From Official Vinylmation Site:

As you know, Vinylmation™ is the newest subdivision in Trade City, USA. As with all new subdivisions, there are bound to be delays in construction. Unfortunately, due to situations beyond our control, we are experiencing a delay in the arrival of one of our newest neighbors.

The Vinylmation™ Figure Set, Item #2 – two Vinylmation™ 3-inch figures and one limited edition pin is delayed at this time. We expect the Figures to arrive on or around September 23, 2010.

We understand that this is a frustrating situation, and we have a couple of options to offer for registered Event Guests: we can ship the pre-paid merchandise completely free of charge, or if you prefer, we will refund the merchandise in full and remove the item from your order.

At the event, please visit a Cast Member at the Event Information Table with any questions.

Please note that due to preparations for the event, the Event Services team will be unable to respond to inquiries about this item prior to the start of the event. We appreciate your understanding and look forward to seeing you trading around town!

From Official Vinylmation Blog:

We are happy to present the itinerary for the upcoming Trade City, USA – Vinylmation™ Showcase event. There are a lot of great activities planned, so you’re probably going to want to start mapping out your day now.

Click HERE to download the intinerary.

A couple of notes about what to expect.

Trading Activities
We currently have planned six trading activities – three mystery 24 boxes, two open trade boxes and one more open/mystery trade.

• Mystery 24 Box – There will be three stations featuring the Mystery 24 boxes. There will be two boxes per station – Box A and Box B. This means there will be 48 different numbers for Guests to select. There will only be one trade per visit to the station which means that Guests can select a number from either Box A or Box B (but not both).
• Open Trade – There will be two stations with open trade boxes. There will be a total of 48 figures per station presented in Vinylmation™ Trays (see, they are useful). Guests will have one minute to chose one figure from either Box A or Box B.
• Open / Mystery Trade – We are looking at one final opportunity that will be a combination of open and mystery trading.

Due to popular demand, we will introduce Vinylmation, Jr. trading into the mix. This may become an open or mystery trading activity depending upon the interest. We haven’t introduced it to everyday trading yet as we were waiting for a few more series to be released. Yet, we know there are fans who would like to trade for either Series #1 and Series #2.

Passholder Exclusive Figure Featuring Mr. Toad
Quick update on the Passholder Exclusive Figure featuring Mr. Toad. To confirm, the release date for this figure will be Sunday, August 29 at the D-Street locations on the West and East Coasts. This figure will also be available at the Vinylmation™ Showcase Event at Epcot® on Sunday (makes it easier for all of the Passholders attending the event). Remember, a valid Annual Pass must be presented in order to purchase this figure.

Creation Station
From 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., a Creation Station hosted by Disney Design Group Artists will be held. If you attended the opening of D-Street in Florida, you may recall seeing this station. Basically, a Guest purchase a blank figure and an artist will be on hand to help she or he create a one-of-a-kind masterpiece. The following artists have been confirmed for the station: Quynh Kimball, Adrienne Draude, Casey Jones and Lisa Badeen.

Autograph Session with Disney Design Group
An autograph session with Disney Design Group artists will be held from 12:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. The following artists have been confirmed for the session: Thomas Scott, Eric Caszatt, Dan Howard and Lisa Badeen. There may be additional artists that will join the session based on availability. By now, you have probably seen the Silent Auction lots. Yes, the one-of-a-kind figures are THAT awesome. Look for some wallpaper images coming to Vinylmation.com later this week (for all those who won’t be bidding on the items).

Early Registration
Guests attending the Vinylmation™ Showcase Event can pick up their product and event credentials on Thursday, August 26 between 12:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. at Disney’s Yacht & Beach Club Convention Center.

From Official Vinylmation Blog:

After a long break we are back! As we’re sure you can guess, we’ve been busy putting together the finishing touches on our Trade City USA – Vinylmation™ Showcase event. We really can’t wait as it will certainly be a historic occasion as it is our first Vinylmation™ event.

As part of the event we will be offering a silent auction featuring many Vinylmation™ items, including one-of-a-kind and rare figures. Click here to download the catalog showcasing all of the auction lots. We especially love the one-of-a-kind Vinylmation™ Figures by Chris Chapman and Adrienne Draude. While we tried our best to capture the amazing artwork, they really must be seen in person to get the full impact. Both figures also come with unique packaging as well which make them true collector items.

Look for more sneak previews of the event in the upcoming week. We can’t wait to meet all of our Vinylmation™ fans on August 29!

From Disney Parks Blog, by Steven Miller:

By now, many of you know from previous Disney Parks Blog articles that I am a huge fan of science fiction. I love all genres probably because of the former Epcot attraction Horizons that taught me “if I can dream it, I can do it.” That is one reason why I can’t wait for the Disney Trading and Collectible Experience we have planned for Summer 2011 at the Disneyland Resort. We recently announced the theme of this one-day event at the Dateline Disneyland 1955: Pin-Vited Press Event in July 2010. I caught up with Chris Chapman, the lead designer for this event, to discuss its evolution.

“We started work on this event in May 2010,” explained Chris. “This event will feature some of the most involved storytelling we’ve ever done. The event will be for every fan whom has ever visited Tomorrowland, enjoyed science fiction entertainment, played video games in the Starcade and more. We want to immerse our Guests into the story from the event experience to the product packaging to the merchandise we are designing.”

Mike Sullivan (http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2010/03/the-mechanical-kingdom/) from Disney Design Group is the leader character artist for this project. He shared some details about the story created for Sci-Fi Academy.

“Mickey has always loved adventure stories,” explained Mike. “His good friend Professor Ludwig Von Drake created a device making it possible for Mickey to be transported into his favorite Sci-Fi tales from the late 1800s to today. After each trip, Mickey would return with otherworldly keepsakes. As time passed, he realized he could not study all of the great Sci-Fi movies, books, games and television artifacts he collected. So, Commander Mickey created the Sci-Fi Academy, where recruits could help him collect, analyze and catalog these treasures.”

As a child, I remember spending many hours in Tomorrowland watching people and listening to ambient sounds of the future. I recall riding the People Mover during my first visit to Disneyland in the early 1990s (gosh, I loved that soundtrack). Chris explained that this event will pull from those nostalgic childhood memories and experiences.

Chris also created the teaser poster and the four logos representing the different science fiction genres that will be featured at the event. Doesn’t that poster look like advertisement for a brand new motion picture? How I wish it was – sigh. Nevertheless, stay tuned to DisneyPins.com as we reveal more details in the coming months about this event. And I hope to see you at the Academy.

From Official Vinylmation Blog:

It’s just a little over a month until our Trade City U.S.A – Vinylmation™ Showcase event! Here’s a look at two figures designed for the event by Disney Design Group artist Lisa Badeen:

If you didn’t have a chance to sign up for the event before registration closed, we invite you to come over to the World Showplace at Epcot® on Sunday, August 29 for Public Day. Beginning at 2:00 pm the event will open to all Guests and any remaining pieces from the event will be available for sale.