GBWC 2016 Interview #1
Hey there Gunpla fans! Today we were able to speak with Dan Kalis, winner of the Best Small scale at Anime Central 2016!
Here’s a peak at his thoughts on his winning piece.
How did you first get into Gunpla? How long have you been building?
About 16 years ago when Gundam Wing first aired in the US. the second I saw the first episode I begged my parents to take me to the store where I got my first NG Wing Gundam, the rest is history.
What was the inspiration for your entry? Could you tell us about your concept?
It actually started as a sort of challenge! See there's this other builder who's won awards in their bracket as well, and they were struggling with what to do this year. Wanting to do a cute creative entry but thinking a realistic war diorama would score better. I always favor creativity in builds first so I said I would build something cute and unexpected to show that something unconventional can do well. A bunch of my friends are fans of anime like Im@s and Love Live! so the idol group theme was easy to get a lot of reference for!
What was the build process like? Did you use any unconventional materials or techniques?
It was stressful to say the least, I was still painting parts of the stage the day I left for the convention! I have to step up my game quite a bit from last year, forcing myself to learn stuff like pla-plating, seam welding, and wiring LEDs with a switch. I actually had to cut out a few things to meet the deadline too. Originally, the stage lights flicker in sequence through some circuit boards and there was going to be a crowd of HGUC GMs in front holding tiny glowsticks and fan signs as if a concert was about to start!
What part of building (in general) do you enjoy the most?
Lately it's been scratchbuilding and kitbashing, those are the two things that seem super easy to me, I love figuring out which parts I need to tear apart to bring my crazy ideas to life.
What’s your favorite Gundam series? Favorite mobile suit?
Favorite series? It would probably be a tie between the original MSG and Build Fighters. As for favorite mobile suit I'd probably say the Gouf, it's been my favorite ever since I was a kid, I like most Zeon suits but that one stands out to me, probably because its so blue haha.
Anything else you’d like to say? Any interesting facts?
I'd like to see people take a few more risks with their contest entries. There are infinite ways to go about building gunpla and I don't see many people venture very far past a new paint job or some nice weathering. Just remember any idea can be made to work! You want to make a giant angry mecha crab? Grab a few Aegis' and a heavy weapons G-self for the bulky parts and go nuts! There's no limit to what we can make with gunpla so why hold ourselves back right?
For a closer look at Dan’s work click on the link here!
