Changes

| land=Future WorldNature

When original designs for EPCOT Center were being drawn up, an Imagination pavilion was nowhere to be found. In fact, the Imagination pavilion was the last pavilion designed for Future World Nature <ref name= "Martin"> http://www.martinsvids.net/?p=95 </ref>. The structure that would eventually become the pavilion took inspiration from an idea that Imagineer Tony Baxter had for the Mineral and Ecology pavilion that was originally planned for EPCOT Center but never constructed <ref name= "wedway"> Parish, Matt, Nate Parish, and Michael Crawford. "5:3 The Original Land Pavilion." Audio blog post. WedWay Radio. N.p., 20 May 2013. Web. </ref>. Although Baxter had gotten fairly far in his designs for the Mineral pavilion, after it was decided that the theme pavilion should go in a different direction (due to the fact that Kraft had assumed sponsorship) he turned his attention to the Kodak pavilion <ref name= "E82"/>. Despite the fact that Kodak had originally signed on as an EPCOT Center sponsor in 1977 <ref name= "Martin"/>, the company still did not have a firm idea of what they wanted their pavilion to focus on <ref name= "E82">http://www.epcotlegacy.com/historical-expositions/2010/6/30/gather-store-re-combine-a-history-of-imagination-part-1.html </ref> . According to Tony Baxter:

It was not until the attraction opened that the pavilion itself was officially named Journey Into Imagination <ref name= "Martin"/>.

The After opening, the Journey Into Imagination pavilion remained essentially the same until 1986, when Magic Journeys closed <ref name= "mouse"> https://www.mouseplanet.com/11109/The_Vacation_Kingdom_of_the_World_Its_a_3D_World_After_All </ref>. The attraction (which was eventually moved to [[Fantasyland]] in the [[Magic Kingdom]]) was replaced with a new 3D show [[Captain EO]] <ref name= "mouse"/>. Captain EO was created in partnership with Lucasfilms Lucasfilm and stared pop icon Michael Jackson as the title character, a space captain charged with saving the universe. The new show featured technologically not present in its predecessor, including in-theater special effects such as laser and smoke to go along with traditional 3D effects <ref name= "E82Part2"> http://www.epcotlegacy.com/historical-expositions/2010/10/25/gather-store-re-combine-a-history-of-imagination-part-2.html </ref>.

Captain EO ran in the Journey Into Imagination pavilion for eight years, before it was finally replaced with a new show in 1994. Replacing Captain EO, was a new 3D show- Honey, I Shrunk the Audience. A spin off of the popular "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids " film series, . Honey, I Shrunk the Audience once again used 4D effects including water and small fans to immerse guests in the film <ref> Epcot Encyclopedia </ref>. Due to the fact that new film took place in the fictional Imagination Institute (where Professor Wayne Szalinski was receiving the inventor of the Year award), the Magic Eye Theater was renamed the “Imagination Institute” at this time <ref> http://www.epcotlegacy.com/historical-expositions/2011/3/28/gather-store-re-combine-a-history-of-imagination-part-3.html </ref>.

In 1998, with Kodak's sponsorship ending shortly, Fujifilm approached Disney with an offer to sponsor the Journey Into Imagination Pavilion <ref> http://www.disneyparkhistory.com/imagination.html </ref>. Their sponsorship would have included a complete restructuring of the pavilion, including getting rid of the Journey Into Imagination attraction. Although the attraction was popular, it cost a lot of money for Disney to maintain. Fujifilm told Disney that they would replace the attraction with an "E-Ticket" thrill ride, that would be just as popular as Journey Into Imagination, yet cheaper to maintain <ref> http://www.wdwradio.com/2006/06/world-history-the-imagination-pavilion/ </ref>. Kodak, not wanting to lose their sponsorship of the pavilion (especially not to rival Fujifilm) , pitched their own idea to Disney <ref> http://futureprobe.blogspot.com/2008/10/journey-into-imagination-remembered.html </ref>. They told Disney that they would make Journey Into Imagination more scientific, and use cheaper special effects. Although their proposal may not have seemed as glamorous as the FujiFilm Fujifilm proposal, Disney had concerns about turning the attraction into a thrill ride (as such a ride would still be costly to maintain). With this in mind, Disney accepted Kodak's proposal , and Journey Into Imagination closed for renovations on October 10, 1998 <ref> http://www.wdwmagic.com/attractions/journey-into-imagination/news/10oct1998-journey-into-imagination-closed-for-major-refurbishment.htm </ref>.

When the Journey Into Imagination Pavilion reopened on October 1, 1999, its name was changed to the Imagination! pavilion <ref> https://www.mouseplanet.com/10792/Remembering_the_Magic_Imagination_Pavilion </ref>. Following the refurbishment, the pavilion featured a drastically different layout. For starters, the jumping fountains located outside of the pavilion were significantly reduced in size, in order to accommodate the addition of a new gift shop <ref name= "Martin2"> http://www.martinsvids.net/?p=135 </ref>. The color scheme and signage on of the exterior of the pavilion were also changed dramatically, as they now reflected Kodak's company colors of red and orange<ref name= "Martin2"/>. Furthermore, the ImageWorks, which had originally been located on the second floor of the pavilion, was moved to the first floor and reduced in size<ref name= "Martin2"/>. At this time, the attraction was also renamed the “Kodak What If Labs". Although its basic premise remained essentially the same, many guests complained that the new What If Labs were simply one big advertisement for Kodak. After exiting the What if Labs, guests were funneled into the aforementioned new gift shop, where they could buy photos, Epcot souvenirs, and Journey Into Your Imagination merchandise<ref name= "Martin2"/>.

While many things changed both outside and within the Imagination! Pavilion in 1999, there was no bigger change then the new Journey Into Imagination attraction. Now titled Journey Into ''Your'' Imagination, the attraction was rethemed as a tie-in to Honey, I Shrunk the Audience. Taking place inside the Imagination Institute, Dr. Nigel Channing (Eric Idle) now gave guests a tour of the institute, using them as test subjects for a new invention, the "Imagination Scanner". To the surprise of many guests, Dreamfinder was completely removed from the attraction and Figment (once the mascot of Epcot) was reduced to only a brief cameo<ref name= "Martin2"/>.

The new Journey Into Your Imagination attraction proved to be extremely unpopular with guests and many decided to boycott the attraction (as well as Kodak) to protest the changes. This campaign proved to be quite successful, as guest complaints (along with pressure from Kodak and Michael Eisner) led to the attraction getting another overhaul in 2001 <ref> http://www.epcotlegacy.com/historical-expositions/2011/3/28/gather-store-re-combine-a-history-of-imagination-part-3.html </ref>. Journey Into Your Imagination closed on October 8, 2001 <Ref> http://www.epcotlegacy.com/historical-expositions/2011/6/13/gather-store-re-combine-a-history-of-imagination-part-4.html </ref>, before reopening on June 2, 2002 as "Journey Into Imagination with Figment" <ref name= "Martin2"/> <ref> http://www.disney-pal.com/Epcot/journey_into_imagination.htm </ref>. Following the refurbishment, the attraction still focused on featured Dr. Nigel Channing once again giving guest guests a tour of the Imagination Institute. Instead of testing out his Imagination Scanner however, Dr. Channing now explained how the five senses can trigger human imagination. Figment returned in this version of the attraction, disrupting the doctor’s tour, and showing guests his imagination. Although the focus of the attraction was changed, the basic premise and the track structure of the ride remained basically the same. Also of note, The Kodak What if Labs remained essentially the same, however Figment was added to many of the exhibits <ref name= "Martin2"/>.

In December 20052004, a new Figment meet and greet location called "Figment's Place" opened to guests <ref> http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/figment-opens-his-home.47987/ </ref>. The meet and greet was shortlived short lived however and it closed in 2008 <ref> http://new.disneyecho.emuck.com/cgi-bin/ikonboard.cgi?s=5eab6455796e4c9fb8e0ac0c9f977088;act=ST;f=77;t=11065 </ref>.

On March 26, 2015 Disney announced that Captain EO would be temporarily closing on April 10, 2015 <ref>https://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2015/03/exclusive-sneak-peek-of-disneys-tomorrowland-coming-to-disney-parks-inapril/ </ref>. Following the attractions closure, the Magic Eye Theater showed a sneak peak of the 2015 Disney movie "Tomorrowland". After the end of the preview period, on July 19, 2015 Captain EO returned to the Magic Eye Theater <ref> http://blogs.disney.com/insider/2015/07/24/he-is-here-to-change-the-world-again-captain-eo-returns-to-epcot/ </ref>. Finally, on December 6, 2015 Captain EO was permanently removed. Taking its place in the Magic Eye Theater is the Disney & Pixar Short Film Festival <ref> https://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2015/11/disney-pixar-short-film-festival-to-debut-at-epcots-magic-eye-theater/ </ref>. The new attraction shows three Disney-Pixar short cartoons.

In January 2016 , Disney announced that in the Spring 2016 a new Disney Vacation Club members-only club would be opening on the second floor of the Imagination! pavilion <ref> https://disneyvacationclub.disney.go.com/25th-anniversary/epcot-members-lounge/ </ref>. The Opening on June 6, 2016, the lounge will be is located in the former location of the upstairs ImageWorks <ref> httphttps://wwwdisneyparks.orlandoweeklydisney.go.com/Blogs/archivesblog/2016/01/1106/new-disney-woosvacation-dvcclub-membersmember-muchlounge-toopens-theat-dismayepcot-of-annual-pass-holderstoday/</ref>.

On September 30, 2016, the Disney Visa Character Spot that was formally previously located in [[Innoventions]] was relocated to the former location of Figment's Place <ref> http://wdwnt.com/blog/2016/09/breaking-disney-visa-character-spot-replacing-figments-place-epcot/ </ref>. On February 13, 2019, the Wreck-It Ralph meet and greet that was previously housed in [[Innoventions West]] was moved to the Imagination pavilion's [[Imageworks]] area <ref>https://wdwmagic.com/attractions/character-meet-and-greets-at-epcot/news/13feb2019-wreck-it-ralph-and-vanellope-meet-and-greet-now-located-inside-imagination-pavilion.htm </ref>. As part of this experience, guests can now meet both Ralph and Vanellope just outside the [[Journey Into Imagination with Figment]] attraction's exit.

'''[[Disney & Pixar Short Film Festival]]'''- This attraction allows guests to watch three Disney Pixar shorts including: "Get A Horse" "For The BirdsPiper" and "La LunaFeast"

'''[[Journey Into Imagination With with Figment]]'''- This dark ride lets guests take a tour of the Imagination Institute with Dr. Nigel Channing and Figment. Along the way guests learn how the five senses relate to imagination.

'''[[ImageWorks]]'''- After exiting Journey Into Imagination With Figment, guests enter the ImageWorks. Here, they can explore various interactive exhibits featuring Figment. Beginning in 2019, guests can now meet Ralph and Vanellope from the Wreck it Ralph franchise in the ImageWorks.

'''Honey, I Shrunk the Audience'''- This 4D show was based on the "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids " film series. While attending the Imagination Institute's awards award ceremony, guests would accidentally be shrunk down to the size of an ant. Honey, I Shrunk the Audience replaced Magic Journeys in 1994 and ran until 2010.

'''Figment's Place'''- This character meet and greet location allowed guests to visit Figment inside his home. Figment's Place opened in December 2014 2004 and closed for good in 2008.

* In the early years of the pavilion, guests could see a spinning Figment topiary in the Magic Garden (which was located just outside of the pavilion). Figment would spin on a turntable there The topiary was removed in the mid-2000s <ref name= "lost"> http://www.lostepcot.com/imagination.html </ref>, the topiary was removed in the mid 2000s.  * From 1982 until 1998 Dreamfinder would walk around outside of the pavilion with Figment resting on his shoulder <ref name= "lost"/>.

* Following Figment's return to the attraction in 2002, a large From 1982 until 1998 Dreamfinder would walk around Figment could be found outside of the pavilion <Ref> http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/figment-meet-(with Figment resting on his shoulder) and-greet-gone.289178/ </ref>, however he stopped meeting interact with guests in 2008 <ref>http:name= "lost"//forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/figment-meet-and-greet-gone.289178/ </ref>.

* Imagineer Mark Fuller, a Walt Disney Imagineer, was responsible for the design of the Imagination Fountains <ref> http://www.intercot.com/EDC/Imagination/index.html </ref>.