Tag Archives: Interviews

The people behind the fascinating LEGO models we feature here are just as interesting! Read interviews with notable LEGO builders, LEGO book authors, LEGO set designers, and many others right here on The Brothers Brick.

Nate Nielson: Winter is a struggle and wind is my foe – Boilerplate & Beyond Vol. 3 [Interview]

Our third installment of interviews by Keith Goldman takes us into the mind of a builder that — let’s be honest — you either love or hate. Take it away, Keith!

This week’s builder is known as “nnenn,” and should need no introduction if you’re a fan of science fiction models, or a follower of any number of groups on Flickr.

Nnenn’s name has become synonymous with both great building and controversy, beginning with his debut on Classic Space forum, where he managed to rile up more than a few purists with his tape, knife, and clone-brand components.

I take special notice of any builder who has fan-boys, if nothing else to make sure their army isn’t larger or more rabid than my own.

I met nnenn, as per his rather specific instructions, at the Palm Springs Wind Farm in Palm Desert, California: I didn’t actually see him, but we spoke through a grating at the base of a windmill. There was no small talk, we just talked about LEGO.

The Build

Keith Goldman: You always have interesting backgrounds for your creations. How do you select the background color for each model, and what sort of lighting do you use?

nnenn: I shoot everything outside by hand; winter is a struggle and wind is my foe.

The background posters are chosen for contrast: first, in value (dark for a light model, and vice-versa) or second, in color (blue for an orange model, etc.) I approximate the original color when digitally imaging so the model’s reflectives don’t look odd.

KG: Like many sci-fi builders, you have mentioned that your models draw inspiration in part from the “Terran Trade Authority” series of illustrated books from the late 1970’s. Is there any other go-to creative reference you consider when designing a model?

nnenn: I’m influenced by many things (including other builds) but I don’t have a dominant source of inspiration, nor do I keep a ready reference bank. Because seeing the same thing repeatedly tends to dull the awe, I purposely avoid perusing my muses (which is why I don’t keep ‘favorites’ on Flickr, incidentally.)

Though I am rarely at a loss for ideas, I do become unmotivated from time to time, so a few quick glances does more to spark my competitive side than provide fodder for new content.

KG: Do you purchase clone-brand sets, or is there a Bizarro-World BrickLink? If the answer is sets, which theme if any do you prefer?

nnenn: I’ve wished many times for a way to get clones by the piece (I’ve even contacted MegaBloks about it) but no, I resort to purchasing whole sets for just a handful of unique parts… themes don’t really play a part in my acquisition decisions. I’m holding out for cost-effective 3D printers.

More of Keith’s interview with nnenn after the jump: Continue reading →

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Fredo Houben: More to the brick than meets the eye [Interview]

I recently came across a quote by Ace Kim, the admin of FBTB, who said “a good picture of a terrible model will look better and be more appealing than a terrible picture of a good model.”

To a degree this is very true, which brings us to this interview with Fredo Houben (Fredoichi), a LEGO builder and graphic designer from the Netherlands. Granted, his models aren’t terrible — in fact they’re actually amazing.

What contributes to our enjoyment of Fredo’s creations is not simply the way he puts his bricks together but also his flawless presentation. As a bonus in this interview, Fredo goes through the steps he uses to edit a mediocre photo into a polished image.

The Brothers Brick: What do you like to build and where do you get your ideas and inspirations?

Fredo: Well, I mostly build in the sci-fi theme. Think of starfighters, multiped walkers/mecha and near-future vehicles. Occasionally I step out of that realm and do something else with the brick, but it’s sci-fi that I enjoy the most.

I find it fun and interesting to vary and play with scale, though I don’t make the biggest things out there.

I really like the challenge of building in a smaller scale. As for ideas and inspirations, I have a lot of interest in the design aspects of things like video games, movies, animation and Japanese toys, and that’s basically what gets things going.

TBB: When did you enter the online LEGO community and have you had a dark age? If so, how did you rediscover LEGO?

Fredo: I uploaded my first MOC on Flickr in 2008, since then LEGO is part of my life again. I say again because I stopped playing/building when I was 12 years old. I’m 36 now, so yeah I’ve had quite a dark age. Back then I played with LEGO day in and day out ever since I was 4. I had quite a collection by the time I was 12, but I lost interest in it and other interests took over like my Amiga, music and games. I felt pretty bad about it because I really enjoyed building, so I tried to come back to it a couple of times, but it didn’t feel the same anymore so I moved on.

Fast forward 23 years later, I all of a sudden felt the urge to do something with LEGO again. I work as a visual designer and I love toys and was thinking how I could create my own models and toys. Just do something else instead of design and 3D on screen… LEGO seemed perfect. I got extra motivated when I stumbled on some amazing work from a couple of builders on Flickr. Seeing stuff from Soren Roberts, Peter Reid, nnenn and Adrian Florea really gave me a good look of what you can do with the brick. These guys use parts in such a creative and different way and all have their own visual style. I had a lot of ideas, so I got my old collection from my parent’s attic and bought some new sets and just started.

More of our interview with Fredo after the jump: Continue reading →

Adrian Drake: Am I doing it for ego? Probably. – Boilerplate & Beyond Vol. 2 [Interview]

For our second installment of interviews by Keith Goldman, we explore the possibility of an AFOL pedophile, prize-sniping, the future of collaborative displays, and more. Take it away, Keith!

If you’ve been to a convention or paid any attention to the hobby in the last decade, you’re probably familiar with Adrian Drake. Whether you call him The Drake, The Prize Sniper or Johnny Old-Guard, just don’t call him late to the building party. The Drake’s website BrickFrenzy was one of the first LEGO sites I encountered in the year 2000 when I began searching the internet for LEGO.

Although his high water mark was undeniably “Badger Badger Badger Badger”, The Drake has put his stamp on just about every theme in the book and inspired a generation of builders.

I sat down with The Drake in the Louisiana Superdome, the largest dome stadium in North America and the only domed structure large enough to contain our collective MOCs, fans, and egos. We talked about who’s was bigger, old Trek vs. new Trek, and LEGO.

The Build

Keith Goldman: You are the creator of the Tribunal, the largest science fiction SHIP on record. What are its official measurements and how do you react to the persistent charges that it closely resembled a giant tampon?

Adrian Drake: The Tribunal is 487 studs long, which is 12 feet, 8 inches, and roughly 20 inches in diameter. All told it weighs around 118 pounds. I’ve estimated it to be about 40,000 pieces. As for its tampon-ness, I just have to accept it and laugh it off. It’s not like I can say that it doesn’t! But that’s how the source material was, so that’s how it is.

You might wonder why I didn’t make it a bit longer and break the 500 stud barrier. To be honest I had no idea how long it was going to be until it was done. I based the entire scale of the model off the size of the 4×4 quarter domes that make up the fuel tanks, to scale to the source artwork I used. By the time I knew the length it was too late to rebuild something to add even 13 studs without it looking tacked on.

More of Keith’s interview with Adrian after the jump: Continue reading →

Anthony Sava: Have smoker will travel – Boilerplate & Beyond Vol. 1 [Interview]

We’re excited to have LEGO icon Keith Goldman conducting several interviews for us with fellow LEGO fans. Take it away, Keith!

This week’s builder is Tony “SavaTheAggie” Sava, who broke onto the scene the same time as I did, which automatically makes him interesting because he had a front row seat for my meteoric rise in the LEGO hobby.

One of the first models by Tony that captured my imagination was Stonebarrow Keep (right).

Now, before you snort and say “I can build better than that” or “I see castles every week better than that”, realize that this was created seven years ago and was considered an amazing build. Tony is currently working on a model of the Cathedral of St. Francis:

I sat down with Tony at his ranch outside of El Lago, Texas, where we enjoyed ribs, Lone-Star beer and firing his collection of antique shotguns. We also talked about LEGO.

The Build

Keith Goldman: You primarily build castle and train models, do you find one more challenging than the other, and do you use fundamentally different approaches when building each?

Tony Sava: I find different challenges in each (oh come on, you gotta give me that cop out). Castles, typically, are primarily studs up creations, but they’re very organic, so finding that balance between what is “made by man” and “made by nature” can be tricky. SNOT is typically reserved for detail work, such as windows or flooring. Trains, on the other hand, can be studs up, or no studs up at all, and have the engineering aspect of being animated and navigating track. Steam engines, especially, I view as a prime mix between artistry and engineering, and it’s a challenge I enjoy quite a bit. It takes quite a bit of time to not only get the shapes correct, but to get all the wheels to navigate the track while the pistons fly around them.

More of Keith’s interview with Tony after the jump: Continue reading →

Behind the scenes at the LEGOLAND California Model Shop: an interview with Gary McIntire [part 2]

Interview with LEGOLAND California Master Model Designer Gary McIntire, continued from part 1. We talk a little bit more about design, repair and tools of the trade.

TBB: How do you go about designing and building a model? And how is it different from a fan or personal creation?
GM: When we start, we have to think about the location: sun exposure, guests, and whether it’s indoor or outdoor. Then we have to consider how it’ll be mounted to the ground. What we’re doing is fundamentally different from fan creations or sets because it’s an installation. We have to think about the surfaces, steel braces, and access panels for animation. We also have to get input from other people, I can’t just do whatever I want. It usually starts with a specific model request, then I design from there. I consult image resources. It’s important to keep in mind that what we think something looks like is different from what it actually looks like in real life. There are little details that may not be in our heads, but are what make it. At the same time, caricature is necessary to some extent. Models have to be recognizable, but can suffer from reality. Everyone has to keep in mind that it’s a version of the real thing. It has to look right, but is a model DESIGN, not an absolute replica.

TBB: What’s that on your desk?
GM: Those are a pair of transparent red jewels that are going to go on either end of the Dune Raiders sign in Land of Adventure. They wanted something to fill out the sign, so we worked out this design and after a few sketches, I’m building it (pictured on right with red mock-up interior). The interior is just white, and the last couple outer layers are trans red, so the sun will shine through them a little. They also have a yellow base and clasps to represent the gold.

TBB: What’s up with that Shaq model that has “34” tagged up on his chest?
GM: That’s an example of a mock-up; we’ll usually do that when we need to take into consideration a complicated combination of color and shapes. We’ll do the shape then draw on the areas where there will have to be different colors. Then we’ll rebuild the model knowing where we have to put the appropriate color. Usually the mock-ups are recycled or reused, but that one stayed.

TBB: What kind of tools do you use?
GM: Pliers, cutters, chisel, brick separator, mallet, and a power drill, but I have to build some of my tools, like a Jedi. (laughs) I had to modify a set of needle-nose pliers so they bend in to grab and dig into a glued brick that I’m tearing out (pictured below). I also use a special version of wire cutters to cut studs off. They’re called stud cutters.

TBB: Why do you have to cut studs off?
GM: Some of the models have access panels to allow repairs for the animation inside. Those panels have to slide in an out, and the simplest way is to cut the studs off (example pictured at right). The reason we use regular bricks and plates and remove the studs instead of using tile, is because tile pieces have the little lip at the bottom so they can be taken off plates by little kid fingers. That little tile lip is pretty noticeable on models. The access panel thing brings me back to one of the other things about these installations, we really have to take into consideration the hollows and angles inside a model in order to allow the movement of the animation inside.

TBB: You glue your models right? Why and how do you do that?
GM: Yeah, the models are all glued. A layer of glue is put down, then a whole layer of bricks is applied, until we’re done with the model. The glue is pretty strong, so usually when we have to refurbish or repair, the brick will break before the seal from the glue. I’ve torn apart a lot of bricks. When it’s finished, we also spray on a UV protective clear coat on the exterior that prevents some fading.

TBB: How exactly does the refurbishment process work?
GM: First, we uninstall the model and take it to the model shop by hand, cart or sometimes even with a forklift. The largest models we have to either repair in-place or take directly to our nice brand new blasting facility, which has a little more room. Once we get it in the shop, we clean it to see what we have to work on, then actually do the repairs, which can be rebuilding chunks of worn brick, reinserting glue into cracks between layers then pressing it back together with clamps or replacing extrusions that have broken off. After making the repairs, we sandblast the exterior of the model with crushed walnut shell, which takes off the clear coat and a tiny layer of the outer plastic, which makes the whole exterior a kind of matte finish. Then we spray on a new layer of clear coat on the exterior, which brings the original glossiness of the original bricks right back out. The reason we do the repairs before the sandblasting is because it makes it look more uniform. We can usually do that kind of refurbishment about two or three times to a model before it’s out of commission for good. One fun tidbit is that after about the second blasting, you can’t read the LEGO logo on the tops of studs. After all that is done, we reinstall the model.

TBB: When you’re doing a repair or refurbishment, what other things do you have to take into consideration?
GM: Quite a few things. We try to keep some age and color consistency, so like on a building model I’m replacing right now, since I’m having to replace most of the gray bottom strip of a white building, I’ll go ahead and take off the rest of the gray, so when it’s put back on display, the grays will all match and since the white is in good shape and consistent, it’ll stay the same (Above: Gary removing the gray layer). On other models, some redesign might be necessary because of extrusions or other types of things that I know won’t survive a lot of guest contact. A design for a model can be really great, but sometimes I can tell right away when it’s installed that I’ll need to redesign it during the first refurbishment, because of a feature that will make it more vulnerable to damage. Anything flimsy combined with months or years of guest contact are going to get damaged. Witches noses, tea spouts and monkey fingers are pretty common examples where I’ll need to restructure it or put in some reinforcement when I replace the broken parts.

TBB: What do you do with dropped and damaged brick?
GM: Damaged and glued bricks are recycled (pictured below). Clean bricks from mock-ups–or that got dropped on the floor–we put in another bucket which is sent to the building and play areas, where it’ll be reused.

TBB: What kinds of considerations for the cars and other electronic models?
GM: I work with the animation guys in the next room who do the electronic and mechanical things. They bring me vehicles that need to be refurbished to keep them running correctly, and I have to check with them to make sure the inside space of a car has enough space for the batteries and mechanics.

I’ll post a story soon reflecting on a few of my impressions and additional info we didn’t get to during the formal interview that some of you might be interested in hearing about.

Behind the scenes at the LEGOLAND California Model Shop: an interview with Gary McIntire [part 1]

I was recently fortunate enough to be allowed into the LEGOLAND California Model Shop, and wandered around with Master Model Designer Gary McIntire for over an hour of total LEGO geeking out. I hope you folks will find it as interesting as I did, though be forewarned: it may be the nerdiest interview you’ve ever read.

The Brothers Brick: So Gary, what do you do here?
Gary McIntire: I make magic happen. (laughs) I do repairs around LEGOLAND, give VIP tours, media events, Make-A-Wish Foundation tours, park events, ambassador classes, and judge junior master model builder events. When I’m not doing those things, I redesign, reconstruct and replace models around the park. I also do the design and building of smaller models, though larger design projects go to an off-site design shop. It all used to be done in one shop, but we split into separate maintenance and design shops over a year ago.

TBB: What makes maintenance here at LEGOLAND California different from the other LEGOLAND parks?
GM: The other parks in Europe are closed during the winter and can cover and completely refurbish their models during the off-season when they’re closed, which also serves to protect the models from the elements. Here we’re open year round, except Tuesdays and Wednesdays during the winter, so repairs are intermittent and the models are exposed to sun and guests throughout the year.

TBB: What’s the life cycle of a typical model in the park?
GM: It depends on the location, which will affect how much sun exposure and guest contact it has. It can be as long as 10 years without problems if they’re inside buildings or in the shade. But if it’s in the sun and people can climb on it, it may need to be refurbished within 2 years, with a complete replacement in another 2 years. If you want to see something that’s about at the stage where it needs to be refurbished after 2 years, take a look at the camel in Land of Adventure (pictured on right). The feet and neck get stepped on so kids can climb it to have their picture taken. On other models, major extrusions are likely to get knocked off, so that makes the need for refurbishment more frequent.

TBB: What about in Miniland?
GM: The District of Columbia section (pictured below) has already been refurbished twice and is due for a complete overhaul soon. But San Francisco, because it’s north-facing, has never been refurbished.

TBB: About how much of your time do you spend on Miniland and how much on the other larger models in the park?
GM: About fifty-fifty.

TBB: How many other people work here in the Model Shop with you?
GM: My boss, me, and a half time person, Ed Dowling, who is called a “Miniland Resetter” who just comes in on weekday mornings to make minor repairs to Miniland. Miniland figures near the edge of exhibits that get knocked over, that sort of thing. We also work with Mike Dibble and Denis Wauchope (pictured below) who are in charge of Miniland animation. They’re in the room next door making sure the cars, boats and trains keep moving.

TBB: Where do you get all your LEGO and what do you use the most?
GM: We use a lot of different pieces, though mostly basic brick and plate. In addition to what we already have in the shop, we have overflow brick and plate in storage. We reorder basic elements as we need it or when we run out because of larger projects. When we reorder, it’s straight from Billund, though for some rush orders, we’ll get in touch with the Model Shops at the other LEGOLAND parks. In fact, we just made a request from Windsor. In addition to the basic brick and plate, a very few minifig elements, some DUPLO, no BIONICLE, and a little bit of TECHNIC. We avoid using super-specialized elements. As a LEGO fan before I started working here, I kind of know the available pieces, so if we don’t have something, but I know it’s out there, I know to order it.

TBB: Do you have access to any elements that the general public doesn’t?
GM: Officially, no. The closest thing is a 1×1 round brick that has different sized holes at the top and bottom, that is the exception. We use it for lampposts, with a metal rod on the inside. We also have a catalog of “Q” elements that aren’t in current production, but are available for LEGOLAND, like the 1×1 round plate in green, and some basic elements that come and go from sets. We especially use slopes, basic specialty pieces, rounds and clips in a variety of colors. There are a lot of things that we have in stock, but we use so rarely that we don’t have to reorder. Some of those are out of production and if we run out, it’s done.

TBB: What about colors?
GM: The only colors that we have that aren’t generally available are “skin” and “peach,” which we use for Miniland figure faces, hands, and legs as well as a very few busts of real people or other similar projects. There’s another color that was specially made for a large project at Windsor, which is a sort of glittery milky color for the exterior of a major new sports complex. Maybe Wimbledon? Usually the only time there will be a totally new color is for high profile builds that require a nonexistent color.

In part 2 of the interview, we discuss installation design and tools of the trade.

Jonathan Bender interviews GeekDad John Baichtal

2010 looks like it’s going to be a great year for LEGO literature, with at least two non-fiction books about the adult fan experience due to be published. I’ve had the pleasure of talking with both writers about our hobby and the “LEGO life,” so I was pleased to see one interviewing the other.

In journalist Jonathan Bender‘s interview with GeekDad John Baichtal, the two discuss writing about LEGO, being an AFOL parent, and more.

As a Geekdad, what’s it like to play with LEGO bricks with the next generation?

It was something of a reality check. I was expecting instant love, but there were stumbling blocks. First, the more complicated elements are hard for little kids to figure out…. Second, kids have so many toys and activities these days — interactive games like Wii or the Internet grab kids so much more readily than a bunch of bricks. Nevertheless, my son’s bedroom floor is covered in Lego bricks as I write this.

Read Jonathan’s full interview with John Baichtal on his blog, Brick Bender.

Aged building skills: an interview with Sven Junga

Many LEGO fans were amazed when they saw the Daedalus Landing diorama by Sven Junga, but perhaps more impressive was the young age of the builder who created this masterpiece. In this interview with Sven, who is also one of the friendliest people I’ve corresponded with, I asked the question on many people’s minds: how did he do it?

The Brothers Brick: Tell us about yourself.

Sven Junga: I was born in 1994, which makes me (what some people have questioned) 15 (soon 16) years old. I live in Germany and love to build with Lego. I enjoy many sports, especially mountain biking and track & field; I also play the acoustic guitar. As for my musical tastes, I’m a metal/rock guy and like Metallica, Nickelback etc. I consider myself very ambitious and I like (building) challenges.

TBB: How long have you been building and when did you discover the online community? Which groups and forums are you a part of?

Sven: I’ve been building since I was 3 years old; in 2008 I discovered the online community by making my MOCpages account. My Flickr account was made in 2009 and I’m also a member of the German Lego-site, 1000Steine. There are no LUGs or other offline Lego-communities I’m part of.

TBB: What do you like to build and what are your inspirations?

Sven: As I’m a big fan of nearly all sci-fi series and movies like Star Trek, Stargate, Star Wars and many others, these are my main inspirations. All my builds happen to be very spontaneous. When I see something I want to build, I transform it into Lego in my mind, and sometimes I look for some reference pictures on the internet, but I never make any drawings nor do I spend a long time on preparations. Any creation I plan for a long time probably won’t ever be built.

TBB: Tell us about your recent Daedalus landing diorama. How long did it take and where do you get all the bricks?

Sven: Actually I started off with just the Daedalus in late September. When Shannon Young announced his Vig/orama Contest on MOCpages, I thought it would be cool to build a part of Atlantis as a diorama with the Daedalus landing. Of course I didn’t work on it day and night for two and a half months. I only build when I want to and have enough time, sometimes a MOC stays for a week without any changes and other times I’m caught by some kind of Lego fever which doesn’t let me stop building until a creation is finished.

At the age of 3 I got the old collection of my uncle for Christmas, since then my collection kept growing over the years, so most of the bricks in the diorama I already had. Although I use Bricklink, I don’t just buy everything there – only special parts or those which are really necessary. Furthermore I always take apart older creations for building new ones; that time I wrecked the Juggernaut.

TBB: Many fans dream of building big; how did you do it? Did you build smaller creations at first?

Sven: Of course it’s important to have a big collection, but I think it’s equally important the way someone uses it. If I realize I’m getting short of the desired parts, I try to use other parts which are not being used that often, and many parts that are apparently unfitting look great if used in another way. My builds often scratched the limit of my collection and still do. I also build some small things, but it’s mostly the big MOCs that gather all the attention.

TBB: What advice do you have for aspiring builders?

Sven: I’m not sure if it is possible for me to answer this question. By doing so it would show that I think of myself being better than other FOLs and good enough to give them advice, but in my opinion there is always room for improvement and even the best builder started small. I could say what has already been said many times: keep building, find your style, be creative… and so on. But the only thing I’ll say is: have fun with the bricks!

TBB: What future projects or goals do you have in mind?

Sven: What I have in mind to build changes from day to day so there is no real building goal for me, but on MOCpages and Flickr I’ve read and heard much about the fantastic Lego conventions in the US (BrickCon and Brickworld), and I really hope to go there sometime. Another thing would be finally getting around to organizing my collection; it’s just so much work…

TBB chats with Carl Greatrix, LEGO model designer for TT Games [Interview]

Anyone following Carl Greatrix on Flickr will have noticed he has recently been posting pictures of his builds for the LEGO Indiana Jones 2 game created by TT Games. These offer a fascinating insight into the special job of building LEGO models for games. We’d like to thank Carl and his employers for talking to us about his job.

The Brothers Brick: Age, location, Name, Job?

41, Staffordshire, UK. Carl Greatrix (Bricktrix) TT Games Lego model designer for the offcial Lego digital games

TBB: How did you get the job and how long have you had it?

After seeing the ad on TBB, I decided to send my CV in for consideration. I had not ever anticipated leaving my own business, but being a Lego model designer has always been a secret dream so the temptation to at least give it a shot was too much to resist.

I was contacted to be told I had made the final list of succesful applicants for consideration and we were then tasked with two building challenges from brief. One mechanical and one organic. I was succesful with both and got offered the position after interview, I have now been there almost a year.

TBB: What advice would you give to others in this regard?

I would say to always try and improve your own models in any way you can and keep uploading images of the work that you are pleased with. Anyone unsure of their own standards should keep going. Focus on something you are passionate about and keep building it, looking at all the aspects you love about the theme you are building and try to recreate those as best you can, the missing parts usually then become obvious and fall into place.

I have always got a great deal of inspiration from looking at other peoples builds since I can remember. The more builds uploaded, the higher the bar gets raised. Our artists and designers certainly look through Flickr and Brickshelf for inspiration, so any work posted up will almost certainly get you noticed one day somewhere. Who knows, it may lead to someone getting their dream job also!

TBB: Any big milestones?

Getting the job and having a life change due to it! If you mean build wise, yes, I have been building models that as an AFOL I would never have attempted or even thought of! The imaginations of some of our game designers will never cease to amaze me or bring a smile to my face!

TBB: What does your day to day job entail?

It can be extremely different from day to day so there is no real answer to
that.

To try and explain it as simply as I can, anything from 1 day to 3 weeks can be spent designing a specific model in the brick. It is then sent of for approval by TLG and associated film licence holders. Once/if that is granted I have to digitally build it and do all the technical applications asscoiated with getting it into game, making sure it works correctly in test scenes, etc. The model will then get passed over to animators, cut scene animators and level designers and artsists for them to use how they see fit within game levels.

TBB: How different is that to your hobby building?

Building as an AFOL can be quite different. The builds for in game have certain requirements that need to be met that usually wont be obvious upon inital viewing of them as a static model. Even the smallest version of a vehicle still needs a minimum of a 2 stud space internally for at least a minifig torso and head to fit, we will always do our best to fit a complete figure inside but sometimes it is just not possible. As our games are 2 player based, any vehicle also often requires space for 2 minifigs.

Vehicles usually require working doors and hatches, often boot lids and bonnets also with interior details such as engines or boot space large enough for certain objects to fit within them. This all makes the builds even more challenging.

If I were to build a vehicle for myself, I would not need to have all these features and concentrate instead on the correct look and feel of it. Most builders will understand that by concentrating on a correct external look often requires valuable interior space to be used up in the construction, especially when using SNOT techniques.

Planes need working undercarriage, cockpit space, wing flaps if possible, etc. Organic builds for creatures, etc if building as an AFOL, some lovely builds can be produced. When it comes to a game version, its a different story again as limbs require articulation for animation, that starts to get really challenging when its down at minifg scale. Most organic builds I get tasked with, I initially think ooo, I can do a great version of this or that, then I hear what requirements are needed and my heart sinks as I know that the articulation will make my first thoughts impossible to produce.

TBB: Are there any really special requirements?

Creativity first and foremost, being artistic is also a huge help. Plus we need an understanding of all the technical applications even if they are not part of our own job position.

TBB: What different parties do you have to collaborate/compromise with in order work toward the final product?

Lego set designers and any associated film licence holders (i.e. Lucasarts for Indy2) have to approve the models and designs we build before they can appear in game.This is handled by the “powers that be” above us, the only time we get involved is if we have to take photographs of certain connections to show how they are being made.

TBB: What is the most frustrating aspect of the whole proccess?

Definitely complete vehicles being dropped from game. Its an unfortunate aspect to the industry, sometimes they may be dropped due to complete levels being changed or deleted, or simply not enough time to include them where intended. Some of my favourite models have been dropped and I cant make them public in case we ever require them for some other game.

TBB: Please talk us through the creation of a game model.

Okay, I work from a design brief, this can be anything from being told we just need a generic type of vehicle as a bit of a fun ride-a-round and have pretty much free reign with it, to a specific vehicle that has to fit certain dimensions in game, has lots of requirements for working features, I’ll get to see the level that it will appear in, the colours of the backgrounds, etc which all helps to give me more vision and a “feel” for what I need to be building.

Next step is researching the real object, for some we have studio model pictures from the film companies which are a big help. Others it may be only a couple of freeze frames from film, whilst others will be photographs found by searching the internet.

All the time I am searching I’m starting to think of ways to build in brick. Once I’m happy with the references I have, then I get to work with the bricks, designing and building in the same way that I would for myself other than I really only need to build half of the model.

You may notice in some of my real brick photographs that only one side is completed, this is just to help me when I then come to build it digitally. Being able to view it from the unbuilt side is a great help for speed and lessens the need for it to be pulled apart to see how I built a certain section. (I forget quite quickly with so many models being built!)

From initial brief to being built digitally is roughly 1/3rd of the time spent to getting it working correctly in game. Whilst it may look like I spend my life building Lego, actually 2/3rds of the time is taken up by the technical aspects of the game industry.

TBB: Does your work source parts for the physical models through BrickLink, or do they have an unlimited supply of bricks from LEGO?

I wish we did have an unlimited supply from Lego! ;) We have duplicate sets, 1 of each is on display around the 4 floors of our office building, the others like any self respecting Lego builder, are broken up for parts. I also ordered most parts available in black and grey, just to improve the range of what we had and to include parts I knew I would be using a lot of. This at least allows a more uniformed brick build when we are against deadlines. Now we have the models built in game, we may start looking into Bricklink orders to obtain rarer part / colour combinations to allow the brick builds to be built in colours closest to the colours they appear in game, for display around the office. I have just finalised a further parts order with TLG for all colours / parts.

TBB: How do you keep the design straight without using the right colours?

Usually just by viewing photographs of the real subject that I am working from. Due to time, I will usually just grab whatever parts are closest to hand regardless of colour. If a build does start getting out of hand, I’ll put some wild colours within it as “place holders” to make me aware a colour change should be happening at those points.

Once I then start to build it digitally, I’ll experiment a little further with certain Lego colour palettes as sometimes what I have envisioned in my head colourwise for the build, does not always portray well on screen.

Custom LEGO model kit leads to tactical police response [Interview]

I ran across this story on Thursday and thought it was interesting enough to pass along.

Put yourself in Jeremy Bell’s shoes. You’re a creative director at Teehan+Lax, a Downtown Toronto design firm and a lifelong LEGO fan. You’re having a quiet Tuesday afternoon at the office. Hey, you just got a custom BrickGun model kit of a semi-auto handgun in the mail. Why not build it at your desk? (I for one totally understand, I just did the same thing last week with the Space Police Smash ‘n’ Grab.) After you’re done, you show the model to a co-worker, he breaks it, you put it back in its box, then unwind with some co-workers by playing video games.

Photo above courtesy of National Post and Global TV

The problem is, handguns are illegal in Canada, and gun play at work is generally associated with disgruntled employee rampages, rather than good LEGO design. So that afternoon, a person with a condo overlooking Jeremy’s window office saw him assembling the model, thought it was a real handgun and called the police. (He has since apologize via Twitter, Facebook and a handmade sign put up in his window.)

About an hour after putting away the model gun, the gaming was interrupted by yelling in the hallway. Jeremy peeked into the hall and saw members of the Toronto Police Emergency Task Force with real big guns pointed at him. He cooperated, got ‘cuffed, told them to check out the LEGO gun in his office, and he was uncuffed in about 90 seconds. Done, right?

It became a slightly bigger deal because people in and immediately around the building were detained, had big guns pointed at them, the street was closed off by half a dozen police cars, a couple ambulances waited nearby, and a helicopter hovered overhead. For details on the basic facts of the story, the best details and perspective are in Jeremy’s blog, but also check out some of the local Toronto online news outlets like GlobalToronto and Torontoist, where I first ran across the story.

Jeremy is now obviously being pestered by media all across Canada, and even by US LEGO nerds like me. He was gracious enough to answer a few questions:

The Brothers Brick: How do you feel about all this attention over a bizarre misunderstanding?
Jeremy Bell: I could do without the attention, but I do find the whole situation hilarious. Don’t get me wrong, guns in the workplace aren’t cool, and I’m aware that people have been killed over similar misunderstandings—luckily this event didn’t turnout the same.

TBB: What form has your LEGO fandom taken? Collector, builder, sets, your own creations, just looking?
JB: I’ve been a fan of Lego since I was a little kid, but it’s not something I spend a lot of time playing with now. That said, I’ll usually assemble actual kits and then combine the pieces with the rest of my collection and build my own creations.

TBB: Was the ordering of the custom gun kit a bit of lark? How did you find out about the kit? Was it any good?
JB: I discovered the BrickGun kit on a design blog (if I recall correctly), so ya… it was a bit of a lark. The kit had about 250 pieces in it, plus some elastic bands. Was it any good? Well, I got arrested… that’s gotta count for something I guess.

TBB: According to the other news stories, you’re the Creative Director at a design company? How has this affected your professional relationships, since this went down at work?
JB: Excellent question about the work side of things… no one has asked that yet. At the moment, all of our clients seem to think it’s pretty humours (although we haven’t heard from all of them yet). We’ll see how this shakes out next week.

TBB: How about your family?
JB: My family’s always known I was a Lego fan, so they weren’t surprised to see what I built. That said, my wife wasn’t so thrilled when she found out.

Thanks, Jeremy!

From looking at BrickGun’s website, they’re a little overwhelmed by the media driven orders because of this story, so if this gets you all excited to order something from them, good luck trying to get it in time for the holidays.

Manchester Master Builder Auditions Report [Interview]

James Shields traveled all the way from Ireland to Manchester in order to audition for a master builder spot at the new LEGOLAND Discovery Center there. We announced the auditions last week, and James went to check it out. He’s posted photos for everyone, and graciously agreed to this interview about the process.

TBB: Thanks for telling us about your experiences in Manchester, James. Let’s get started: Was this an all-day affair?

JS: Yes, it ran from about 10am until nearly 5pm.

TBB: Did they give you a building challenge? If so, what was it?

JS: There were two building challenges. For the first round we had 15 minutes to build an animal of our choice. This sounds easy,. but 15 minutes disappears incredibly quickly. I built a polar bear (though it started out intending to be a gorilla). About half of the candidates got through to the second challenge, which was to build a face. Again, it was up to us what face we wanted to build, and what techniques we wanted to use. I went for the fantasy author Terry Pratchett because I’m a fan of his work, and I thought he looked distinctive. Again an hour is very tight for this, so I concentrated on the centre of the face, with a view to expanding it if there was time left over. I built upwards, using sculpting techniques, and was quite pleased with the result, although I only got from the lips to the forehead (it would have been nice to include the beard and Terry’s distinctive hat). There were some excellent builds, and I wouldn’t have liked to be judging, but I was very pleased to get through to the final four and the interview stage.

TBB: Were there a lot of other AFOLs there trying for the job? What about non-AFOLs?

JS: Most of the participants were AFOLs to some degree, and there were clearly some very talented builders. However, one of the finalists hadn’t touched a brick in ten years – he said that Lego had inspired him to become a professional modelmaker using other materials.

TBB: What did the non-AFOLs think of the hobby, assuming they were aware of it?

JS: The one I spoke to said he was seriously thinking of unpacking his old Lego collection.

TBB: Do you think that being an active LEGO hobbiest helped you out in this process, or was that not a factor in what they were looking for?

JS: Definitely. I think the biggest factor was the skills I’ve developed over the last few years. In the interview stage I also stressed AFOL activities I’ve been involved in and how they are (hopefully) relevant to the position.

TBB: The big question for me, was it fun?

JS: Yes, I thoroughly enjoyed the whole day, especially the building challenges.

TBB: Is there anything else you’d like to add about the process?

JS: A major part of the event was to win publicity for the LDC, so everything was under the scrutiny of cameras, and we were all interviewed to camera several times during the day. It was made clear that PR was part of the modelmaker’s role, and as a result they wanted someone who can handle it.

David Pagano interviews Sean Kenney on New York Geekcast

David Pagano has interviewed LEGO Certified Professional and MOCpages founder Sean Kenney.

Photo of Sean from Sean’s website

Head on over to the New York Geekcast to download the podcast.