Disney Social Media Moms Celebration at Disneyland

Last week I had the opportunity to attend my first Disney Social Media Moms Celebration, entitled “On the Road.”  I was super excited because I have applied several times to attend the big Disney Social Media Moms Conference in Orlando, Florida, but have not yet been chosen.

But now, Disney Social Media Moms had come to my neck of the woods, in Anaheim, CA.  Living just a half an hour away from Disneyland, I was all over it.  In fact, I grew up at Disneyland, often going with my best childhood friends.  Once our oldest friend could drive, we were always there during the Summer.  We used our “E” tickets wisely and became friends with several of the ride attendants.

Disney Social Media Moms

This was a one-day conference, from 8am – 1pm.  It was like a reunion, catching up with blogging friends from all over Orange and Los Angeles counties.  Disney set up a great morning with speakers from Disney as well as two surprise guests to talk about being a mom and being social online.

We were very excited to learn that the surprise guests were Tiffani Thiessen of Dinner with Tiffani, Beverly Hills 90210, and Saved by the Bell fame and Ginger Zee, Good Morning America meteorologist and past contestant on Dancing with the Stars.  Both women spoke of their lives in the public eye while raising children and managing social media.

Being a techie, I was immediately drawn to the colorful LED Mickey Mouse ears adorning each table.  The paintbrush you see here is a wand – you are able to change the Mickey ears of anyone nearby just by choosing your desired color and pressing a button.  It was like magic!  We all had fun at the table switching the colors of each other’s ears!

Disney’s Moana

MOANA is an adventurous, tenacious and compassionate 16-year-old who sails out on a daring mission to save her people.  ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.

One of the highlights of the day for me was listening to Disney’s first woman to head animation for Disney Animation Studios, Amy Smeed.  She was fascinating to listen to.  She showed us behind the scenes photos of how the Disney creative team traveled to different Polynesian islands to meet the villagers and interact with them to understand their customs and stories, passed down from their ancestors.

We saw videos of writers meeting villagers and discovering more about island life and what is important to their villages.  Many of the men villagers had body tattoos like the ones you’ll see in the movie.

Moana reminded me of my daughter – and my hopes for my her.  She’s a spirited young lady who grows up with a calling she cannot yet understand.  Her grandmother tells her stories of how their ancestors were world voyagers and explorers and she guides Moana onto her destiny.

To follow her intuition, Moana must disobey her father, who is also the Chief of her village…

Maui and Moana. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.

and challenge and gain the support of Maui, a demigod – half mortal, half god.  Her daring and treacherous adventure leads her to greatness, while at the same time helping her to discover her true identity.

Moana is a determined teenager, letting nothing stand in her way in grasping her destiny.  Her companions? An adorable pig named Pua and a not-so-bright rooster named Hei Hei.  Here’s the trailer in case you haven’t seen it yet…

After spending the morning with Disney and hearing first hand accounts straight from Amy Smeed, I cannot wait for the film to come out on November 23rd.  I may even pre-buy my tickets through the Fandango app to ensure we have a seat, I have a feeling MOANA is going to be another Disney hit!

Recommended Video Apps

Disney shared their publishing processes and strategies they undertake to interact with guests online through their blog and social channels.  With all of the different properties Disney represents, it’s an amazing myriad of newsbytes to put together in an organized fashion for their online readers.

One of my favorite speakers was Victoria Lim, Managing Editor of Content at Walt Disney World.  She shared with us ways to more easily incorporate videos into our blog posts using today’s simple video apps.  Her enthusiasm was infectious and I loved her attempt to SHOW us the tools live from her phone on the big screen(despite WiFi disruption).

Whether you use videos for your blog, Instagram, Facebook, or even for your own family video scrapbooks, these simple to use video tools will make your photos and videos more fun to watch.

1.  Magisto – We tried out Magisto years ago and instantly fell in love with this fun versatile app back in 2014.  It’s great for highlighting pics from a vacation…or showcasing an appliance we are trying out here at WellConnectedmom.com.  You can add pictures and video together to make a beautiful collage of memories, encompassing both upbeat music and appealing graphics.  Magisto allows you to use up to 10 videos or pictures, anything more requires a paid-subscription.

2.  Videolicious – Now this one is extremely impressive.  Videolicious allows you to add pictures and/or video and then narrate each of the media you include, as if you’re a reporter, reporting live on the scene.  It’s truly fascinating and an awesome way to cover news at a convention or tradeshow.  I can’t wait to use it, though it won’t work on Androids unless you pay a small monthly fee.  Videolicious is free on the iPhone or iPad.  

Here is a picture of  Victoria Lim is demoing Videolicious for us live – teaching us how to use the app.  You can see the recording button on the right.

3.  Quik – Is similar to Magisto where you can pick different themes and music, but you can add more pictures and videos.  It’s very simple to use and fun too – you can instantly change the themes to see how your movie will look as you edit.  I created this Quik video within a minute – actually, probably two minutes because I kept on changing the themes to see how it would look.  

This video shows some scenes from the Disney Social Media Moms Conference as well as some of the fun from the parks and the Electric Light parade later that night.

Whether a blogger, mom, or both, any three of these apps are a hoot to use and make your videos look like a million bucks.

I’d like to thank Disney for a great morning of learning mixed in with celebrity gazing and Disney fun.  As a family who loves to travel, we hit Disney Parks whenever…and wherever possible.  See pictures from our recent trip to Disney Shanghai and Disney Tokyo on our WellConnectedMom instagram account.

Disney continues to innovate whether here in the States or abroad.  We had a chance to check out the new Soarin’ Around the World in Shanghai first, then saw it at Disneyland last week.  The only difference was the ending of the movie – you end up at Disneyland or Shanghai…dependent upon which Disney park you’re at.

Other new attractions is the luminous Tree of Life Awakening at Disney’s Animal Kingdom in Florida and the new Frozen live theater play at California Disney, featuring all our favorite characters from Frozen…including Olaf!

You may be surprised to hear that the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror at California Disney is closing down, or “checking out,” as the Disney Parks blog says, on January 2, 2017.  The attraction will be transformed into the new Guardians of the Galaxy:  Mission Breakout!  Still utilizing the breathtaking free fall drop while creating a “comically high-energy, rocking new adventure,” featuring characters from the suspenseful “Guardians of the Galaxy” films.

Want to be one of the first to learn about new attractions and events at Disney Parks?  Follow the Disney Parks blog for up-to-date news and sneak peaks of Disney projects happening all around the world.

*  I was invited to the Disney Social Media Moms Conference, On the Go at Disneyland in Anaheim, CA.  In addition, I was given tickets to go to the Disney parks immediately following the conference.  There’s no place like Disney!