[Taylor] Technology doesn't have to replace what went before,
sometimes it can just augment it.
The StudioLAB is actually housed in the old animation building
in one of the units that was used to make Fantasia.
This is ground zero for innovation for me,
because this is where Walt really kicked it all off.
The mixture of tech, old and new,
pushing two together that maybe you hadn't thought of putting together before,
you get something new.
My name is Alice Taylor.
I'm VP of Content Innovation and StudioLAB for studio technology.
-That'd be awesome. -[woman] Yeah.
It's a bit of a test space for storytelling through emerging technology,
any kinda tech, any kinda stories.
We're looking for interesting things that are happening in filmmaking and beyond,
and then we put them in here, and we let people play with it.
This place is about showcasing what is happening on set
from various productions across the studios that are represented here.
But it's also from pulling in interesting things happening out in the market.
So, you'll see things like drones in here or AR,
augmented reality content on phones here in the living room and stuff like that.
Walt innovated like crazy.
He had a culture of innovation at the heart of everything that he did.
That was the way he lived,
and the history is soaked into the floorboards and the walls,
and you can feel it.
I mean, we're just sitting in a building.
It's just made of bricks but, on the other hand, it isn't.
All of the characters from Inside Out...
[Taylor] The interactive movie poster is a prototype that we're building.
And we're looking at how a digital poster could react
to the human being standing in front of it.
If we can have one person having their emotion being recognized,
then that could trigger extra content on top of that.
You could totally play games.
Try it. One, [chuckling] two, three.
One way to react is to gauge the expression
on the face of the person standing in front of it.
So, what is happening here is that the software behind the poster
is analyzing the faces and trying to determine
whether the person looking at the poster is happy or sad, angry, disgusted, afraid.
Number of emotions.
One of the things that we're doing is working with our live-action team
to explore storytelling in new mediums.
[man] So, you know, I've been testing out the Figment designs.
So, which one's the first model?
-So this was the first one that we made. -[Taylor] Yeah.
And that one's after the review from team at parks.
It's a character that it's in 3-D, and you can see him
by putting on a headset and going into VR,
but also our artist is sculpting the physical version.
What's the benefit of doing the physical model?
Why did we wanna go with the real clay here?
[Choi] Yeah, so usually with a 3-D Maya, it's kinda hard for the directors
and the producers to kind of get the feel of the design.
-Right. -But with the clay
you can immediately tell the artist to move the components of the model.
-[Taylor] Yeah, yeah. -And the director will be like,
"Okay, move the nose here." And we can change it very quickly.
[Taylor] The physical version we then scan and pull into the 3-D world as well.
When the turntable arrives with the robot arm we can do it with that as well, right?
[Choi] That would be more efficient, 'cause right now just having iPad,
-I have to walk around it. -[Taylor] Yeah.
So, if we have the robot arm, you've got the stability?
-[Choi] Right. -[Taylor] Yeah.
You get to be able to reach out and touch the model,
you get to put the headset on and see the model,
you get to look at it from all angles.
And that's how creative decision-making can then happen.
[Jackson] So, yeah. Here's the Zootopia loop.
They did some really fun stuff with this one.
[Taylor] Yeah, they did.
The magic window is two TV's on top of each other,
OLED screens with a fake window panel in front of it.
We can show content there that gives the illusion
of looking out through a magic window.
So, instead of looking at the window and seeing the back of another building,
you can look out the window and see elephants passing by.
[Jackson] This one, it is a totally static image.
They don't have any camera movement or anything.
It really makes that magic window effect.
[Taylor] Yeah. That's nice.
One of the great things about that project was the Children's Hospital Initiative
came through and saw that and loved it.
And so now, those kinds of magic windows
are being installed in children's hospitals in America.
-Elephants. -[Jackson] And more elephants.
[Taylor laughs]
[Jackson] Yeah. That first shot is pretty amazing.
The storytelling that comes out the studios really matters.
It's important to me that the stories that we tell shape the future.
Disney himself was a great innovator
and really pushed the envelope when it comes to story and technology.
He loved technology. He used it in all sorts of new and interesting ways.
And that's the culture we try to preserve here.
'Cause it's telling the stories that matter and that really affect people.
And that's amazing.