Director Leslie Iwerks Goes Behind the Scenes of "Disneyland Handcrafted" in New Featurette

Disney Parks fans who are excited to watch the new documentary Disneyland Handcrafted in just a couple weeks are going to want to check out a featurette that debuted on the official Disney Parks YouTube channel this morning. In this eight-minute video, viewable below, director Leslie Iwerks takes us behind the scenes of her approach to chronicling the construction of The Happiest Place on Earth.

What's happening:

• A new featurette entitled "Inside Disneyland Handcrafted" was released today, featuring an extended interview with filmmaker Leslie Iwerks (The Imagineering Story) about her new documentary.
• During the video, Iwerks also goes into her family's history with The Walt Disney Company, including her grandfather Ub Iwerks's contributions to early Disney animation and her father Don Iwerks's innovations in the field of camera technology.
• Disneyland Handcrafted will be released via Disney+ on Thursday, January 22nd.

Watch Inside Disneyland Handcrafted: Leslie Iwerks on Family's Legacy, Archives & Filmmaking Magic:

What they're saying:

• Leslie Iwerks: "This documentary encapsulates the making of Disneyland, raw material captured by these cameramen. Watching Walt [Disney] go through immense amount of pressure, what was going on behind the scenes, something changed in him. This was the ultimate story of risk.

More on Disneyland Handcrafted:

• The release date and a new poster for the documentary were revealed just two days ago.
• Disneyland Handcrafted ranks among Laughing Place's most highly anticipated Disney things of 2026.
• A premiere for the documentary is being held tomorrow on the famous Walt Disney Studios lot in Burbank.