A Friday Visit with Jim Korkis: Na’vi River Journey

By Dave Shute

Welcome back to Fridays with Jim Korkis! Jim, the dean of Disney historians, writes about Walt Disney World history every Friday on yourfirstvisit.net.

THE NA’VI SHAMAN OF SONGS

By Jim Korkis

“The Pandora attractions have very deliberate emotional moments crafted into them, the way a good story does, the way a good film does,” said Imagineer Joe Rohde. “It’s not as simple as just coming to a place that looks realistic. It’s a place that’s been deliberately imbued with the emotions of awe, of wonder, of respect, of harmony.”

The new Animal Kingdom attraction Na’vi River Journey opened in May 2017. In it, guests sail serenely down the Kaspavan River in a reed boat gently winding through a bioluminescent rainforest in the Valley of Mo’ara on the planet of Pandora. The Na’vi, the indigenous people of the planet, are seen throughout the ride in scenes where they are hunting and gathering.

Native wildlife can be seen on the nearby banks including the dangerous viper wolves and gentle woodsprites as well as mysterious glowing fauna.

According to Executive Creative Director Stefan Hellwig, “the queue begins on a path that winds its way around various textiles created by the Na’vi as well as their totems of the magical Shaman of Songs. The pieces are intricate works of art and give you a taste of the fascinating people you are are about to see.

“Above the queue is another intricate hand-woven piece that actually serves as a map of the river that winds through Pandora. The blue ropes represent the river, and the other areas represent the rest of the bioluminescent forest. At night, this piece takes on new life as it is illuminated with light that moves, showing where various life forms are as they journey down the river.”

All of the activity seems to be heading in the same direction and the lazy river journey culminates in the appearance of a figure who has a deep connection to the life force of Pandora and celebrates that connection through her music. Music is central to the culture of the Na’vi.

This is the Na’vi Shaman of Songs, who is radiating positive energy into the forest. The rough translation of her song basically thanks the Great Mother for the many gifts that allow the Na’vi to live well in the forest.

All of the other creatures have actually been presented as realistic projections on layers of screens that are positioned inside the magnificent scenery.

The Na’vi Shaman of Songs is the most complicated audio-animatronics figure ever created by Walt Disney Imagineering. Despite its sophistication and many functions, it is not a creation of Garner Holt Productions who have supplied many intricate audio-animatronics to the Disney theme parks.

During a robotics event in Boston, Disney provided a glimpse at the inner workings of the Na’vi Shaman, which is larger so it can hold more mechanics to provide more realistic movements and expressions.

“The shaman is even more extraordinary than we expected,” said Rohde. “Her facial expressions, little movements in the cheek, tiny movements in the eyelid – each one of these carries an emotion she’s capable of conveying.”

In the event of a malfunction of the audio-animatronics figure, a hidden scrim can be rolled down and then an image of the shaman projected onto it. Above the figure, where guests rarely if ever look, is a circular ring indicating how a screen curtain can be lowered and hide the actual figure.

“Na’vi River Journey is a very sweet, lyrical adventure through a spectacular visual environment that just becomes more and more spectacular as you go on,” explained Rohde. “The bioluminescent activity of the plants around you unfolds in richer and richer scenes in really just a very uplifting, wonderful kind of journey.”

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Thanks, Jim! There’s more on Na’vi River Journey here. And come back next Friday for more from Jim Korkis!

In the meantime, check out his books, including his latest, Call Me Walt, and his Secret Stories of Walt Disney World: Things You Never You Never Knew, which reprints much material first written for this site, all published by Theme Park Press.

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