Video

Oct 5, 2025

Disneyland Spoof on Youtube

Include research you did on the origins of the product, company etc. What do you know about the company/product history?
In the early 1950s, Walt Disney dreamed of an amusement park to end all amusement parks. He felt that there should be a park where parents and children could go and have a good time together, rather than the parent’s usual experience of sitting on the sidelines. According to Roy Disney--Walt’s brother--bankers refused to lend the company a dime for the project. Disney began to investigate new methods of fundraising, and he decided to create a show named Disneyland. It was broadcast on ABC, and in return, the network agreed to help finance the park.
Construction began in July of 1954 and the park opened one year later on July 17, 1955. Life reported, “In the face of enormous obstacles (record rainfall, labor strikes), a ballooning budget (total price tag: $17 million), and a disastrous opening day (women’s high heels sunk in Main Street’s still-drying asphalt), Disney prevailed.”
Throughout their history, Disneyland would undergo many changes in many ways. Unlike other amusement parks at the time, Disneyland was never racially segregated, and was open to all races since opening day, but there was a lack of diversity in their employment. However, they were open to changing this upon being approached by the Congress of Racial Equality in the 1960s. In the late 1990s, work began to expand the property. Disneyland Park, the Disneyland Hotel, the site of the original parking lot, and acquired surrounding properties were earmarked to become part of the Disneyland Resort. The property saw the addition of the Disney California Adventure theme park, a shopping, dining and entertainment complex named Downtown Disney, a remodeled Disneyland Hotel, the construction of Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa, and the acquisition and re-branding of the Pan Pacific Hotel as Disney's Paradise Pier Hotel (renamed to Pixar Place Hotel in 2024). The park was renamed "Disneyland Park" to distinguish it from the larger complex under construction.
In 2004, the park underwent major renovations in preparation for the fiftieth anniversary, restoring many attractions, notably Space Mountain, Jungle Cruise, the Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room.
D23 describes how Disneyland “has been used as a pattern for every amusement park built since its opening, becoming internationally famous and attracting hundreds of millions of visitors. Walt said that Disneyland would never be completed as long as there was imagination left in the world, and that statement remains true today. New attractions are added regularly, and Disneyland is even more popular now than it was in 1955.”

Include information about the advertising campaign or look/ feel of the organization you chose to spoof.
In an interview on The Walt Disney Company site, Asad Ayaz says “Disneyland has been, and always will be, a source of happiness for guests of all ages. “The Happiest Place on Earth” campaign reminds all of us of the power of joy and the incredible way it brings us all together.” They go on to say “It extends beyond this campaign, and it’s our promise to our guests that Disneyland will always be a place of hope, belonging, and happiness. Since its opening, Disneyland has been “a source of joy and inspiration for all the world,” and today we continue to invest in creativity, technology, and innovation to bring the power of Disney storytelling to new heights.”

What approach did you take? What drew you to this product/ company? What are the issues that you are addressing in your piece?
I decided to do a video that comments on the slight hypocrisy of Disney Parks marketing slogan of being the “Happiest Place on Earth.” I was drawn to this idea after using it as an advertising example. I attempt to address the reality of ones time when visiting Disney Parks, being largely spent waiting in line for a couple minutes of fun followed by walking to the next line.

Describe what you were critiquing through your spoof ad. What issues came up? Were there assumptions you made that were incorrect or not what you thought at the outset?
As mentioned above, I was critiquing Disney’s marketing for not being fully accurate and hiding the reality of their parks. Since it has been a while since I have visited any Disney Parks, I forgot how entertaining they actually make some of their ride’s lines. I was surprised to learn some of the history of the park, but otherwise, most of my assumptions were correct.

How you went about communicating this both visually and with text.
To communicate my point about the lines and travel between rides in the park, I inserted footage of people walking and standing in line. I also attempted to manipulate the audio of the ad I was using to varying degrees of effect.