Virtual Programs Frequently Asked Questions

Please visit our Virtual Experiences page for a listing of our upcoming programs and sign up to receive our enews for updates about upcoming programs, workshops, special events, and more.

Museum members receive early notice and priority access to all programming, including our virtual programs. Join as a member today.

At this time, virtual programs will continue to run the duration of museum’s closure. Upon reopening, the museum plans to offer further free and paid virtual programs. Please visit our Virtual Experiences page for more information.

To register, please click on the Register button on the program’s event page. Please note: verify the correct registration quantity prior to checking out. Most virtual programs are hosted on Zoom—check the program’s event page for host platform details. Only one registration link is required per household.

All event registrations will be added to your cart, whose icon can be found in the upper right-hand corner of any museum webpage. After adding any programs you would like to attend, please click on the cart icon to checkout. Upon checking out, you will be prompted to login to your account or checkout as a guest.

You do not need an account to register, but creating an account will streamline the process of registering for future events. Whether you are checking out as a guest or a member, the required fields must be filled in. Please double-check your information to make sure you have provided the correct email address.

Once you have filled in the required fields, select the Continue to Review button at the bottom of the page. You will be taken to the checkout page, where Complete Checkout must be selected for your registration to be completed. Once the transaction has completed, an email receipt will be sent to the provided email address. If you do not receive a receipt for your registration, email tickets@wdfmuseum.org for additional assistance.

Please note: if you are a member purchasing a ticket for a paid program, you must be logged into your Walt Disney Family Museum account to receive your membership discount. If you have not created a waltdisney.org account, please visit the Website Account Set-up Guide.

For most live virtual programs, participants must have a Zoom account to attend. A link to the program and instructions for joining will be sent via email prior to the event.

If you prefer to watch the recorded event, you do not need a Zoom account. A reposting a recording of the program is uploaded the museum’s Facebook page the following day. An active Facebook account is not required to view these videos. The recording will be available to the public for 48 hours, after which time it will be available for members only in our members-only portal.

Please note: Not all programs are able to be reposted.

When registering for virtual programs, please check to see if you received a confirmation email detailing your ticket transaction. If you did not, please try registering again or emailing tickets@wdfmuseum.org for additional assistance.

If you received a confirmation email, but did not receive the link, check your spam or junk mail folder. For additional assistance, please email publicprograms@wdfmuseum.org. To ensure that your Zoom link doesn’t go to spam, we recommend adding no-reply@zoom.us to your list of acceptable senders. Please note: Registration for each event ends at noon the day prior. You will not be able to register or receive the link to attend the event without advanced registration.

For live events, you will be unable to pause an event in session. For non-live, on-demand programs, such as those hosted on Facebook, YouTube, and Vimeo, viewers can stop and start program recordings at their leisure.

Depending on the program, we offer an array of on-demand programs to our guests and members.

Our Happily Ever After Hours program recordings become viewable on our Facebook page the day following the livestream, where they are accessible to all audiences for 48 hours. You do not need a Facebook account to watch the recording. After the 48-hour public availability period, members have unlimited access to our Happily Ever After Hours recordings through a special members-only Vimeo portal. The monthly members-only password can be found in the monthly member enews at the beginning of each month. For further assistance with the Members-Only Portal, please email membership@wdfmuseum.org.

Our Virtual Storytime recordings are offered on a case-by-case basis. Unfortunately, due to copyright restrictions the majority of these programs will be unavailable to view at a later date. We encourage those who wish to participate to attend the event during its live presentation.

Our Virtual Program Talks are offered on a case-by-case basis. For our paid programming, these events will not be available to view at a later time. We encourage those who wish to attend our paid virtual talks and workshops to purchase their tickets in advance. However, some of our free programs, copyright permissions permitting, may be available on our Facebook page the day following the livestream to all audiences for 48 hours.

Our Virtual Community Days are viewable to all audiences on-demand through our Facebook page and YouTube channel. Through Facebook and YouTube, viewers have the option of watching the Community Day stream in its entirety or by individual segment.

Please email publicprograms@wdfmuseum.org to confirm the program is sold out. We encourage those who wish to attend our paid virtual talks and workshops to purchase their tickets in advance. Members of the museum receive early notice and priority access to register for all programming prior to the general public. Please visit our Membership page for more information.

Our weekly Happily Ever After Hours series features Disney and industry-wide luminaries discussing their careers and connections to Walt Disney’s story. The first part of the program is hosted by the museum providing questions related to the background of each industry professional before audience members are given opportunity to submit questions to be asked of our special guests. These programs are open to all ages, but are aimed towards students and industry professionals. Guests have included Actors Paige O’Hara and Jodi Benson, Imagineers Bob Gurr and Tom Morris, Directors Brenda Chapman and Kevin Lima, Producers Don Hahn and Jinko Gotoh, Screenwriters John August and Linda Woolverton, TV Showrunners Butch Hartman and Bruce W. Smith, and VFX Supervisors Kaitlyn Yang and Dennis Muren.

Our Virtual Storytime series is offered monthly and highlight children’s book releases connected to the museum’s mission for fostering animation and innovation. During the first part of the program the guest author and/or illustrator reads aloud the story with an accompanying virtual presentation of the book. Following the reading, parents or guardians are encouraged to help their children submit questions to be asked during a shortened Q&A session. These programs are opened to all ages, but are aimed at families with small children. Questions submitted by children in attendance will be given priority over adult attendees. Books and guests have included Ellie Makes a Friend with author and illustrator Mike Wu, Mary Poppins with illustrator Geneviève Godbout, Paper Son: The Inspiring Story of Tyrus Wong, Immigrant and Artist with author Julie Leung and illustrator Chris Sasaki, and Pencils, Pens & Brushes: A Great Girls' Guide to Disney Animation with author Mindy Johnson.

Our Virtual Talks are offered each month with guest speakers providing an extensive presentation on a particular topic in connection to Walt’s life or the museum’s mission. These talks may require an admission fee or will be advertised as free-of-charge; however, you must register for these programs to attend. For complimentary program talks, donations are encouraged. Guest speakers and topics have included Origins of Personality Animation with Historian John Canemaker; From Paper Son to Disney Legend: Tyrus Wong’s Journey with Author Julie Leung, Illustrator Chris Sasaki, and Kimberley Wong; Cartoon Saloon Workshop with Filmmaker and Cartoon Saloon Co-Founder Tomm Moore; and WWII Series: From Internment to Inbetweening with Animator Willie Ito.

Generally, our Happily Ever After Hours and Virtual Storytimes do not have an extensive visual presentation to accompany the program, whereas our paid Virtual Talks offer a more in-depth conversation and presentation on a particular subject matter. The museum’s Virtual Talks require research and preparation from our guest speakers. They are presented in a similar fashion as our paid in-person programs held in the museum’s theater during typical museum operation.

While we offer a slate of complimentary programs, your donations ensure that we can continue opening our museum virtually to the world, and that future generations can continue to be inspired by Walt Disney’s life and legacy. Your ticket purchase to our paid programs and/or donations for our free programs allow us to increase our digital presence and stay true to our mission. Thank you for your generosity during this time.

Each of our virtual program offerings vary in times. Our Happily Ever After Hours programs run approximately one hour with the last 30 minutes as an opportunity for attendees to submit questions to our guest speakers. Our Virtual Storytime programs run approximately 30 to 45 minutes with a 15 to 20-minute allotment for attendees to submit questions to our guest author and/or illustrator. Virtual Talks run approximately 90 minutes, with a prepared visual presentation followed by 20 to 30 minutes of audience Q&A.

Closed captioning is available on our Facebook page once program recordings have been published publicly. We can provide a closed captioning version of our live paid programs to those who request it in advance. Please email publicprograms@wdfmuseum.org if you would like to make a closed-captioned request.

Please email publicprograms@wdfmuseum.org for any additional questions or concerns.