Walt Disney was gone before I stepped into my childhood. Most of those early years coincided with the pre-renaissance period of Disney Animation Studios, so I missed many of the classic Disney films. Growing up in the Texas Panhandle, I was only able to visit Disneyland a handful of times, and those few trips to that amazing theme park made me an instant fan of Walt Disney, although it was not until years later that I understood the full extent of his contributions. Director Brad Bird was also passionately affected by Walt Disney's work because he was mentored by one of Walt’s famous Nine Old Men, Milt Kahl, during his Junior high school days. After studying at California Institute of the Arts, Brad went on to create some animated classics of his own.
One summer day in August 2012, Supervising Art Director Ramsey Avery invited me to meet with Brad Bird to develop some logos for a studio pitch meeting. Even after I signed an elaborate non-disclosure agreement, producer Jeffrey Chernov and visual effects producer Tom Peitzman swore me to secrecy again, before telling me the film was called Tomorrowland. My mind raced back to the Disneyland attractions I had enioyed in Tomorrowland as a kid.
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