Monday, August 29, 2016

Disney Dwayne Has My Vote For "Most Likely To Succeed"

Hi-ya pal! Today's post is about Disney vlogger and podcaster Disney Dwayne. I've been pretty crazy about him for some time now. I use the phrase "crazy about" because of the enthusiasm that I have for what Disney Dwayne is doing with his podcast and YouTube channel. I honestly think he has the potential to be a superstar Disney influencer if he keeps doing what he has been. I'm dying for a Disney version of Grace Helbig or Tyler Oakley. It's impossible to predict who might have that kind of success in the future but I could see Disney Dwayne building up a serious following in a couple years time if he keeps with it. The reason why I'm writing about him now is because for the first time this week one of his videos went viral and the internet is going crazy for Disney Dwayne in it's own way. If you don't already know a video titled "Crowd Culture at Shanghai Disneyland" is pretty much everywhere right now.

The video is pretty self explanatory and is exactly what the title suggestions at first glance. You get to witness what to me looks like a moment of culture shock for Dwayne as he tries to navigate in a place where the majority of people around him operate under a set of social rules different than what he normally experiences. He is clearly overwhelmed and surprised by what probably feels to him like complete chaos and total crowd anarchy. He doesn't say anything bad about China or the Chinese people, he is only acknowledging that the system for getting through giant crowds in Shanghai is very different compared to other Disney parks. Parts of it do seem a little gross with waste control when you stack it up next to how Disney runs the parks in The United States or in Paris. I think it's fair that he point these things out because the garbage issues are shocking for a Disney Park, I would have never expected this. It doesn't matter where the park is on the globe, the property is being maintained by Disney and all cleanliness issues are entirely the fault of poor planning or management. This has nothing to do with the people of China but the fact the Walt Disney Company is allowing more people into the park than they are able to take care or pick up after is unacceptable. I would expect that I would need a little time to adjust to the crowd culture if I was visiting a country with a greater density in population but I would have never thought that Disney would allow their parks to get dirty like that. I appreciate the insight on the park's management. This is not a Chinese problem but a Walt Disney Company problem. He's a Disney vlogger and it's someone making a video about one of his many experiences at Shanghai Disneyland. His other videos about Shanghai are all positive. That is also worth noting.

Crowd Culture at Shanghai Disneyland

I watched it again and I still don't see anything hateful about the video and I think he is only documenting how he experienced certain things in an honest way. In my opinion this is a good thing especially when you consider how common it is today for vloggers to post videos that either go out of their way to create fake dramatic or present something that is edited and filtered so much that it isn't real either. This is a video being recoded by someone who is extremely uncomfortable, not someone who is hateful. What is hateful however are some of the comments coming in from other YouTube users. I won't quote any of these comments on my blog or share screen shots of garbage like that. Disney Dwayne is being attacked with the garden variety of racial/homophobic/personal slurs we come to expect to see in the comment section of any given YouTube video that has a significant number of views. There is also the problem of people coming to this video to express their personal hatred/disgust with China. I'll never understand comments that don't contribute anything constructive to the forum.

All of this makes me so sad because Disney Dwayne is an outstanding vlogger that doesn't deserve to have his content be used by The Daily Mail and other media outlets that go out of their way to sensationalize whatever they can get their hands on. Although I know that there is nothing I can do to take down the hateful bullies flooding this YouTube page right now, I'd at least like to send a little bit of positivity his way and share some of my favorite Disney Dwayne videos.

Interview on Imagineering for Shanghai Disneyland with Josh Steadman

This video is wonderful because it shows off what a great podcaster Disney Dwayne is. Even though it is a newer Disney podcast, it's fair to say that Once Upon A Fairy Tale has managed to avoid that "newbie" vibe that most podcasts have when they are first kicking things off. With a combination of solid content and smooth production it easily gives off the impression that this podcast has been on for years already. It's certainly possible though that Dwayne has worked on other podcasts before this one, I'll have to do some fact checking here. Either way, he comes off as effortlessly well spoken and makes for an excellent host. I picked this interview for my list because Disney Shanghai is new at the moment but the other interviews on this podcast are just as good. If you are more of theater geek than a theme park enthusiast, you are in luck. There is an interview with Patrick R. Brown who plays Scar in The Lion King on Broadway (Soundcloud Link) as well as an episode with Mary Poppins (The Musical) Lyricist Anthony Drewe (Soundcloud Link).

If you don't have iTunes, you can find ALL of the podcasts by Once Upon A Fairy Tale on SOUNDCLOUD at https://soundcloud.com/onceuponafairytaletime