Vol. 3, Issue 25 - Interview with James Colmer (Pokémon Island Adventure)
An interview with James Colmer, who was responsible for building the Pokémon Island Adventure attraction at Warner Bros Movie World, which ran from December 1999 to January 2001. Plus Pokémon news!
Welcome to Vol. 3, issue 25 of Johto Times! This week we have a special interview with James Colmer, who was responsible for building the Pokémon Island Adventure attraction at Warner Bros Movie World, located on the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia. In addition to his answers, James has kindly provided us with lots of great photographs from behind the scenes. We hope fans will enjoy this insight! As usual, we also have a recap of the latest Pokémon news.
Please note, due to the huge number of photographs, those who are reading this from their inboxes may not be able to view all of the photographs available. The feature is also viewable on the Johto Times website.
As a reminder, we are currently running a poll to determine the fans’ favourite Pokémon. Until July 31st, 2025, fans can choose six Pokémon originating from each Pokémon region, and the ten highest-ranked Pokémon in each poll will go through to a grand final in August 2025 where we will determine the overall winner. So far we have received more than 150,000 votes and we want yours, too! Check out the poll here and be sure to share it with your friends!
News
A new themed booster pack is coming to Pokémon TCG Pocket on June 26th, 2025. "Eevee Grove" will feature Eevee and its eight Eeveelutions, plus a range of other cards, such as Penny and Alcremie. Considering the popularity of Eevee and its evolutions, this is sure to be a popular one with players!
Source: Pokémon
A new Pokémon distribution has been announced, allowing Pokémon Scarlet & Violet players to receive Wolfe Glick's Incineroar, in celebration of the 2025 Pokémon North America International Championships. Wolfe was the winner of the 2025 Europe International Championships. To obtain the Pokémon via Mystery Gift, players can enter NA1C25C0NPER1SH. You don't have long, as Wolfe Glick's Incineroar is only available until tomorrow, June 20th, 2025.
Source: Pokémon
The official Pokemon Unite social media account has confirmed that Latias and Latios will be coming to Pokémon UNITE on July 21st, 2025, in celebration of the game's 4th anniversary. No specific details about their abilities or stats have been revealed at the time of reporting. Recently, Alcremie was added to Pokémon UNITE as a playable Pokémon, along with new Holowear.
Source: Pokémon Unite
A live broadcasted Pokémon quiz show will air on June 27th, 2025. The Gotta Catch 'Em All! Game Show, hosted by writer, actor, and musician Brian David Gilbert, will lead three contestants through a multiple-choice trivia quiz. Full details on the quiz and how you can get involved, can be found on the official Pokémon website.
Source: Pokémon
Feature: Interview with James Colmer (Pokémon Island Adventure)
Between December 1999 and January 2001, an attraction themed around Pokémon Snap was present at Warner Bros. Movie World in Australia called Pokémon Island Adventure. Participants were encouraged to find Pokémon characters throughout the attraction, and check them off in their expedition guides. James Colmer, who led the team who built Pokémon Island Adventure, and sculpted Pokémon characters for it, joins me for an interview, to discuss his time working on the project, and an insight into his impressive career.
Thanks for agreeing to this interview, James! Can you please introduce yourself to our readers?
James:
No problem. I've been working in the feature film, television, theme park, music and game industries for the past 35 years. I'm originally from the UK [but] grew up in Adelaide.
I’m interested to learn about how you first got involved with creating theme parks. How did you get your start in the industry?
James:
My first job straight out of university in 1991 was Artist/Sculptor for a project in Adelaide's Myer Centre called Dazzleland. After that I was hired as one of the lead artists at the John Martin’s Pageant [a Christmas parade put on by the department store chain in South Australia] where I worked for the next three years, creating floats such as Aladdin's Lamp.
Prior to the Australian release of Pokémon: The First Movie in the year 2000, you were invited to design and build a Pokémon attraction for Warner Bros. Movie World called “Pokémon Island Adventure”, based on the Pokémon Snap game for Nintendo 64. How did that opportunity come about?
James:
When John Martin’s collapsed in 1994, I moved to the Gold Coast with the intention of working in the film industry. I ended up taking a job at SeaWorld [part of Village Roadshow Theme Parks in Australia, which included Warner Bros. Movie World] to help build the Bermuda Triangle Ride, and was hired as lead scenic artist and props maker. For the next five years I worked on several attractions for Warner Bros. including the Wild West Ride, Cartoon Beach, Pirates 3D show as well as feature films and TV series including Street Fighter, The Phantom, and Space: Above and Beyond. I opened a dedicated special effects studio in 1998 and was always working on big projects at that time.
One day the CEO, John Menzies [CEO of SeaWorld, Warner Bros. Movie World, and a number of other attractions at the time] called me and asked if I could come down to his office at SeaWorld. I walked into the boardroom to find the architect sitting at a large table, and John sitting down in front of a small CRT monitor, playing a video game. He called me over and said, ‘James, I want you to watch this.’ I had no idea what was going on, other than a 70-year-old man was playing Pokémon Snap on a Nintendo console. After about 10 minutes, he stopped and turned to me and said, ‘That’s what I want you to build.’
He got up, walked over to the table, and pulled a large sketch out of a cardboard cylinder. He rolled it out and said, ‘This is the last drawing to come out of Warner Recreational Facilities in the States.’ With that, he screwed it up and tossed it in the bin. His next statement was, ‘I'd like you to design and build a themed Pokémon attraction based on the game, and have it ready in eight weeks’ time to coincide with the release of the film...can you do that?’
I calmly looked at the architect, who nearly fell off his chair when I said, ‘Sure, I can do that.’
John said he didn't care how much it cost, as long as I didn't rip them off, and as long as it was open by the release date. That was the entire interview. There was no-one else that could build such a thing in that timeframe, but I had a reputation for doing the impossible.
You accepted the task of creating the attraction, despite a strict eight-week deadline. How confident did you feel after that initial meeting that you could deliver on what Mr. Menzies was asking of you?
James:
I was always confident, but I also knew that the only way to get it done was to build it like a film set, and just throw money into additional labour. I had complete control over the project, but I also had to design it on the run, and manage all the crew, as there was no lead time. We built it one day at a time; as soon as plans were ready I would run them out to the lot. I didn't need the WB architect for this job, so we did it all at my studio or on site.
How familiar were you with the Pokémon series before you took on the task of creating an attraction for it?
James:
Not at all. I didn't grow up with Pokémon; my background was arcade games and pinball and then Atari, before PC games like Myst and Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee came out.
You sculpted the Pokémon characters for the attraction. How did you decide which ones would be included?
James:
I sculpted many of them, but I had a couple of other artists working with me. I can't recall who did which ones exactly, but we just went with the characters that featured in each scene of the game.
How much creative freedom did you have outside of the brief that was given to you?
James:
There was no brief, other than to build the attraction. I had complete creative control over the project from start to finish, including lighting design. I was working 18-hour days for eight weeks straight without a day off, managing 32 staff, and there was no time to think about anything else.
What were some of the challenges you faced during the project’s development?
James:
The incredibly short timeframe meant we were creating it on the run. There were some staff issues, where people were taking too many smoking breaks, or couldn't work longer hours, etc. We just had to manage it and solve problems as they came up. The biggest challenge was the physical and mental exhaustion. We worked the last three days straight with no sleep, just to get it finished on time, and we walked out the exit door as the first crowd walked in the entrance. That’s how close it was.
Guests were encouraged to spot as many Pokémon characters as they could, and received some goodies for their efforts. Due to the lack of information about this attraction online, it would be great to get some insight into what guests experienced and received during their visit. What can you share?
James:
Early reports were that it was too bright, and didn't look right, as some smart person at WB Health and Safety went through, decided it was too dark, and turned all the lights up. It was designed as a dark ride/walkthrough, and had UV lighting effects and projections, so of course...it looked terrible.
Sam called me to ask what happened, so I came back the next day and re-adjusted everything to how it should look, and it worked fine after that. I have no idea what guests received as I wasn't part of the WB staff as such.
Once you and your team had finished the work, what were your thoughts and feelings on the completed attraction?
James:
As we stumbled outside and laid down on top of some wooden pallets to finally take a break after working three days straight, John came up to me and said, ‘Great work, James, now let’s talk about the next one.’ I had no interest whatsoever in anything but sleep, as I was delirious. So really, we just went home and slept for 40 hours and that was it.
A project of this scope couldn’t be achieved without a capable team. You hired many talented sculptors, carpenters, and scenic artists from the industry to help you bring the project to fruition. What can you tell us about them?
James:
My partner at the time left her job and came on board as my assistant, and she helped take some of the load of handling staff, running the studio, etc. I had a full-time secretary, a project manager, and I hired my best friend at the time as the Construction Manager. He ran the carpenters and scenic artists on site, inside sound stage 5, while I managed everything else, from plans to Pokémon characters, pneumatic and lighting design and sculpting, etc. There were many people involved who normally worked on feature films and other attractions, so they were people I knew and could trust, mostly.
It’s always great to get an insight into the development of a project. What anecdotes do you have from working on Pokémon Island Adventure that you can share with us?
James:
I was notorious for being a perfectionist. After all, it was completely my responsibility. So there were times I would visit the site, do a walk around, and if there was something I didn't like, I would grab a can of spray paint and just write in big red letters DO IT AGAIN, right over a mural, if they had neglected to properly sand the timber and plaster joins underneath first.
On reflection, what do you wish you could have included, changed, or done differently with the project?
James:
Many things could have been done differently. Having the luxury of time to think would have been nice. It could have had animatronic characters instead of cheap, one-motion pneumatics, and instead of a walk through, it could have been a ride.
Pokémon Island Adventure was accessible between mid-December 1999 and January 2001, lasting just over one year at the park. How much of a success did WB consider the attraction to be during the time it was open?
James:
No idea. Warner Bros. Theme Park is separate from Warner Roadshow Studios. I worked at the studios mostly on films, and the Theme Park is run more like a business. You never really know what they think. I do recall John asking for $25,000 back for lighting expenses over the quoted budget, but that wasn't even my department. The lighting company had overcharged them without consultation. So it’s really all about dollars to them. I have no idea if it was profitable at all, being such a niche market.
As a consultant to the theme park industry, you have helped to design and build some of the most popular attractions in Australia. What have been some of your favourites to work on?
James:
Wild West Ride was a big one; I spent eight months on that. Cartoon Beach at SeaWorld, Sega World in Sydney, and I recently did some concept art for the Prince of Saudi Arabia's SNK Gaming District. I also did some ride design for the Jurassic Park Flying Dinosaur Ride at Universal Studios Japan.
In the mid-90s, you founded your own special effect studio, which became one of the largest that was dedicated to production. What were your biggest success stories that came out of it?
James:
I worked on a lot of feature films and TV series there, with many well known actors, directors, and producers. There were a lot of good times and a lot of hard work. One particular project that I was asked to create was India's first alien character for a sci-fi movie [Koi... Mil Gaya], with a very low budget. I won five awards, including their Oscar, basically. I got to spend time in India and Canada, building and operating an animatronic creature and working with their top movie stars. It was quite an experience. However, in the past 20 years, they have never paid the agreed royalties, so that's a project that I still have a love/hate relationship with.
You were involved with creating twelve giant Kewpie dolls for the closing ceremony of the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, which had an audience of over three billion people across the world. What was that whole experience like for you?
James:
Again, it was another eight-week job. They wanted me to build them in secret on the Gold Coast, as everything made in Sydney was being leaked to the press. We went to visit some of the remaining ones in 2023 at the Powerhouse Museum, National Museum, and Grafton Festival. It was good to see them again. The dolls were 6 metres tall each, sculpted and then moulded out of fibreglass, and we used 1.2kms of fabric for the dresses. My partner at the time and I did all the [other] work ourselves, but we had to hire a seamstress for that part.
I could sit here all day and highlight the amazing achievements you’ve made throughout your career! You’ve already achieved so much in your life, but I wonder where you think it goes next. What are your plans for the future?
James:
I plan to write more books, release some games, maybe produce some feature films, and build a recording studio to work on music productions, as that’s where I started out, working for big bands. I might get involved with other attractions; it really depends on location. I've turned down some really big projects in China, Dubai, and other places, simply because I don't want to live there, regardless of the paycheck. I'm also busy right now renovating a house.
James, thank you for taking the time to speak with us about your work on Pokémon Island Adventure and your career! Do you have any closing comments you would like to make for our readers?
James:
You're welcome. Live long and prosper.
Additional photographs
A huge thank you to James for taking the time to answer all of our questions, and for providing such a significant number of photographs from this long lost attraction. For anyone who visited Pokémon Island Adventures, we hope this feature brought back some great memories for you.
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Dang! Universal, take notes! I would pay good money for a Pokemon land at Epic or any future parks.
Looks incredible! I wish I could go to it. Really nice work. That volcano set does bring up other images in my head as well.