Hunting For Story On Kilimanjaro Safaris
What makes an attraction great?
Is it how animatronic dinosaurs and a Spielberg blockbuster can turn an oversized flume ride into Jurassic Park : The Ride ? Or, is it how lush detailing and extensive theming turn a roller coaster into Big Thunder Mountain Railroad ? This is a big discussion, but let me lay out my thinking like this:Â
Ride + Technology + Theming + Storytelling = Great Attraction.Â
This appears to be the magic formula that gets people queuing up for 3 hour wait times and showers the attraction with industry acclaim. They donât build E-Ticket experiences without these elements. But, what happens when the storytelling is the LEAST compelling part of the equation? Can a multi-million dollar attraction fall flat if the story isnât compelling enough to drive the experience?Â
I say yes. One particular attraction comes to mind. If you read the title of this post, then you know what it is.Â
If youâve visited Disneyâs Animal Kingdom, then youâve probably taken a ride through Harambe Wildlife Preserve aboard Kilimanjaro Safaris Expedition. One of the parkâs signature attractions, it brings you out onto an African savannah where elephants, ostriches and dozens of other majestic animals roam free (or as far as the invisible fences will let them).Â
                 Tours departing every minute.Â
Disneyâs Animal Kingdom was envisioned as a place were guests could discover animals... real, ancient and imagined. While you can come face to face with a dinosaur or yeti, the park is themed around the real world issue of animal conservation. As you enjoy your fun day, Disney wants to remind you that this is a place of respect and understanding of all animals.Â
Kilimanjaro Safaris, with its up-close encounters with live animals, is the perfect attraction to feature an animal conservation storyline. Since the senseless killing of animals is a very real problem in Africa, you can understand why a poaching storyline was written into the attraction.Â
The storyline works like this: While on safari, your vehicle driver is in radio contact with Wilson, the game warden. Suddenly, news breaks that poachers have captured two elephants, Big Red and Little Red. We zoom through busted gates and past the poacherâs camp in an effort to drive the poachers towards Wilsonâs trap. In the final scene, we see Little Red safe and sound as a gun touting Cast Member retains the poacherâs jeep.Â
The original version of the attraction really tried to drive home the seriousness of poaching by having the safari vehicle encounter a (fake) slaughtered corpse of Big Red. As you can probably imagine, the sight of a dead Dumbo didnât go over well with parents and children. Since Dead Red was only shown during Cast Previews, his appearance was brief, and the storyline was changed. Over time, the poaching storyline was reduced to its bare bones (zing) before finally being removed in April of this year.
Kilimanjaro Safaris is an E-Ticket attraction that lacks Disneyâs signature stellar storytelling. Itâs got nothing to do with the finale. For me, the attractionâs story problems started at the beginning of the journey, and continued through to the end.
(At this point Joe Rhode, the lead Imagineer at Disneyâs Animal Kingdom is seeing to it that I never work for WDI. Donât take this personal Mr. Rhode. Iâm here to love.)
Solid attraction storytelling blends visual narratives with sounds that enforce what weâre seeing. Kilimanjaro Safaris doesnât offer enough visual references and elements, leaving the majority of the narrative resting on what we hear.Â
                    Hook Em' Horns!
In order to follow the story, you need to understand English. Every audio touchpoint, from the pre-show video, to the driverâs conversation with Wilson, is in English. This is a problem for the non-english speaking visitors or children under 10. If you canât understand English, then the entire storyline vanishes and it becomes a safari ride with real animals that ends with a fake elephant in the back of a truck. Also, with enough visual stimuli to look at, you may just ignore the narration, just like you do to the flight attendant's instructions before take off. The story elements become white noise.Â
Compare that experience with a trip on Peter Panâs Flight. If you were to remove the dialogue from that attraction, youâd still be able figure out whatâs going on from looking at the show scenes. The Darlings see Peter Pan - They fly across London - The travel past the moon to a new land - Thereâs a villain with a hook - The kids are taken prisoner - Peter rescues them - They fly home. Yes, it helps if youâve familiar with the story or the movie. But, itâs the simplest form of theme park storytelling around, and it works perfectly.Â
I was on the opposite end of the language problem during my visit to Tokyo Disney Sea. I was looking forward to 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea. It's one of my favorite movies. It features an incredible queue and sophisticated attractions system. I didnât understand a single thing the japanese-speaking Captain Nemo said. Bummer? Sure. But I got what was going on through the visuals and experiences. The squid grabbed our sub and shook us. Nemo retaliated with electric shocks. I got it. Kilimanjaro Safaris weights too heavily on the ears.Â
A strong attraction tells its story straight through - from the time you board your vehicle to the time you exit. Much like a movie. Act I is the set up. Act II is the complications. Act III ties things up. In the case of Kilimanjaro Safaris, Act I (the beginning) doesnât carry through on the narrative set up in the queue. Act II (the savannah) hardly mentions the story. Act III rushes through to a conclusion thatâs not really supported in either of the previous two acts.Â
Once we head out in our vehicles, we get the poaching story set up through a brief radio conversation. After that, we get no poaching show scenes until about half way though the savannah. By that time, weâre too involved with our cameras.Â
       Not all hippos wiggle their ears and blow bubbles. Â
The safari part of the attraction is a breathtaking piece of design and execution. Itâs amazing to think that Disney took swampland and imported every single animal, bush, tree and blade of grass. As impressive as it is, thereâs nothing visual in this area that re-enforces the poaching story. This works the opposite of the Jungle Cruise, where there's a show scene that re-enforces the story every few feet.Â
The poaching story gets a visual marker at about twenty-two minutes in where you see a bused gate where the intruders âbroke inâ. This is the âSomething goes wrongâ approach that most E-tickets use to leap into the thrills (You wouldnât willingly go into a potentially dangerous/thrilling situation, would you?). Here, the sudden shift from slow-moving safari to fast paced chase ride feels disjointed.Â
The last problem, and probably my biggest beef with the attraction, is how the climactic finale is handled. As we race through the gates, supposedly driving the poachers into the wardenâs trap, we hear the radio crackle with updates. Success! Wilson informs us that they poachers drove right into the trap. We drive up and sure enough, there are the poachers. Trapped.Â
After twenty minutes of being fed the poaching storyline, the finale is something weâre not directly involved in and donât even see happen. We WANT to see the victorious moment. Letâs put it another way -Â In the original âStar Warsâ, instead of seeing the Death Star blow up, what if Lucas cut back to Leia and C3-PO on Yavin and we only HEAR the space station explode. Letdown, right? Kilimanjaro Safaris ends in pretty much the same fashion. After all that involvement and investment, thereâs simply no pay off.Â
For itâs faults, the poaching/conservation storyline is well-intentioned. It just tried too hard and wasnât executed as well as it could have been. With the poaching story gone, Kilimanjaro Safaris is just a guided âphoto safariâ with no apparent story.Â
Creating a storyline that works on Kilimanjaro Safaris requires a tale that can be told through the entire experience. We need to see visual reminders throughout the attraction, even during the serene experience on the savannah. Like a movie, everything we experience needs to build to an exciting climatic moment or reveal at the end.Â
Finding the right storyline is tricky. You could just call it a day by throwing Timon, Pumbaa or Mickey into the mix. However, you run the risk of diminishing the experience to one of almost parody. Can you appreciate these beautiful animals while being fed fart jokes from Nathan Lane? Probably not.Â
          Nice guy, but not the addition Kilimanjaro Safaris needs.
The key to a great storyline would be one that stays true to the culture and people of Africa, yet allows Disney some creative license to weave its Imagineering magic.Â
Solution? Iâd go with mythical African beasts or creatures. Â
Much like âExpedition Everest' Kilimanjaro Safaris would have a âmythical villainâ. A quick Google of mythical African beasts finds some nice candidates. There's the dragon-like Ninki Nanka or the fierce Rompo. The mythical creature's story would be weaved into the queue, setting up the entire experience. Our driver would tell us the tale of this mythical creature, known to spend time in environments just like ours. But, donât worry, nobody has seen one.Â
However, during the tour, we see evidence that something dangerous may be out there. A slashed tree-trunk, a large footprint, maybe even a mysterious roar. Then, a closed off road forces us down a detour, where we come face to face with the creature. We feel itâs breath. It shakes our vehicle. Thankfully, our driver breaks free of the beastâs clutches, and we speed back to safety.Â
The soon to be added âAvatarâ land at Disneyâs Animal Kingdom, gives some creative license to add a mythical twist to the parkâs signature attraction. At the same time, the myth approach adds a layer of cultural significance to the experience. Itâs already a man-made safari in the middle of central Florida. You wouldnât be making a ârealâ experience âfakeâ by adding in a large animatronic figure.Â
When itâs all said and done, the best storyline that could be added to Kilimanjaro Safaris is the one thatâs able to be told visually throughout the experience. No special effects or thrills necessary. Spend as much money as you want on the technology, but tell the story in the simplest, most effective way possible, regardless of what language is spoken.Â
Nail the story. Make it great. Itâs what makes the two minutes of thrills worth the three-hour wait.