Soarin' cleaned up

[Robo]

Doh! Thanks. Must learn to re-read posts before clicking Submit.

Countless times, I've come back to re-read a post of mine...
and had to edit it due to all kinds of errors that I didn't catch when I first posted.

It's a truism in composition that it's nearly impossible to accurately "proofread your own work."

 

[LaurenT]

We have been on both concourses over the past 10 days - both are still dirty. (waiting for philharmagic to start right now!)

 

[Micca]

Mixed emotions for me on this thread. I'm heartened to see that there are fans who notice such details as the quality loss of the film, I'm sorry to hear the issues haven't been addressed.

 

[Fire14]

All I can say is the orig soarin ( DCA) seemed much "cleaner" than it's twin in Epcot.

 

[DisneyBamaFan]

Watched it four times yesterday. Ovations after each. Dissers are just whiners. Most people who view the show appreciate its greatness instead of focusing on imperfections.

 

[EpcotBill]

Watched it four times yesterday. Ovations after each. Dissers are just whiners. Most people who view the show appreciate its greatness instead of focusing on imperfections.

I didn't detect any whining. The film and the ride are great but there is nothing wrong with people noticing that it needs to be cleaned up. When it opened it was crystal clear, not so much now.

I rode it several times last week in both theatres. It's still dirty. That's not whining, just stating fact.

 

[humboldthny]

Watched it four times yesterday. Ovations after each. Dissers are just whiners. Most people who view the show appreciate its greatness instead of focusing on imperfections.

I have to disagree as well...it's not whining. There has been a marked decline in the quality of the film since we saw it on our first trip in 2007 (we've been back 5 times since then) - and trust me, I am not a picky person when it comes to HD, etc.....until a year ago we still had a hand-me-down 20 year old TV and I was good with that.

I would hope that Disney has some back-up copies....and I understand the reluctance on their part to close such a tent-pole attraction for refurb....but it needs to be done.

 

[Kona65]

It is worth noting that the Soarin' visual presentation is not "video" at all, but a very large "film" format called "Omnimax HD."

It is a film strip (not electronic video) process that uses a very large "frame image" (compared to regular 35mm theatrical films) and a double-speed projection shutter (48 frames per second, compared to the traditional 24 frames per second of regular theatrical films.)

This combination of factors yields a MUCH higher quality image than standard film or video projection systems.

Dirt and other artifacts that attach to the film and/or hang up in the projector's shutter-gate ("hair-in-the-gate" is the common term) can be problematic in mechanical film projection at all times,
but with the Soarin' Omnimax...considering the short duration of the Soarin' film (lot's of "repeats" throught the day) and the high-brightness/high-contrast scenes (lots of "sky, clouds, snow") and the extra large image, and guests being positioned very near the screen, any of these pesky artifacts can be very annoying.

They can be eliminated (or severely reduced) by frequently replacing the film prints used in the show.

I have no idea how many prints that they actually use, but it is POSSIBLE that they keep some "extra clean" loops of the films around and can thread those in when they need a "VIP showing" or similar.
Just a guess.

Could they convert Soarin' to video projection?
Yes.
But, I doubt that the image (with the technology available today) would
be nearly as sharp as the current film strip shown.

Times (and technology) can change, however, so stay tuned.

What a world of knowledge.....Honestly, I look forward to reading most everything you type. Thanks.

 

[Kona65]

Watched it four times yesterday. Ovations after each. Dissers are just whiners. Most people who view the show appreciate its greatness instead of focusing on imperfections.

Just like watching a Bama game. All they do is whine. "Go WAR EAGLES!"

 

[Robo]

Thanks for the kind words, Kona!

Much appreciated.

 

[OldKeyWelsh]

How about remaking the entire film in 3D? Maybe a thought for the future?
We rode Soarin' a few times earlier this month and I also noticed the picture was not as good as previous times - still my favourite ride though!

 

[DisneyBamaFan]

I rode it several times last week in both theatres. It's still dirty. That's not whining, just stating fact.

No - That is stating your OPINION. In my opinion, it still looks and feels amazing.

Too many Dissers have made it a point to point out things that they dislike about WDW as often as they can. You want to know why WDW disappoints when you (the larger you)? Because you bring the magic with you when you come. If you arrive without it in your heart, you will leave without having seen it. Since you once felt it in WDW, you assume that WDW has changed for the worse. But it is not WDW that has changed.

 

[Evil Princess]

Watched it four times yesterday. Ovations after each. Dissers are just whiners. Most people who view the show appreciate its greatness instead of focusing on imperfections.

Actually...I'm going to challenge you on this one, DisneyBamaFan. I understand where you're coming from, really, I do. However, there is a difference between someone whining that theym "didn't get the hotel upgrade that they SO DESERVED, where on earth is the pixie dust at Disney?" versus BAD SHOW.

The video quality on Soarin is just plain bad show. Things that Disney can fix, but knows that they can get away without doing so is a general decline from the way things used to be run. I think that people are up in arms because the quality of the attraction is slipping...along with the quality of other things around the park that should be maintained. When all of these seemingly "little things" add up, it becomes a noticeable problem and glaringly obvious decline in the quality of the theme parks.


On a side note, I worked at Epcot 5 years ago on the college program (last week was my official "anniversary), and my absolute best friend that I met on day 1 during check in is from Alabama. We are still close to this day, and return to Disney at least once a year for a reunion. I went down to Alabama to visit her this past June. Roll Tide!

 

[ericf70]

that was my next question PP. Because we were there Saturday (8/28) and went to the right and the film was really bad, filled with the "aliens".

We there on Saturday as well and both times we rode there were lots of artifacts. It really took away from the experience.

 

[EpcotBill]

No - That is stating your OPINION. In my opinion, it still looks and feels amazing.

Too many Dissers have made it a point to point out things that they dislike about WDW as often as they can. You want to know why WDW disappoints when you (the larger you)? Because you bring the magic with you when you come. If you arrive without it in your heart, you will leave without having seen it. Since you once felt it in WDW, you assume that WDW has changed for the worse. But it is not WDW that has changed.

No - it's fact, not OPINION. The film is dirty. The screens are dirty. An opinion would be something like "I think Soarin' is wonderful and no one should criticize it." Stating a fact would be more like "There are black specks all over the screen during Soarin'."

 

[SaraJayne]

Yes, there are black specks all over the screen during Soarin'. If you're sitting off to the side or in the bottom row, they are a major distraction.

The film needs to be cleaned up.

 

[Schmeck]

No - That is stating your OPINION. In my opinion, it still looks and feels amazing.

Too many Dissers have made it a point to point out things that they dislike about WDW as often as they can. You want to know why WDW disappoints when you (the larger you)? Because you bring the magic with you when you come. If you arrive without it in your heart, you will leave without having seen it. Since you once felt it in WDW, you assume that WDW has changed for the worse. But it is not WDW that has changed.

Actually, the WDW quality has changed - at least since my first trip. Fewer CMs out and about, more generic food and merchandise selections, slower repair and cleaning of attractions.

It is a personal opinion how one would allow or not allow these changes to affect a vacation at WDW - you can just go and say 'so what!', or you could go on Soarin' and on the way out, mention to every CM you see there that the film was getting very worn and needed sprucing up.

 

[larryz]

Watched it four times yesterday.

Someone's spending 'way too much time in lines...

 

[dntd]

There was still black flecks on the screen 2 weeks ago, we rode 2 times...

 

[DisneyTraveler18]

No - it's fact, not OPINION. The film is dirty. The screens are dirty. An opinion would be something like "I think Soarin' is wonderful and no one should criticize it." Stating a fact would be more like "There are black specks all over the screen during Soarin'."

Yes, there are black specks all over the screen during Soarin'. If you're sitting off to the side or in the bottom row, they are a major distraction.

The film needs to be cleaned up.

You may be right. I havent ridden since 2008, so I dont know from experience. But there are a few reasons that could explain why nothing has been done yet. First of all, there are rumors that Shanghai Disneyland will have a new Soarin film of its own. So Disney may be waiting to update the film altogether.

The other reason is the cost of maintaining the large format film. There is no doubt Disney wants to switch to digital projections. But the cost of doing that is astronomical. Digital IMAX projectors are extremley expensive. More expensive at this point then a standard IMAX projector. Then theres the cost of cleaning and digitizing the large format film. That too is extremley expensive. Frames of the quality of Soarin's cant be cleaned by Joe down the street. They muust be worked on by the experts. Its all extremley expensive. The way Disney is acting(and the way rumors of Shanghai are going) it seems like an all new Soarin film will be shot with digital cameras. The rumors of a new Soarin film have been talked about for years. But it appears that we may be moving closer and closer to a new film now.