This fall season, guests visiting Pixar Place Hotel are in for a treat. Hotel visitors can now spot decorative artwork featuring Mike, Sulley, and more beloved monsters from Disney and Pixar’s Monsters, Inc. dressed in their Halloween best. From playful costumes to hidden seasonal details, the hotel’s first-ever Halloween transformation invites guests to celebrate the fall season with their favorite monsters during Halloween Time at the Disneyland Resort.
A Monster-Sized Idea Comes to Life
While guests see the finished experience, bringing this vision to life requires months of creativity and collaboration between Walt Disney Imagineering, Pixar, and Resort Enhancement at Disneyland Resort.
Behind the unique Monsters, Inc.-themed fall decor is digital artist Brett Snodgrass, a passionate creative on the Resort Enhancement team who has been bringing stories to life around the resort for over eight years. “I’ve been a designer for a really long time,” shares Brett. “And that moment when I see the piece completed is really exciting to me.”
The inspiration for this year’s decor is the perfect blend of Halloween fun with features from the monster world that fans know and love. When a fellow team member suggested exploring what Halloween would look like for Mike, Sulley, and Boo; Brett’s wheels immediately started spinning on how to bring the story to life for hotel guests.
“I started to think: Monsters, Inc., Halloween, trick-or-treat, and doors,” explains Brett. “You can see all of our monster characters in the artwork having fun, wearing costumes and passing the candy back and forth between our world and theirs.”
The result is a collection of artwork filled with playful storytelling, giving guests new details to discover as they explore the hotel.
A Scary-Good Collaboration
For Brett, creating new art centered around beloved Pixar characters comes with a unique responsibility. The designs must feel authentic to the world fans know while adding a distinct Halloween touch.
“There are some brilliant concept artists who’ve worked on the Monsters movies over the years, and I think they’re just beautiful movies,” Brett smiles. “So, I really dug into what the other artists have done. Guests are going to see a lot of shapes and compositions that really reflect some of that early concept artwork,” he continues.
Brett worked closely with Pixar to ensure the characters stayed true to their established designs and personalities. After the artwork got the final seal of approval, the project was handed over to talented printers, graphic technicians, and installers who worked together to transform the creative concepts into the immersive environment guests and cast experience at Pixar Place Hotel.
The Final Reveal
Over the course of the past decade, Brett has established his own personal tradition to commemorate each new art piece he has contributed to the resort. Immediately following the installation, he walks the location where his art is displayed and takes it all in. And this Halloween decor is no different.
“It’s a really incredible feeling knowing that after two years of development, people are finally going to be able to experience this… this just feels really special,” Brett smiled.
But beyond seeing the artwork itself, one of the most rewarding parts is knowing families, friends, and Disney fans will be interacting with the new decor, searching for their favorite characters, discovering hidden details, and making memories together during the Halloween season.
Make sure to check out the first-ever Monsters, Inc.-inspired Halloween decor at Pixar Place Hotel this fall season to get in on the monster-sized fun.
