Photos by ERIC HAYASHI
Many of Pixar’s beloved characters are featured in the stage show and parade during Pixar Fest, a celebration running through Aug. 4 at both Disneyland and California Adventure in Anaheim. Below, entrees and desserts inspired by the feature film “Coco” include a “crazy” stuffed potato, soy chorizo torta, tres leches parfait and a cupcake topped with the fabled “marigold bridge.”

By ERIC HAYASHI
RAFU CONTRIBUTOR

ANAHEIM.–Disneyland Resort is presenting Pixar Fest 2024 through Aug. 4 with the theme “Celebrating Friendship and Beyond.”

The festival is over 18 months in the making and includes a new parade, “Better Together: A Pixar Pals Celebration!”; 80 different food and beverage items; Pixar-themed merchandise; Club Pixar; Pixar Pals Playtime Party; “Together Forever – A Pixar Nighttime Spectacular”; and additional characters and new animation from the latest Pixar movies.

Tasha Sounart, theme park creative director at Pixar Animation Studios, stated, “Pixar Fest is a collaboration with the Imagineers on bringing any stories from our Pixar films to the parks.”

The last Pixar Fest was in 2018. This year, characters are incorporated from “Luca,” “Turning Red,” “Soul,” and “Elemental.” There are characters from past movies such as “Toy Story,” “The Incredibles,” “Up,” “Coco,” and “Inside Out.”

Six different marketplaces are serving food themed from the different Pixar movies. Some of the food samplings are Mood Swing Mac and Cheese, which comes in both yellow and “angry” red hot; Smoked Fire Wood BBQ-Spiced Impossible Chicken; Supper Club Chicken and Potato Waffles; Fried Bologna Sandwich; Red Panda Bao; Gusteau Macron; and Sea Monster Friends Parfait. There are also new adult beverages available for Pixar Fest.

In Disneyland, at Rancho Del Zocalo there is a Marigold Cupcake that is a tres leche soaked tri color cupcake with cinnamon crunch and cinnamon mousse, topped off with buttercream frosting.

The Jolly Holiday Bakery celebrates “Luca” with a parfait that’s a cheesecake layered with a graham cracker crust, berry gelatin; you can see the friendship between Luca and Alberto in this chocolate decoration.

Russell, the determined scout from “Up,” rides a colorful bird during the “Better Together” parade.

At Alien Pizza Planet, celebrating “Toy Story,” the aliens did their best to create a cheeseburger. It just came out in the form of a pizza. Carnation Café has a fried bologna sandwich.

At California Adventure Park, Paradise Garden Grill has Horache, a fried masa base with seasoned Impossible beef, crema, and two types of salsa. The entire dish is plant-based.

Shake 2319 at Smoozies has coconut, guava, orange, pineapple and toasted coconut on top and Flo’s V8 diner at Cars Land has the Dinoco Bleu Cheeseburger.

At the Pixar Pals Playtime Party at the Fantasyland Theater in Disneyland, the area has been transformed to be immersive throughout the entire space. At the daytime party, which is fun for all ages, one can learn to dance or dance with many of the Pixar characters, take photos with backgrounds, and create some crafts.

California Adventure Park has Club Pixar for the afternoon and evening. It too is for all ages and there are photo opportunities. At the stage, you can learn some dances, the “Monsters U” pep rally cheer, and 4Town songs from “Turning Red,” and watch an interpretive dance.

There is also the “Short Stop” area, where you can relax and watch Pixar shorts or play some games.

If you want to watch the “Better Together: A Pixar Pals Celebration!” Parade, new floats featuring the Pixar Lamp, “Turning Red,” “Soul” and “Luca.” But not to fear, old favorites from “Toy Story,” “Monsters Inc.,” “Coco,” and “The Incredibles” are included. At the end of the parade before the cast goes through the gate, each group signs “Better Together” as part of their choreography.

Then in the evening, back at Disneyland is Together Forever – A Pixar Nighttime Spectacular, which includes all 17 of the Pixar films and inserts new Pixar animation, pyrotechnics and songs from the films. At the end of the show, the projections of characters along Main Street wave and interact with the guests. However, as an Easter egg, at Small World, there are six hidden Mickeys within in the projection of the Nighttime Spectaular.

A few other Easter eggs for Pixar Fest 2024 are new Pixar animation at the end of the fireworks show down Main Street. Located throughout the parks and resort are 50 Pizza Planet trucks and if you have a MagicBand Plus, it will light up and vibrate along with the Nighttime Spectacular. Magic Key holder-only merchandise is avail-able as well.

Disneyland and Disney’s California Adventure Park require reservations and a ticket for entry. Disney is currently running a special for Southern California residents to purchase a three-day ticket admission to one park per day through June 2.

For more information, go to: https://disneyparks.disney.go.com/au/disneyland/events-tours/pixar-fest/