Josh Gorin of Disney Imagineering on how technology brings stories to life

Jul 27, 2025

🏰 JOSH GORIN INTERVIEW – WALT DISNEY IMAGINEERING

Definition of the role
- “Imagineers are the people who conceive, design, and build Disney physical experiences all around the world—rides, lands, parks, hotels, cruise ships.”
- Comes from 100+ disciplines: artists, engineers, designers, choreographers, fabricators.
Walt’s original vision
- “He pulled his favorite talent from the studios to bring storytelling into real, physical space.”
- “We start with the story first—not the technology.”

Philosophy
- “Technology serves the story. If we do our job right, guests won’t notice the tech—they’ll just feel the emotion.”
Arthur C. Clarke quote
- “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic—that’s what we aim for.”

What it is
- “A robotic Spider-Man that flips through the air at Avengers Campus.”
- “A human couldn’t survive the G-forces—this character could only exist with robotics.”
The goal
- “People don’t even realize it’s a robot. You just believe you saw Spider-Man.”

Expressive autonomous robots
- “They’ve appeared in Disney parks and ships. People fall in love with them.”
- “They learn to move using reinforcement learning and animator guidance.”
How they’re trained
- “We put them in a 3D computer environment where they learn to walk and balance—but also with personality.”
The illusion of life
- “Walt Disney said animation is the illusion of life through movement. These droids are just that—except in real space.”

Not a new concept
- “Walt was obsessed with tech. He used the multiplane camera for depth, and stereophonic sound in Fantasia.”
Legacy + innovation
- “We always have one foot in the past and one in the future. Our legacy doesn’t hold us back—it inspires us.”

What’s coming
- “Can’t reveal specifics—it’s top secret—but this is one of the most exciting times to be at Imagineering.”
- New parks, cruise ships, and global expansion—including a new park in Abu Dhabi.

Many paths in
- “Every Imagineer has a unique story. Whether you love art, music, robotics, or code, there’s a place for you.”
Resources for aspiring creatives
- “We created Imagineering in a Box with Khan Academy—it’s a free online course that shows how we do what we do.”
- Also offers the Imaginations college program, with potential internships for winners.