Animatronic Characters

Animatronics, like animation, entertain because of the quality of the character. Developing an animatronic character that grabs the attention of the intended audience is important. Also important for some shows is the ability for the animatronic figure to keep the attention of the audience. For example, a haunted house may contain a scary animatronic prop that jumps out and grabs the attention of visitors. In this case, interaction between the audience and animatronic character is very short. In fact, if the audience watched the prop for more than a minute they would likely be ready to move on. The animatronic figure in this case is typically positioned to surprise guests and has enough detail to scare the audience. This type of figure, however, does not have enough detail or personality to keep the attention of guests.

The other type of animatronic character is designed to have a longer period of interaction with the audience. The characters have more detail and personality in the form of a wider range of varying movements to keep the audience's attention. A good example of this type of figure with a high level of character is the Buzz Lightyear figure in the Space Ranger Spin ride queue at the Magic Kingdom. Buzz is already a well known character. The imagineers did an expert job of bringing the animated Buzz Lightyear animatronic character to life. The figure's movements and audio attract the attention of visitors waiting in line for the ride. The character is interesting enough even for those not particularly looking for animatronics.