Theme Park Scope

Olaf Draws!, the brand-new animation class at The Magic of Disney Animation, is currently running without its star attraction:

Olaf himself, after ongoing technical difficulties knocked the Audio-Animatronics figure offline.

Even Audio-Animatronic snowmen apparently need a sick day sometimes.

Olaf Draws! first ran into trouble on September 22, closing temporarily due to technical difficulties with the Olaf figure. It reopened later that same day, but the issues clearly weren’t fully resolved, since the experience is now operating in what Disney calls B-Mode. In practice, B-Mode looks almost identical to the normal version of the experience, guests still follow along with pre-recorded video lessons from real Disney animators, drawing whichever character is featured in that session. The one noticeable gap is the moment near the end when Olaf would normally show off his own finished drawing to the group. With Olaf currently curtained off at his desk, that beat just doesn’t happen, leaving an oddly quiet pause where his reaction usually lands. Cast Members have said the experience is expected to keep running in B-Mode for the remainder of the day, though Disney hasn’t given a timeline for when Olaf himself will be back online.

For anyone unfamiliar with Olaf Draws!, it’s one of the headline new experiences inside The Magic of Disney Animation, which opened September 14, 2026 inside the former Star Wars: Launch Bay building at Hollywood Studios. The class puts guests in the role of animators-in-training, teaching them to sketch one of nine different Disney characters, rotating roughly every ten minutes throughout the day. Real Disney animators and directors lead the instruction via pre-recorded video, including Trent Correy, director of Once Upon a Studio and the upcoming Frozen 3, guiding guests through Olaf himself; Michael Woodside, an animator on Big Hero 6 and Encanto, covering Ursula; and Byron Howard, director of Zootopia and Zootopia 2, teaching Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde. Olaf, brought to life as a brand-new Audio-Animatronics figure, is meant to sit alongside guests as a fellow student rather than function as the instructor, welcoming everyone into a space specifically inspired by his memorable scene in the 2023 short film Once Upon a Studio.

It’s worth noting that Olaf Draws! took a somewhat different approach than the classic Animation Academy experiences longtime Disney fans might remember, which were traditionally hosted by a live artist working with guests in real time. Swapping that live instruction for pre-recorded lessons paired with an Audio-Animatronic host drew some criticism from fans even before this week’s technical hiccup, with some feeling it trades a more personal, in-the-moment art class for a more passive, watch-and-follow-along format. Whether Olaf being offline for a stretch changes that conversation at all remains to be seen, but it does mean the one live, reactive element the format did have, Olaf’s own drawing reveal, is currently missing entirely.

The Magic of Disney Animation as a whole combines several experiences under one roof rather than functioning as a single ride, including Off the Page! character encounters, a Drawn to Wonderland playground themed to Alice in Wonderland, and the Once Upon a Studio Theater. Olaf Draws! specifically replaced the drawing-class concept that’s popped up at various points across Disney parks over the years, and this hiccup is a reminder that a brand-new Audio-Animatronic figure, barely two weeks into daily operation, can still run into the same kind of early technical growing pains any new attraction faces.

If you’re planning to try Olaf Draws! on an upcoming trip, it’s still very much worth doing even in B-Mode, since the actual drawing instruction and character lineup haven’t changed. Just don’t be surprised if Olaf’s big reveal moment is still on hold when you show up.

We’ll keep tracking Olaf Draws! and The Magic of Disney Animation as more updates come in, so check back with Theme Park Scope for the latest, and follow us on social so you don’t miss it.

Have YOU tried Olaf Draws! yet, and did you catch it in its full version or B-Mode?