The 2023 EPCOT International Festival of the Arts has begun, and one of the returning elements is “Chalk Full of Characters,” where guests are encouraged to find charming chalk drawings of Disney characters through the pavilions, some more obvious than others, as they explore World Showcase. And this year, there are some brand-new character additions!
Let’s take a walk around the World Showcase promenade and see what characters we can find!
Two forms of Dante from Pixar’s Coco can be found outside of the Mexico pavilion. Dante is an alebrije who can travel between both the Land of the Dead and the human world, and here at the Festival of the Arts, he can be found in both of his forms.
Snowgies from the animated short Frozen Fever can be found adorning the sides of the buildings of the Norway pavilion near the Somerhaus meet and greet area for Anna and Elsa.
The adorable Bruni from Frozen 2 joins the festivities this year, appropriately resting on the fireplace near Kringla Bakeri Og Kafe.
Mushu and Cri-kee from Mulan can be found close to the World Showcase lagoon near one of the food stands in China.
Mulan’s dog, Little Brother, can also be found in the China pavilion.
Do you think you missed something in Germany’s photo below? So did we at first. But there, camouflaged as best he can, you’ll find Pascal the chameleon from 2010’s Tangled. Need a little help? Look toward the word “Clocks.”
A couple other chalk paintings of Pascal can be found elsewhere in the Germany pavilion.
Jiminy Cricket from Pinocchio can be found in the Italy pavilion, gazing upon stars found in “cracks” in the plaster of the walls.
Friends Luca and Alberto from Pixar’s Luca are masterfully worked into this faux fountain in Italy.
One of the more obscure characters found on the World Showcase promenade is this little mouse, Amos, from the animated short, Ben & Me. In the short, dating back to 1953, Amos met and befriended Benjamin Franklin, eventually aiding in his publishing, inventions, and political career. Amongst Amos' contributions were bifocals, inspiring Franklin to build the stove, and changing the format of Poor Richard's Almanac to an event-oriented newspaper, the Pennsylvania Gazette.
Over at the Japan pavilion, we happened upon another new addition for the year, in the form of the Octopus chef from Harryhausen’s Restaurant in Monsters Inc.
Just as you’d find them in the real Japan, EPCOT’s Japan pavilion also features Duffy the Bear and his pal Gelatoni the Cat. Gelatoni is a perfect character for the Festival of the Arts as the backstory of the character involves Duffy spilling his gelato in the Mediterranean Harbor of Tokyo DisneySea where the aptly named cat showed up and began painting a picture using his tail and the spilled treat.
Abu from 1992’s Aladdin can be found in the alley ways of the Morocco pavilion, causing mischief as usual.
The France pavilion features Duchess’s three kittens from the 1970 classic, The Aristocats. Berlioz, Toulouse, and Marie can be seen on the edge of a building near La Petite Rue.
Elsewhere in the pavilion, other animated friends from France can be found in the form of Remy and Emile, who appear in Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure, based on the 2006 Pixar Animation Studios film, Ratatouille.
The France pavilion is chock-full of characters, as you can also see Lumiere from Beauty and the Beast perched up high, representing the Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along.
Across the hypothetical Thames river (that in this instance, leads to Crescent Lake) at the UK Pavilion, we come across another new installation of chalk art. Merlin and Arthur from The Sword in the Stone are transformed into squirrels, and even have a female squirrel admirer!
Also new in the UK Pavilion is the brush dog from Alice in Wonderland, set up next to the stage.
Some Sherwood Forest friends make an appearance, including Skippy, Robin Hood, and Little John.
Across the street, Peter Pan’s shadow can be found approaching an upper level window, perhaps evading being found by Pan himself.
Further down the promenade, we can find Koda the bear from 2004’s Brother Bear catching some salmon under the bridge of the Canada pavilion, though his older counterpart Kenai is nowhere to be found.
The adorable Bao from the Pixar short of the same name is a new addition to the Canada pavilion this year.
Are the powers of Mickey’s imagination strong enough and bright enough? Clearly being at the Imagination Pavilion adds a little extra spark, with the last new for 2023 installation. Sorcerer Mickey is cleverly shown controlling the upside-down waterfall.
If you head to World Showcase during the EPCOT International Festival of the Arts, be on the lookout for these characters hidden throughout the pavilions! Be sure to stay tuned to Laughing Place for continuing coverage from the Festival of the Arts, which runs at EPCOT daily through February 20th, 2023.
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