SimEx-Iwerks

Last updated
Simex-Iwerks Entertainment
Industry Entertainment
FounderMichael Needham
Defunct2024 (resumed operation 2024 new ownership)
Headquarters,
USA
Key people
Michael Needham, Shiori Sudo, Mike Frueh, Sean McAllister, Milan Ghosh
ProductsCinematic Attractions, 3D, 4D and VR Attractions; Motion Simulation Rides; and FlyRide Theaters.
Website www.simex-iwerks.com

SimEx-Iwerks Entertainment specializes in high-tech entertainment systems, films, film technologies, film-based software, Simulation Hardware Systems and services. [1] [2] The company has partnerships with various institutions, parks, and destinations.

Contents

The company has been serving the amusement industry for 30 years, through three operating divisions: Attractions Development; Content Licensing, Production & Distribution; and Technology/Engineering. [3]

SimEx Inc. is the former parent company of SimEx-Iwerks Entertainment. The company was based in Toronto, Canada with additional locations in Baltimore, Maryland; and Santa Clarita, California. [1]

History

Iwerks Entertainment Inc. is an American film studio founded in 1985 in Burbank, California, by Oscar winner and Disney Legend Don Iwerks and Stan Kinsey, both former Disney Executives. The company was named to honor Don's father, Ub Iwerks, who was Walt Disney's first business partner and co-creator of Mickey Mouse. [4]

SimEx's origins lie with the creation by Michael Needham and Moses Znaimer of Tour of the Universe (1984) at the CN Tower, Toronto. In the 1980s SimEx and Iwerks developed their own separate visions for motion ride attractions. [5]

Los Angeles–based Iwerks developed innovative 8/70 projection technologies for Extreme Screen Theaters and two-seat motion systems (TurboRide). [6] In 1998, Iwerks Co-founder Don Iwerks was awarded the Gordon E. Sawyer Award from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences in recognition of his lifetime of contribution to the science and technology of motion pictures. [7]

In late 1999, Iwerks Entertainment acquired the assets of McFadden Systems, which had been approached by Warner Bros. Movie World to develop a motion simulator for Batman Adventure – The Ride in 1992. [8]

Academy Awards

Iwerks Entertainment has received two Academy Awards by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for Scientific and Technical Achievement.

The first occurred in 1998 at the 70th Academy Awards show, where founder Don Iwerks was awarded the Gordon E. Sawyer Award, given each year to "an individual in the motion picture industry whose technological contributions have brought credit to the industry." [9] [10]

The second occurred in 2000 at the 72nd Academy Awards show, where Iwerks' L. Ron Schmidt was awarded an Academy Award for the “concept, design and engineering of the Linear Loop Film Projector”.

Product range

SimEx-Iwerks Experiences include 3-D, 4-D and VR attractions, motion simulation rides, and flying theaters. Over 350 attractions have been built by the SimEx-Iwerks group in over 40 countries. [3]

Film library

SimEx-Iwerks active film library consists of over 125 films. [11]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mickey Mouse</span> Disney cartoon character and mascot

Mickey Mouse is an American cartoon character co-created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. The longtime icon and mascot of the Walt Disney Company, Mickey is an anthropomorphic mouse who typically wears red shorts, large shoes, and white gloves. He is often depicted with a cast of characters including his girlfriend Minnie Mouse, his pet dog Pluto, his friends Donald Duck and Goofy, and his nemesis Pete.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Walt Disney</span> American animator, producer and entrepreneur (1901–1966)

Walter Elias Disney was an American animator, film producer, voice actor, and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film producer, he holds the record for most Academy Awards earned (22) and nominations (59) by an individual. He was presented with two Golden Globe Special Achievement Awards and an Emmy Award, among other honors. Several of his films are included in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress and have also been named as some of the greatest films ever by the American Film Institute.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ub Iwerks</span> American animator and special effects pioneer (1901–1971)

Ubbe Ert Iwerks, known as Ub Iwerks, was an American animator, cartoonist, character designer, inventor, and special effects technician, known for his work with Walt Disney Animation Studios in general, and for having worked on the development of the design of the character of Mickey Mouse, among others. Born in Kansas City, Missouri, Iwerks grew up with a contentious relationship with his father, who abandoned him as a child. Iwerks met fellow artist Walt Disney while working at a Kansas City art studio in 1919.

<i>Plane Crazy</i> 1929 film directed by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks

Plane Crazy is a 1929 American animated short film directed by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. The cartoon, released by the Walt Disney Studios, is the first finished project to feature appearances of Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse, and was originally a silent film. It was given a test screening to a theater audience and potential distributors on May 15, 1928. An executive from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer saw the film, but the film failed to pick up a distributor. Later that year, Disney released Mickey's first sound cartoon, Steamboat Willie, which was an enormous success; Plane Crazy was officially released as a sound cartoon on March 17, 1929. It was the fourth Mickey film to be given a wide release after Steamboat Willie, The Gallopin' Gaucho and The Barn Dance (1929).

<i>Flowers and Trees</i> 1932 Silly Symphony cartoon

Flowers and Trees is a Silly Symphonies cartoon produced by Walt Disney, directed by Burt Gillett, and released to theatres by United Artists on July 30, 1932. It was the first commercially released film to be produced in the full-color three-strip Technicolor process after several years of two-color Technicolor films. The film was a commercial and critical success, winning the first Academy Award for Best Cartoon Short Subject.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Multiplane camera</span> Camera used in traditional animation

The multiplane camera is a motion-picture camera that was used in the traditional animation process that moves a number of pieces of artwork past the camera at various speeds and at various distances from one another. This creates a sense of parallax or depth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pat Powers (producer)</span> American producer (1870–1948)

Patrick Anthony Powers was an American producer who was involved in the movie and animation industry from the 1910s to 1930s. He established Powers' Cinephone Moving Picture Company, also known as Powers Picture Plays. His firm, Celebrity Productions, was the first distributor of Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse cartoons (1928–1929). After one year, Disney split with Powers, who started the animation studio Iwerks Studio with Disney's lead animator, Ub Iwerks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Test Track</span> Ride at Epcot

Test Track is a high-speed slot car thrill ride manufactured by Dynamic Attractions located in World Discovery at Epcot, a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. Designed by Walt Disney Imagineering in partnership with Chevrolet, the ride is a simulated excursion through the rigorous testing procedures that General Motors uses to evaluate its concept cars, culminating in a high-speed drive around the exterior of the attraction.

<i>Mickey Mouse</i> (film series) Short film series

Mickey Mouse is a series of American animated comedy short films produced by Walt Disney Productions. The series started in 1928 with Steamboat Willie and ended with 2013’s Get a Horse! being the last in the series to date, otherwise taking a hiatus from 1953 to 1983. The series is notable for its innovation with sound synchronization and character animation, and also introduced well-known characters such as Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Daisy Duck, Pluto and Goofy.

<i>Wild Waves</i> 1929 Mickey Mouse cartoon

Wild Waves is a Mickey Mouse short animated film first released on December 18, 1929, as part of the Mickey Mouse film series. It was the fifteenth Mickey Mouse short to be produced, the twelfth of that year, as well as the last to be released by Celebrity Productions before Columbia Pictures took over distribution.

Stan Kinsey is a former Disney executive and co-founder of Iwerks Entertainment, along with Oscar winner and Disney Legend Don Iwerks. Kinsey is best known as a visionary who sought to take The Walt Disney Company in the direction of computer-animated films.

Donald Warren Iwerks is an American former Disney executive and co-founder of Iwerks Entertainment along with former Disney executive Stan Kinsey. He is the son of the animator Ub Iwerks and father of Oscar-nominated documentary film producer Leslie Iwerks.

<i>Steamboat Willie</i> 1928 American animated short film

Steamboat Willie is a 1928 American animated short film directed by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. It was produced in black and white by Walt Disney Animation Studios and was released by Pat Powers, under the name of Celebrity Productions. The cartoon is considered the public debut of Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse, although both appeared months earlier in a test screening of Plane Crazy and the then yet unreleased The Gallopin' Gaucho. Steamboat Willie was the third of Mickey's films to be produced, but it was the first to be distributed, because Disney, having seen The Jazz Singer, had committed himself to produce one of the first fully synchronized sound cartoons.

Leslie Iwerks is an American producer, director, and writer. She is daughter of Disney Legend Don Iwerks and granddaughter of Disney Legend Ub Iwerks, the animator and co-creator of Mickey Mouse and Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. She has directed films including Recycled Life which was nominated for an Academy Award and The Pixar Story which was nominated for an Emmy for best nonfiction special.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">D-Box Technologies</span> Motion effects company

D-BOX Technologies Inc. is a publicly traded haptic motion technology company based in Longueuil, Quebec. The company designs and manufactures motion and haptic systems for entertainment, simulation, and training industries. Combining haptic technology with actuators provides physical sensations in a virtual setting. As of July 2019, D-BOX seats were located at over 700 movie screens in 40 countries.

<i>America the Beautiful</i> (1958 film) 1960 film

America the Beautiful was a 360° movie attraction in Circarama created by Walt Disney Productions for the American exhibit at the 1958 Brussels World's Fair. The exhibit was sponsored by the Ford Motor Company. After the fair ended, the film was exhibited in 1959 for six weeks, dubbed in Russian, at the American National Exhibition in Moscow, Russia. The film had its American debut at Disneyland in California in 1960, and it was later added to Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom in Florida in 1971. The Disneyland attraction was housed in the Circle-Vision 360 Theater in Tomorrowland, replacing A Tour of the West, which had played there since Disneyland's opening day, July 17, 1955. The film was subsequently revised several times, eventually closing in 1984, when it was replaced by American Journeys.

<i>Mickeys Choo-Choo</i> 1929 Mickey Mouse cartoon

Mickey's Choo-Choo is a 1929 Mickey Mouse short animated film released by Celebrity Pictures, as part of the Mickey Mouse film series. Ub Iwerks was the animator. It was the eleventh Mickey Mouse short to be produced, the eighth of that year, and was one of the series of early Disney cartoons that led Mickey Mouse to become a national fad by the end of 1929. Originally produced in black and white, this cartoon was one of 45 Mickey Mouse cartoons colorized by American Film Technologies in 1991.

<i>The Haunted House</i> (1929 film) 1929 Mickey Mouse cartoon

The Haunted House, also known as Haunted House, is a 1929 Mickey Mouse short animated film released by Celebrity Productions, as part of the Mickey Mouse film series. The cartoon was produced by Walt Disney Productions and distributed by Celebrity Productions. It was the fourteenth Mickey Mouse short to be produced, the eleventh of that year.

Ruth Irene Tompson was an American camera technician, animation checker and supercentenarian. She was known for her work on animated features at The Walt Disney Company and was declared a Disney Legend in 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Agila: The EKsperience</span> Flight motion simulation

Agila: The EKsperience is a flight motion simulation attraction situated in Enchanted Kingdom, a theme park in Santa Rosa, Laguna, Philippines.

References

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  5. Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (27 August 2015). "Directories of Canadian companies". aem. Retrieved 11 June 2019.
  6. Rubin, Judith (July 9, 2013). "Inventing Themed Entertainment". In Park Magazine.
  7. http://www.iwerks.com/Default.asp?id=8&l=1 [ dead link ]
  8. Huffstutter, P.J. (4 August 1997). "Virtual Rides Take Off". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 24 November 2013.
  9. NNDB. "Oscar, Gordon E. Sawyer Award". Soylent Communications.
  10. Fact for the Day. "This Day in Disney History". The Walt Disney Company.
  11. "SimEx-Iwerks – Featured Shows |". Archived from the original on 2016-07-14.