tour of imagination

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Theme parks, disney cruise line – what you need to know, cruise line ships, recent walt disney world, recent disneyland, all reviews, recent reviews, allears style, newsletter home, journey into imagination- imagination pavilion- epcot, {"@context":"http:\/\/schema.org","@type":"breadcrumblist","itemlistelement":[{"@type":"listitem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https:\/\/allears.net\/attraction\/","name":"attractions"}},{"@type":"listitem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https:\/\/allears.net\/attraction\/search\/walt-disney-world\/all\/all\/all\/","name":"walt disney world"}},{"@type":"listitem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https:\/\/allears.net\/attraction\/search\/epcot\/all\/all\/all\/","name":"epcot"}},{"@type":"listitem","position":4,"item":{"@id":"https:\/\/allears.net\/attraction\/search\/world-nature\/all\/all\/all\/","name":"world nature"}},{"@type":"listitem","position":5,"item":{"@id":"https:\/\/allears.net\/attraction\/journey-into-imagination\/","name":"journey into imagination"}}]} attractions > walt disney world > epcot > world nature > journey into imagination, recommended by, ride length, motion level, individual attraction selection, journey into imagination… with figment highlights:.

• Disney Genie+ Attraction
• Iconic EPCOT attraction featuring the beloved Figment
• Great for the young kids!

Introduction | Attraction | Ride Logistics | Kids/Characters | Dining | Shopping | Interesting Facts | 

Introduction.

Journey into Imagination…with Figment is a family attraction that features the EPCOT original character Figment, a purple dragon. The ride takes you on a tour of the Imagination Institute with Dr. Nigel Channing and Figment, as you explore the 5 senses.

The attraction is located in Future World in the Imagination Pavillion.

Queue : The queue takes you through the Imagination Institute Open House where you’ll see posters of Inventors of the Year (such as Wayne Szalinski from “Honey I Shrunk the Kids”) as well as signs, comical doorways, and inventions.

Ride : You’ll then board your red vehicle and you’re off on a tour of the Imagination Institute! Guests will meet Dr. Nigel Channing (Eric Idle) who explains he’s taking you on a tour — but of course he’s interupted by Figment who wants to join! 

The tour of the Imagination institute features the five senses — as told by Figment. You’ll “test” your eyes, ears, and nose (with skunk!) with the purple dragon and Dr. Channing.

Eventually, you’ll make your way to Figment’s open house — which is upside down!

The attraction ends with a big BOOM and a final rendition of the ride’s song “One Little Spark.”

RIDE LOGISTICS

Lightning Lane access for Journey into Imagination … with Figment is available with the purchse of Genie+ . However, standby lines for this attraction do not normally reach waits of over 20 minutes outside of peak times.

Each ride vehicle has two rows, and each row can sit two to three guests, depending on size.

The final BOOM at the end features a wind gust and may blow off headwear — mak sure to remove your hats, glasses, and Ears before riding.

The loud BOOM might also startle young kids for a moment. However the attraction is aimed for kids, and most enjoy it.

There is no height or age restriction for guests to experience Journey into Imagination. 

KIDS AND CHARACTERS

As you exit into the Imagination Institute , you will see meet and greet locations for Joy from Inside Out and Ralph and Vanellope from Wreck-it Ralph.

There is a merchandise store located at the exit of the Imagination Institute that features lots of Figment merchandise including clothes, accessories, and housewares.

INTERESTING FACTS

Figment was introduced in 1983, six months after the Imagination Pavilion opened with EPCOT. 

The original verison of the ride featured DreamFinder and the iconic rainbow corridor.

The second version, Journey into YOUR Imagination, barely featured Figment much to fans shegrin. It was closed in just two years to be rennovated to the current version.

An office door on the attraction says “Dean Finder” on it as a nod to the DreamFinder.

How long is Journey Into Imagination?

The ride takes 6 Minutes Find all the attractions by their length

Will Journey Into Imagination make me motion sick?

The motion level is Low. Low speed dark ride on track Details on handling motion sensitivity on your visit

Is Individual Attraction Selection available for Journey Into Imagination?

No Journey Into Imagination is not eligible for Individual Attraction Selection Find Individual Attraction Selection attractions

Is Journey Into Imagination included in Genie+?

Yes Journey Into Imagination is included in Genie+ Find more Genie+ attractions using our search

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Journey Into Imagination With Figment

An Attraction in EPCOT

Last updated: April 20, 2024

At a Glance

Journey into Imagination takes you on a tour of the zany Imagination Institute. Sometimes you’re a passive observer and sometimes you’re a test subject as the ride provides a glimpse of the fictitious lab’s inner workings. Stimulating all your senses and then some, it hits you with optical illusions, a room that defies gravity, and other brain teasers. All along the way, Figment (a purple dragon) makes surprise appearances. After the ride, you can adjourn to an interactive exhibit area.

Reader responses to Figment and company are pretty consistent. From a Franklin, Tennessee, family of three:

Journey into Imagination should be experienced only if you’re a HUGE Figment fan. We, on the other hand, hated it.

• Lightning Lane via Genie+
• Handheld Captioning
• Audio Description
• May Remain in Wheelchair/ECV

modal#open click->video-modal#modalVideo">Journey into Imagination with Figment Ride Through and Overview

Touring Tips

Other attractions you might like Users who like Journey Into Imagination With Figment, generally also like:

Frozen Ever After

Living with the Land

The Haunted Mansion

Hollywood Studios

Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway

Here's roughly how many minutes you'll wait for Journey Into Imagination With Figment at each EPCOT Crowd Level.

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Themed Ideas, Artwork, Histories, and Storytelling

Journey Into YOUR Imagination: Imagineering’s Unimaginative Reimagining of “Imagination!”

One little spark of inspiration is at the heart of all creation. A dream can be a dream-come-true with just that spark from me and you!  Alight with wonder, these words were a celebration of optimism, creativity, and joy when they were sung by heroes of EPCOT Center’s early years – the enigmatic Dreamfinder and his imaginative companion, Figment. But when the very creativity this EPCOT classic set out to inspire fell by the wayside, something truly disastrous emerged…

Today, we want to dive deep into the story of a ride that was  already  loved by a generation and celebrated as a living example of Imagineering’s best…  until  Disney (literally) tore out its character resulting in one of the most despised and (thankfully) short-lived Disney attractions ever.

It can only be the story behind Epcot’s depressingly unimaginitive  Journey into Your Imagination . Although it was only open for two years, the infamy of this debilitating disaster has made it a laughing stock, even for those who never had the chance to see it in person. Short-lived, short-sighted, and plain-old shortened, this dark ride proved to be more of a death than a rebirth.

Today we’ll go in-depth to discuss the history of Epcot’s Imagination pavilion and why Disney fans consider it holy ground. Then, we’ll explore the creation of this long-detested ride, see what it was like to experience it, and find out what replaced it after its short life during Epcot’s Millennium Celebration. Ready to journey into imagination and back? As usual in our in-depth series, the story of Journey into Your Imagination deserves and requires a little background; so let’s spend a moment catching up.

And before we head off, remember that you can unlock rare concept art and audio streams in this story, access over 100 Extra Features , and recieve an annual Membership card and postcard art set in the mail by supporting this clickbait-free, in-depth, ad-free theme park storytelling site for as little as $2 / month! Become a Park Lore Member to join the story! Until then, let’s start at the beginning…

Imagination!

By the late ’70s, designers at Disney’s WED Enterprises were well on the way to developing an entirely new theme park for Walt Disney World – one as radical a reinvention as Disneyland had been two decades earlier. Designed as a “permanent World’s Fair,” EPCOT Center’s Future World realm was comprised of gargantuan, intellectual pavilions dedicated to areas of science and industry (and underwritten by American corporations eager to broadcast their brand and message to Disney World guests).

From energy to nutrition ; transportation to ocean exploration , each of Future World’s monumental pavilions was underscored by an informative, lengthy dark ride through the past, present, and future of its area of innovation… Except one.

That’s because Disney’s long-running official photography partner, Kodak, was eager to sponsor a pavilion for the new EPCOT Center. The topic? Kodak representatives reported to Disney that it didn’t matter, so long as it was “something imaginative.”

Imagination was an intentional outlier among the “hard sciences” of Future World, concerned not with products, industry, or consumerism, but with the fascinating concept of where ideas come from; how humans take bits of experiences and ideas and senses and mix them to create new things… Though the pavilion offered gardens of leaping fountains, a 3D theater, and the multi-sensory ImageWorks laboratory (on the second story; inside the glass pyramids themselves), its headliner was a quintessentially-EPCOT dark ride.

Journey into Imagination

On March 3, 1983 – about five months after EPCOT Center itself –  Journey into Imagination set flight from Kodak’s Imagination pavilion.

Stepping into the pavilion, guests would find themselves in a sunlit atrium beneath the glass pyramids – a whimsical, pastel lobby of abstract clouds and shapes. There, they’d load into modified Omnimover ride vehicles drift off into one of the most spectacular Imagineering attractions of the era.

From there, a chain of four cabs would proceed into the clouds, meeting up with the enigmatic, red-bearded Dreamfinder and his zany zephyr, the Dreamcatcher. As the two would glide along through the clouds, the musical inventer would sing along to the ride’s Sherman Brothers’ tune, “One Little Spark,” and create his purple dragon, Figment – a living embodiment of creativity and color.

In reality, this opening scene – perhaps the ride’s most awe-inspiring – was an engineering marvel in its own right, with each chain of cabs oriented around a central scene (think Madame Leota of the Haunted Mansion) which was itself one of five duplicates on a massive turntable, rotating at the same rate that the ride advanced. In other words, this extended introduction to Dreamfinder and Figment helped make the pair two of the most beloved characters created just for Disney Parks .

What followed was an epic, musical, 12-minute joyride through Technicolor realms collecting “sparks” of inspiration. The joyful attraction floated through lands of literature, art, performing arts, and science with the whimsical Figment along for every step of the ride, singing the ride’s sensational theme song and giggling all the way!

So beloved was this incredible, 12-minute dark ride, its creation, ride experience, and destruction earned its own in-depth feature that’s a must-read for Disney Parks fans:   Lost Legends : Journey into Imagination .  It’s there that you’ll find an in-depth ride-through, point-of-view videos, and the full behind-the-scenes story of how Journey into Imagination came to be – a prologue to our Declassified Disaster today.

But here’s what you need to know: Journey into Imagination quickly became a fan favorite, an icon of EPCOT Center, and definitive proof that Imagineering could craft legendary original characters for Disney attractions.

After all, EPCOT Center had  intentionally  been designed without Disney movies or Disney characters – no princesses, no castles, no  Mickey Mouse  – so Dreamfinder and Figment were quickly co-opted by Disney Parks fans to be the de facto icons of the park. Journey into Imagination was a pinnacle of theme park storytelling, touching and inspiring a generation of young people who credit it (and other EPCOT originals) with their love for themed entertainment design.

So how could such a good thing go so wrong?

Of course, Disney didn’t  set out  to turn this masterpiece attraction into the most hated ride Epcot’s ever hosted. So what happened? Read on…

Read on...!

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5 Benefits of Imaginative Thinking

A good imagination enables us to transcend present circumstances..

Posted April 14, 2022 | Reviewed by Lybi Ma

• Imagination is a fundamental aspect of human life.
• Imagination enables one to look beyond the world as it is.
• Imagination helps create different lenses through which to see the world.

Our imaginations make it possible to invent alternative realities from “what is” and “what could be.” It is the ability to “see” something that does not exist. Focusing only on what we already know can limit our ability to think more broadly. The human imagination is a predictive tool that enables people to foresee situations they never previously experienced. Everyone has this capacity to some degree.

1. Imagining possible futures

Imagination frees us from the confines of our immediate reality. Imagining the future enables us to evaluate alternative paths forward, anticipate how we would feel if they happened, and choose which to pursue. For instance, by simulating a potential event (job interview, holiday options) via mental imagery , we can “test out” in the mind potential emotional consequences. The imagination of the desired future (losing 10 pounds) motivates the person to cope with obstacles (lack of motivation to exercise, or temptation to indulge) to attain goals.

Imagination can be quite helpful in making life-altering decisions. For example, one cannot really know whether one wants to become a parent without experiencing being a parent. If one cannot reasonably imagine oneself with radically different values, then plausibly one cannot appropriately imagine the values associated with the outcomes of one’s actions.

2. Counterfactual thinking

Counterfactual thinking (alternative versions of one’s personal past) refers to the comparison of reality to hypothetical alternatives (“what if I had made different choices”). People create counterfactual alternatives to reality when they imagine how things would have turned out differently. Imagined alternatives (“If only I had studied harder for this exam”) may trigger guilt , remorse, and shame . However, thoughts about how things could have turned out differently provide a roadmap for change.

3. Distancing from the problem

Imagining events from a distance encourages abstract thinking that boosts creativity . After several years of experience, people start to repeat themselves; it becomes more of the same old approach. They become insiders. One of the most effective ways of cultivating an outsider perspective is to feel distant from the problems. For example, traveling, getting away from the places we spend most of our time. The distance allows one to view problems in a more imaginative way. Suddenly, the mind is aware of those considerations that were previously ignored, and those facts that should be ignored.

4. The vividness effects

Any situation that affects our ability to visualize events and situations may affect our judgments. Visual images are more emotionally salient than words. We recall emotionally charged events far more than mundane ones. However, this emotional partiality impairs our ability to see the big picture. For example, lawyers have known for a long time that the vividness of the testimony offered by a witness can influence the judgments made by a jury.

5. Metaphor

Imagination is central to understanding and interpreting figurative language. Metaphors are figures of speech to convey a truth about the real world. They are transferred from another context to give us new ways to think. We can imaginatively see a particular perspective on the focus of the metaphor. For example, the phrase, No man is an island , implies that no one is truly self-sufficient. We portray time as money (“spending time”). Love is a journey (“their relationship hit a dead end”).

The dark side of imagination

Delusions and ordinary cases of self-deception have been characterized as disorders of imagination. Delusions can be characterized as beliefs that are dysfunctional in their content or formation. That is, a delusion is an imagined interpretation that is mistaken by the subject as a belief.

How to improve your imagination?

Imagination is deeply connected with reality. What we imagine can affect what we believe and vice versa. The richer the personal experience is, the richer the ingredients for imagining. That is, imagination is nourished by various resources on which the person can draw. Through books, art, discussions with others, and education , we can build our knowledge of events and places that we have never experienced.

Shahram Heshmat, Ph.D., is an associate professor emeritus of health economics of addiction at the University of Illinois at Springfield.

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Journey Into Imagination With Figment

Just Imagine… Dragons!

The Institute’s beleaguered chairman Dr. Nigel Channing (played by Eric Idle) sets out to prove how the 5 senses capture the imagination—but he’s upstaged by the mischievous Figment! 

Prepare for surprises galore as you travel through a series of vivid, whimsical sensory labs. Learn about all 5 senses as Figment turns the lab upside down and causes quite a stink in the Smell Lab. 

Let your imagination run wild on this marvelous, madcap musical adventure!

Related Activities

Even more magic – as you wish, imageworks – the “what if” labs, guests also viewed, safety, accessibility and guest policies, times for journey into imagination with figment.

Complete Guide to Journey into Imagination with Figment at Epcot

One little spark of inspiration is all it takes for your imagination to run wild at Journey into Imagination with Figment.

Join the famous purple dragon Figment and Dr. Nigel Channing (played by Eric Idle) as you journey through the five senses at the Imagination Institute.

But watch out, because the mischievous Figment may take over and turn everything upside down!

Keep reading for our complete guide to   Journey into Imagination with Figment .

In this article

Journey into Imagination with Figment Quick Facts

• Location: Epcot, inside the Imagination Pavilion in World Celebration
• Height Requirement : None
• Suitable for: Anybody
• Attraction length: 6 minutes
• Do we recommend? Not a high priority but with relatively few attractions for little ones, this should definitely be on the “must-see” list for families with young children.
• When to visit: Anytime
• Scheduled Refurbishments
• Tip(s): Visit any time, there is rarely much of a wait

Journey into Imagination with Figment is located in World Celebration inside the Imagination Pavilion, the same pavilion as ImageWorks.

The Imagination Pavilion is also where you can say hello to Winnie the Pooh, Mickey, Joy, and Vanellope. The Disney and Pixar Short Film Festival is also in the pavilion.

You can find the pavilion to the left of the Land Pavilion , which houses Soarin’ and Living with the Land .

Download the PDF

How to Ride Journey into Imagination with Figment

Journey into Imagination with Figment has a Standby Line and a Lightning Lane. There is no  Single Rider Line .

Typically, this ride doesn’t have long waits nor is it an attraction you should rope drop.

Do I need to use Genie+ at Journey into Imagination with Figment?

Journey into Imagination with Figment wouldn’t be considered an early priority since Genie+ availability usually lasts most of the day and the waits here are typically never that long.

Be sure to check out our  touring strategies for EPCOT  for more Genie+ advice.

Rider Switch/Child Swap

As there is no height requirement for Journey into Imagination with Figment, this attraction does not offer  Rider Switch .

Rider Switch is Disney’s system that allows guests with small children to take turns riding bigger rides, while another person/people wait with the little one.

You can  learn more about Rider Switch  via our handy guide.

What to Expect when you Ride

At the Imagination Pavilion, you’ll enter into the lobby of the Imagination Institute where doors lead to different labs and offices.

Make sure you check out the framed pictures on the wall showcasing inventors of the year, including Professor Wayne Szalinski from  Honey, I Shrunk the Kids,  and Professor Philip Brainard from  Flubber .

While the queue can extend outside, it rarely does.

This is a good attraction to get in line for during those hotter days or if it’s raining.

Ride Vehicles

The ride vehicles for Journey Into Imagination with Figment seat 3 to 4 guests per row. Guests sit on hard benches with a back.

There are no safety restraints, however, there are doors that slide closed after you board on the right side of the vehicle to keep guests secure.

Accessibility Information

On Journey into Imagination with Figment, guests may remain in their wheelchair or ECV and use the accessible ride car vehicle. Be sure to ask a Cast Member for assistance.

Handheld captioning  is available for those who need it.

On the Ride

If you want to keep your journey through the imagination a surprise, you’ll want to skip over this part!

Here, you’ll board your ride vehicle and enter the sensory labs of the Imagination Institute at Journey into Imagination With Figment.

This tour of sight, sound, and smell is hosted by Figment (a purple dragon with yellow wings created from the saying “figment of your imagination”) and Dr. Nigel Channing, portrayed by Eric Idle of Monty Python fame.

Much to Dr. Channing’s dismay, Figment has a habit of taking over and his crazy antics lead to some fun surprises and quite the stink in the Smell Lab.

Figment turns this ride upside down before its finale which will have you singing the attraction’s catchy them, “One Little Spark.”

Is Journey into Imagination with Figment Kid-Friendly?

While it can be dark in Journey into Imagination with Figment, this is a ride for the whole family. It’s slow-moving, colorful, and fun for little ones.

Strollers are not allowed in most queues at Walt Disney World, including at Journey into Imagination.

Instead, you’ll need to leave your stroller in the designated stroller parking area outside the queue entrance.

You may want to cover your stroller, even if seems like a sunny day.  Florida rainstorms  are always popping up when you least expect them!

The first version of Journey into Imagination opened in Epcot in 1983 . Inspiration for this attraction came from an abandoned Disneyland attraction called Professor Marvel’s House of Illusions.

The backstory was that Professor Marvel was an eccentric scientist who bred dragons. This concept was tweaked, becoming Figment and the Dreamfinder in Journey into Imagination.

The original ride closed in 1998 and a reimagined attraction opened in 1999, eliminating the Dreamfinder and featuring a new character, Dr. Nigel Channing.

However, reaction to the revamped ride was mostly negative as Figment, who has become a beloved icon of Epcot, had a much smaller role. A little over a year later the ride closed for a second time for a major refurbishment.

Journey into Imagination with Figment finally opened in 2002, delighting Figment lovers with his return to the main stage. Now Figment acts as a sidekick to Channing, singing tunes and bouncing in and out of scenes.

Journey into Imagination with Figment is now the longest-running iteration of this attraction, having been open for more than 20 years.

Other Fun Details

• The popular song for this attraction, “One Little Spark,” was written by the Sherman brothers. This Academy-Award-winning duo was responsible for other ride themes like “ it’s a small world ” and also worked on Mary Poppins.
• After you exit the ride, you can even say hello to Figment inside ImageWorks!

• During the holidays at Disney , Figment sports a Christmas sweater on the ride.
• In the “sight” room, look at the dry-erase board. You will see a Hidden Mickey. Also, pay attention to the headphones on the table in the same room, another Hidden Mickey! When you are in one of the final scenes after the big “blast,” look at the “A” in “Action.” Another Hidden Mickey is in the snow capping the “A.”
• Figment received his own  popcorn bucket  in 2022, with guests waiting in hours-long lines during the Epcot International Festival of the Arts just to nab one. The Figment popcorn bucket returned for the 2023 festival and with an easier Mobile Ordering system.

Other Attractions in World Celebration

World Celebration

• Spaceship Earth

Imagination Pavilion

• Disney and Pixar Short Film Festival
• Journey into Imagination

Inspiring Humanity

Founded by Walt Disney in 1952, Walt Disney Imagineering is the creative force behind the memorable Disney experiences that connect and inspire across generations and borders. And we are proud our experiences continue to set the bar in an industry Walt’s “Imagineers” pioneered.

Walt Disney Imagineering embodies a world-class design firm, premier development company, extraordinary storytelling studio, and cutting-edge innovation lab — all rolled into one. Home to an overwhelming breadth of expert talent from around the globe, Imagineers partner closely with colleagues from across The Walt Disney Company to bring the most awe-inspiring new worlds and cherished characters to life.

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Remembering the Magic: Imagination! Pavilion

September 9, 2014 by Jonathan Heigl

The Imagination Pavilion has been around since Epcot opened in 1982. The attractions inside, however, have gone through some changes. Hopefully you will get “one little spark of inspiration” as we take a look back and remember the magic of the pavilion.

The pavilion was originally named the “Journey Into Imagination Pavilion” (sponsored by Kodak from opening until 2010). The pavilion originally held only the Magic Journeys 3D show when it first opened, until March 5, 1983, when Journey Into Imagination (the ride) and ImageWorks opened. With the reimagination of Journey Into Imagination (the ride), the pavilion was renamed Imagination Pavilion.

Magic Journeys (October 1, 1982 – February 9, 1986)

A 3D film shown in the Magic Eye theater (on the left side of the pavilion), Magic Journeys was about a child exploring his imagination. While the film plays, the theme song, “Magic Journeys,” written by the Sherman Brothers, plays. The film is a bit difficult to explain, so I will try to provide a general overview.

The film starts off with a small group of kids running through a field. A few of them were shown laying on the ground looking up at the sky and discussing different objects seen in the shape of the clouds. One of the next scenes showed kids flying a kite on a beach. The kite then transformed into the shape of a bird, then a fish (with the scene changing to underwater), then a school of fish, then back to a flock of birds, then a Pegasus, a horse, and then a merry-go-round throughout the show. Throughout the film, it was like the main object or focus of the scene would turn into something else. Near the end, childrens toys begin to grow to full size and become a circus.

Magic Journeys would close on February 9, 1986 to make way for a future video starring a big-time star (more on that later)…

Journey Into Imagination (March 5, 1983 – October 10, 1998)

Opening a few months after the opening of Epcot (and in turn, the pavilion), Journey Into Imagination was a light-hearted, 11-minute ride that focused on imagination. The main characters were Dreamfinder and Figment. Dreamfinder was a man who wore a purplish-blue suit, had a long beard, and wore a top hat. Figment was the imaginary dragon-like creature, who Dreamfinder created as a figment of his imagination.

The ride begins with the riders going through a dark section of the track and then eventually coming up to a screen which shows an animated sky with clouds. Across this sky a strange blimp looking vehicle comes across and the voice/whistling of Dreamfinder can be heard. Meanwhile, the background music for the ride's song is playing (“One Little Spark”). Riders proceeded around the corner, where they would see Dreamfinder on his Dream Mobile (the same machine that flew across the sky). He introduces himself and tells how he uses his vehicle to collect things that can be used in imagination to create things.

During this scene, he creates the figment of his imagination, which he calls Figment. Figment comes out of the hatch near the back end of the Dream Mobile. Dreamfinder tells Figment that new friends have joined (the riders) and Figment asks if they can imagine, too, to which Dreamfinder answers “Of course!” Over the course of this scene, they discuss what they can use for imagination (lightning and other things). Figment gets so excited and carried away with the ideas, that the Idea Bag on the Dream Mobile becomes full. Dreamfinder tells Figment that they have to store the ideas with all of the others in the Dream Port. At this point, the riders begin to move forward on the track towards the Dream Port.

Upon entering the Dream Port's Storage Room, riders get a glimpse of all sorts of props that are stored as ideas, including boxed applause, a plasma ball, lightning in a tube, etc. After leaving this room, there are several scenes that represent parts of art, literature, performing arts, and science.

The beginning of the art scene starts out with Dreamfinder also dressed as an artist who appears to have painted a scene on the wall. Traveling further into the scene, the scenery (trees, horse carousel, plants, and so on) are all white. There are different colored lights shining on part of the different props, as if to show that they had been painted that color. Just a bit further ahead, more of the scenery is colored, and on the left of the riders, Figment is dressed as an artist.

The next scene shows Dreamfinder at an organ where the keys are letters. This is the literature scene. This room has a bit of a spooky story theme to it, where the music changes to more of a spooky sound, the room gets darker, lightning bolts show on a screen, and in the projection of the full moon, various animal shadows appear, such as a black cat and a bat. As Dreamfinder plays the letter organ, various word projections appear on the ceiling overhead. Projections of different spiralled fireworks also show. Near the end of the scene, Figment is scene making shadow puppets on the wall. Right after him is a dark area where lit up eyes stare at you all around you and a reference to Edgar Allen Poe's “Raven” is shown, with the large shadow of a squawking crow and on the wall was a quote from the famous poem.

The scene following was the performing arts scene. High on the wall to the right is a marquee with flashing lights. Below that are various posters that say applause, dance, and other performing arts terms. Slightly ahead and on the left, Figment stands on a chest with costumes strewn about. He has on a tuxedo coat and a white shirt. He is standing in front of a mirror that has big clear light bulbs surrounding it. On the screen ahead, various music notes are laser projected onto it, but Dreamfinder is standing off to the side waving his hands as if to show he is conducting an orchestra. After that, Figment is shown in a space suit pointing to the next scene.

Next up is the science scene. On the left was a big lit up Earth globe. On the screens ahead, there is a time lapse video that shows the formation of crystals and another shows the germination of seeds, and then the process reversing. Dreamfinder is standing and manipulating the things happening on the monitors. Near the end of the scene, an animated figment is shown on a screen, flying around, spinning upside down, and appearing to attach himself to the screen.

The last scene shows Figment in a large room.Video screens surround him and film is shown of him being many different things in his imagination: what appears to be a lollipop maker, a weight lifter, a snowy mountain climber, dancer with a top hat and cane, a superhero, captain of a ship, a pirate, and a cowboy. Upon exiting the final scene, Dreamfinder is off to the side and on a screen, pictures of the riders are shown. At this point, after moving just a little further ahead, riders disembark off of the ride vehicle.

ImageWorks (October 1, 1982 – October 10, 1998)

Part of the post-show for the ride was the ImageWorks area. This area was in the upper part of the pavilion and featured many hands on activities, as well as allowing for guests to view outside from the glass pyramids that were atop the pavilion. The activities in the area were:

• Bubble Music – guests could press a button to make a bubble that would make music
• Dreamfinder's School of Drama – guests could act out a scene on a small stage. Afterwards, guests watched their performance back with added video effects.
• Electronic Philharmonic – this was a digital “orchestra” that was sensitive to light. Guests could move their hands in the light to dictate the tempo and volume  for the instruments.
• Figment's Coloring Book – this was an electronic book with electronic pens to color with.
• Giant Kaleidoscopes – huests would spin various dials to create different patterns.
• Image Warp – this was a funhouse style mirror room where the mirrors would show guests in distorted shapes and sizes.
• Light Writers – huests could use lasers to draw various different patterns or shapes.
• Lumia – a large ball would spin different lights and colors in response to sound.
• Magic Palettes – this was a free-style type electronic coloring book with electronic pens.
• Making Faces – huests would take a picture of their faces and then add various effects to them.
• Pin Screens – this was like those popular children's toys where there are a bunch of pins that you can put your hand under and they take the shape of your hand…but this was much bigger than the typical toy!
• Sensor Maze – sometimes also referred to as the Rainbow corridor, the neon lights that circled around the walkway would change colors as guests walked through. This was perhaps one of the most remembered and recognized activities.
• Stepping Tones – colored pads on the floor that would make sounds when stepped on.

Note: There were some other activities before or after some of the ones listed above. I've only listed the more well known ones or ones based on longevity.

Captain EO (September 12, 1986 – July 6, 1994)

In 1986, the show that was previously in the Magic Eye Theater, Magic Journeys , would close, with plans to reopen later in the year as a totally new experience. This new experience would be called Captain EO and would star Michael Jackson. The 3D film, directed by Francis Ford Coppola and executive produced by George Lucas, featured Captain EO as the captain of an interplanetary space ship and crew. Their mission was to deliver “the gift” to the Supreme Leader (Anjelica Houston) of a planet that was once very nice, but had since turned into a dark planet made of all sharp metal. Of course, shortly after the beginning of the film, a conflict occurs, and the ship ends up landing on this planet. After another few short minutes, conflict on the planet occurs when the crew is captured and taken to the Supreme Leader. While in her palace, the action of the film takes place, as well as the performances.

[Spoiler alert: Captain EO eventually uses his powers to restore the original beauty to the planet, as well as to the Supreme Leader and her guards.]

One of the differences between this show and most current 3D theaters is that the Magic Eye theater used lasers and other effects, such as a moving floor (bouncing and shaking), as well as 3D effects.

Captain EO would close in 1994 to make way for another 3D film.

Honey, I Shrunk the Audience (November 21, 1994 –May 9, 2010)

Honey, I Shrunk the Audience was another 3D film, based off of the movie franchise Honey, I Shrunk the Kids that replaced Captain EO in the Magic Eye Theater. This 13-minute film was not a continuation of the series, but rather a sort of spinoff. It was about The Imagination Institute award ceremony, in which Professor Wayne Szalinski (Rick Moranis) was due to receive the Inventor of the Year award. After a series of mishaps, the audience (attraction guests) “get shrunken” and then experience effects based on the actions on the screen during the film; the floor moves (when Adam Szalinski, the youngest son, picks up the theater and moves it, air shoots at the guests to simulate mice, a snake comes out (3D effect) to try and eat the audience, even mist gets sprayed at the audience). Eventually, everything gets fixed and returns to normal.

Journey Into Your Imagination (October 1, 1999 – October 8, 2001)

Journey Into Imagination and ImageWorks both closed on October 10, 1998. About a year later, a second version of the Imagination ride opened; this time, as a 5-minute ride called “Journey Into YOUR Imagination.” It was at this time that the pavilion was renamed to the Imagination! Pavilion.

With the disappearance of Dreamfinder and Figment, this version of the ride was not very well-received. The theme of the ride changed to a tour through the Imagination Institute, and guests would be the subjects of the Imagination Scanner, a new invention. The main character was now Dr. Nigel Channing (played by Eric Idle), who was the chairman of the Imagination Institute (and was also part of the Honey, I Shrunk the Audience attraction).

The ride began with the riders going through the Imagination Scanner. This was just a dark room where a purplish pink neon light would outline a mirror, a light would shine on the riders, and the scanner would measure the amount of imagination the riders had. Each time, there would be no imagination found.

After the scan, riders are sent to the Sound room. The room is totally dark and the riders are told to see what they hear. The room is fairly silent, when in the distance, a train starts to approach. The train keeps getting louder and louder, as if it is approaching, until it appears (by sound) to go right over top of the riders.

In the second room, riders were shown a couple illusions. The first, was a large butterfly swinging on a bar in a cage that would appear to materialize as it swung by the riders. A little further ahead, a (projected) fish appeared to swim in and out of the tank.

In the third room, The Color of Sound, there are different sound effects played and screens changed color to match, such as monkeys and other jungle sounds (with two large screens projecting a green color) and a rocket blastoff sound (where the screens turned a bluish color with sections of them changing orange).

In the fourth room, Making Connections, the room is full of stars. Riders are told to stare at them long enough, and they will begin to make connections (constellations appear). Fish, lobster, monkey flying a kite, and other things are lit up in the stars to simulate making the connection.

Finally, in the Gravity room, everything is upside down. RIders go through a house that is upside down, from the garage, to the living room, kitchen, etc. At the end of the room, the riders are sent through the scanner again, but this time, the results are off the chart. The machine “explodes” and riders see a bit of a light show of sorts (different figures and shapes are projected).

ImageWorks – The What-If Labs (1999 – Present)

After the refurbishment of the ride, guests were invited to the new ImageWorks section called The What-If Labs. This was the refurbished area of the previous ImageWorks area, but only took up a portion of the area downstairs, with the upstairs area being closed for general use. There were only a few activities:

• Create A Figment –  added in 2002, but these were touchscreens where guests could create their own version of Figment and send it to people via email.
• Figment's Melody Maker – also added in 2002, guests would control Figment as he played “One Little Spark” on an instrument. The pitch of the melody would change based on the height on the screen Figment was.
• Stepping Tones – very similar to the original, but picture panels created the sound instead of colored panels.

Journey Into Imagination with Figment (June 2, 2002 – Present)

As previously mentioned, guests did not like Journey Into YOUR Imagination and were very upset that Dreamfinder and Figment were not featured. Attendance quickly fell on the ride and the complaints were heard. After a short time, Journey Into YOUR Imagination was closed on October 8, 2001, to allow for a reimagine of the ride to help satisfy guests, while still maintaining relevance to the theme of the pavilion (Imagination Institute).

The solution was Journey Into Imagination with Figment . Most of the ride was rethemed, the script was redone, and Figment once again played a major role in the ride. However, much to the dismay of many guests (and still to this day), Dreamfinder did not make his return. In this version, Dr. Nigel Channing is trying to give the riders a tour of the Imagination Institute during an Open House event, but mischievous Figment keeps interfering with the tour in each of the rooms. The original theme song, “One Little Spark” also returned, however, this time it was re-written to make sense for each of the new rooms, with Figment doing most of the singing until the end, when Dr. Nigel Channing eventually joins in.

The ride begins with the riders being taken into a room with 5 smaller screens on the right side (the car turns to face the screens). At first, the screens show an image (or logo) of each of the five sense labs. Once in place, riders are welcomed to the open house by Dr. Channing, who is then interrupted by Figment, who then starts the tour after a minute or so of talking.

The first room is the Sound Lab. This is the same room as the previous ride, but this time it has some lighting. Figment pops up in the room and the sound of the train is still played, but this time,  it is the “train of thought.”

In the second room, the Sight Lab, there is a big screen that shows a projection of an Eye Chart. As Dr. Channing asks the riders to start reading the lines of the chart, a shadow of Figment tip-toes by the letters on the chart. Figment (in full color projection) then flies in front of the chart and knocks all the letters down. He then starts throwing out the letters onto the screen that spell “Figment.” He then begins to sing the next verse of the updated “One Little Spark” theme song, and as he sings the verse, the words appear on the screen in a sing-along fashion.

The third room is the Smell Lab. In this scene, there is a big cannister looking prop. There are screens in the center of it that show various things. Figment is shown on the screen and then triplicates himself (there are three sections of the screen). A slot machine type spinning of the three sections occurs and they all stop on Figment dressed as a skunk. At this time, the skunk scent fills the room.

After leaving this room, Dr. Channing decides to end the Open House tour. The ride vehicles pull to a garage area and the Taste and Touch Labs sign is printed over a closed entryway. Figment is to the right of the closed doors on what looks like a loading dock. As Dr. Channing says that he hesitates to send us through the rest of the Open House, Figment says that we can go to his house instead. At this point, the ride vehicles start moving “towards Figment's house.”

Figment's house is totally upside down (like the previous ride version). Only black lights are on, so everything is painted in black light responsive paint. Riders are taken through the different rooms of his house.

At the end of this scene, there are signs that say “Figment's way to the Institute” and riders are sent back there. At this point, Dr. Channing says, “If you can't beat 'em, join 'em!.” The riders enter what appears to be a computer room or something. Dr. Channing comes on the screens and tells everyone that imagination works the best when it is set free. Figment says imagination is a blast, and a loud noise occurs and the screens go to the floor. Behind the screens, there is a colorful scene with many Figments in all different scenarios (hanging from a cloud, scaling a mountain, riding a plane made out of film strips, and riding a magic carpet). At the exit, there is a dark room with stars in the ceiling. A black light responsive Figment is standing on top of a planet with rings and there is a moon with Dr. Channing's face projected onto the cratered surface. His face is swinging left to right on the screen as he is singing the chorus of the song. THe riders progress just a bit further in the room to the exit doors.

Captain EO Tribute (July 2, 2010 –Present)

After Michael Jackson's death, many fans asked that Captain EO be brought back. The timing appeared right (for the show to return), as Honey, I Shrunk the Audience was getting stale. On May 9, 2010, Honey, I Shrunk the Audience was closed to make way for the return of Captain EO . The film remained the same, with only a few of the original effects not returning (since the things that made these effects had been removed in the conversion to Honey, I Shrunk the Audience ), with the title being changed to Captain EO Tribute to distinguish this from the original run.

My verdict – revert, update, leave alone, or re-imagine?

My verdict on this is for the pavilion as a whole. While I may be in the minority (judging by the lack of people riding), I enjoy Journey Into Imagination with Figment. I am also a huge fan of the Captain EO film. However, Captain EO is definitely dated and needs to be replaced. Journey into Imagination with Figment does not draw a lot of crowds (at least when I visit), so I think that also needs to be replaced. ImageWorks is a shell of its former self. Therefore, my overall opinion is that the whole pavilion needs to be re-imagined. There are many ways this can be done. They can leave the Magic Eye Theater and put another film of something in there, or they can repurpose it as part of the larger pavilion and create a whole new ride that would utilize the entire pavilion. They could create a new Imagination ride with the return of the Dreamfinder (and Figment), or they could go down an entirely new path altogether. While I do appreciate and enjoy both Captain EO and Journey Into Imagination with Figment, I think Epcot needs to have some state of the art, fun, entertaining, and somewhat educational rides all across Future World to help bring the crowds to other pavilions instead of people heading straight for Soarin' or Test Track all the time.

What are your ideas? What do you think of the current or past attractions in this pavilion? Share some of your memories, thoughts, or comments in the discussion board or comments section below! Thanks for reading!

MousePlanet is your independent consumer guide to Disney travel and vacations, covering Disneyland, Walt Disney World and the Disney Cruise Line. Look to MousePlanet for daily news, weekly theme park updates, and detailed travel and resort guides for your favorite Disney destinations. As with any endeavor of this size and complexity, we couldn't hope to succeed without the assistance of our readers. We encourage you to submit news, updates and feedback from your Disney travels.

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World of Motion. Body Wars. Kitchen Kabaret. Universe of Energy. The Living Seas. Horizons... For Disney World fans, there's no park as marked by nostalgia, change, and loss as Epcot. And yet, among its staggering collection of closed classics, there's one particular attraction that most fills fans with both immense sadness and glowing hope...

"One little spark of inspiration is at the heart of all creation! Right at the start of everything that's new, one still spark lights up for you!"

Journey into Imagination was one of the most beloved attractions ever conceived by Disney’s Imagineers. Among the grounded, industrious, scientific studies of Future World's other pavilions, this generation-defining Disney classic  dared to carried guests away from our world on a flight of fancy alongside two of the most beloved and enigmatic characters ever created for Disney Parks. Alight with optimism, this magnificent celebration of creativity and inspiration was an icon of EPCOT Center. 

Art by Tom Morris. Image: Disney

Journey into Imagination is long gone. That means that a generation of Disney Parks fans never had the chance to take flight with Dreamfinder and Figment, or to sail through realms of art and science on a quest for "sparks." But that's where our library of  Lost Legends  comes in... Today, we'll soar through the clouds as we preserve this timeless experience for good, crystalizing the creation of this spectacular closed classic, our memories (and yours!) of the experience on board, and its unfortunate history since...

Ready to set sail for the Dreamport? Let's start at the beginning.

World Innovation

Image: Disney

It's well known among fans of Disney history that Walt Disney was an innovator. Never satisfied with standing still, the opening of Disneyland in 1955 only inspired Walt to improve, expand, and reimagine. In fact, the most major milestone in the development of Disney Parks in the 1960s didn't happen in Anaheim or even Orlando, but at the 1964-65 New York World's Fair in Queens.

For literally centuries , World's Fairs have been iconic international expos inviting governments (and later, corporations) from around the world to come together in a chosen host country to celebrate their cultures, cuisines, innovations, and ideas. 1889's Exposition Universelle , for example, was hosted in Paris, with the "temporary" Eiffel Tower constructed as its icon; see also, San Francisco's 1915 hosting with the Palace of the Fine Arts, or 1962's event in Seattle, comissioning the central Space Needle. 

Notice the size of the people standing around the Unisphere. Image: PLCjr,  Flickr  ( license )

The New York World's Fair is perhaps one of the most well-known in history. By its 1964 opening, these international expos had evolved into their definitive form: massive, monumental pavilions constructed and filled by states, countries, and corporations eager to share their message and brand with visitors from around the globe. And in the spirit of these showcases of optimism, collaboration, and futurism, each corporation wanted something magnficent for their pavilion.

Take the UNICEF (United Nations Children's Fund) pavilion, sponsored by Pepsi-Cola. As the story goes, Pepsi's Board of Directors debated for months about what kind of attraction they should develop to both bolster Pepsi's brand as well as to complement the unifying message of UNICEF. As luck would have it, board member Joan Crawford (widow of Pepsi's former president) was fed up with the debate and asked her personal friend Walt Disney if he'd get involved and design an attraction for the pavilion.

The result was "it's a small world," an Imagineering masterpiece made of all the right ingredients: a Sherman Brothers song, the incredible artistic vision of Imagineer Mary Blair, and an innovative, high-capacity new ride system! And so it went for attractions developed for the State of Illinois, Ford Motor Company, and General Electric, each funding the testing, development, and prototyping of new technologies that, at the close of the Fair, were relocated along with "small world" back to Disneyland (as Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln and the Lost Legends:  The Peoplemover  and  Carousel of Progress , respectively).

Remember the lessons learned through Disney's sponsored participation and innovation in the 1964-65 New York World's Fair... it'll be important.

"The Blessing of Size"

Tap for a larger and more detailed view. Image: Disney

Disney's innovations at the World's Fair propelled Disneyland forward. The groundbreaking advances made in Audio-Animatronics and ride systems in the era aren't just responsible for the World's Fair attractions themselves, but for Pirates of the Caribbean, Haunted Mansion, and Walt's New Tomorrowland.

But it's also true that, hemmed in by the urban sprawl that developed around Disneyland in the '50s and '60s, Walt set his sights on acquiring a much larger parcel of land in Central Florida, gifting his designers with "the blessing of size" in creating something new. But the "Florida Project" wasn't about building a new Disneyland. In fact, Walt was unapologetically determined to change modern living as we know it.

In 1966, Walt revealed his plans for the "Florida Project" and its centerpiece: E.P.C.O.T. - the Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow. Walt planned for EPCOT to be a real, living, functioning showcase of future living; an urban and residential town that would apply  the transportation technologies he'd merely prototyped  at Disneyland - the Peoplemover and Monorail. In fact, it's said that, as Walt lay in his hospital bed just before his death in 1966, he was still looking up, using the squared ceiling tiles as a grid to explain the layout of his EPCOT city.

Walt didn't live to see the "Florida Project" come to life. Without his visionary guidance and zeal, the new leadership at Walt Disney Productions decided they couldn't be in the business of building a city from scratch. Instead, the centerpiece of Walt Disney World's 1971 opening was, of course, Magic Kingdom – an evolution of the original Disneyland.

However, the core concepts of Walt's EPCOT – among them, futurism, Americana, and the power of industry –  did  inform Walt Disney World. And when it came time to open a second theme park on the property, then-CEO Card Walker returned to the principles of EPCOT in the design of the new gate; one that would do away with all that people expected of Disney (like princess, pirates, castles, and cartoons). 

In a radical shift from the Magic Kingdoms that preceeded it, EPCOT Center would be grounded in celebrations of industry, innovation, culture, and (most startling of all)  reality –  a permanent World's Fair showcasing human achievements with a lofty mission to shape the world.

Not like the others

EPCOT Center would open with two massive "realms" pressed together like a figure eight  – a cultural World Showcase of corporate-sponsored pavilions of international countries, and Future World, comprised of monumental pavilions, each dedicated to areas of science and industry.

But it was more than just the park's "pavilion" structure that served as a World's Fair connection; it was also its finances. EPCOT Center relied on corporate sponsors to adopt the park's pavilions. At least at first, it must've seemed like a win-win scenario. In exchange for their ongoing financial support, corporations would play a role in shaping the messaging of Disney-designed attractions, earning the "good will" of having their brand name presented alongside Walt Disney World. And since those corporations wouldn't want their brands presented alongside outdated information, they'd be inherently motivated to supply the pavilion's with their cutting edge research and most forward-thinking products.

At Future World's height, it contained eight pavilions (each with its own related corporate sponsor!) dedicated to communication (Spaceship Earth), ocean exploration (The Living Seas), agriculture (The Land), transportation (World of Motion), health (Wonders of Life), energy resources (Universe of Energy), innovation (Communicore), and a capstone pavilion bringing them all together to dream of humanity's future (Horizons).

But if Horizons is where our path forward leads , then Imagination is where it begins. Spectacularly, Future World's Imagination pavilion was identified by its two interlaced glass pyramids (constructed seven years before I. M. Pei's famed  Pyramide du Louvre in Paris, by the way). This  shimmering Imagination pavilion looked quite unlike the colder, concrete structures that defined the monumental Future World... Waterfalls, fountains, glowing towers, and gardens... This outlier was indeed something special; warmer; gentler.

And think about it: while the concept of “imagination” hardly fits with the "harder" industries and technologies of the rest of EPCOT, its inclusion is genius! Without it, there would be no advances in communication for Spaceship Earth to showcase; no emerging technology in Communicore; no culinary wonders in The Land… Imagination is the root of science, industry, and civilization; the first ingredient in creating "the future." 

While the concept and the building were indeed novel, it’s what – and who –  they found  inside the two glass pyramids that Disney Fans recall so fondly. How did Disney designers decide on the iconic Dreamfinder and Figment? On the next page, we'll see how Journey into Imagination pavilion came to be...

Just your friendly neighborhood fan of tropical hideaways, Victorian boardwalks, mid-century tomorrows, ancient temples, and cursed forests! In between dreaming of Dole Whips, I'm a museum experience developer. I'm also the researcher behind Theme Park Tourist's  Legend Library   – filled with stories of  Lost Legends , Modern Marvels , Declassified Disasters , and more.

Great find in the library! I worked on Figment 2011 (summer programme) and I miss it so much! I would love more than anything for this pavilion to get a much needed investment. It needs modernisation more than anything, we all love nostalgia - but the way the ride operates needs a swift update.

This whole thing with Disney turning Journey into Imagination into the way it is now is a joke. The original version is tons better compared to what they did to it. They should never have change something that didn't need to be fixed. It was already bad enough that Dreamfinder had been missing for almost 20 years, but the concept of what imagination is truly about being diminished just pushes my buttons.

Inside Out should not enter the Imagination Pavilion with even a teeny tiny step. Their story is based on the emotions that happen in the human mind. With the exception having an Imagination Land with Figment there as a cameo, the human mind cannot react to their emotions without imagination. If anything, it should either be placed in one of the other Future World buildings, get discarded COMPLETELY, or if it must stay in Epcot just build a new building to house it.

I have to agree with the writer of this article about Journey Into YOUR Imagination. The idea of having the ride show you that you don't have imagination at the beginning of the ride is just insulting. EVERYONE has imagination. As Dreamfinder said, "Imagination is something that belongs to ALL of us." and that "We all have sparks: Imagination!" The way that JIYI is made is NOTHING like how Dreamfinder would have envisioned this pavilion to be. But I think he of all people would be more pissed off of what Disney has made Figment into. Skunk sprays? Smelling armpits? Really? It's true Figment has a sort of mischievous side in him, but THIS is just sick. It's too much! Still, it makes me happy about showing Figment's true colors in the comic books series, which I have in hard book covers and LOVE VERY MUCH! I can't wait for the third on to come out as a trilogy! :D

Also, another thing about Journey Into Your Imagination as well as Journey Into Imagination with Figment, the Anti-Gravity room is a real bust! I'll admit, it's a nice touch. It's just not used in a way that would make the guests and fans get wild about. In JIYI, the room looks boring enough it might as well be you going home so quick from vacation. I mean, what's so imaginative about what they had showcased in that version? They basically just dressed up the house at to what it had looked like within the past 30-40 years. LAME! Still, the design would be kinda nice to actually have in your own home. I'm game to that decision. And then in JIIWF today, the dark light colors where they have Figment living is is way to vibrant. It would have been better if they had made those Figment figure be animatronic and move around a bit. It'd be creepy, still, but hey, it's something.

I've only come to love both Dreamfinder and Figment for about 8 months now after reading both the Marvel comics. And since then, I've come to understand the upmost relativity and importance these two have had in serving their role on behalf of Epcot. When the song says "One Little Spark of inspiration is at the heart of all creation," they REALLY MEAN IT! It's not only the ideology of what the Imagineers at Disney go by, it goes that way for everyone! That's what makes Dreamfinder, Figment and Journey Into Imagintion represent. They are the true soul of the park. Without them, what good is every mechanical innovation or every great idea for to create the world as it could be. For 20 years now, the Disney company today has been misinterpreting the ideas and the concepts of what imagination is used for and they need to fix it soon and bring back Dreamfinder with Figment in the process. Otherwise, Epcot is going to go down to straight to hell and thereby putting Walt Disney's dreams of this park into shame (and on the 50th anniversary of his death, too. >:( ).

Pull yourself together, Disney and return what was rightfully everyone's!

I took my family three times to WDW starting around 2006. And never had the chance to view the original ride. By the time we went it was the latest version which I see now went through some pretty drastic changes.

A couple of years after JIYI opened, there was some Figment merchandise in the after-ride store. People would look at it and say "What's a Figment?".... ouch.

I love Figment!! My first trip to DisneyWorld was 1988 I was only 4 so my memory of it isn't great except a few very vivid memories of Epcot especially Figment

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The university of wonder & imagination.

The University of Wonder & Imagination

Friday, january 19, 2024   rescheduled for friday, january 26.

Owing to the risk of inclement weather on Friday, January 19, and the impact on school transportation, The PAC is rescheduling the performances of The University of Imagination and Wonder for Friday, January 26. All tickets and performance times originally allocated to the 19th will be honored on Friday, January 26 th . Please contact us at [email protected] with any questions or concerns.

10am and noon Grades: 2-6

The University of Wonder & Imagination is now enrolling students of all ages and magical abilities…and there’s a place with your name on it!

Following its groundbreaking international ‘Zoom’ tour in 20-21, The University is back, this time in theaters, live and in-person. Journey to the most unusual of universities, where the mysterious Professor Bamberg will guide you through this interactive theater experience, and the choices you, the audience, make will shape your unique course. Choose your subjects of study and enter themed rooms (such as Math, Space, and Art!) You will interact with the liveliest of lecturers and encounter all kinds of problems and puzzles, unlocking your magical powers as you go.

Produced by Cahoots NI , The University of Wonder & Imagination combines magic and illusion with multi-media technology to create an innovative, engaging theatrical performance that’s bound to boggle the mind and spark the imagination… Come join the class!

Learning Standards

Curriculum Connections Fine Arts: Performance, Digital Technology and Design, Art Science: Space, Planets, Gravity, Atmospheric Pressure, Light, Refraction, Magnification, Scale, Environmental Conservation Mathematics and Numeracy: Estimation and Calculation, Multiplication, Division, Subtraction, Addition, and Probability Emotional/Social Development: Self Awareness, Self Management, Social Awareness, Curiosity, Growth Mindset

Study Guide Click here to download a sample study guide

Registration

Click here for ordering information.

Email the Education & Engagement office at [email protected]  or call our Arts-in-Education hotline: 914-251-6232.

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http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Ride/JourneyIntoImagination

Ride / Journey into Imagination

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One little spark / of inspiration Is at the heart / of all creation Right at the start / of everything that's new One little spark / lights up for you — Lyrics from " One Little Spark ", the ride's theme

Journey into Imagination is a series of dark rides at Epcot in Walt Disney World that focus on the importance of creativity in life, contained in a pavilion that originally shared the name. There have been three incarnations of the attraction over the years.

• Journey into Imagination : The first iteration of the ride. It featured two characters, Dreamfinder, a collector and user of dreams, and Figment, a small purple dragon that's friends and partners with Dreamfinder. The guests would first come across Dreamfinder flying in the clouds on his own zeppelin, which he reveals also functions as a machine that he uses to collect dreams and ideas from people in order to create grand new things. He then summons in Figment, the latter of whom quickly comes up with so many ideas that Dreamfinder's "idea bag" becomes full, forcing them to unload it at the "Dreamport". Afterwards, Dreamfinder demonstrates the power of imagination by using the collected ideas to create the "Realms of Imagination", five worlds that each represent a different form of creation: Art, Literature, Theater, Science, and Film. Dreamfinder and Figment would then take the guests through each of these realms, as a way of showing first hand how pivotal creativity is to everything. This version operated from 1983 until 1998, during which time one of the pavilion's original sister attractions, the 3-D short film Magic Journeys (which did not feature the characters but had a similar "wonders of imagination" theme, and which riders disembarking were directed by a sign to "Follow Figment to...") was swapped out twice. First came Captain EO and later Honey, I Shrunk the Audience , neither of which had a clear thematic connection with the ride or the Image Works second-floor playground. Eventually, it was decided to revamp the two attractions and pavilion in hopes of tying everything together again.
• Journey into YOUR Imagination : Opening in 1999, the second version completely did away with Dreamfinder and reduced Figment to a couple of cameos, along with changing the setting to being inside the "Imagination Institute" (which also became the new name of the pavilion) and putting the spotlight on Dr. Nigel Channing ( Eric Idle ), both of which came from Honey, I Shrunk The Audience . (The original Image Works was also shuttered and replaced with a far smaller play area of the same name.) The plot of this version was fairly straightforward, with guests being taken on a tour of the Institute's facilities, in hopes that it can boost the creativity in their minds, as the "Imagination Scanner" at first would show that they have no imagination. Due to negative guest response (Disney's theme park division was not investing heavily in new or revamped attractions at the time, and it really showed here), this iteration was shuttered in 2001 and re-tooled.
• Journey into Imagination with Figment : The current version of the ride opened in 2002 (the pavilion's name being changed to "Imagination!" in the process). In response to guest demand, Figment was brought back as the main character alongside Dr. Nigel Channing. The plot of the ride still involves Nigel giving guests a tour of the Imagination Institute — but this time Figment hijacks the tour to show the guests what imagination should really be like and how the Institute's way of seeing it as something that needs to be controlled is wrong.

Dreamfinder would also be the main star of the short lived Epcot show Skyleidoscope from 1985-1987; in it, he decides to create rainbows in the sky to brighten everyone's day, but two dragons (who, unlike Figment, are evil) decide to ruin it. This results in a battle of good versus evil, depicted by stunts using watercraft and aircraft as well as special effects. An accident during a rehearsal in which a pilot suffered fatal injuries in a crash of the ultralight plane he was flying resulted in the show being discontinued.

From 1988-1989, Figment starred in the educational film series Language Arts Through Imagination , consisting of eleven short films meant to teach elementary school students basic language arts concepts and the role imagination plays in putting said concepts into practice. Dreamfinder was Adapted Out , making this series an alternate continuity to the original ride.

Dreamfinder and Figment received an origin story in the appropriately titled Disney Kingdoms series, Figment in 2014. A sequel series, Figment 2 , was published from 2015-2016. Both series lasted 5 issues each.

Figment eventually made his video game debut in 2023, appearing as a racer in Disney Speedstorm . Fittingly, Dreamfinder appears as an exclusive crew member for him.

One little trope, lights up for you.:

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• Adventure Duo : Dreamfinder and Figment are both partners who embark on creating new worlds with the dreams and ideas they've collected.
• Animal Superheroes : In the Film realm, one of the movie roles Figment appears as is a superhero.
• More accurately, Dreamfinder is meant to represent the refined creative pallet of an adult while Figment represents the unrefined creative pallet of a child.
• Are We There Yet? : Figment asks "Are we almost there?" after Dreamfinder tells him that they have to store the collected ideas in the Dream Port. Dreamfinder's response isn't a stock one. (See the teleportation example.)
• Artsy Beret : In the Art realm, Dreamfinder and Figment each wear a beret.
• Born of Magic : It's suggested that Figment was created via Dreamfinder bringing his own imagination to life, as he's able to summon the dragon in by doing the same. Dreamfinder: Two tiny wings, eyes big and yellow, horns of a steer, but a lovable fellow! From head to tail, he's royal purple pigment, and there, voilà! You've got a Figment!
• Cool Ship : Dreamfinder's Zeppelin, which carries a neat Steampunk -kind of look to it.
• Cowboy : This is another one of the things Figment dresses as in the Film realm, to represent the Western genre.
• Creepy Crows : The Raven from the Edgar Allan Poe story shows up as one of the many spooky things in the Literature realm.
• Crystal Ball : One scene has Dreamfinder and Figment look into one (with the latter using a magnifying glass to do so).
• Cute Critters Act Childlike : Figment, as when Dreamfinder created him, he specifically made sure to include a "dash of childish delight".
• Delightful Dragon : Invoked by Dreamfinder when he adds a "dash of childish delight" to finish creating Figment.
• Disney Acid Sequence : More or less the entire attraction, with it being set in a wonderland of pure imagination.
• Dramatic Thunder : Occurs right at the beginning of the ride, shortly after Figment is introduced. Dreamfinder mentions that they can use the lightning as an ingredient for a new tale.
• Dressed to Plunder : Figment appears as a pirate in the Film realm, as a way of representing that genre.
• Eccentric Mentor : Dreamfinder is this to Figment, behaving unusually while being wise at the same time.
• Eldritch Location : The Literature realm appears to be this, as it's represented by the suspense and horror genre.
• Everything's Better with Rainbows : Rainbows were used quite frequently in the attraction, most notably when Figment uses a pot of rainbows to paint a white area in the Art realm, and the Image Works post-show included a large "Rainbow Corridor" tunnel that people could walk through.
• Everything's Better with Sparkles : Dreamfinder throws in a dash of childish delight as the last ingredient to make Figment, causing the purple dragon to sparkle a little.
• Additionally the characters found use in media in the 80s with Figment starring in an educational film series called Language Arts Through Imagination and a never-completed Dreamfinder-centered show known as Dreamfinders promoted during the initial Disney Channel launch that only had one to three scripts written for it before the plug was pulled.
• The "Figment" Little Golden Book adapts the ride and adds in an extra scene of Figment giving a picture he drew of himself and Dreamfinder to the latter on the final page.
• Full Moon Silhouette : In the Literature realm, Figment makes the silhouette of a bat and a black cat appear in front of a full moon.
• Futuristic Pyramid : The facade for all versions of the ride is made up of two big glass pyramids.
• Goggles Do Nothing : The goggles Dreamfinder wears appear to be just an accessory.
• Half-Dressed Cartoon Animal : Figment's normal outfit is just a shirt.
• Hold the Line : Figment does this against monsters that come from books.
• Impossible Shadow Puppets : In the Literature realm, Figment makes a shadow puppet of the word "shadow" with his hands. It's a Justified Trope because of him being in a realm of imagination.
• Insubstantial Ingredients : The last ingredient that Dreamfinder uses to make Figment is a dash of childish delight.
• Long-Runners : This version of the ride was in Epcot for a little over 15 years before it's closure and replacement.
• Mascot : Since his debut in this ride, Figment tends to be used as Epcot's mascot every once in a while.
• Dreamfinder finds and collects dreams as fuel for inspiring new ideas.
• Figment is a figment of Dreamfinder's imagination, but brought to life.
• Minimalist Cast : Dreamfinder and Figment are the only two characters in the ride. Subsequent versions of the ride also only have 1-2 characters.
• Mr. Imagination : Dreamfinder may be one of the ultimate examples of this, though in this case his imagination is real, meaning this also counts as an example of Imagination-Based Superpower .
• Ominous Pipe Organ : Dreamfinder played one in the Tales of Terror sequence (the twist, though, was that since the section was about literature, the organ resembled something of a huge typewriter/computer).
• The message of the attraction has changed with each iteration as well, and seems to match up with whatever message the park itself was trying to push at the time it was made. The message of the 1983 version has the very 1980s EPCOT Center message that "imagination and science can work together to solve the world's problems", while the message of the 1999 version had the very 1990s Epcot message of "science is totally awesome, and it can be used to analyze the imagination", and the message of the 2003 version has the very 2000s Epcot message of "science is boring, but imagination is totally awesome and the two should be separate".
• Purple Is Powerful : Figment, who is essentially the personification of Imagination, has purple skin.
• Self-Duplication : This is one of Figment's many abilities. Both this and the current version have a scene where Figment creates numerous clones of himself.
• Sharp-Dressed Man : Along with his fancy hat, Dreamfinder wears a blue suit with a red waistcoat .
• Shoulder-Sized Dragon : Figment is this in all iterations of the ride.
• Signature Headgear : Dreamfinder wears a fancy top hat with flight goggles on it.
• Teleportation : Dreamfinder and Figment are able to do this throughout the ride, via the power of imagination. Figment: Are we almost there? Dreamfinder: Oh, the Dream Port is never far away when you use your imagination!
• Unlimited Wardrobe : Dreamfinder and Figment sport new outfits in every scene.
• The Wonderland : The Realms of Imagination are this, each embodying different forms of creation: Art, Literature, Theater, Science, and Film.
• Zeppelins from Another World : Dreamfinder's ship is an otherworldly zeppelin.

• Ascended Extra : Dr. Nigel Channing started off as one of the characters in Honey, I Shrunk The Audience , but was later then given a prominent role in the pre-show of Tokyo's version of the attraction, and later was made the star of this version of the Journey Into Imagination ride, expanding the universe HISTA is set in.
• Bizarrchitecture / Gravity Screw : In both this and the current version of the ride, guests are taken through an upside-down house, where all of the furniture manages to stay perfectly in place.
• Canon Discontinuity : The current ride retcons the events of this version.
• Chirping Crickets : This is one of the first noises played in the Sound Room, with it getting much louder from there.
• Chuck Cunningham Syndrome : The Dreamfinder is nowhere to be found on this version of the ride, and has yet to make any reappearance from here on out.
• Commuting on a Bus : While Figment has no proper role on this ride, he does get two (admittedly very small) cameos during the span of it.
• Creative Sterility : The riders start off as this from the perspective of the ride's story, but at the end are shown to now be bursting with imagination.
• Creepy Changing Painting : Played with, as it's not creepy, but Nigel's portrait in the Institute lobby will suddenly change to have Figment appear in the corner of the picture and for Nigel to be looking at him, rather than forward.
• Crossover : This along with the current version of the ride places Journey into Imagination , Honey, I Shrunk the Kids and Flubber all under the same continuity. This is further indicated with appearances of various objects used by the scientists of these movies in the lobby as well as labs in the hallway.
• Demoted to Extra : Figment was reduced to only a couple of very quick cameos in this version.
• Explosive Overclocking : At the ride’s finale, the Imagination Scanner explodes when displaying the riders’ ideas.
• Invisibility : In the Illusion Lab, a butterfly materializes inside a cage. The same butterfly is also used in the current version, but the effect is reversed so that it disappears.
• Mental Picture Projector : The Imagination Scanner. It reads the riders' minds at the start, and shows a bunch of boring mudane objects on the screen, implying they have no imagination. In the finale, however, it ends up exploding when trying to display all the riders’ different ideas.
• Runaway Train : The Sound Lab makes it appear as if the riders are about to get hit by a train, only for it to be revealed that it was just an elaborate sound effect.
• Short-Runners : This version only lasted two years before being shut down due to terrible guest reception.
• Shout-Out : When showing the "Through the Looking Glass" experiment, Nigel says, "Is this looking glass actually magnifying...or is your imagination?", a parody of what the Ghost Host says of the Stretching Room in The Haunted Mansion .
• Take That, Audience! : The ride opens by "scanning" your mind and finding little activity, claiming "there's not much going on upstairs." Subverted by the ride's end when it determines your imagination levels are off the charts.

• An Aesop : While there is a scientific reason for imagination, don't forget that the point is to have fun and let your mind go wild.
• Artistic License : Nigel says that the tour will show the guests how the five human senses can help capture their imagination. In reality, those 5 human senses and imagination are controlled by different parts of the brain.
• The Bus Came Back : After the poor reception of the previous version, Figment was fully brought back into the spotlight for the current ride.
• The Cameo : In Phillip Brainard's office, Flubber can be seen having a party.
• The Cat Came Back : No matter how much Channing tries to shoo off Figment, he comes back and interrupts him again.
• Copiously Credited Creator : In-Universe. Nigel's office door labels him as being the "Chairman, Principal Scientist, Director of Operations, Head of Laboratories, and Everything Else" when it comes to the Imagination Institute.
• Derailed Train of Thought : When Figment interrupts the guests' tour of the Sound Lab, Nigel angrily remarks that he's lost his train of thought, to which Figment responds by playing the sound of an oncoming train, saying, "No you haven't, it's over here!"
• Exact Words : Happens in this exchange: Nigel: I want you out of my sight! Figment: Out of sight? Okay! (turns invisible and begins to lead the tour forward himself)
• Foil : Nigel is this to Figment. He believes that Imagination should be captured and controlled, while Figment believes that it should be fully embraced and set free.
• Follow the Bouncing Ball : In the Sight Lab, Figment turns the eye chart into a screen that he uses to project the words for the song "One Little Spark", telling riders to "follow the bouncing Figment".
• The Gadfly : Figment messes with Nigel by talking about the fun of imagination rather than the science. While he is being a prankster, he really means no malice towards Nigel and more encourages him to think outside the box.
• Giving Up on Logic : When the riders are taken to Figment's upside down house, Nigel, impressed by the display, suddenly decides to give up on his previous beliefs, saying, "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em."
• Glass-Shattering Sound : When quickly going through the five senses, Figment shows sight by putting glasses on Nigel, and then shows sound by doing a high note loud enough to break the glasses.
• Gone Horribly Wrong : Subverted. Nigel's open house tour of the Imagination Institute ends up as a complete disaster due to Figment's intervention, but it goes wrong in a positive way, allowing Nigel to rethink his views on imagination.
• Jump Scare : When Figment exclaims, "Imagination is a BLAST!", the riders suddenly get hit with an intense blast of air.
• Literal-Minded : Figment, as the exchange below is what gives him the idea of bringing the guests into his own upside down house. Nigel: Figment, what is going on? You're turning this entire open house upside down! Figment: Upside down? Now you're talking! That's the best idea you've had all day!
• Long-Runners : This version of the ride hit the 20 year mark in 2022 and has outlasted both of its predecessors combined.
• Magic Carpet : In the last scene, Figment can be seen riding on one.
• The Man in the Moon : Just before the ride vehicles stop at the unloading zone, the moon is shown with Nigel's face.
• Mona Lisa Smile : Figment at one point appears in an image that is a parody of the Mona Lisa.
• Morphic Resonance : When Figment turns into a skunk in the smell lab, he retains his wings and horns.
• In the finale, the giant sheet music for "One Little Spark" includes an image of Dreamfinder and Figment on the Dreamcatcher ship.
• On the TV in Figment's upside down house, the cartoon being shown is actually 2D animation of Figment used in the Science realm of the original ride and in some of the activities in the original Image Works.
• Once Upon a Time : Figment's flying carpet has a short fairy tale written on the bottom side, that starts off with these words.
• Portmantitle : For this iteration, the title of the ride's post-show, the Image Works , was slightly altered to ImageWorks .
• The Prankster : In this version of the ride, Figment is depicted as more of a mischief-maker.
• Roger Rabbit Effect : Used twice in the ride's screens with both instances being a live action Nigel with a CG Figment. The first is in the beginning of the ride, the second right after guests have gone through Figment's upside down house.
• Rule of Three : The riders are only taken to 3 of the labs before Nigel abandons the tour as a result of Figment's antics.
• Science Is Bad : It may have been unintentional, but this attraction gives off this feeling, as it depicts science as being cold and miserable when compared to the wonders of creativity and art. Zigzagged in that the point is that while you can measure and study imagination with science, it also misses the point that imagination is supposed to be fun.
• Self-Deprecation : This ride is essentially a big Take That! to the previous one, as Nigel's way of imagination is ultimately shown to be dull and lifeless, and in the end he changes his ways and follows Figment's more unrestrained way of Imagination.
• Shout-Out : There's a handful of references to older Disney films going back to the 60s and 70s, including The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes .
• Smelly Skunk : In the Smell Lab, Figment turns into a skunk and blasts the riders with the skunk stench. note  It's actually the smell of burnt coffee.
• Tastes Like Chicken : When Figment licks Nigel to represent the sense of taste, he afterward says this word-for-word.

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Mars: A Tour of the Human Imagination

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• ISBN-10 0275987191
• ISBN-13 978-0275987190
• Publisher Praeger
• Publication date June 30, 2005
• Language English
• Dimensions 6.14 x 0.56 x 9.21 inches
• Print length 232 pages
• See all details

Editorial Reviews

“[O]ften clever and even enlightening….Comprehensive collections.” ― Choice “[P]robes the ways in which Mars has influenced not only the field of astronomy but also mythology, astrology, cultural and literary studies, and more.” ― Library Journal “Mars has fascinated us since the time we emerged from the ooze and looked skyward. Both H.G. Wells and Orson Welles found it a source of inspiration, and were it not for Mars the television series My Favorite Martian would have to be called My Favorite Californian . Rabkin offers about 60 short chapters on the reasons why the Red Planet hangs over our science, our speculative literature (both good and bad), and our fantasies. He includes period illustrations of those involved, including Mars itself, and a nifty shot of Martin the Martian, foe of Bugs Bunny.” ― Popular Astronomy “[A]n interersting, informative, and different perspective on the planet.” ― B&F

About the Author

Product details.

• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Praeger (June 30, 2005)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 232 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0275987191
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0275987190
• Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.12 pounds
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.14 x 0.56 x 9.21 inches
• #2,862 in Science Fiction & Fantasy Literary Criticism (Books)
• #3,207 in Astronomy & Astrophysics
• #3,700 in Science Fiction History & Criticism

About the author

Eric s. rabkin.

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Society featured

Ministry of imagination manifesto released as the world goes to the polls.

By Rob Hopkins , originally published by Rob Hopkins blog

April 17, 2024

[Download The Manifesto  here ] . This year, 49% of the world goes to the polls in 64 countries. As Time magazine puts it , “2024 is not just AN election year. It’s perhaps THE election year”. The outcomes of these elections will hugely shape the world and our future, most importantly of all is the US Presidential election which could see Donald Trump returned as President, which would unleash what  The Economist recently described  as “ the biggest danger to the world ”. In most cases, voters are being asked to choose between deeply unimaginative manifestos, all firmly wedded to a business-as-usual economic model that is clearly and dangerously failing around the world.

The rise of the far-right around the world is profoundly troubling, underpinned as it is by dystopian visions of the future and the need for ‘strong’ leaders to protect us from those futures. But what would a Manifesto look like that was based on a positive vision of the future, one that is appropriately ambitious to the scale of the challenges the world is facing while at the same time bold, imaginative and audacious? I would argue that the failure of progressive parties and movements to set out bold visions of the future has left the space for the far right to fill, and that getting better at bringing positive futures alive in people’s imaginations is vital. As political theorist  Wendy Brown wrote recently :

“We can refute the premises of these positions until the cows come home. But only a compelling vision of a less frightening and insecure future will recruit anyone to a progressive or revolutionary alternative future—or rouse apolitical citizens for the project of making that future. This vision must be seductive and exciting, and it must be embodied in seductive and exciting leadership and movements, hopefully oriented by an ethic of responsibility”.

Since 2020, the fortnightly ‘ From What If to What Next ’ podcast has invited two guests to time travel into the 2030 that resulted from our doing absolutely everything we could possibly have done, and to describe that world to the listeners. In late March 2024, I stopped the podcast at its 100th episode in order to focus on other projects, but it remains as  an amazing body of work .

Alongside the main episodes, Patreon subscribers also received bonus  Ministry of Imagination  podcasts, in which they were inaugurated as Ministers at the Ministry itself (part-Hundertwasser, part-Hogwarts, part-Yellow Submarine) and invited to choose 3 policies each that would rapidly accelerate our transition to a world in which those changes had happened. The result was over 600 deeply thoughtful, considered, audacious and ambitious policies covering everything from free art materials for all, to a Universal Basic Income and every company having to list all their failures as well as their successes in their annual reports.

This year, perhaps now more than ever, we need a taste of what policymaking underpinned by the radical imagination looks like. Recognising how extraordinary and powerful this collection of possibility-infused policies from an eclectic mix of people from all around the world (including Brian Eno, Rutger Bregman and Kate Raworth – ecologists, renegade economists, artists, prison abolitionists, somatic trauma therapists, printmakers, politicians, disability activists, rewilding practitioners, and so many more) I felt it was important to collect them all in one accessible place. And so ‘ The Ministry of Imagination Manifesto: an imagination-based manifesto for times that need one’  was born. We’ve painstakingly edited together all the policies, under subject headings, and the whole thing has been beautifully designed by Capella Andrean of  The Creative Bloc .

You can download it  here .

Please share it far and wide. Send it to any policy-makers or politicians you know. Post it anywhere you can. Don’t let the possible be constrained by the imaginative poverty of our current manifesto writers.  The sponsorship we have has covered the cost of production, but we’d also love some funds to cover creating some printed copies. If you find this inspirational and you’d like to support it, please consider making a donation. Thanks.

As Ruha Benjamin in her 2024 book  ‘Imagination: A Manifesto’  puts it:

““A world without prisons?  Ridiculous . Schools that foster the genius of every child?  Impossible . Work that doesn’t grind us to the bone?  Naïve . A society where everyone has food, shelter, love?  In your dreams . Exactly”

The Ministry of Imagination manifesto is supported by the good folks at Boomtown Festival, Wake the Tiger, Team Love, Bath Spa University, Moral Imaginations and Transition Network. My deepest thanks to Tamzin Pinkerton for her help with editing it, Capella Andrean, every single Minister at the Ministry of Imagination for their brilliant policy ideas, and every subscriber who made the podcast possible. Thanks.

Rob Hopkins

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The goal of this book is thus to develop a new way of thinking about planetary futures that can help us create more useful and comprehensive maps of the possibility space.