On December 3, Disney Publishing Worldwide and Disney’s new streaming service, Disney+, will debut a spectacular collaboration: One Day at Disney. The new 224-page coffee table book and documentary series—unveiled this evening at D23 Expo 2019 by Ricky Strauss, president, Content & Marketing for Disney+, and Good Morning America’s Robin Roberts—will shine a dazzling light on the creative forces in front of the cameras and behind the scenes at The Walt Disney Company.
Earlier this year, Disney dispatched photographers to locations across the globe, from Shanghai Disneyland and ESPN to Pixar and the set of Modern Family, to capture images of the employees and cast members who drive creativity and innovation at The Walt Disney Company. The stunning images from these 76 unique photo shoots, along with the stories behind them, will be featured in the hardbound, collectible book, written by Bruce Steele, which is now available for pre-order.
The new, 52-episode short-form series One Day at Disney will debut on Disney+ on December 3, the same day the book arrives in stores. A feature-length documentary will serve as the kickoff to the exciting new series, which takes an in-depth look at the unique and surprising roles these men and women call their daily jobs. Here are the talented individuals who will be profiled in the Disney+ docu-special (in alphabetical order):
- Eric Baker: The Walt Disney Imagineer who has overseen the creation of many of the intricately detailed props and lifelike creatures that inhabit Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, the newest lands at Disneyland and Walt Disney World Resorts
- Ashley Girdich: A talented Walt Disney Imagineer who, as a Research and Development Project Manager, drives plans and helps teams execute some of the innovative robotics technology projects being created for our Parks around the world
- Eric Goldberg: The legendary animator known for creating the Genie in Aladdin and Phil in Hercules, directing Pocahontas, as well as for animating Mickey Mouse in the Academy Award®-nominated short Get a Horse!
- Mark Gonzales: A Los Angeles native who works on the world-famous Disneyland Railroad
- Grace Lee: A senior illustration manager at Disney Worldwide Publishing who has worked on titles from Zootopia to Fancy Nancy
- Zamavus “Zama” Magudulela: The talented South African actor currently playing Rafiki in the Madrid production of phenomenally successful musical The Lion King
- Ryan Meinerding: Marvel Studios’ head of visual development, who has worked on films including Avengers: Endgame and Guardians of the Galaxy
- Dr. Natalie Mylniczenko: The veterinarian who cares for creatures large and small at Walt Disney World Resort, including a number of endangered and threatened species
- Jerome Ranft: The skilled Pixar artist who created detailed sculptures for animators to use as reference for such films as Finding Nemo, Toy Story 3 and Ratatouille
- Robin Roberts: The former ESPN sportscaster has been co-anchor of the Emmy® Award-winning, top-rated morning show Good Morning America since 2005
More than 50 One Day at Disney Shorts will follow the debut of the special, each profiling a single remarkable person and their fascinating job. A new short will debut each week.
“Even though I said that no two days [at Disney] are the same, there is something that is similar,” Roberts said during tonight’s announcement. “One thing that remains the same, day in and day out, though everything else changes, is our desire to be as creative and as innovative as we can be—not just for ourselves, but for those [who] watch us and who consume what we do. And just try to make them feel as happy as we do.”
The series and documentary are from Endeavor Content’s Non-Scripted Division. Michael Antinoro and David Chamberlin serve as executive producers, with Victoria Chamlee producing.