Horizons | Epcot Center | 5.1 SURROUND SOUND Attraction Audio Experience
Please note: The Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow section has been removed because of copyright issues.
Horizons was a dark ride attraction at Epcot (then known as EPCOT Center), a theme park at Walt Disney World in Bay Lake, Florida. Located on the eastern side of the “Future World” section of Epcot, the attraction used Disney’s Omnimover conveyance system, which took guests past show scenes depicting visions of the future. It is believed to be the sequel to Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress, an attraction in Tomorrowland at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom. Horizons was the only attraction in “Future World” to showcase all of Epcot’s “Future World” elements: communication, community interaction, energy, transportation, anatomy, physiology, along with humankind’s relationship to the sea, land, air, and space.
The attraction officially opened on October 1, 1983, as part of Phase II of Epcot. Horizons originally closed in December 1994, a little more than a year after General Electric had ended its sponsorship of the attraction. Horizons re-opened on December 24, 1995, due to the closure of two other attractions that were down for refurbishment in “Future World”, Universe of Energy, and World of Motion. The attraction permanently closed on January 9, 1999, after which the attraction was dismantled and its structure demolished to make room for Mission: SPACE, a motion simulator thrill ride that opened on October 9, 2003.
The attraction, although extinct, still retains a sizable cult following, especially among Disney park aficionados.
The Attraction
Horizons began with a section entitled “Looking Back at Tomorrow,” showcasing visions of the future as perceived from the era of Jules Verne and Albert Robida through the 1950s. The ride then moved past two immense OMNIMAX screens (groundbreaking technology at the time the ride was built), showing modern technologies and ideas that could be used to build the world of tomorrow. Afterward came the main part of the ride: visions of futuristic life in cities, deserts, undersea, and even in space. The only Disney attraction at the time with multiple endings, Horizons then allowed riders to select which path they wanted to take back to the FuturePort: from the space station Brava Centauri (depicting space colonization), from the desert farm of Mesa Verde (depicting arid-zone agriculture), or from the Sea Castle research base (depicting ocean colonization).
As the final part of the ride, guests in their “omnimover” would push a button to select amongst the three choices and would be presented with a 31-second video sequence. A film would then be displayed to riders in each individual car. The videos showed a simulated flyover of an outdoor scene. To create the effect, scale models were built and a camera swept across the futuristic terrain. The models were some of the largest ever created at the time.
The model for the desert sequence, for example, was 32 by 75 feet (9.8 by 22.9 m) long. The visual effects were filmed in a hangar at the Burbank airport. Produced in 1983 by 30 model makers, it took over a year to build and shoot the three segments. The exit corridor of the ride originally featured the mural The Prologue and the Promise by renowned space artist Robert T. McCall.
Voice cast
Corey Burton – Futureport ‘Brava Centauri’ Announcer
Henry Corden – Neon City: Screen 1 voice
B. J. Ward – Mesa Verde Announcer, Tommy’s Mother, Undersea Classroom teacher, and Horizons 1 Boarding Announcer
Dena Dietrich – Grandmother
Tom Fitzgerald – Tom II (‘Beach Boy’)
Corine Cook – Tom’s Girlfriend
Bob Holt – Grandfather
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