Innoventions (Epcot)

Last updated

Innoventions
Innoventions logo.svg
Innoventions at Night.jpg
Epcot
NameInnoventions East
Area Future World
Coordinates 28°22′27.44″N81°32′59.51″W / 28.3742889°N 81.5498639°W / 28.3742889; -81.5498639
StatusRemoved
Opening dateJuly 1, 1994 (1994-07-01)
Closing dateSeptember 7, 2019 [1]
Replaced CommuniCore
Replaced byConnections Eatery
(World Celebration)
Epcot
NameInnoventions West
Area Future World
StatusRemoved
Opening dateJuly 1, 1994 (1994-07-01)
Closing dateMay 19, 2015 [2]
Replaced CommuniCore
Replaced by Journey of Water
(World Nature)
Ride statistics
Attraction typeExhibit
Designer Walt Disney Imagineering
Model Trade expo
Theme Technological innovation and change
HostTom Morrow 2.0 (2000–2007)
Wheelchair symbol.svg Wheelchair accessible
Assistive listening icon.svg Assistive listening available
Closed captioning symbol.svg Closed captioning available

Innoventions was an ever-changing collection of exhibits at the EPCOT theme park in Walt Disney World, Florida. It focused on technological advancements and their practical applications in everyday life. Innoventions is a portmanteau of the words "innovation" and "invention".

Contents

History

Innoventions first opened on July 1, 1994, replacing Communicore in EPCOT. When the attraction opened, it prominently displayed games from various Sega consoles in an arcade style. The exhibit also featured virtual reality systems that used head-mounted displays. Innoventions is divided into two buildings known as Innoventions East and Innoventions West. In 1999, Innoventions had a major renovation for the park's Millennium Celebration, and added the subtitle "The Road to Tomorrow". In 2007–2008, Innoventions underwent another major renovation, dropped the subtitle "Road to Tomorrow," and changed its general aesthetic again while also launching the companion website innoventions.disney.com.

Closure and demolition

An entrance to the Innoventions pavilion, as it appeared in February 2005. Since this photo was taken, the sign tower in front of the building has been removed, as well as the Mickey wand on Spaceship Earth in the upper right. Epcot innoventions 2005.jpg
An entrance to the Innoventions pavilion, as it appeared in February 2005. Since this photo was taken, the sign tower in front of the building has been removed, as well as the Mickey wand on Spaceship Earth in the upper right.

On May 19, 2015, Innoventions West closed with the promise of a major overhaul, which ultimately never happened.

On September 7, 2019, the original version of Club Cool (Coca-Cola) and the Fountain View (Starbucks) in the south portion of Innoventions West permanently closed ahead of demolition.

Demolition of Innoventions West began in Fall 2019. The Southwest Quadrant was reduced to a structural frame in December 2019.

Helicopter view of phase 1 demolition of Innoventions West on December 14, 2019. Portion south of the breezeway has been reduced to structural frame. Epcot-innoventions-West-demolition-2019-dec-14.jpg
Helicopter view of phase 1 demolition of Innoventions West on December 14, 2019. Portion south of the breezeway has been reduced to structural frame.
Monorail view looking through the structural frame remaining in the south portion of Innoventions West. Seen on December 14, 2019. Epcot-innoventions-demolition-2019-dec14-M.jpg
Monorail view looking through the structural frame remaining in the south portion of Innoventions West. Seen on December 14, 2019.

Today, the building that formerly housed Innoventions East has reopened as Connections Eatery, the main quick service restaurant for the front of EPCOT in World Celebration. The building that formerly housed Innoventions West has been completely demolished to make way for the Journey of Water attraction in World Nature, the exhibit space as CommuniCore Hall, and the festival stage as CommuniCore Plaza in World Celebration, which was the named after the demise of the classic Future World pavilions.

Exhibits and sponsors

Previous logo of Innoventions used from 1994-2007. Epcot Innoventions logo.jpg
Previous logo of Innoventions used from 1994–2007.

Innoventions East

Innoventions West

Tom Morrow 2.0

Tom Morrow 2.0
Innoventions - Tom Morrow 2.0.jpg
Tom Morrow 2.0 singing and talking about the various areas of Innoventions.
First appearanceImagineer That! and Innoventions
2000
Designed by Walt Disney Imagineering
Voiced by Max Casella
In-universe information
SpeciesRobot
GenderMasculine programming

Epcot's Innoventions' mascot for 2000–2007 is a small Audio-Animatronic character (called a "mini-matronic" by Walt Disney Imagineering) named Tom Morrow 2.0 (voiced by Max Casella), the former host of Disney Channel's Imagineer That! interstitial shorts. He was removed in 2007 during Innoventions' 2007–2008 renovation and stored at Imagineering's offices in Glendale, California. In August 2025, the character was reintroduced for a web video revival of Imagineer That! published on WDI's YouTube channel. [7] [8]

Area music

The Innoventions Area Loop is roughly 20 minutes long and begins with a musical piece by David Arkenstone entitled "Papillon (On The Wings Of The Butterfly)" from his album In the Wake of the Wind . The rest of the music was composed by Russell Brower for Walt Disney Imagineering and is not commercially available. Brower, along with Arkenstone, would then compose the music for the World of Warcraft games.

See also

References

  1. "Club Cool, Electric Umbrella, MouseGear and more closing soon at Epcot". July 2, 2019.
  2. "Epcot's Innoventions West to close at Disney World for overhaul".
  3. Pointon, Geoffrey. "Add a Splash of Color to Your Epcot Visit with Colortopia Presented by Glidden". disneyparks.disney.go.com. Disney Parks. Archived from the original on November 15, 2015. Retrieved November 13, 2015.
  4. 1 2 3 "Epcot: Sum of All Thrills, StormStruck and Colortopia? closed" . Retrieved September 22, 2016.
  5. 1 2 Richardson, Savannah (January 13, 2015). "4 Notable Refurbishments Coming at Walt Disney World's Theme Parks". themeparktourist.com. Theme Park Tourist. Retrieved January 16, 2015.
  6. "IBM THINK Exhibit Opens at INNOVENTIONS at Epcot". IBM.com. IBM. Archived from the original on February 25, 2013. Retrieved January 16, 2015.
  7. "Tom Morrow 2.0" (August 25, 2025). ""Imagineer That!" Returns — The Reboot You Didn't Know You Needed". Disney Parks Blog. Retrieved August 28, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  8. Taylor, Blake (August 25, 2025). "New Imagineering YouTube series revives Disney Channel show 'Imagineer That!'". Attractions Magazine. Retrieved August 28, 2025.