Meet Bill Plewes, a talented 3D Designer currently working on Dino Ranch.
Bill is a creative guy who has been modeling, building, and designing things since he was a kid, starting with model aircraft and slot cars, through to epic cosplay costumes! He has a very cool hobby that he uses said costumes for – but you’ll have to read his full interview below to find out what that is.
You can enjoy some of his design work on various shows, above.
Let’s take it back to the beginning. What inspired you to work in animation/design?
The beginning…. In the beginning what we do now did not exist back then, except for Saturday morning cartoons and comic books. And the phone was attached to the wall. It was yellow.
The foundation to what eventually inspired me to get into animation was when I was very young, 60’s shows like Star Trek, Batman, Gerry Anderson productions such as UFO, Thunderbirds or Space 1999, even Godzilla movies are what got my attention. They were my creative inspiration.
Anything with visual effects using miniatures and this inspired me to build models from the shows or of any subject matter I found interesting. Sci fi, Military, Racing, Aircraft I had no favorites so I built them up, painted, weathered them and put them on my shelves. I even entered my models into a lot of contests and usually did ok. I loved putting in the details and paid a lot of attention to getting them right.
My Dad was also a great influence and was into model trains, so of course I had to be. We had a pretty big home layout and I even managed to incorporate my slot cars into it. These were hobbies that I never quite grew out of but continued to improve on and they were a source to fuel my imagination. Practical modeling taught me creative disciplines and inspiration that I have been able to carry over as a Character and Hard surface modeler.
What finally inspired me to get into 3D was not long after I got my first computer in 2001. While surfing around I came across some 3d modeling sites and was blown away by what I saw and knew that was the direction I wanted to take with my modeling and I felt that I could make a career out of being a 3d modeler.
I bought the software, (Lightwave 7) some course books, courses on VHS tapes and started practicing and learning. I used a few of my practical models for reference such as a Tiger Tank, a Hot Rod even a Snow Speeder.
So then a couple of years later I was offered a job working on the Mayday series as a modeler building trains, planes, ships and locations for crash re-enactments so I decided to leave the HVAC business working as a service tech/ installer and that was the official start to my career in 3d and I haven’t stopped since.
Do you have a tip or piece of advice for aspiring designers or artists?
Surround yourself with what inspires you. It can be anything. Toys or art that you are drawn to and don’t get tired of looking at. It can be pictures of cats, cars, sunsets, whatever makes your day brighter.
Be curious, ask questions and travel.
A trip to Disneyworld is a must.
What is your favorite thing about what you do?
The privilege of being able to work with creative people. I cannot describe how much of a rush or inspiration I get when interacting with them. This allows me to be able to create assets and designs at my fullest potential because of the focus it provides me.
There really is no feeling like seeing challenging and complex assets glide through the pipeline because all potential issues have been resolved in the design/modeling phase.
Are there any creative disciplines that you do in your spare time? Tell us about it a bit.
Practical modeling as I mentioned above and building costume and armor sets like you would see in the Star Wars universe.
The armor sets are made to be as screen accurate as possible, and to do this I have to draw upon numerous skill sets that I have learned over the years. These range from sewing, metal forming, fiberglassing, painting and weathering.
Fit, Form, Function are my guidelines that I try to stick with and paying attention to the details early on makes the results more rewarding in the end.
What is a ‘fun fact’ about you – a hobby, or special skill that most people don’t know?
I am a member of a charity fundraising group called the 501st legion. We dress up as Stormtroopers, Clonetroopers, Sith Lords, Mandalorians, Fetts. Just about everything from the “Dark Side” of the Star Wars universe. We do it all to raise funds for Make a Wish.
You have probably seen us at Comic cons or Fan Expo but we also do hospital visits such as Sick kids and are invited on a regular basis to attend May the 4th events, toy shows, parades and charity walks.
If you weren’t doing what you do now, what other job would you want to have?
Race Car Driver or Stuntman.