BBCC Winnerview #3: Bundalings

Better late than never is a maxim by which we proudly live here at TBB (Though if we really cared we'd blog about those BBCC54 entries. Maybe later.), and so we are pleased to present an interview with Bundalings, winner of BZPower's 51st Bionicle Based Creations Contest with his Batterfly.
TBB: Congratulations on getting a BBCC win all to yourself for the first time! Anything you'd care to tell us about your winning entry? Perhaps how the building process went, or any obstacles you encountered?

Thank you! And thanks for interviewing me. It makes me feel all special inside. Ah, the MOC. Well, when I heard about the theme, I instantly gravitated to Eisley's music. It's very visual, at least to me. And then I instantly gravitated to their most bizarre and possibly demented song, Marvelous Things. So yeah.
At first I was a bit (read: a heck of a lot) worried about making a bat... with butterfly wings. But then I randomly (but pleasingly) found that tentacles make wonderfully skeletal shapes when looped, and Nuparu Mahri armor makes great ears. The rest just kind of fell together...
Except for the legs. Is it safe to say I still hat them? I do. I really hat them. I spent lots of time on them and they still aren't eye pleasing. Icky.


TBB: How do you start work on any given MOC? Do you usually have a good idea of what you're aiming for, or do you make it up as you go?

That depends. Usually I have a vague idea, like I see a picture and think "oh, that would make a cool MOC," and other times I just sit down and mess with parts. I'm sure it happens with everyone, but more than half the time you end up with something unexpected.


TBB: What genre, if any, of MOCs do you most enjoy building?

I like building a variety, but Rahi are always fun. You can build all sorts of crazy things and just pass it off as a Rahi... with rockets on it's back...
I've been dabbling in Mecha some lately as well.


TBB: For this entry you obviously were inspired by the song Marvelous Things. From what other sources do you derive inspiration whilst building?

Inspiration comes from everywhere. Movies, books... but a lot of times I'll see another builder do something crazy and I think, "can I imitate that and get away with it?" Usually the answer is yes, since what I end up with is usually pretty mutilated. Sometimes in a good way, sometimes in a bad way, but I just keep messing with it until it either: A] Works. B] I get sick of it. C] Another BBC contest starts and I have to pirate the pieces. Arrr.


TBB: Any bunniful advice for your fellow MOCers?

Don't be afraid to be a copy cat in the privacy of your own home. By imitating other people, you can find out how their style works, and so refine your own. But it's probably not a good idea to post the exact same MOC as someone else... without credit... yeah, someone did that to me. I am still really ticked, 'cause they didn't give credit--

BUNNY TRAIL

Back on topic. If you DO copy someone's design, give credit. Also: If at first you don't succeed, give up dramatically, and someone will probably shove you hard enough to get you back to work.


TBB: Which summer sets are you most excited for?

Mata Nui looks kk, Stronius and Ackar look awesome... and who could hat the rickety Thornatus and hugimongus (but still red ;_;) Skopio? Summer has a pretty good lineup, really, bar the Baranus and Titan Mata Nui. It's hard to just choose a couple.

TBB: Anything else you'd like to say?

Thanks for interviewing me... LONG LIVE LAPRAS.

Words to live by, those.Thanks to Bundalings for his interview, and watch this blog for interviews with the winners of BBCCs 53 and 54, hopefully coming soon. Hopefully.

BBCC Winnerview #2: Dr. Keerakh

They thought I had forgotten. Or more likely, they had forgotten. But they were wrong. This contest's winnerview is with Dr. Keerakh, who won BBCC #49 with his Armored Protector.

TBB: Congratulations on winning your first BBC Contest! Anything you'd care to tell us about your winning entry? Perhaps how the building process went?

Dr. K: Thank you! The building process was more or less an accident, starting off with a simple Metruan torso. I experimented with several pieces, namely Nuva armor, and decided to see how much armor I could load onto this Matoran. Eventually, I realized the armor was far too bulky for a Matoran to be practical, so I settled on a Toa instead. As I had already sealed off the bottom of the torso with a Nuva shoulder armor piece, incorporating a waist was definitely tricky. Eventually however, I got it right and continued with legs, arms, and wings. Due to the bulky nature, movement is restricted in the legs and arms in slight ways. Although I'm not necessarily proud of it, this MOC was started before the contest.

TBB: Before starting work on a MOC, do you plan it all out beforehand or make most of it up as you go?

Dr. K: I rarely have a definite idea of where to go before I begin a MOC. I may have an idea of what I want it to represent, and perhaps what kind of pieces to use, but never have I actually planned out the build before getting my hands on pieces. Generally, by the time I'm halfway done with the torso I know where I"m going with it and can appropriately build from there on.

TBB: What genre, if any, of MOCs do you most enjoy building?

Dr. K: Regretfully, humanoids. However, I rarely settle for a typical Toa, instead putting a spin on it. With Armored Protector, that spin was bulk and majesty. One of my unpublished MOCs, a black and tan robot, is thin and wiry, focusing in lightness and speed. If I ever do make a simple Toa humanoid, I like to incorporate an interesting weapon, wings, or something to give it flair and personality. Also, I've recently been experimenting in larger titan MOCs as I once did as a younger MOCist, but now with more skill. My main BBCC 50 MOC is a titan, and one I'm truly proud of. I sense that this is were I'll be heading in the future.

TBB: Is there anything in particular that you tend to draw a lot of inspiration from? And more specifically, from what sources, if any did you get the idea for your winning MOC?

Dr. K: I admire the creations of ToM, Shannara, DV, and Roa particularly. ToM and DV always make a MOC look elegant and flowing; Shannara is very creative in his designs, and Roa has the very unique skill of making a cluttered MOC look very good. I draw on all those things when MOCing. Also, I greatly admire the works of Brickshelf members Toa Ju and LOVEJOINT. Both are amazing titan builders, and have heavily influenced by BBCC 50 entry. I have imitated to Toa Ju's leg upper leg design somewhat in my entry, and the incredible Japanese-esque flair that LOVEJOINT puts in his MOCs have inspired me too. Check their galleries out. They're both great.

TBB: What advice would you give to your fellow MOCers? Building tips, advice on attitude, anything.

Dr. K: Well, for one thing, be different. Same old Toa humanoids are getting old. Invoke interest, be bold and give your MOC flair and personality. In many situations, bigger is better. Have fun and go over the top if you want! Armored Protector went over the top with weapons and armor. You can do the same with wings, decorations, anything. MOCs can go in many directions though. Don't be fooled into thinking every MOC has to be a grand show. ToM's rose was simple, elegant, but great. Still, don't be afraid to take risks. I went crazy trying to make a huge dragon, and still have an unfinished torso laying around. Will I ever finish it? I don't know, but hey! It's worth the experience.

TBB: Thanks for taking the time to do this. Anything else you'd care to share with us?

Dr. K: Thank you for interviewing me. Be on the lookout for my contest entry coming soon. WIP pics coming soon as well to my blog. See ya!

Certainly an excellent interview. I'll try to be more on-the-ball with the next one, so keep your eyes peeled! I'll also try to branch out from MOCing-specific questions.

BBCC Winnerview #1: ToM Dracone!

Today the BioniBlog presents an exciting new exclusive feature, namely, "winnerviews" with the winners of the BBCC Contests over on BZPower. The most recent contest's winner is ToM Dracone on BZP, AKA MuffinToa on Brickshelf. His MOC, The Priestess of Earth, won first place in BBCC#49, which required entrants to build a largely Bionicle vignette.

I've had this idea to interview BBCC winners in the back of my mind ever since Masoko Tanga interviewed the Arvo Bros., but only now has it become a reality. So, without further ado, the interview:

Me: Congratulations on winning your fourth BBC Contest. Anything you'd care to tell us about your winning entry? Perhaps how the building process went, or any obstacles you encountered?

ToM: Thanks! I think the biggest problem was getting started, since at first I didn't have any clear idea how to build the tree. I wound up just building from the ground up, literally, adding bits of trunk as ideas came to me and then doing the leaves once I remembered various large green pieces I could make use of. I actually got a lot of inspiration from Shan's Mata-Nui MOC for the leaves...Building the base was an interesting process, too, as I had previously only used System pieces in Bionicle MOCs, never working Bionicle pieces onto a System-dominated base.

Me: Your models often have designs that would be termed complex by most people. Before starting work on a MOC, do you plan it all out beforehand or make most of it up as you go?

ToM: I usually have a general image in my mind, so I know what pieces I might use for certain parts beforehand, but how to connect those ideas usually comes as I build. So, for instance, I might decide to use Nuva chest armor, but I usually don't know how to make the rest of the body until I try. Still, I usually have at least a few ideas about how to build certain parts.

Me: What genre, if any, of MOCs do you most enjoy building?

ToM: Not really sure how I would classify my MOCs into genres, except for the obvious genre of Black Fantasy... but I like building small things, which I guess is something.

Me: Looking at your Brickshelf, I've noticed some System MOCs, but the majority of your creations are built with Bionicle and Technic. Do you prefer Bionicle and Technic building to System, and if so, why?

ToM: I don't really like either one better; I have more Bionicle MOCs mostly because I just get more ideas for building them. Though, there was a time a couple years ago where I had a streak of building System... so it's really because I'm just more involved with Bionicle than System on the whole that makes me build with Bionicle/Technic more.

Me: Is there anything in particular that you tend to draw a lot of inspiration from? And more specifically, was the idea for your most recent winning entry inspired by the Shakespeare scene from which the quote in the entry pic originated?

ToM: Nothing in particular, I think. In most cases I dream up an idea either out of the blue or decide to build something that's been floating around in my head as a concept for some time, and when it actually is inspired by something, there's no consistent pattern.
As to the second part, actually no. I built the MOC and the Priestess and her cauldron partly out of a fascination with witches and magic and mythologies that I've had for a while (and a love for forests), then realized the Macbeth quote fit the scene nicely...

Me: In addition to MOCing, you're also quite proficient at drawing and writing. Do you often gain inspiration for a MOC from a story or drawing of yours, or vice versa?

ToM:From writing, yes; a fair amount of my MOCs (or half-finished ideas lying on my floor) come from Bionicle stories I've written. Though I can't recall ever having built anything as a result of something I've drawn.

Me: What advice would you give to your fellow MOCers? Building tips, advice on attitude, anything.

ToM: Color scheme is sacred. So is flow. To elaborate, colors must both work together, be organized into something coherent, and be distributed so that there's a balance between the constituent colors. You also should avoid having too many colors – more than three main colors can be difficult to work with. And if you do have more than that, the additional colors should really be left as accents instead of having all of them in equal amounts.
As to flow, different areas of an MOC need to work together just as well. Both in that one part of an MOC should smoothly lead to the next part, and that ideally the textures of different areas should go together – you wouldn't want one area to be really complex and cluttered and the next to be smooth and made of a single stock piece.

Me: Thanks very much for taking the time to do this. Have you any further nuggets of wisdom you'd care to share with us?

ToM: Yes, that stock pieces are not always evil the way some would have you think they are. Sometimes a stock piece in a certain place results in a far more elegant appearance than a custom build would. And sure thing; this was rather interesting to come up with answers to. ^_^

Certainly some wise words contained therein. Thanks again to ToM for agreeing to do this!