Is USF still a 'Studios' Park?

[Cup_Of_Coffee]

It’s a studios park and this all has been a fruitless endeavor to appease terminally online weirdos who write paragraphs about USF.

This is rude and unnecessary.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

Today is the Anniversary of the park's opening, which was disastrous since hardly any attractions worked. Universal has come a long way, and is just about as crowded as AK, DHS, and Epcot on a daily basis.

...and yet ops is still stuck in 1990 lol

It’s a studios park and this all has been a fruitless endeavor to appease terminally online weirdos who write paragraphs about USF.

What exactly are we meant to discuss in a forum about Universal?

If we can't discuss this question or debate whether the Villain-Con facade is appropriate, then what is the point of this site?

 

[Tbad556]

It’s a studios park and this all has been a fruitless endeavor to appease terminally online weirdos who write paragraphs about USF.

There can only be so many gentle "Come on, now..." responses that you blatantly disregard before it seems like you simply don't care and will continue to be a bully to everyone on here you disagree with.

You have nearly 17,000 posts on a theme park forum and write paragraphs about theme parks for multiple websites. None of which is an issue, but like... glass houses. Put down the superiority complex and let people discuss silly things on a forum about an overly silly topic, theme parks. We're all here because we're weirdos about theme parks in one way or another.

 

[Nick]

It’s a studios park and this all has been a fruitless endeavor to appease terminally online weirdos who write paragraphs about USF.

Joe, come on man, you've made this too easy. You literally write enough paragraphs to make full articles about Disney and Universal at Parkscope and Touring Plans. The poll is literally sitting at 32 yes and 30 no currently so clearly there's a split.

You can have your opinion and we can discuss it since there's clearly a divide, but you don't get to force your opinion onto others nor to be rude because you don't agree.

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[Mad Dog]

The terrible thing about the internet is that some people use it to be rude and nasty, since there's no physical consequences. Would they say the same thing to someone's face, I think not. It's Internet Balls only......IU is one of the most civilized sites on the theme park internet. Just about every poster is courteous to other posters. Just a very few are not.....Let's just all be respectful of others and keep this a happy place. We can disagree without being hateful.

 

[Nico]

Anyway. What do you think the likelihood is that a new “studio park” will be built overseas/as future expansion for either company?

 

[Casper Gutman]

Anyway. What do you think the likelihood is that a new “studio park” will be built overseas/as future expansion for either company?

Incredibly slim, because as I mentioned the move away from “studio” parks is just one manifestation of the shifting priorities of the entertainment industry, a shift being driven by the fundamental economic structure of the various studios. It’s the same reason the Disney parks are becoming increasingly thematically homogeneous. The industry’s entire focus has become the creation and leveraging of ongoing narrative universes across multiple platforms - the decision-makers at the various studios have been very explicit about this. They want consumers to become loyal to these immersive universes, and “studio” parks’ focus on the “magic of movies,” with its implicit acknowledgment of films as artificial things, can only distract from this. Any “behind-the-scenes” elements in parks like Universal Studios will be old, vestigial elements of an earlier industry logic.

 

[sonoma15]

Yes it's a studios park. There are still rides and shows themed around being a studio and they still do production.

 

[Cygnus]

It’s a studios park and this all has been a fruitless endeavor to appease terminally online weirdos who write paragraphs about USF.

Paragraphs don't need. Park not studio. However, very ironic.

 

[Michael S]

Incredibly slim, because as I mentioned the move away from “studio” parks is just one manifestation of the shifting priorities of the entertainment industry, a shift being driven by the fundamental economic structure of the various studios. It’s the same reason the Disney parks are becoming increasingly thematically homogeneous. The industry’s entire focus has become the creation and leveraging of ongoing narrative universes across multiple platforms - the decision-makers at the various studios have been very explicit about this. They want consumers to become loyal to these immersive universes, and “studio” parks’ focus on the “magic of movies,” with its implicit acknowledgment of films as artificial things, can only distract from this. Any “behind-the-scenes” elements in parks like Universal Studios will be old, vestigial elements of an earlier industry logic.

Uh, no… the industry’s focus has not shifted like you’re saying. The expanded universe type stuff is popular, but for a select few IPs. We’re still making a lot of shows and features that will stand on their own, not a part of a universe, and to say that is impacting the theme parks is incorrect. The reason those IPs are represented in the parks is they are wildly popular and huge cash machines.

I do agree with your analysis, but most executives (creative or financial) will tell you, that shift comes from audiences becoming more sophisticated and the products, including film, television, video games and theme parks, must satisfy modern audience/consumer expectations.

 

[TheUniC6]

USF is or was a product of its time. It was created when the internet was as no where big as it was today and thus there was a market for a studios themed park with attractions that gave a behind the scenes approach to movie and television making. But times have changed since then from the rise of DVDs and the social media channels (YouTube) being able to provide behind the scenes looks of movies the studio parks of the 1990's are dead in their current forms today. It's now all about trying to give guests what they want from a Universal park or pretty much any big budget theme park: fully immersive lands that push the boundaries in regards to technology in attractions. The studio aspect at the front of the park in USF will probably be there for the long haul as tribute to the past or as what many people say: "The good ole days."

 

[Amity6]

It would be nice to see USF circle back and lean into the studios theme again. Stick to film and tv, the video game properties are a better fit for Islands and Epic.

 

[Cup_Of_Coffee]

How have the characters been in Hollywood recently? As long as that area still has Marilyn and her show, Scoobs and the gang, Lucy and Ricky, etc… I’m happy. That area should be a day long parade of famous characters. That alone would help the park and make Hollywood a terrific hang spot.

 

[Coolbfitz]

How have the characters been in Hollywood recently? As long as that area still has Marilyn and her show, Scoobs and the gang, Lucy and Ricky, etc… I’m happy. That area should be a day long parade of famous characters. That alone would help the park and make Hollywood a terrific hang spot.

Currently, we have Hello Kitty by Silver Screen, Scooby characters around Bourne, Marilyn and Betty Boop towards the middle section around Five & Dime and Studio Styles, The Simpsons between HMS and F&D, Beetlejuice in front of Horror Make-Up, Dora characters in front of the Hollywood sign, Gabby, Alex, or Gloria on the side of Cafe La Bamba, Trolls characters or Alex & Gloria near Mel's, The Penguins or King Julian in front of NBC, Shrek characters by Kidzone, and Doc Brown between the ends of Central Park.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

With the removal of Production Central as a park land, I think it solidifies the idea that Universal no longer sees the park as a "studio-themed" park, but rather a "media-themed" park.

 

[SpatulaShack]

With the removal of Production Central as a park land, I think it solidifies the idea that Universal no longer sees the park as a "studio-themed" park, but rather a "media-themed" park.

Yes a media themed park with less cohesion than ever before with the Hollywood Bowl sitting inside New York with an attraction that has Hollywood in the name adjacent to a random Minion themed street bisecting it, E.T. nestled in the middle of Dreamworks Land next to an Animal Show and a pizza restaurant themed to a land that no longer exists sitting next to Spongebob and then a Minion Land serving as the gateway entrance that is actually just themed to studio soundstages. A+ management decisions.

USF is the new Epcot except arguably worse. They really should zone London as part of Springfield while they're at it. It makes no sense and the two areas don't touch but who cares?? It doesn't really matter right? Wizarding World should be part of Minion Land and Fast & Furious should be considered an Islands of Adventure attraction too. Why not!?

 

[Nico]

Yes a media themed park with less cohesion than ever before with the Hollywood Bowl sitting inside New York with an attraction that has Hollywood in the name adjacent to a random Minion themed street bisecting it, E.T. nestled in the middle of Dreamworks Land next to an Animal Show and a pizza restaurant themed to a land that no longer exists sitting next to Spongebob and then a Minion Land serving as the gateway entrance that is actually just themed to studio soundstages. A+ management decisions.

USF is the new Epcot except arguably worse. They really should zone London as part of Springfield while they're at it. It makes no sense and the two areas don't touch but who cares?? It doesn't really matter right? Wizarding World should be part of Minion Land and Fast & Furious should be considered an Islands of Adventure attraction too. Why not!?

Spatula let’s keep this convo going in the other thread for now. It’ll streamline it, instead of having two going at the same time.

 

[Quake_27]

I certainly agree that, as a theme, "Production Central" was never exceptional, though it was seemingly designed to allow for that area to be a hodge-podge of whatever.

The Minion area is more unified, definitely (yet HRRR is now more displaced than it was before).

Production Central was thematically correct at opening day. Boring... but thematically correct. Production Central is a movie studio "front lot". The place where studio executive offices are held... where crew equipment is stored... and contains the visually vast wasteland of soundstages. USF's true "front lot" is where the current soundstages are located. The thematic "front lot" for the "theme park" was Production Central. The admission booths are bungalows, the Guest Services building is "Administrative Offices", the old Hanna-Barbara and Hitchcock attractions were housed in plain looking soundstages. All themed... but like I said, quite boring. The original USF overall park theme was a "working studio"... so they went with authenticity even if it was beyond the scope of knowledge of the everyday guest ... and presented without explanation.

 

[HandsomePete]

This is very true. USF was built as both a theme park and a movie studio backlot... a backlot which was designed for actual use (regardless of how the industry never fully embraced FL). So design quirks like Central Park being over near Hollywood and Cafe La Bamba were intentional. If you were filming in the NY section by where Starbucks is now, the camera would capture across the water and thus Central Park was meant to be caught on camera as looking like NY, not Hollywood. Some simple set dress and signage changes and the USF "Central Park" could be made to look like somewhere in Hollywood. It was all for filming purposes. Other examples: The buildings on the waterfront in NY are intentionally designed in similar architectural styles to San Francisoo... in case you were filming in USF's SF area and the camera pointed towards NY. Ever wonder why the building atop the old Disaster exit (now where the SF and London transition is) says "Amity" and was wood? Because back in the day when Amity was around, the camera needed a New England style building in the background when filming in Amity.

Today, that design choice is creating thematic issues for USF as UDX is now focused on hyper-theming and immersion. The very premise of USF being a backlot has seemingly been abandoned as part of the theme park language they use with guests today. Back in the day, we couldn't even refer to USF as a "Theme park" or "park"... it was always the "Studio". Even tickets were not tickets, they were a "Studio Pass". Look up the original blue and white admission media, it's printed right on it. It seems all of the original park concept has been abandoned and a new design "language" has yet to emerge... or hopefully, is a long-term goal of the new design regime as they transform USF bit by bit. I'm sure there is still an internal struggle between the parks side of things and the production side which still offers the "backlot" for production. Will be interesting to see where things go design-wise as more opportunities to transform areas at USF arise.

9.9/10 post, deducting a tenth because you didn't post the music video that demonstrates what you wrote here: