Walt Before Mickey Was Filmed at Stetson's Cummings Gymnasium in DeLand
Quick answer: Walt Before Mickey (2015), the Walt Disney biopic starring Thomas Ian Nicholas, filmed major scenes at Stetson University's Cummings Gymnasium in DeLand, Florida. The historic brick gymnasium provided period-accurate 1910s–1920s interiors for the young-Walt-Disney era.
Introduction
Walt Before Mickey — the 2015 biographical film directed by Khoa Le and based on the Timothy Susanin book of the same name — tells the story of Walt Disney's formative years before Mickey Mouse: his Kansas City boyhood, his early animation studio Laugh-O-Gram, the bankruptcy that nearly ended his career, and the cross-country move that led to Walt Disney Studios. The film's production scouted locations across Central Florida and found a Stetson-campus home for its early-20th-century interior scenes [S110, S111].
Cummings Gymnasium — the Walt Before Mickey set
Stetson's Cummings Gymnasium is a historic brick athletic building on the Stetson University campus in DeLand — one of the most architecturally distinct buildings on the Stetson quad. Its early-20th-century brick construction, interior wooden detailing, and preserved period character made it an ideal stand-in for Midwestern interior sets of the 1910s–1920s.
Director Khoa Le's production used Cummings Gymnasium for multiple interior scenes standing in for early-Walt-Disney-era Kansas City and Chicago locations. The building's on-camera character contributed to the film's period atmosphere — a period the production couldn't easily replicate on a studio lot in modern Florida [S110, S111].
"Walt Before Mickey (2015) used Stetson University's Cummings Gymnasium in DeLand, Florida as a principal interior location — the building's preserved early-20th-century character standing in for Midwestern 1910s–1920s interiors." [S110]
Cast & production
- Director: Khoa Le
- Screenwriters: Arthur L. Bernstein, Armando Gutierrez
- Source: Walt Before Mickey by Timothy Susanin (University Press of Mississippi, 2011)
- Lead: Thomas Ian Nicholas as Walt Disney
- Supporting cast: Jon Heder, Jodie Sweetin, Armando Gutierrez, David Henrie
- Release: August 2015 (Netflix distribution and limited theatrical)
- Production: Voltage Pictures / Conglomerate Media, with significant Central Florida filming
Related DeLand Walt Disney context
A careful reader will notice a historical overlap worth flagging: Walt Disney's real-life family connections were in Paisley, Florida — 15 miles north of DeLand — where his aunt Jessie Call Perkins operated a homestead that a young Walt visited. The Disney family's Florida ties run through Paisley, not DeLand itself. The fact that the Walt Before Mickey biopic was later filmed in DeLand is a separate and independent Disney-DeLand connection — one is biographical fact (Paisley aunt), the other is film production (DeLand Cummings Gym set).
Walt Disney's real Paisley family (myth-busting page)Visiting Cummings Gymnasium today
Cummings Gymnasium is on the Stetson University campus, open as part of any Stetson campus walking tour. The building remains an active part of Stetson's athletic-and-recreation facilities. External walking around the building is unrestricted; interior access depends on current Stetson facility hours.
Combined-itinerary suggestion:
- Morning: Stetson campus walking tour including Elizabeth Hall (Waterboy) and Cummings Gym (Walt Before Mickey)
- Afternoon: 15-minute drive to Paisley to see the Walt Disney aunt-family historical site
- Evening: Downtown DeLand dinner
This single-day "Disney-in-DeLand" itinerary is the only one of its kind in Central Florida outside Walt Disney World itself [S112].
Frequently asked questions
- Where was Walt Before Mickey filmed?
- Stetson University's Cummings Gymnasium in DeLand, Florida, was a principal filming location for the 2015 biopic. [S110]
- Did Walt Disney really have Florida family ties?
- Yes — Walt Disney's aunt, Jessie Call Perkins, lived in Paisley, Florida (15 miles north of DeLand), and Walt visited her as a child. This is a biographical family connection, separate from the later DeLand filming location for Walt Before Mickey. [S112]
- Who played Walt Disney in Walt Before Mickey?
- Thomas Ian Nicholas played Walt Disney in the 2015 biopic.
- Is Walt Before Mickey based on a book?
- Yes — it's based on Walt Before Mickey by Timothy Susanin, published by University Press of Mississippi (2011), a biography of Walt Disney's pre-Mickey Mouse years.
- Can I visit Cummings Gymnasium?
- Yes — Cummings Gymnasium is on the Stetson University campus in DeLand, which is open to the public. It remains an active Stetson facility; external access is unrestricted, interior access is subject to facility hours.