Hello guys,
As Wondercon is coming, I wanted to share with you the interview I did of
Jonathan Reilly who is one of the PCS sculptors. He already did a lot of stuff such as Blanka, Quan-Chi, He-man and Battlecat and many more.
Hope you'll enjoy it !
1. Can you tell us more about you and what’s your relation with Pop Culture Shock Collectibles ?
I’m a freelance digital sculptor. I sculpt mostly characters for statues, film & games. When I first started working with PCS I was completely new to sculpting statues so it was good of Jerry to take a risk on me. It was a different direction for me but something that I’d been wanting to do for some time for a couple of reasons. I’m a collector myself and I like to surround myself with pieces that inspire me while I work. It’s also great simply being able to touch something that I’ve worked on. After years of digital work, creating 2D images, it is awesome to physically hold a statue and be able to look around it and display it.
2. When did you start to make digital sculptures ? Did you ever do traditional sculptures before ? What’s your preference ?
My professional work has always been digital. I started my career in video games, where I discovered ZBrush and began to sculpt. I have to say that I prefer to sculpt digitally, simply because that’s what I know best. I've never had the opportunity to develop my skills in traditional methods, I have actually started recently but I’m certainly not at a point where I could do it professionally.
3. I know you made awesome statues for PCS yet such the new version of Ryu, the Battle Cat and He-man but can you tell us all the ones you did ?
I can tell you the main ones. The first statue I was commissioned to sculpt for PCS was Liu Kang. I’ve done a few more since then, including Raiden, Quan Chi, D’Vorah & the recently announced Cyborg from the Mortal Kombat line. Plus Blanka, Cammy & Ryu for Street Fighter. I sculpted a Superman for the DC line, which was never released then He-Man & Battle Cat and a few other bits & bobs: heads, bases, etc.
4. What’s your favorite character you did for PCS ?
That’s a tough question as I have several favourites for different reasons but my personal favourite has to be Blanka. Not only because I'm a huge Street Fighter fan but it was great getting stuck into a piece with such crazy anatomy, plus it completed the original World Warriors series so it was great to be part of that. I think it came out pretty well so I can’t wait to hear other people's reactions when they get it in hand. I hope people love it as much as I do.
5. It’s not too hard to work remotely with them ?
The distance isn't a huge problem. In this day & age people are only an email or Skype call away. The good thing about working digitally with a time difference is that I can send the file instantly for revision and have feedback waiting for me when I start work in the morning.
6. I know you are a collector too ? What kind of items do you collect ? What’s your favorite piece at the moment ?
My collection at the moment is quite eclectic. I don't collect to fill a series, I collect pieces that I love. Like most collectors, it is hard to choose just one. Once I’ve got the PCS Ryu in hand then I'm sure that'll be my favourite as it will be the first piece in my collection that I've worked on personally so will always have sentimental value. From an unbiased point of view though, my current non-PCS favourite is my Gladiator Hulk from Sideshow, such an epic piece that I had my eye on for a long time. A great thing about working on statues is that I can finally justify increasing my collection without threat of divorce! I also have a huge collection of art books and I like to collect posters of things that I’ve worked on.
7. Do you have a favourite statue sculptor?
I’m always inspired by other artists and there are some incredible sculptors out there, Jerry at PCS, Eric Sosa, etc but I didn’t really have a favourite until I realised that several of the statues I have or wanted were sculpted by the same artist, Martin Canale. He has done some amazing pieces, such as Skaar, Apocalypse, the Batman Premium Format and I’ve already mentioned the Gladiator Hulk.
8. How much time do you spend to make a character ?
It varies greatly. Occasionally you get a quick turnaround but it can take months to get it exactly right. A good sculpt can't be rushed. There is a lot of back & forth between a sculptor and client as you want your sculpt to look good but it also needs to be what the client wants. Often, artwork needs to be run past whoever owns the license too so there are a lot of factors affecting the time that each character takes to complete.
9. What have you worked on other than the statues?
I started out in computer games, working for companies such as Bizarre Creations, Sony Liverpool, TT Fusion and, more recently, Cloud Imperium. I’ve worked on game titles such as the Project Gotham Racing series, WipeOut 2048, Lego Batman and Star Citizen. I’ve also worked in film VFX at companies such as Double Negative and MPC on some huge titles, including Thor 2, Ant-Man, Jungle Book, Skyfall, etc. Plus some toy work for Hasbro for things like Marvel’s Civil War. I’ve been very lucky to have such a diverse career and I love the fact that one day I could be making spaceships for a film and the next sculpting a character from Street Fighter.
10. Can you tell us what you are working on at the moment or what you’ve got coming up?
In a word: no! I’ve got a few things on the go but nothing that I can talk about just yet. Watch this space.
Link to his Facebook page :https://www.facebook.com/InnerFreak
Link to his Blog :https://www.artstation.com/artist/inner-freak
Few pictures :
Carmelo.