On February 15th, I had the opportunity to view the Nat Geo documentary “Making the Wish: Disney’s Newest Cruise Ship” (arriving on Disney+ today) and participate in a question and answer session with the filmmakers, Chad Cohen (director, writer, producer) and Bethany Jones (producer and writer). While I had previously seen the documentary on the Nat Geo channel, the additional insights from the filmmakers allowed me to view the film in an entirely different way.
So as you prepare to watch the documentary (which I highly recommend you do), here are five things I learned that may make your viewing experience even better.
1. By the end, they felt like a part of the team
The last section of “Making the Wish: Disney’s Newest Cruise Ship” takes place as the ship is making its way from the Meyer Werft shipyard where it was built to Port Canaveral, its permanent home. There is still much to be done during the crossing of the Atlantic as the crew races to get the ship ready for its first public sailings. The frenetic energy of the final push really comes through in the documentary, and Cohen and Jones found themselves rooting for the team that they had come to know over the past year to succeed.
2. Sometimes, you only get one chance
There’s a memorable scene in “Making the Wish: Disney’s Newest Cruise Ship” when the carpet is rolled out into the Grand Hall. With documentaries, there are no second takes. The film crew found out the previous night that the carpet would be rolled out that day, so they made sure to have cameras in place to capture it. But they ended up waiting a long time as things often take longer than expected. They were, however, entertained by the carpet vendors who were from England and were “hilarious.” In the end, they got the memorable shots they were after.
3. Disney came to trust them
The filmmakers worked really hard to make sure this wasn’t just an advertisement for Disney Cruise Lines because that’s not what Nat Geo does. Their goal was to show the passion of the people and the cool stuff they create and that would sell itself. So it was important that they get access to go behind the scenes as that’s what National Geographic audiences are used to getting. Disney, of course, is known for trying to hide how the magic is made as much as possible. But overtime, they were able to get more and more access. There were things early on where they were told that it absolutely wasn’t going to happen, and by the end, it did happen.
4. The Sea Trials!
Before a new ship can be taken to its eventual home, it must go through sea trials to find out exactly what it’s capable of. “Making the Wish: Disney’s Newest Cruise Ship” shows the Disney Wish reaching its top speed and seeing how fast it can come to a stop, among other trials. It’s actually a pretty exciting moment in the film, made even more tense because the bridge is kept dark most of the time. This was the first time these trials have been filmed for a Disney ship and getting that opportunity was a result of the trust they were able to build up.
5. I’m glad I asked
In February of 2022, Disney announced the maiden voyage of the Disney Wish would be delayed six weeks. When I first watched “Making the Wish: Disney’s Newest Cruise Ship,” I expected there to be some mention of this in the documentary and there wasn’t. I asked the filmmakers if they were around when the crew found out about the delay and, if so, why wasn’t that included. They explained that they were around, they do recall the day when the announcement was made, and that it was excluded for a couple of reasons.
One, it wasn’t really a surprise to the crew as they knew the issues they were having with supply and with the pandemic, so the drama I felt (as someone whose cruise was one of the ones canceled) wasn’t the same as the drama they felt. Two, this wasn’t a reality show. If it was, Cohen said it would’ve been included. But this was a documentary, and including that would’ve been a little too inside baseball. Only a few people would’ve cared, and it would’ve been inserting an artificial storyline that didn’t add very much.
I was very happy to get the documentarian’s view of the decision, and it made total sense to me.
“Making the Wish: Disney’s Newest Cruise Ship” is streaming right now on Disney+. As a fan of cruise ships in general, Disney ships in particular and also mega construction projects, I can’t recommend it highly enough. It goes much deeper than similar shows on Travel Channel or Mighty Ships on Smithsonian. And now having heard from the documentarians, I can enjoy and appreciate it even more.