"The creative process is not going from point A to point B. You go to point A, you take a U-turn, you do some curlicues, and then point B might be off in the distance."

BobWeis.com

Buy the book Dream Chasing

Episode Chapters

[03:08] Deciding when to retire after a 42 year career

[04:59] The people and experiences that remain

[09:02] Bringing her skills to an arts organization

[11:29] Learning patience with creative work

[15:48] Decisions Kathy would revisit

[16:59] Speaking up for a Cars Land scene

[21:08] Kathy's regret about Splash Mountain

[24:17] Returning to the work she loved

[30:08] How a strong idea changes the room

Kathy Mangum kept moving her retirement date three months at a time. After 42 years at Disney, she had no final project opening to mark the moment, and she still loved going to work.

In the last part of our conversation, I ask Kathy what those years mean to her now. She talks about the people who helped her do her best work, the friendships that lasted, and the experience she brings to an arts organization in Pasadena. We also revisit decisions she wishes she had challenged and a moment when she did speak up for a project.

Kathy's story has never been just a list of attractions. It's also a story about making room for other people to do remarkable work.

"You don't justify it on performance. You justify it on it's the right thing to do."

Guests had a way of showing us what Disney California Adventure Park still needed. They were crossing over from Disneyland to visit a few attractions, then would head back over to Disneyland. We wanted them to stay, and that meant thinking about the park as a whole.

In part two of our conversation, Kathy Mangum takes us through her work as an Imagineering producer on A Bug's Land, the Finding Nemo attractions, and Cars Land. She explains why rebuilding the entrance was a bolder bet than adding a major ride. In all of the ideas we brought to the table, it's the artists, engineers, and craftspeople who worked together to make those experiences possible.

Episode Chapters

[00:01] The gamble behind a new park entrance

[01:07] Kathy returns to project work

[02:39] An idea for A Bug's Land

[07:40] Bringing Nemo into two parks

[15:20] Making Turtle Talk with Crush feel live

[22:33] Why California Adventure needed to change

[27:49] How Car Land became Cars Land

[33:03] Solving design and engineering problems

[37:04] The challenge of measuring a mountain

[40:54] Watching guests enter Cars Land

BobWeis.com

Buy the book Dream Chasing

"I entered Imagineering as a concept designer, and I left as a painter."

At D23, I saw a desk set up for Eric Robison. I knew Eric would be at home with a chair near the crowd and a piece of paper in his hand. Eric is an artist, storyteller, architectural designer, and longtime friend.

Eric entered Walt Disney Imagineering as a concept designer and spent 39 years doing creative work there. Along the way, he became a painter. In our conversation, we talk about the people who encouraged his art and the idea he kept returning to: Progress City. Walt Disney envisioned it as a real city where people would live, industry would operate, and visitors could see possibilities for the future. Eric first saw its model at Disneyland as a child. Eric's fascination grew and lead him to create a collection of concept artwork in his book, Return to Progress City.

His path is a perfect example of how far a dream can go when you keep doing the the thing you love.

Episode Chapters

[06:04] Why Eric keeps making art

[09:22] A childhood fascination with Progress City

[11:50] Drawings that grew into a book

[16:01] Why Eric can't leave a blank page alone

[19:28] AI, artists, and working by hand

[29:01] How Marty Sklar encouraged Eric's art

[37:03] Becoming a painter after Imagineering

[48:00] The people who helped Eric move forward

Buy the Book Return to Progress City by Eric Robison

"It was being the right place, at the right time, and with the right initiative."

Kathy Mangum was studying English at Cal State Fullerton and working part-time at Disneyland when one of her classes called for an internship. The key was to find something that used her degree. So, Kathy went to her supervisor in Adventureland and asked, "Need anything written?" Neither of us knew then where that question would lead.

In this first part of our conversation, we go back to the opportunities and people that shaped her path into Imagineering. Kathy shares what it was like to take on unfamiliar projects and learn from specialists. She shares each experience helped her discover the kind of work she most wanted to do.

Chasing a dream doesn't always begin with a clear plan. It can start by taking the work in front of you seriously and staying curious about where it might lead.

Episode Chapters

[01:29] Growing up near Disneyland

[05:18] An English major asks to write

[09:24] From Tokyo Disneyland to EPCOT

[15:50] Learning on the job at Typhoon Lagoon

[22:46] Working with experts across disciplines

[27:42] Brainstorming Blizzard Beach

[32:04] Discovering which work she wanted to do

[35:21] Finding the right people for a project