The float driver I guess I can understand, but what’s up with van drivers? I don’t recall seeing any minivans in the parades. 
I’m kinda’ hoping I can get trained on driving floats during my CP.
I’ve been following the thread since its inception but if you covered this I have forgotten or missed it. Can you expound on the difference between an Entertainment and an Attraction role?
The float driver I guess I can understand, but what’s up with van drivers? I don’t recall seeing any minivans in the parades.
The vans are for transporting Entertainment personnel and costume pieces to and from the peripheral areas. EPCOT and Animal Kingdom both have roads that wrap around the perimeter of the park, allowing performers to get to where they need to be without being seen by guests. Magic Kingdom has tunnels for this, though there are vans that travel from the MK character base to the resort hotels. Not sure about Hollywood Studios.
I’m kinda’ hoping I can get trained on driving floats during my CP.
I don’t think that’s going to happen. CPs can (and usually do) get trained to perform in a parade, but I’ve never heard of them getting trained as float drivers. Hell, Special K has been working there for two years and she’s still never done it. I don’t know what the process is for becoming a float driver, but it’s highly unlikely to occur in the 6 months that you’re there. 
**Can you expound on the difference between an Entertainment and an Attraction role? **
Sure! Entertainment covers all performances, including character sets, character dining, parades, and full productions like Finding Nemo: The Musical and The Lion King. Attractions covers all rides and spectator things, including roller coasters, the Haunted Mansion, Tower of Terror, and stuff like that. There are a few places where the two departments overlap. For example, at the Indiana Jones show, the Attractions folks will work to cram as many people into the seating as possible, while the Entertainment folks are the ones who actually make the show happen. Does this clarify the matter for you?
Which category would the boat drivers on the Jungle Cruise fall under? Are they seconded from Entertainment to Attractions or something? Their performance is 95% of the ride after all - they must get more extensive training and weeding out than the guys making sure everyone gets onto the boat safely.
Apologies if you’ve already covered this - are there any lifers/long timers in the character jobs, or do they enforce turnover? Say you had thought you’d want to make a career at Disney - what would your next step have been?
Which category would the boat drivers on the Jungle Cruise fall under?
I seem to recall that they are Attractions, but I believe every Attractions cast member receives training that is specific to his/her area. I guess the only unusual thing about the Jungle Cruise training is that it would place more emphasis on banter than the other Attractions locations.
Are there any lifers/long timers in the character jobs, or do they enforce turnover?
There are definitely some old timers working there. I met an Eeyore who claimed to have been working in Entertainment since before there were even specific height ranges required for each character. There was also the time at Pooh’s Playground when my Pooh and I were both working on our birthday – I turned 20, she turned 60. Some face roles are only filled by old timers, such as Fairy Godmother and Santa in the Christmas parade.
Based on what you saw and people you knew, if I keep a clean record, should I have trouble switching from CP to FT after my CP is over? Any advice on how to do so?
Hi there,
I’ve just been accepted onto Disney’s ICP for the summer and have been accepted to do the role of character performer!
I have been reading your thread and have found it very interesting and informative, keep up the good work!
My questions really are, if I fail the audition will they still hire me in another area, I applied for merch, costuming, rides etc. And also I was wondering which costumes are available for us smaller performers. I already know about mick, minnie, donald and chip and dale, just wondering if there were any others?
So ICP folk can be accepted for Entertainment sans an audition? That’s pretty nifty. I guess I never thought out how that’d work.
As a tangent, had you heard that a very young Steve Martin briefly appears in a home movie, recently added to the LOC’s National Film Registry, of a late-Fifties family visit to Disneyland?: Steve Martin Cameo in 'Disneyland Dream' home video | The Disney Blog
Do you know David Imanuel?
Based on what you saw and people you knew, if I keep a clean record, should I have trouble switching from CP to FT after my CP is over? Any advice on how to do so?
While I don’t know a whole lot about the world of full-time, I do know that securing full-time status is not easy or guaranteed. I met a handful of Entertainment folks who had been part-time or seasonal for quite a while, some of whom were plainly bitter about the fact that they hadn’t gotten full-time yet. Special K, on the other hand, somehow managed to get full-time status very shortly after her CP ended. I never understood how she made that happen; I’ll ask her about it the next time we talk. I do know that it’s fairly easy to switch to part-time or seasonal after the CP ends.
I’ve just been accepted onto Disney’s ICP for the summer and have been accepted to do the role of character performer! My questions really are, if I fail the audition will they still hire me in another area, I applied for merch, costuming, rides etc.
I’m a bit confused by this. You were hired for the role of Character Performer but you haven’t done an audition yet? I suppose that would be the easiest way to do it for international folk. I would think that if you were already accepted into the program, you would be given a non-Entertainment role if you failed your audition. I can’t imagine WDW being like “Well, sorry, you’re not good enough, please go home.”
Steve Martin?
Nope.
David Imanuel?
Nope.
How many hours a week did you get and how long were your shifts generally?
I keep hearing about 10-12 hour shifts and 60 hour work weeks, but that’s all from other roles. I haven’t heard much re: Entertainment.
Individual shifts varied wildly. Boat Dock and Pooh’s Playground were solid all-day shifts, probably around 8 or 9 hours. Some, like the Magic Hat at Hollywood Studios, were much shorter, maybe only 4 or 5 hours. Entertainment folk can get up to 10-12 hours consecutively, but that’s typically for full-timers who get back-to-back shifts for epic overtime.
As for total work week, I don’t think I ever paid any attention to the numbers; I was having too much fun to care. I know that CPs are guaranteed to be scheduled at least 20 hours per week (it may actually be higher than that, I’m not sure), and I also know that the only time I had a crazy busy week was when I picked up a crowd control shift for the New Year’s Eve party. However, this distribution might not have been typical. One of the other CP Toy Soldiers claimed to be getting a solid amount of overtime every week. He was a deceptive sack of shit though, so I pretty much disregarded everything he ever said, so feel free to do the same.
Hey guys, this thread has been really interesting to read. I’ve just been accepted as a character performer beginning next August and I’d love to ask a couple of things =)
Firstly, how easy was it for you to take time off during your program? I’d love to do a few days away every now and then to Miami and other nearby places, and wondering if that’s possible?
Also, were most character performers only given a couple of characters to be friends with? You mentioned before that you generally were Tigger and Eeyore - I was told at my interview that I’d be in the Chipmunk category, so I’d love to know if that means I’d only be friends with Chip and Dale, or if I’d be friends with a few others too?
Thanks!
This is the second time you’ve fondly mentioned the beautiful women. I’m starting to think about relocating to ORlando and changing jobs.
As a former Disney employee, let me tell you this: there are more opportunities for poon at Disneyworld than as a Hawaiian Tropic oil boy. First, there are far more female employees than male. Second, male Disney employees skew heavily to The Gay. Hence, the ratio of girls to guys who want girls is like 5:1.
It really IS the Happiest Place On Earth! 
(Someone had to say it.)
That’s Disneyland (the one in California). Disney World is the most magical place on earth. Joke still works, though.
Sorry for the delayed responses, I forgot to check this thread over Christmas break.
**First, there are far more female employees than male. Second, male Disney employees skew heavily to The Gay. Hence, the ratio of girls to guys who want girls is like 5:1. **
100% true, from my experience. The male population in Entertainment is particularly homosexual, making it very easy to find available female character performers.
Firstly, how easy was it for you to take time off during your program? I’d love to do a few days away every now and then to Miami and other nearby places, and wondering if that’s possible?
There are three ways to secure time off: One is to request it in advance, which sometimes works, sometimes doesn’t. The second is trade or give away shifts. There are lots of seasonal employees who are desperate for more shifts, so this shouldn’t be all that difficult. Third, you can always just call the attendance line and take the point. As long as you’re not planning on making a career out of your Disney employment, a couple points here and there won’t be a big deal.
Also, were most character performers only given a couple of characters to be friends with? Most height ranges have lots of characters that they can be friends with. I was eligible for Tigger, Eeyore, Tweedledum & Tweedledee, Kenai(?), Foulfellow, The Sheriff of Nottingham, and Buzz Lightyear. The thing is that some character appear much more frequently than others, so I never actually did a shift as Foulfellow. The other thing is that some characters require the performer to be approved before they can take shifts. Buzz Lightyear has a weird, clunky costume that demands a very particular body shape in order for the performer to be able to move around. I was not a good fit, so I was disapproved.
Hi Cryptic, absolutely brilliant thread especially for someone who’s planning on auditioning for a character position at Disney in a few months, like me.
Wondering if you could possible give some costume character ‘animation’ tips? Any tips on gestures conveying emotions etc? I really really want to get the job so I’m trying to make sure that my audition is as solid as possible. I know everyone says that you have to make your gestures as big as possible, but I’d like to know some good ways to impress the disney people and score plus points. Would be great to hear some of the things they taught you about all of this at your training and that you’ve picked up over your time at disney.