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3DTotal: You appear to have a good cross-section of work on your website, ranging from graphics and stylised cartoon treatment through to a more sober and realistic look. Whilst some artists appear to
have a definitive style and a look which remains constant, your work appears more varied. What are your thoughts on this and the resultant approach you take to your subject matter?
Derik: That’s a great question! I personally like variety and think each project has an intrinsic look that it wants to be. It’s the challenge of the artist to find that look and execute it to the best of his or her ability.
For example, Shrap Wars is definitely meant to be fanciful and whimsical; it’s got a touch of Gilliam with some Tim Burton thrown in there. If I desaturated it, or made it darker and more menacing, it suddenly becomes a 9 Inch Nails video. I don’t really have a specific style, nor do I really want one. I believe in versatility, conceptual abilities and creative problem-solving. I personally like tackling different mediums, industries and subject matter without any preconceptions of what it could be or look like until I start problem-solving. All disciplines and styles are related by the same basic principles of good design, by being facile at one I feel as if I’m indirectly developing my aptitude for another. For example, I feel like getting great at a particular editing style can somehow help me create brushstrokes at the same time.
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3DTotal: What do you regard as the “basic principals of good design?
Derik: I think “good design” is something that is an appropriate solution for the problem at hand. For example, say there’s an image of someone who is lit extremely harshly, full frontal. There are basically no shadows and no definition of any kind and it’s completely washed out. By any basic standards, I guess you can say it’s not a great image, but what if it was preceded by shots of the subject running and a helicopter shining a blinding searchlight on him? Suddenly, that image is extremely compelling and becomes an example of a well-designed image. |
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3DTotal: Your website demonstrates an aptitude towards drawing characters and environments as well as vehicles and mechanical structures. Do you enjoy all equally, and what do you find the most challenging?
Derik: Hmmm... Every discipline you mentioned has their own unique set of challenges and I enjoy them all. Doing characters is great because it really is about bringing a being to life, building an individual from scratch, stroke by stroke. Vehicles are interesting because it’s about trying to imbue something inanimate with a certain attitude and personality. I studied Transportation Design at the Art Center College of Design and I feel like, in some ways, it is the most complex discipline I ever tried my hand at. However, I would say the most challenging discipline is storyboarding. From a sheer technical level, you need to have the ability to draw everything and anything, from any angle, with any lighting, on the spot, and in perspective! The shots all have to line up in continuity and each sketch must communicate efficiently and clearly. A lot of concept design is about “what does it look like?”, in terms of anatomy, textures, details, materials and so on. Storyboarding is about “what’s happening?”, and it had better be really engaging because there’s not much fancy technique to hide behind. If people don’t like the way it feels, or if your action doesn’t play well, or if the jokes aren’t hitting, then it’s back to the drawing board! |
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3DTotal: You have worked full-time at a games studio for over a year, but what is it that you most enjoyed about that job and what challenges did it present when compared to being freelance?
Derik: The best part about working at a company was the great people I got to work with from different disciplines. It was pretty awesome being able to walk around the studio and see what the 3D artists and sound technicians were up to. If you had a remote interest in anything, chances were that someone in the studio was good at it and could show you something. I’d say the biggest challenge was doing essentially the same things every day. I loved doing boards, but after a while I really wanted to do different things.The best thing about freelance is the variety of projects you get to tackle. I try to look for work across different mediums and genres to keep myself fresh and excited. I actually recently started my own design studio, Magnus Rex, and so far it has been an incredible experience. Last year we finished work on Obsidian’s next-gen project as well as Edge of Reality’s “The Incredible Hulk. We did everything from graphic user interface to concept design and storyboard/animatics work on those projects. We also did storyboard/animatics and visual development work on a short animation based on Tim Burton’s original poem from |
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“Nightmare Before Christmas”. That should be coming out with
the Blu-Ray release of the movie coming out this year.
3DTotal: Could you tell us about your studio and team and the ethics behind the formation of the company?
Derik: My vision for Magnus Rex is to be a multi-disciplinary design studio. I have a broad range of interests and have worked in a variety of industries, and that is something I would like to continue to do
on a much larger level. The jobs with Obsidian and Edge of Reality are prime examples of being multi-disciplinary; they both involve aspects of motion graphics, storyboards, animatics and concept art.
Having worked in all those different disciplines I feel like I am able to provide strong art direction to my team as well as interface well with clients to figure out how best I can best serve their needs.The team is currently made up of freelancers that I can call up on a project by project basis, and I am fortunate to have made great contacts with some incredibly talented people over the years and working with them is a privilege. I’m also on the lookout for new artists all the time, and look for the opportunity to work with
them on the right project. We are primarily a design service right now, but in the near future I’d like to branch out into content,. I am currently writing a story right now that I’d like to turn into a short film
next year.
3DTotal: And finally, being from a design background you are adept at exploring a concept and
producing variations on a theme, and your website suggests your ideas are part of a narrative. Is
this
the case, and if so have you ever had an interest in taking your concepts and developing
them in 3D at all?
Derik:I explore my concepts in 3D, just not necessarily on the computer. The Shrap Wars pieces actually started as abstract amalgamations of clay and armature wire, digitally photographed on pieces of foam core with grids drawn on them for perspective. I then took the photos into Photoshop and began to layer on the paint and added details and textures until I had something I really liked. I am also currently experimenting with Poser and Sketchup to create a more efficient pipeline for storyboards and
concept art.
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3DTotal: Thanks for taking the time to talk to us, Derick.
Derik: Thanks for the time; I had a great time chatting with you guys! I hope your readers enjoy the article and please check back to the website for updates! Thanks!
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