Sounds of Disney Ad Sets $67 Billion Impact to Music

Disney set a day in its parks to music, and the instruments are things you hear without ever noticing. “Sounds of Disney” is a new documentary-style ad built from the click of a seatbelt, the whistle of a train, and the whir of a soft serve machine. All of it lands on the melody of Steamboat Willie.

Those sounds stand in for people and companies. Some come from Cast Members at work, a nod to the more than 403,000 jobs Disney supports nationwide. Others come from the small and local businesses that supply Disney’s destinations, part of an annual U.S. economic impact of $67 billion.

Which local businesses show up in the ad?

Four of them, each tied to a sound. A young guest eating a muffin stands in for Le Chef Bakery in Montebello, California, which has supplied cakes, fresh baked goods and mixes to Disney parks and resorts for over 20 years. A Cast Member chopping vegetables represents Chef’s Garden, a family-owned specialty produce farm in Huron, Ohio, that has sent fruits and vegetables to Walt Disney World for more than two decades. A Cast Member straightening a pillowcase points to Sobel Westex, the Las Vegas linen supplier that has outfitted Disneyland Resort, Walt Disney World and Disney Cruise Line for just as long.

Then there’s the swirl of soft serve. That belongs to Southeast Dairy Processors in Tampa, which has supported Walt Disney World since opening day in 1971. Opening day. I did not see that one coming.

How did Disney turn park sounds into Steamboat Willie?

Nicole Figueroa-Sierra, an associate producer with Disney’s internal creative agency Main Street, shaped the direction. She wanted the ad to move through a day at Disney by sound. “It’s these really small things, from the people trimming the flowers to the person pressing the button that starts the fireworks, that come together to create something much bigger,” she said.

Music supervisor Evelin Garcia built the track from real theme park recordings, then layered in long strings and “sparkle” notes for a pixie dust effect. Garcia said Steamboat Willie felt universal, and that its whistle is instantly recognizable to Disney fans. Shaina Mirlis, public affairs manager for Disney Experiences, found the best ways to bring the story to life on camera, while Nicole Figueroa-Sierra guided filming at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disney’s Hollywood Studios and discussed filming with the advertisement’s director, Kirk Sullivan, at Journey of Water, Inspired by Moana at EPCOT.

Mirlis said Steamboat Willie ties Disney’s history to where the company sits now, and that the history includes helping the small businesses Disney works with grow alongside it.

The four suppliers in the ad are a sliver of the list. Disney Experiences works with thousands of businesses across all 50 states, many of them small or family-owned.

Source: Disney Experiences