Warehouse 71

WHAT DID I JUST READ?!
Warehouse 71 began as a whimsical little idea jotted down on a piece of hotel
stationary, a fanciful distraction when work felt creatively stifling or unfulfilling,
a way of returning to the wellspring of my love for scenic design and narrative
placemaking.
I distinctly remember the first time I rode Big Thunder Mountain Railroad at
eight years of age. I surely enjoyed the ride but I was thrilled by the experience
of stepping into that world. With each ensuing jaunt through the queue
I become more and more aware of the work that went into creating that sense
of place. I remember examining the distressed wood wrapped in worn leather,
carefully considering the the old crates stamped “Explosives” and contemplating
the rust covered bolts I knew to be not much older than myself. Soon I
was analyzing every land we entered, every street lamp we passed.
On an early trip to Disney-MGM Studios I learned that the artists who created
these worlds were known as Imagineers. I quickly began to spend my time in
the parks and at home concocting my own ride concepts or trying to plus-up
existing attractions. At age nine I decided an animatronic pirate should peer
out from behind a distant wall in the queue for Pirates of the Caribbean, and I’d
cross my fingers it would be there with each subsequent visit.