Disneyland Handcrafted
Directed by Leslie Iwerks
79 minutes
Disneyland handcrafted (2026, directed by Leslie Iwerks) is a treat for Disney fans who enjoy history. The documentary pulls together previously unseen footage of preparation for the park’s opening on July 17, 1955. But the film also serves as a meditation on creation and leadership.
Anyone who’s been to the self-proclaimed Happiest Place on Earth knows its massive footprint: Walt Disney originally purchased 240 acres for his park; today Disney entities cover about 500 acres while additional hotels and restaurants line nearby streets. So it’s strange to see footage of the land without form, just orange trees and dirt.
Walt had a dream, but he couldn’t realize it alone. It took an army of laborers, craftsmen, artists and engineers to do so. In one year, they created rivers and rock formations and animatronic giraffes and mini steam engines and rides that spun and flew and aimed to delight. What decades of parkgoers accept as fact – Main Street, Tomorrowland, Cinderella’s Castle – they brought into being.
This creation process did not have a day or moment of rest following it. “It was just like a great big panic all the time,” said Art Linkletter, a lifelong friend of Walt, in one of the interviews that play over images of busy workers. “It was a miracle that Disneyland ever got opened. There were delays by suppliers, there were breakdowns, threatened strikes. But Walt was daring. He put everything on the line for his beliefs.” Many, including Linkletter, balked at Walt’s audacity. “I didn’t bother to tell him I thought he was out of his mind,” he said.
The project blew through its $17 million budget and had to borrow money, endangering the Disney studio business. “Everything was tied up in the park,” accountant Milt Albright said. “If it had gone down, the studio would have gone down.”
Art director Harper Goff remembered one of Walt’s regular visits to the park, after more than half the money had been spent and nothing to show for it. The two men looked around, and Walt sighed a couple times. “He said, ‘I’m scared.’” Goff said. “It impressed upon me what responsibility was.”
But Walt knew how to inspire excellence in his team. “If all have the same goals, you arrive at something more than the sum of the parts,” said John Hench, a designer. “Walt was a master at provoking that type of atmosphere.”
The park opened on schedule. Despite a chaotic opening day and many early setbacks, Disneyland has since welcomed over 900 million guests.
“We didn’t lack faith in the idea that it was going to be something good,” sculptor Blaine Gibson said.
