Creating a unique experience in open space
Print Edition
JOE Parinella said working for a company that makes some of the world’s best animated films and one of the world’s most popular tourism destinations has been one of the wisest decisions he ever made.
Parinella, who worked for Disney for almost 13 years, is director of landscape architecture at Walt Disney Imagineering Shanghai, overseeing how Shanghai Disney Resort’s outdoor public spaces will look when visitors come to the resort.
“Landscape architects help create a vision, a design vision for the whole environment,” said Parinella. “Our guests may not necessarily be able to put their finger on why they like this environment. They will just feel it. As soon as our guests come into the site, we want them to feel like they’ve been transported into a unique experience.”
Shanghai Disney Resort will differentiate itself from other Disneylands by incorporating unique Chinese elements into its design. According to Parinella, there will be a central lake area outside the main theme park, where concepts of traditional Chinese gardens will be incorporated.
“When you walk through the old gardens in Shanghai and see stone representations of bugs or animals, they’re really cool and really interesting,” said Parinella. “We thought that was a very unique element, and so we’ve incorporated that in a more contemporized way into the paving that we have in this area. It’s not something overt, just little discoveries that you happen to find along a pathway.”
Shanghai Disneyland will also feature the largest castle that Disney had ever built. It, too, will incorporate Chinese elements.
The ability to bring stories to life and happiness to people is what Parinella enjoys most about working for Disney. As a student, he said he never dreamed that he would be working one day for Disney, much less being part of a dynamic team of creative people from across the globe to design a Disney resort in China. He said it has been an exciting career development.
“Disney is unique in that it has such a strong commitment to the resources, the talent of individuals to create whatever it is we’re creating in our world,” said Parinella. “I’m fascinated by the culture and the idea of how to bring the culture together with people. There are so many different ways that people use environment and space here that we don’t necessarily do in the West, or at least in the US.”
Parinella grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area suburb of Concord. He studied at the California Polytechnic State University in Pomona, where he received a degree in landscape architecture. After graduation, Parinella applied for a position at Disney, becoming the fifth landscape architect at Walt Disney Imagineering.
After nine years working on Disney sites in Florida, he left the company for 15 years, pursuing landscape architectural opportunities elsewhere. The lure of China brought him back to Disney.
“I was extremely excited to have the opportunity to bring my background back into Walt Disney Imagineering Shanghai to see what I can offer here in Shanghai,” said Parinella.
“I’m excited to be part of this project, working with an talented team of Chinese and international experts to combine our knowledge and skills to design and build a world-class resort.”
Parinella first visited China in 2002. He said he initially was overwhelmed by the population. Shanghai has more people than the whole state of Florida.
He said he was also intrigued by the amount of goods transported and delivered by small vehicles, such as motorbikes carrying crates of bottles stacked four to five meters high.
“It is an inventive solution if you don’t have a big vehicle to carry all those things,” he said. “It’s entrepreneurial to find ways to solve problems and still make some money.”
During that time in Shanghai, he also was interested to observe the use of large public parks. He remembered one time seeing more than 100 couples ballroom dancing in a park.
He was fascinated by the idea of dancing outside, the idea of walking by and seeing groups of people playing games, sitting, talking or playing a Chinese instrument.
“You sit there and just listen, and it’s fascinating,” said Parinella. “In Florida, you don’t get that. In the West, you don’t get that. I think those kinds of experiences are unique.”
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