The Magic of Disney Animation opened at Disney's Hollywood Studios on September 14, 2026, back inside the park's original animation building. We walked through every room the day before it officially opened, with a camera running the whole way.
Here is what is inside, room by room, plus the two things nobody puts in the announcement: there is a lot of covered stroller parking, and this is one of the best places in the park to wait out an afternoon storm.
A building with real animation history
This is not a new building with an old name. The original Magic of Disney Animation opened here on May 1, 1989, and it was a working studio. Guests watched the animation process first-hand from elevated, glass-enclosed walkways inside Disney's actual animation studio.
The Florida team worked on real films from this building, including Mulan, Lilo & Stitch and Brother Bear. That division of Walt Disney Feature Animation closed on January 12, 2004. The attraction itself closed on July 12, 2015, and Star Wars Launch Bay took over the space that December.
Disney says the new version is housed in a building inspired by the iconic Roy E. Disney Animation Building in Burbank, California. Out front, character figures hold a banner welcoming you to an open house.
How much animation history is packed in here
More than we expected. Disney's opening-day announcement says all 65 Walt Disney Animation Studios feature films are represented in the experience. That count includes artwork from the upcoming Hexed, so it is all 64 released films plus one on the way.
The building is laid out like a working studio, department by department. One wall explains color scripts: the way artists map color across an entire film to set the mood, tone and atmosphere of each scene. Another is covered in frames from Encanto's We Don't Talk About Bruno sequence. Animator desks sit behind glass, piled with the sketches, toys and clutter a real desk collects.
Our take: if you grew up on these films, give this building more time than you think. Most of what is worth seeing is on the walls, and it is easy to walk straight past it on the way to the theater.
The gallery where the art moves
The first room is an enchanted art gallery. Framed art from the films lines the walls, and Disney says it reveals all-new animation created exclusively for this experience, so the artwork comes to life. Some frames are screens, and the characters in them move. Walk this room slowly.
Off the Page: characters by department
Off the Page is the character meet, and each character sits in a different studio department. Per Disney: Mulan in Story, Rapunzel in Layout, Chip 'n Dale in Hand-Drawn Animation, Donald and Daisy in Computer Animation, Goofy in Lighting, and Stitch in Effects.
Olaf Draws
Olaf Draws is a drawing class hosted by Olaf as an all-new Audio-Animatronics figure, while Disney Animation artists guide you through recorded tips, techniques and stories. If you remember the Animation Academy drawing class that used to run in this building, this is the same idea, with a snowman in charge.
Drawn to Wonderland
For younger kids there is Drawn to Wonderland, an indoor playground inspired by Disney Legend Mary Blair's original concept art for Alice in Wonderland. It looks nothing like the rest of the building.
The short film is the highlight
The headliner is the Once Upon a Studio Theater. It shows Once Upon a Studio, the Emmy Award-winning short Disney made for Walt Disney Animation Studios' 100th anniversary in 2023, and Disney says the theater version adds enhanced effects and brand-new animation created just for this room.
Our take: this is the best part of the building. The film is charming on its own, and the in-room effects make it feel like more than a screening. We did not film it, on purpose. It is Disney's film, and it is worth seeing in the room it was built for.
Plenty of covered stroller parking
If you are touring with little ones, this is good news. When we visited there was ample stroller parking under cover, along a long roofed walkway lined with character art, and a sign under the covered walkway points to both stroller parking and The Magic of Disney Animation. Your stroller stays out of the sun and the rain while you are inside.
A good place to escape the heat and the rain
Everything in The Magic of Disney Animation is indoors, and in our experience it takes longer to see properly than most people expect. That makes it one of our first picks at Hollywood Studios for the hottest part of the day, or for when an afternoon storm rolls in. Duck in, catch the film, do an Olaf Draws lesson, and let the kids loose in Drawn to Wonderland.
Plan your Hollywood Studios day
Want to fit this into a park day? Our free Chart My Day planner builds a Hollywood Studios day hour by hour: theadventuristslog.com/plan-my-day.html. Check predicted crowd levels first on the crowd calendar at theadventuristslog.com/crowd-calendar.html, and live waits at theadventuristslog.com/wait-times.html. No signup on any of them.
Sources: Disney press release, The Magic of Disney Animation Now Open at Disney's Hollywood Studios, September 14, 2026, prnewswire.com/news-releases/the-magic-of-disney-animation-now-open-at-disneys-hollywood-studios-302877146.html · Disney Parks Blog, September 9, 2026, disneyparksblog.com/wdw/disney-animation-inspired-experience-coming-to-disneys-hollywood-studios/ · Laughing Place, laughingplace.com/disney-parks/magic-of-disney-animation-first-look/ · Wikipedia, The Magic of Disney Animation, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Magic_of_Disney_Animation · All photos by The Adventurist's Log.