Please welcome Jonny Campbell (aka Diving Faces), our new 10k Club member and a big JAWS fan! His first 10k idea JAWS is based on the 1975 movie directed by Steven Spielberg and the 1974 novel by Peter Benchley.
ABOUT YOURSELF
- Who are you?
Jonny Campbell
- Where are you from?
I’m from Newtownards, a small town just outside Belfast in Northern Ireland.
- How old are you?
40
- What do you study or do for a living?
I work in a Government Finance Department.
- What hobbies do you have?
My main hobby is building with LEGO, whether it is making MOCs, building sets, or making random creations with my son and daughter. I also enjoy building scale models, model railways, drawing, painting, playing video games, watching movies, and playing football amongst many other things.
- Do you have a personal LEGO portfolio website that you can share with us?
I put most of my MOCs onto Instagram (I’m fairly new to using it).
Jonny Campbell (@divingfaceslego)
- Have you created any LEGO MOCs (my own creations) that you’re particularly proud of? What is it, why are you proud of it and do you have a photo of it?
My favourite MOCs other than JAWS are my Blue Thunder helicopter and a MOC I made of my family outside our home.
The Blue Thunder helicopter was particularly challenging as the number of parts available in Dark Blue are fairly limited compared with say Light Bluish Gray so I am very pleased how it turned out.
The build of my family outside our home it probably my most treasured MOC. What’s more important than family (and LEGO)!
- How and when did your interest in LEGO come about?
My first memories of LEGO are from when I was very young. My grandfather was a big fan of LEGO but unfortunately, he passed away when I was 3 years old. The LEGO he had was shared out between his grandchildren and I remember receiving the Thatcher Perkins Locomotive (396) and the Truck with Excavator (383) along with a box or random LEGO bricks/parts. My love for LEGO has continued ever since then!
- What is LEGO for you? What does it mean for you? How does it fit in your life? E.g. build, display, meetups, play the games or 'just' watch the cartoons.
LEGO has always been a part of my life in some shape or form. Growing up I always enjoyed playing with LEGO and making all sorts of creations, usually trying to re-create a scene from something I had just watched on television. That’s the wonderful thing about LEGO - you can make anything your imagination allows you to! Then as an adult, I got to re-live this again with my children, only this time exploring new themes. My son introduced me to the world of Minecraft and the LEGO Collectable Mini-figures Series’ and my daughter the world of LEGO Friends and Disney Princesses. I also really enjoy the LEGO video games. The original LEGO Batman is probably still my favourite. My son and I are really looking forward to playing the new LEGO Star Wars game when it comes out.
- What is your favourite LEGO theme (current or past)? Why? And has any theme inspired your building style or preference in any particular way?
I enjoy any LEGO theme (it’s all LEGO) but my favourite is Ideas because of the uniqueness of each individual set. I also really like the Creator Expert sets and the attention to detail in them. There isn’t any particular theme that has inspired my building style. I find that by building sets from different themes it helps to build up your knowledge of the various LEGO elements and colours and also introduces you to lots of different building techniques.
- What is your favourite official LEGO set? Why?
My favourite LEGO set ever is (7622) Indiana Jones - Race for the Stolen Treasure. I’m a huge movie fan and Raiders of the Lost Ark is up there in my top 3 (JAWS is number 1). I remember seeing this set in a toy shop and being filled with excitement. The most iconic scene from one of my favourite movies. I remember taking it home, building it, and looking at it and thinking that it was just brilliant. For any LEGO sets that I buy, I always keep the box and instructions, but this one time the box and instructions went straight into the bin as I knew I’d never want to re-sell it or even take it apart for any reason.
- What is your favourite LEGO element? Why?
My favourite LEGO element is anything with studs on the side (bricks/brackets). These parts change the whole dynamics of LEGO building and allow you to create much more complex and detailed builds. When I was younger I remember having just 2 (1 x 1 Brick Headlight) pieces and they both went into almost everything that I made. I was never done looking for them!
- Is there a LEGO designer (official LEGO designer or fan designer) who you are inspired by and look up to? Who and why?
LEGO designer Adam Grabowski. He has made some amazing creations, 76052 – Batman Classic TV Series - Batcave being one of my favourites. I’m also inspired by LEGO designer Jamie Berard, 10226 – Sopwith Camel being my favourite of his creations.
I also really enjoy looking at the ideas posted to LEGO Ideas (it’s getting hard to keep up). There are so many talented LEGO builders out there and there are loads of amazing ideas and builds.
- Is there one or more particular LEGO-related websites (not official LEGO websites) that you visit often and/or are inspired by?
I often visit Bricklink for ordering parts for MOCs and enjoy the various LEGO Facebook groups. I visit Eurobricks from time to time as there are some amazing builds on there. I also enjoy watching LEGO-related YouTube videos such as those by Beyond the Brick and I also find MandRproductions entertaining.
ABOUT YOUR PROJECT
- Where did your interest in this particular model come from?
JAWS is my favourite movie of all time. I remember asking my Dad years ago what his favourite movie was and I expected him to say Indiana Jones or Back to the Future but he told me that JAWS was his favourite movie. When I asked him why, he told me that it was because it was entertaining from start to finish, had fantastic characters played by great actors and had a great storyline. He said that he walked out of the cinema and thought to himself, “I don’t think I’ll ever see a better movie.” Having watched JAWS several times myself – I have to agree with everything he said. JAWS truly is a fantastic movie or ‘Summer Blockbuster’ if you like! I just had to recreate it in LEGO form.
- How long was the process of making the project did, and what did you have to research as well. What kind of prep, research and design phases did you go through to produce your creation?
It took a few months to make the project (on and off). I had previously done a JAWS painting of the ORCA at sea so had already done a bit of research as to what it looked like. I watched lots of LEGO JAWS YouTube videos and researched JAWS pictures on the internet. In order to get all of the finer details I actually freeze-framed JAWS as I watched it so that I could catch a glimpse of the finer details taking notes as I went along. For the shark I wanted him to appear as he does for the majority of the movie (as a fake shark) so I looked at pictures of Great White sharks as well as photos of “Bruce” the actual animatronic shark for the movie.
- What special challenges did you face creating the model? What was the most difficult part to recreate?
Getting the shark’s top and bottom teeth to curve around at the front was quite a challenge particularly given the fairly small space to work within. I also had to be careful that he wouldn’t bite me. Putting your hands in a shark’s mouth isn’t recommended. :)
- If you could talk to yourself before you started on this project, what would you tell him/her? What do you know now that you wish you knew then?
In all honesty, I never thought one of my projects would get to 10k. I always thought it was all about having your own social media links and being able to advertise to your followers. I’m very humble in the fact that I’ve been proven wrong. I am so grateful to everyone who took the time to support, comment on or share the project. It means so much to me and I hope it inspires everyone else out there that if your project is good enough you do have a chance!
- How long did it take to complete the model? Did you finish it fairly quickly, or did it take a long time? And how did the build time compare to the time you spent promoting your Product Idea to reach 10,000 supporters?
It took around a week to make the model although I have upgraded it a number of times throughout the process - all in all probably around 2-3 weeks of building time. I posted my idea on a few social media sites but other than that I didn’t do a lot of promoting. Unfortunately, we don’t have any LEGO conventions or similar in Northern Ireland so promotion of the idea was limited to social media.
- How did it feel when you reached the magic 10,000 votes and how long did it take?
It took just over 8 months for the project to reach 10,000 votes. I would again just like to take the opportunity to thank each and every person that supported and shared the project. As for how did I feel… words just can’t explain!
- Approximately how many LEGO bricks did you use to create your model?
The boat (ORCA) is 1040 pieces and the shark is 556 pieces. The set also includes 3 mini-figures.
- What is your favourite building technique or part/section that you’ve incorporated into your Product Idea?
I particularly like the bow of the boat. It was quite difficult to get the shape but I really like how it looks.
- If you built your model digitally, what software did you use to build and render your model?
I used Stud.io to digitally build the model and to render it. I also used it to then source the additional bricks I needed through Bricklink to make the model in real-life to ensure that it actually all fits together and is buildable.
- If you used custom stickers or prints for your design, how did you create them or where did you get them?
There are only a couple of stickers used in the project. I used MS Paint to create them.
ABOUT LEGO IDEAS
- Do you have any useful advice about creating a successful LEGO Ideas project?
Create something that you are passionate about and believe in. You will get much more from it if it is something you feel strongly about.
Keep looking at your project to see if there is anything that can be improved and take on board any feedback you receive.
The main picture is what will attract people to your project. Try to make it as good as you possibly can. Attention to detail is key.
Remember that there is no ‘set in stone’ formula for creating a successful LEGO Ideas Product Idea, just do the best that you can. The more effort you put in, the less luck you will need.
- What (if any) methods did you use to advertise and attract support to your Product Idea?
I posted my project on a few LEGO-related and JAWS-related Facebook pages and a few Reddit Groups. I also posted on Twitter and Instagram (both of which I’m still trying to get to grips with). I did notice that throughout the gathering support phase lots of people shared my project which I’m sure went along way to help it achieve the support needed.
- What is your favourite LEGO Ideas Product Idea (besides your own of course)? Are there any Product Ideas you think have been overlooked?
A very difficult choice but my favourite official LEGO Ideas Product would be 21303 WALL-E. He looks awesome - the build really captures his character. For those overlooked I’d probably say Johnny Five, The Goonies and The Pursuit of Flight, though luckily I’ll be able to get that one through the Bricklink Designer Programme.
- What is it about the platform that attracts you? What tips would you give to anyone who is thinking about uploading an idea?
The thought of being able to be a part of an official LEGO set is just mind-blowing. Imagine standing in a shop looking at the shelves and seeing a set that you have been involved with and watching someone buying it. It’s every LEGO fan’s dream!
For anyone thinking of uploading an idea - go for it and remember the most important thing is to have fun! That’s what LEGO (and life in general) is all about!
- Do you have plans to submit any other Product Ideas in the future? If yes, can you give us a hint of what that might be?
I’m sure I will. I love building LEGO and sharing my creations on Ideas. I have some ideas in mind! A castle that’s not gray and a functioning coast guard rescue set to name a few. They’re both very much in the early thought process stage though!
By
Kamila9