux) allowing you full control over every single light your using.
That's why we love Disney Fireworks shows! Technology behind them is so outstanding! Btw amazing video!!
I am a professional pyrotech, the fireworks at Disney World are fired in air cannons, instead of with lift charges, and each individual firework has an altimeter inside to set off the busting charge to allow it to burst at the exact altitude needed.
I assume Disneyland uses the same vendors for their fireworks but knowing Disney they may use different vendors for each location to further development of the art and encourage innovation by the vendors and the Imagineers.
That is fascinating and makes so much sense! Thanks for sharing. ❤️
Also air cannons also altitude triggered charges however the low altitude castle fireworks are traditional but this may have changes since I left the company
It was always fun to be backstage when they would run the check on the air cannons for the show. Running the whole fireworks show in about 30 seconds is a neat thing to see.
Those “lasers” are actually just beam moving lights. Essentially it is a light with a super narrow lens that can move around, place filters in front of them to change color, and more!
They use lights instead of lasers because it is illegal and unsafe to shoot high powered lasers willy-nilly in any direction, they must be carefully angled to hit a barrier, cannot hit someone’s eyes, etc. They also can’t be shot just up into the sky because of airplanes! The lasers used in world of color are lower power, which is why they can go anywhere.
The actual main laser that is used is center in the castle, shooting out down main street and hitting the roof of the main street train station!
@@SpiritOfTheSeasons yeah I realize now my dumb brain used the wrong word. But thanks for adding in all these other wonderful details.
Back on tour we always called those the lasers to easily distinguish between the gels and spot lights.
Should have been more specific but was so focused on all the other moving pieces to produce a video like this in 3 days by myself. It’s a lot and mistakes happen. Thanks for clarifying
@@HeyBrickey All good! I work in this industry so if you’re ever making another video like this and want to run anything by just let me know!
With how powerful these modern moving lights are, it’s easy to mistake them for other more powerful technologies!
Love the video and learned a lot!
@@HeyBrickeydon’t know what tour you were on.
@@SpiritOfTheSeasons Ah a fellow LD I see. Good comments
I have done projection mapping and there is definitely a lot of work and ingenuity in their setup.
Hey Brickey, really cool vid I love to see where the things are actually placed. Only wanted to tell you smth, im really familiar with stage tech and what you said to be lasers are actually Moving Head Beams which are super powerful beams of light used mainly in concerts for example, they are covered in a bubble like thing because if it rains they actually break and they are pretty expensive so thats a rain cover. Keep up the good work!!
edit: the lasers actually project a way thinner beam of light which thanks to the scanner moves so fast that we see it as if it was a line or even patterns but actually its just one single "line" moving really fast
Brickey I hope you realize just how many leagues above nearly all other Disneyland content on RUclips you are. I always feel like I’m watching something really special, like an officially produced Disney behind the scenes documentary on TV, but with the added personal touch of you as the host. Keep doin what ur doin brother !!!
So that's why I always cry watching Disney fireworks! It's the music mixed in with the fireworks
@Hey Brickey! The reason they set the Big Fireworks in the Toontown area is for safety. There needs to be a safe distance from the guests in case of misfiring. They used to set them off in the back parking lot area when I worked there in 1976. I would find lots of remnants in the parking lot.. They don't want this stuff falling on guests. They later built toontown on that parking lot area.
This is next level amazing ... seen the show and always love a good fireworks. But this behind the scenes stuff ... WOW!!!
As a lighting technician I have always been interested in the systems and effects used in Disney theme parks.
I've been a citizen of Disneyland my whole life! And have always wondered how this stuff worked. Great Video!
The second layer of fireworks (aerial shells) are actually shot from their backlot. They have an area just behind Toon Town where they use compressed air to launch the shells, so there is less smoke at ground level. Disney actually created the technology which was an industry first. If you look at Google Earth you'll find the area. They close that area of the park for safety reasons - in case of any errant shells or hot ash / debris after the shells detonate. Great video!
I don’t know where you’re finding this footage but it looks like you filmed it yourself behind the scenes! Fantastic video.
As a person who works in lighting & video this is a brilliant vid!
Another video I didn't think I needed, but oh, so love all the hidden mysteries that are staring at you in plain sight for your magical entertainment needs
Thanks watching despite not thinking the topic was for you. I appreciate that you kept an open mind and learned a couple of things.
@HeyBrickey for me it never dispels the magic of the entertainment. It actually makes me keep my eyes out looking for those details, sometimes questioning if for something later for entertainment
Thank you for all these amazingly well done videos. Fills my soul to enjoy and admire the craftsmanship involved in putting this video works of art together.
I have to say, your videos are really phenomenal! I really look forward to watching your videos every time I see one released. Keep up the great content!
Hey Brickey! What do you think of this as a video idea? I think it would be interesting for you to do a “What would Walt think?” video. Perhaps you walking the parks and commenting on what Walt would think if he walked the parks today? It would probably love that a park (DCA) is where parking was since it is reported he didn’t like having so much land dedicated to parking. He would be shocked at how everyone is staring at phones and need the phones to enjoy the parks. Alcohol? Ride upkeep? New attractions? State of Tomorrowland? Obviously a lot of speculation, but perhaps a fun video?
Your videos are the best! You always explain the How, Why, and What plus the What-If’s. And makes your work more interesting than everyone else!
Hey man I really love your content! Just wanted to clear things up and provide a few quick cool facts if that's okay. One is that the lights are actually not lasers they are just regular moving heads. Crazy that they are so powerful that they look like lasers! Actualy a company called Claypaky made a laser moving light. That was a few years ago though so I had imagined that the ones that are used in the show are actually pretty old and not laser-based. Also the show is run probably off of somthing called time code which can be used to execute cues like setting off the Pyro, makeing the lights a certain color, etc. Again great video! Looking forward to the next!!
Just got my 1901 Walt Hoodie! Perfect to wear when watching the fireworks in the evening!
Everyone in the comments correcting about the movers: “It’s not a laser! It’s a little light bulb that blinks!”
I really enjoyed your break down in detail of this show. This one was very good! You do a fantastic job. Thank you!
The engineering that has gotten into these shows is amazing..
Great as always! Thanks for taking the time to explain every facet of the shows. Your attention to detail is greatly appreciated!
13:40 ok listen: if any lights do not work the show will still go on but if the sound does not work the show is over till 13:50
Well being a former Disneyland Tech support cast member yes it's magical
I thought that was created by Disney magic ? Only to find out it's created by a different Disney magic ! That mapping is on a Michael Angelo level, once you find out that painting on the ceiling looks flat but it's actually over a column and in a corner. Same with the castle projections. This video is great, full of great info with amazing visuals to accompany them. My favorite ones we now know about are 1-the projector at the Small World gift shop. 2- the projection in the castle to project on scrim. 3- the twinkling lights small and out there but not noticed. Keep up the good work !
Nice!!! I’m happy to share a couple of new tricks with you. Some fun stuff to investigate on the next Disneyland Rip!!!
This was the video I've been waiting for! Thank you!
Next, I would love to know how the Disney character costumes work. How do the cast members see? How do they deal with hot temperatures?
I love the nighttime spectaculars at Disneyland but love even more how they work! Thanks for posting!
Hey brickey!!!! Thanks for another great video! I love the design of disney and the hidden technology thats all around us.
It’s impressive they often go the extra mile to hide the show.
Great episode, Brickey. Thanks for sharing the mystery of how Disney operates at night and all the great projection give us that most incredible experience. Great job👏👏
1:58 This stone pad is used as a control location for events held in the castle courtyard such as the annual New Years Eve celebration, for example. This is where the audio and lighting controls are located to support a temporary stage set up on the castle courtyard.
18:02 No, the "second layer" which is in reality the primary launch site is located well behind, or well North of Toon Town. In a satellite view of the area, it is readily visible as a square shaped area located near Ball Road and Cast Place Road, other wise known (or at least previously known) as Ball Road Gate. This launch facility is located about 600 feet South of Ball Road and about 150 feet East of Cast Place Road. Check out Google Earth view of the backstage area and you will notice this launch site about 250 feet South of the backstage parking structure where most cast members that work in the administration building park. Because of the parking structure's close proximity to the launch site, parking on the top level of the parking structure is restricted in the evening. If you're working overtime you best move your car to one of the lower levels. It is because these large aerial shells are launched so close to both Ball Road and Interstate 5 that much more than even moderate wind can cause a firework show to canceled; especially if the wind is blowing North or North East. BTW, the fireworks launched at this site are unlike those fired almost anywhere else in the world. Normally fireworks require a lift charge that shoots the fireworks into the sky well before exploding with light high above the viewers. At Disneyland the firework shells do not require this initial explosion to lift into the sky because they are shot up with a very unique, high pressure pneumatic system. This system was developed years ago as a compromise between Disney and the Southern California's AQMD (South Coast Air Quality Management District) to help reduce the smoke produced by often nightly shows. As an added bonus, the Disney shows appear more clear because of the lack of low lying smoke that normally would have resulted from the use of lift charges.
Congratulations 🎉🏰 on 50K subs right around the corner! Well deserved for your always thoughtful and unique Disney content! 🙌
Thanks to Brickey, they’re not hidden any more! I won’t be able to unsee them now 😄
Love this video! Big lighting nerd and love to learn about all things lighting! Some more insight on the lighting systems, Disneyland only actually has one laser beam system. The laser is positioned dead center on the castle, Lasers give off a very distinct light that can travel extremely long distances but needs elements to reflect off of. The "snow" affect is yes used to simulate snow, but it's also used to make the laser and other lights appear to our eyes because the lasers will disappear if it doesn't have any area to reflect off of, like (rain, fog, smoke and "snow"). The projectors that give off the images are mostly also laser based but they are two different types of laser applications, one being image based and the other being beam based. The lights behind the castle and the ones that are set back on the roofs of main street usa are in fact not lasers, they are called "bulb beam moving head lights". In most cases these lights are not even LED powered they are powered by HID bulbs for their white light and use a motorized color filter wheels inside to change color and have a secondary wheel with other filters to change the look of the beam. The lights that look like they have the multiple little glass circles on its face that are placed on the polls and painted "go away green" are the LED lights. LED stage lighting has had limitations of the amount of power they can produce so they have been relegated to smaller low power lights and floodlights/wash lights. Only recently have LEDs been able to be used in high power moving beam lights like the ones behind the castle but since disney's lights have been in place for several years now they are most likely HID based lights. Cant wait for more videos like this from you! ❤😃
Great video on all of the projections and details as a whole, for those looking for the fireworks part of this video, jump to 16:17 and you will get it, but go back to the beginning to get all of the other goodies and details.
Overall great video. I used to do projection design and also designed nighttime shows for WDW in past jobs, so I love seeing people pay attention to how they work and wanting to learn more.
It's interesting that DL went for a few close range wide angle projectors while MK went for tighter, farther throwing lenses on more projectors. I'm guessing mostly related to height, as the buildings are all taller at MK and have better line of sights of the also taller castle.
Also, those aren't lasers LMAO. No one is allowed to permanently shine lasers into the sky in the US, especially at the class/wattage those would need to be. Those are moving beam lights using a regular bulb.
@ hey bricky these newer behind the scenes blogs have pretty ambitious and look like a lot of work . Good job
great video! I’ve always wondered about this
Wow! Mind blowing how they can hide this in plain sight! Inspiring thanks for a neat deep dive on their visual design Brickey!
These are fun videos to make and I always learn something new while making them, glad you enjoyed it!
if only Disney would help my school get their projectors to aim at the board...
Just when I was thinking today couldn’t get any better, a new Brickey video drops 🖤
Thanks - love your videos. So amazing how they hide these things so beautifully
I appreciate that extra effort.
Excellent video. You have really found your niche and you are rocking it.
Lots of work on bringing the nighttime spectacular To life!
Tons of moving pieces.
Another great behind the scenes video. I absolutely love these videos. I have always been a fan is these videos. One thing that I have always wondered about the fireworks is when and how do they get the fireworks to their launch sites? Any chance you got this one in your back pocket for another video?
Brother I have been waiting for this video from you. This is a hobby of mine I have been wanting to see how this has been done. This is what makes the shows that much more special. The machine make this special
Glad you enjoyed it. Most of Disney's equipment can be tracked down because their vendors always want to brag that they provide Disney with equipment. So a little reverse Google searching will normally let you know the projectors used etc
Fun Fact. The old tomorrow land rocks, we're built to hide the control room for the fireworks at the castle. There used to be a small path and door into those rocks just over by the path to pixie hollow. With the rocks being gone, it's now hidden withing the construction walls in the left planter that has the artwork for the future of tomorrowland
My brain thrives off these videos
Glad you enjoy. My brain thrives on solving these mysteries ❤️
I am always surprised how the “kiss goodnight” thing started. Stories are at how skeptical Walt was about the original Date Night Fireworks show promotion. He must have been super impressed. But in someways I think the “Kiss Goodnight” thing came from Rolly Crumb’s description of the park, how it seemingly “Embraces” you for a “Kiss.”
Not a criticism just a side riff. Good work!
The projection map artist/designer is an Ohlone College graduate. I am going to show this to my students.
Great interesting video Brickey. Gives me something to look for on my next trip to Disneyland. Can you do a video of DCA in the future?
10:17 that insomniac festival merch 🙌
This is great stuff!
Thanks!
Ok, so how are we gonna celebrate your 50k milestone?!?! It’s so close!
I was just there last week! I wasn't looking for it but I am 99% sure I remember seeing a projector out of the small world clock tower 😀 so cool to see all of this now.
“Santa Mickey’s Little Soapy Helpers” is my new favorite term!!! 😎
sooo cool! this is my dream job💙✨thanks for sharing!
Exactly the type of video I love, thank you ! 😍
Very cool video! I always wondered how they did this.
Fun Fact, the years we ran Disneyland Forever was so windy, we only launched 40% of the shows, the unused pyro was taken to the desert and blown up
Great video!
Thanks!!!
Good video but I will tell you some of the information you said is incorrect. I was a stagehand at the resort for just over 10 years but still really good video and thank you for showing what we. Us stage hands don’t really get to be seen vary much
Those “lasers” aren’t actually lasers. They are moving heads, which are the beam times… I’m sure Disney have projectors but that’s aren’t it.
Another mind-blowing video from one of the most talented citizens on the planet! Thanks for sharing your incredible creativity, and as you close in on 50k subscribers, may I recommend that people hurry up and order the very cool Walt sweatshirt before it’s gone!! 👻Thanks & bravo Brickey! 🎉
Interesting info Brickey - very cool tech. 👍
Disney is legendary at hiding things
Living in Southern California, it's easy enough to drive up the mountains to see snow in winter.
Another awesome vid man 🤙🏼 going to be there the 6th and 7th hopefully I spot you!
Nice video although I think you got a few things wrong, at least back in the day the area above Great Naps With Mr. Lincoln was actually the phone switchboard for Disneyland. That may have changed but back in the day that's where it was, as far as the rooftop over Plaza point, I've seen multiple crew people up there. With a showing like that with all those fire elements on the roof of the castle you would want to have eyes on the show area and not just relying on security cameras for the same reason there is a stage manager and safety officer desk right in front of the rivers of America. As far as the main launch location for the fireworks it's actually in the middle of the backstage area well behind Tunetown, and I believe there's five or six towers that are between that launch facility in a arc around behind the backstage area to create some of those effects of fire locations of Pyro. Also, all the Pyro launches in the park are standard lift charges on the shells, but all the shells in the backstage area are all air launched through their special air launch system which I've seen in action and it's amazing. Obviously some of this may be wrong at this point as Disney is always changing things but I seriously doubt the main launch facility backstage as well as its bunker for the crew close by to the launch area would've changed as that would be a big facility move. If you look at Google maps the main backstage launch area is slightly North East of the parade storage building.
Hey! Lol… ok, you tricked me into watching this as I couldn’t think where a single launch position of the actual fireworks that would be visible from any on stage area. Then I realized that you were talking about the other gear for any Nighttime Spectacular including the firework shows. To add more detail, I would break the pyro launch positions down to even more layers. Pyro/fireworks are broken down into two basic divisions… Commercial and Proximity. Commercial effects are the large bursts seen in the sky from a distance. Proximity effects are anything that can be fired close to the public. At Disneyland these are roughly broken down into 4 main areas. Main Street are the effects on the tops of the buildings on Main Street itself. The Castle which are the effects on the Fantasyland Buildings and the castle itself including the isopar cannons. The Nine Line is a series of launch positions behind Toon Town although technically, they aren’t all in a straight line. The center 7 are on the rear of the roof of Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway. There are two outside towers that launch the “Shooting Star” effects are more inline with the front of the building. One is next to the Roundhouse and the other is at the far end of the MMRR building. The furthest most launch area is for the air launch shells where all of the large fireworks are shot from which is opposite the NW corner of the MMRR building (Hope that makes sense, look on Google Earth!). You had SO much great information about everything else. Although the SM and Pyro Tech for World of Color are on stage under the Pixar Pier sign as they require line of site, the actual control room is completely backstage but I haven’t actually seen the DL control room for these spectacles. I know the DL phone operators were in the Opera House building on the second floor in the past but could have moved to make room for a control room. I believe that the SM calls the show from the roof of the MS Photo building and I think I remember a Pyrodigital board up there so I would imagine all of the proximity effects for Main Street are controlled from there as well. That operator could be firing the Castle as well but probably not as they don’t really have good line of site to all of the launch positions on the FL rooftops. Another thing that I found interesting when we were shooting some projection content for DLP is that at the studios where they map everything for Disney worldwide, there are white scaled replicas of every castle, all of DL Main Street, the Matterhorn, etc for them to test the projections on. It allows them to tweak everything in the studio before it goes out to the parks. The level of detail was astounding. As an example, the mapping on the Mira Costa for Tokyo DisneySea’s new “Believe! Sea of Dreams” is amazing in so many ways… but I was curious if the projections would bother the guests that were staying in the rooms that face the show. They told me that they had mapped out every pane of glass in each window. There are several hundred windows, each with either 6 or 8 panes of glass. Yes, the level of detail is astounding!
So the top of the now Holiday Shoppe is the stage manager board for pyro. Or at least it was when I was working there.
The room above the Main Street Opera House is more Audio Central and the old phone operators room. They control all the audio around the park from there. I wouldn’t be surprised if they have moved more show control elements into there over the years.
You know much of what you see today hasn’t actually been around that long. The 50th anniversary was when a lot of the technology was installed. But even then the projection mapping wasn’t what it is today.
When those windows on Main Street were modified to support Disneyland Forever the company that did the work never finished the job, because Disney didn’t want to pay them. We ended up finishing the work ourselves 12hours before we opened Disneyland Forever, many of the windows had to be propped open with a wooden dowel
I’d love to see how Talking Crush works…like I know, but I’d love to see it.
The fireworks are now using air to push the explosive ball up instead of using an explosive charge to push it up. This makes for a quieter show for the surrounding neighborhoods. Helps pet have less stress, and less air pollution.
It’s sad all those details are hard to see because our castle is so small. As compared to all the other parks that are much easier to see even from a distance, it’s hard to see from Main Street. It’s still very cool to know how the magic happens.
@HeyBrickey! I'm loves this Video
What kind of projectors they use? They look like Christie but which model?
Fun stuff. Brings back memories of several projects I've worked on.
BTW:
"Sleeping Beauty Castle." Never Sleeping **Beauty's** Castle, which sometimes slips your lips.
2:06 Curious as to where the projector is in this big square block. Where does the projection come from?
That area is always roped off during the show time, so there's no footage of it open, but you can see a CM opening it in the video. I assume it's the same projector in the It's A Small World segment.
I hope you do one for Disney World as well. They have 3 different night shows.
The last time we were at Disneyland, the fireworks show was especially magical as mouse ears were on display high up in the sky. Disney was testing fireworks that lighted the sky with circles arranged to represent Mickey mouse.
Glad you caught a little firework magic!
Precisely great video!😁
It’s ISO Par, a cleaning fluid that ignites like gasoline but costs less and burns cleaner
If you're implying that Southern Californians may never have seen real snow, living in sunny Cali and all, you'd be incorrect. The San Gabriel mountains are just a few hours from Anaheim, and places like Big Bear and Lake Arrowhead are popular winter day trips.
Breakfast with Brickey
Enjoy! 🍳
I honestly wish disney did videos of the fireworks launch site that would be dope.
There was one on Disney+ a while back that showed a bit of the testing the pneumatics, but no longer have D+ to give you the right link. (Maybe the one about imagineering?)
See "Disneyland Fireworks Behind the Scenes - 'Gears Behind the Ears'" About the 3 minute mark. Also includes some of the launching computers (think it was PyroDigital).
I just noticed, could it be that they fold the Banners on the walkway of sleeping beauties castle so the banners are not disturbing the view, for example on a windy day?
Hey Brickey! What a great topic! Can you talk about the parameters and requirements for canceling the fireworks! I go once a week and I’m starting to learn how to read wind patterns. I always look out for the white ballon but sometimes miss it.
That’s a great topic I’ll have to try and research because I only know the signs they look for but don’t the know specific weather patterns myself.
The windows from inside the control room don't match the windows above Mr Lincoln. I agree with the cameras they don't need line of sight, but the other location you mention does seem more plausible with a view of main street and the castle.
I want to add that my company makes and ships every Disney park in the world some of there fireworks mortar's. All hand made by a team of 4 people. They will ask for 700+ at a time, it takes about 2 months to make them all.
Fascinating. Thanks for sharing.