The Office

I want to thank all of you that have supported me and this campaign (and my last campaign) to get LEGO to make a set based on ‘The Office’!  It’s been a long road.  From the first time I thought of this back in 2013, to designing the first prototype in 2014-2015, the first “Lego The Office” campaign, to this new prototype and new campaign.  But through it all I wouldn’t have gotten here if it were not for all of you!  Thank you!

It looks like we’re going to hit our goal soon and I won’t be able to update the project page once it hits 10k, but there are still so many more updates I plan to share over the next few months so please make sure to follow my social media accounts!  If you have any questions please make sure to check the F.A.Q below!

Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/Legotheoffice/

Twitter
https://twitter.com/legotheoffice

Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/legotheoffice/

It’s been about a month since my last update and we’re getting close our 10k goal.  I’m just amazed at the overwhelming support I’ve been receiving from the fandom.  I have been busy with work, but I’ve also been working on the set while I can.  I’ve also been asked two questions that I will address just in case we hit 10k supporters soon and I’m unable to update the campaign.

• “Can you reduce the size of the set more?”

Technically yes, you could reduce the set to just the left side (comprised of Michael’s office, the conference room, Jim & Pam’s desk).  The conference room is a good communal space for all the characters.  I built the whole office because I just couldn’t bring myself to omit anything if I could.  But if it comes down it it, the set could be reduced to the left side and we could use the simpler desk design from my first Lego The Office set (3x6 design vs my current 4x8 design).  The number of minifigures could also be reduced more.

• “Are all the characters included?”

I mocked up the characters (and their accessories) that I could, but the final determination which characters that would make it to the final set would be up to LEGO and NBC.  I just wanted to spec out all the options I could.  The proposal has 17 potential minifigures, but if the set is reduced to just the left side then that could be brought down further.  

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As a thank you to everyone who has supported the set so far, please check out this sneak peek at all the potential character models.  I’ll be showcasing each character on my social media over the next few weeks!  I hope you enjoy these updated pictures!

There are a lot of people I want to thank for supporting this idea!  I”m going to keep updating this entry to try and keep track of everyone!  

Thank you to my #1 fan, Nina aka @DunderMifflinPaperCo on Instagram for always encouraging me and supporting my ideas.  

Thank you to my friends on YouTube, The Normies for also being so supportive on their social media accounts and sharing this design.  

Thank you to “The Office Daily” on Facebook, one of my favorite Facebook pages about The Office.  

I am also very thankful to Kate Flannery, Jenna Fischer, Angela Kinsey, David Buckley and Brian Baumgartner for being so supportive of my work over the years!  And thank you to AJR, who released the hit “Netflix Trip” last year (which was about the Office!  You should check it out!).  

Most importantly, I also want to thank the hundreds of Office fans and accounts that have been spreading the word on social media and voting for my Lego The Office design.  Your support means the world to me!

Quick note before I get into your frequently asked questions…. Wow, thank you all for supporting my “Lego The Office” set idea.  I appreciate all the Office fans coming out and voting, as I’m writing this we’re about a week in and we’re past 2,500 of the 10,000 votes we need!  The “Lego The Office” set has been trending #1 on Lego’s website for the last week!  

I especially want to thank my followers on my Instagram that submitted questions for the F.A.Q.  I picked the 10 best and most common questions!  I'm also sharing the tile design for my "Lego The Office" logo, which I'd like to add as a plaque to the set!  I hope you like it!  Keep voting, keep posting, keep sharing!  - Lego The Office

1.  I love this!  I want to help because I want a “Lego The Office” set, what do I do?

• “I am so impressed with the potential you see in me.” - Michael Scott

Thank you!  If you support the idea of a “Lego The Office” set, click the blue “Support” button to vote for the proposal.  You have to register an account (which I think you do quicker by logging in through your Facebook or Gmail+ account if you have one).

Then spread the word!  You can follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter (@LegoTheOffice) to help share pictures and memes! 

Once the campaign hits 10,000 votes Lego will officially review the set to see if they want to produce it. That can take some time, so the quicker we get the 10k votes the faster the set gets reviewed.  Hopefully by next year there will be official sets hitting the shelves for the 15th Anniversary of the show.  We can only try and hope!

2.  Where is the Kitchen, Annex or Warehouse?

• “I did not want to go back to the annex, because that is where Holly worked, whom I loved.” - Michael Scott
• “Also, it’s icky back there.” - Dwight Schrute
• “That is true, people say it’s icky.” - Michael Scott

Sorry, but I wanted to make sure not to make the size of this set too large.  Besides the fact Lego has size limits, any “Lego The Office” set would be pretty big.  Any idea I submit has to be realistic for Lego to produce.  So those areas had to be excluded otherwise there would be less of a chance there would be an official set for the show.  This design is what I feel is the best chance to get an official "Lego The Office" on shelves for the fans to purchase.

I’ve also had people ask me if I could submit more ideas to add those areas later, but if this were officially created, Lego wouldn’t accept anymore ideas for The Office.  It's also against Lego's rules to submit an idea for a series of sets (although it has been known to happen later).

It’s also why I spent time on the 2-in-1 design so fans could have the freedom to build the Lego The Office set however they like.  If they want the entire set they could do that, but the design also allows the set to be produced by Lego in a smaller and more cost effective design.

I really don’t want any Lego The Office fans declaring bankruptcy just to buy this set.  :)

3.  Where is Karen, Holly, Nellie, Robert California, Plop, Clark, Gabe, Jo Bennet, David Wallace, Jan Levinson, Mose or Nate?  Where is the film crew?

• “I…. Declare…. Bankruptcy!!”  - Michael Scott

I only created minifigures for characters that were part of the principal cast for more than 1 season.  I had to make the size of this design realistic & affordable for Lego to produce for fans.  

However, I do have mini-figures for David Wallace, Jan, Nellie, Holly and Mose...  They just aren’t part of the official proposal. but I will share picture of them soon.  I can’t promise anything, but if Lego & NBC chooses to add any other characters it would have to be up to them.

4.  Jim & Toby’s hair color isn’t quite right.  Why is Jim blonde?  Why is Toby angry?  Why are the colors wrong?

• “Why are you the way that you are?  Every time I try to do something fun or exciting, you make it not that way.” - Michael Scott

Jim’s hair isn’t blonde, Angela’s hair is blonde.  But certain parts, like Jim’s hair, only comes in certain colors from Lego.  I know Jim’s hair is browner, but there isn’t an official Lego piece with his exact hair color shade but this dirty blonde is the closest I could get.  Same with certain outfits, I used the best parts I could get my hands on.  I can tweak some things a little, but making new hair colors is or expressions is kind of beyond my capabilities.  I’m just an Office fan like you all.  

But, Lego can produce the parts with the right colors if they choose to make the set.  As long as it is close I think you can tell who is who.

5.  How did you build this?

• “There's a lot of beauty in ordinary things, isn't that kind of the point?” - Pam Halpert

I gathered parts from existing Lego sets and used my imagination to start building.  When I was a kid I loved Lego, my sister and I would play with it, I think it is wonderfully creative.  When I got older, I became that uncle that introduced Lego to all my nieces and nephews.  

But building this took a lot of time, often I waited weeks for different parts to arrive.  I spent a long time looking at the various parts available and thinking of creative ways to use them in my design.  Like Dwight's Head in a Pumpkin Hat or his Elf ears, that all required research and took time to get the right parts.  

There was a lot from my first prototype designs that were innovative and creative, which I was and am very proud of, but I had to scrap everything and restart the whole process after my first campaign was declined.  I worked hard to redesign it to give us the best chance for a "Lego The Office" set to pass Lego's review.  Most importantly, I wanted to make sure my new “Lego The Office” set even more sturdy. cost efficient, creative and fun than my first designs.

6. Didn’t you create a “Lego The Office” set before?  Did you copy this from anyone else?

• “Identity theft is not a joke Jim!  Millions of families suffer every year!” - Dwight Schrute

I am the original Lego The Office, these are my designs.  I’ve been trying to get Lego to make a set based on “The Office” for nearly 5 years now.  I’ve been on most social media as “LegoTheOffice” and have been posting Lego-fied Office memes since 2015.  Just check my profile or any of my social media.  All these designs, the inside jokes, the tiny little details from the characters to the hole in the wall that Andy punched all came from my work over the years designing this.

This is the second time I’m submitting a “Lego The Office” design to Lego.  I started work on the very first “Lego The Office” prototype back in 2014.  That took a lot of work & creativity, like figuring the jokes and how the characters should be designed.  And time, it took a lot of time.  I had to find a lot of parts and experiment with my design.

My 1st Lego The Office from 2015!  You can see my later designs in the Updates as I improved the set!
http://tinyurl.com/1stLegoTheOffice

The 10k Interview I did with Lego when my first “Lego The Office” was being reviewed!
https://ideas.lego.com/blogs/a4ae09b6-0d4c-4307-9da8-3ee9f3d368d6/post/86d8514e-f662-4a9b-a292-a2a600d08365

@LegoTheOffice on Facebook!
https://www.facebook.com/Legotheoffice/

@LegoTheOffice on Twitter!
https://twitter.com/legotheoffice

@LegoTheOffice on Instagram!
https://www.instagram.com/legotheoffice/

It took about a year to design and published the my first Lego The Office proposal in October 23, 2015 here on Lego Ideas.  It was an insane time because while I’ve always been a fan, I became part of the Lego and Office communities.  

I was also lucky to get the support of some of the cast like Kate Flannery (Meredith), Jenna Fischer (Pam), Angela Kinsey (Angela) and Andy Buckley (David Wallace).  It blew my mind!  My design improved and evolved, eventually I got to 10,000 supporters in early 2017 and my design was reviewed by Lego.  A lot of people have tried to submit a Lego The Office design, but my first design was the very first to reach 10,000 supporters and actually get reviewed by Lego!

Sadly on November 28, 2017 my first prototype’s designs weren’t chosen by Lego to become an official set, but I took everything I learned and started redesigning a new set.  I wanted to build something which I felt would be the most realistic chance to get a real “Lego The Office” set for the fans.  While I thought about that, I took a break because I have been working on getting Lego to make an Office themed set for about 5 years now.  But I’ve always been working on the revisions and improvements, buying parts, thinking of cool new additions I could make!

7.  Have the cast supported this idea?

• “I really should have a Tweeter account” - Dwight Schrute

This particular campaign?  Not yet.  It’s only been up a week as I’m writing this.  When I proposed the first Lego The Office, I got the support of several Office alums...  Kate Flannery (Meredith), Jenna Fischer (Pam), Angela Kinsey (Angela), Andy Buckley (David Wallace) to name a few.  Hopefully the cast support me this time too!

Feel free to reach out to them to let them know!  I’m on social media sites as @LegoTheOffice!

8. Do you think the Office is appropriate for Lego?

• “Never, ever, ever give up.” - Michael Scott

Lego made sets for many TV shows.  The Big Bang Theory, Doctor Who were released and NBC's Friends is coming soon!  I think my Lego The Office design is appropriate for Lego to release just like those were.  If we get 10,000 votes it’s up to Lego and NBC to determine if they can do it or not.

9.  Can I buy this from you?  Can I buy your designs?

• “Nooooo!  God!  No, god please no!  No!  No!  Noooooooo! - Michael Scott

No, after I submitted it, I was prohibited from selling versions of this set or the designs due to the terms of service with Lego Ideas.

10.  What happens if Lego doesn’t approve it?

• “Never, ever, ever give up.” - Michael Scott

I’d donate the parts list & designs to a Lego & NBC approved charity to help the needy if they would allow it.  

They could sell the designs to fans for a small fee which you all could use to gather up parts to build your own like I did when I built my version.  That’s all I could do to get something to the fans if I couldn’t get the designs approved.  Then “Lego The Office” can live on in all of you.

Then I’d take my version and put it on my shelf next to all my Office bobble heads and autographs.  Think about all the cool things I did, cool people and friends I made, keep posting Office memes and trivia, and just be thankful for what you all have given me.  Because your support and belief has been an amazing gift.