Wednesday, January 28, 2015

SKI x LOOT CRATE = AWESOME!

 The guys form Loot Crate approached me at WonderCon 2014. This is a "little behind the scenes" of this project.
This is essentially a brand new Mini 10-Doh! figure. New hands, new shoes, and they include an accessory for the 1st time ever. This image shows how some of things changed throughout development.


Here are the mockups I did to show Loot Crate what I was thinking of doing. I wanted the labels that I created to be based on Zapper games. The Gumshoe/Bladerunner got replaced with Drx. Who, and the Gold one hadn't been thought of yet.


We also decided to do some new packaging. It's based on the original 7in 10-Doh! figure packaging. I'll probably continue to use this shape for future Mini 10-Doh! figures.


I made one trip to China to do final approvals for this project. I'm never there during actual production, so I always ask the factory to send me some photos. These images were amazing to me. Sooooooo many pieces. Ha. 


Here are a just a few of the steps in the process like assembly, applying labels, and packing. It's always cool for me to see progress shots of my products.


Most people aren't aware, but there's been huge delays importing stuff for a variety of reasons. My stuff got delayed and flagged for a US customs inspection. The image on the right shows all of the products in January's Rewind Crate. Due to the delay, it has a red "X" where a Mini 10-Doh! should be. It was crazy stressful, but it all worked out.


This was by far the largest project I've ever done for one of my own products. It was crazy to see all of these boxes in person at the Loot Crate warehouse. 


This label was done by my good friend Chito Arellano, aka @kwestone on Instagram. I have a ton of his work hanging up at home and I wanted other people to see it as well. He's obviously a fan of rabbits and Back to the Future.


If you couldn't tell, this is a mashup of Wild Gunman and Mars Attacks. This one is probably my favorite.


I wanted Loot Crate to design a couple of the labels as well. They know their fans well and I would have never done a Dr. Who mashup. I've just never got into the show, but I do like Dr. Mario. Ha.


Firefly is one of my favorite shows of all time, and almost everyone owned Duck Hunt. It wasn't easy to make Serenity all pixelated, but I think most people get it.


The Fifth Element is a polarizing movie. Some people love it, others hate it. I happen to love it and when I looked at the Hogan's Alley label, all I could see was a Mangalore from The Fifth Element.


 I left the gold design up to Loot Crate. I've already designed at least 3 gold 10-Doh! figures, and nothing popped into my brain right away. It's a great fit, even though there are 2 BTTF designs in the assortment. You can never have too much BTTF. Ha.


I also subscribe to Loot Crate. This was only my 3rd time receiving one, but I thought it would be cool to open it up on a Toy Brief with my friends at Toy Break. You can watch it here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpLfZFrG80o

It's been a crazy experience working with Loot Crate and getting these figures made. Overall, the response has been very positive. Of course, there are always people that don't quite understand what I do or why I do it, buuuuut who cares. I like what I do, and I plan on doing it as long as I can.