robert de castro's combat-r-zero vinyl robot: genesis
when i was first introduced to Robert De Castro's COMBAT-R-ZERO (by Kirkland Jue of Toybot Studios - thanks duder! ), i could scarcely believe my humbled-eyes at the mecha-sweetness (and potential, IMHO) before me ... having been weaned on thy bygone days of Japanese robot-cartoons and (translated) manga, and even American-comicbooks (i always sorta rooted for the robots, hero or villian LOL) i've personally always lurved heavy-mechas and Robert's robot design had tugged at my retro-heart and brightened up my outlook for the future of vinyl-robots LOL
from drawing to vinylization; i had the opportunity to bug Robert for a long chat (the first in the on-going serial-feature of the development of CRZ) and this is what he has to share ...
/// CLICK HERE TO READ FULL INTERVIEW
TOYSREVIL: who is Combat R Zero - what's his story?
ROBERT DE CASTRO: Combat R (pronounced ; Combatar) Zero - "The Atomic Superhero Robot" LOL ...
I haven't really thought of a good tag line but something corny/cool like that would be it. He's basically your typical mankind's last hope for survival against evil invaders hell bent on taking over all the Taco Bells on Earth!! LOL...I don't even like tacos that much but I hear it's good ;-)
Seriously ahem. Here it goes ... Earth's top minds having knowledge of an impending full scale invasion by a powerful alien race scrambled desperately to create a weapon to combat the alien menace. After careful calculations the Scientist of "Shugato Heavy Industries" came up with a time frame, a window of opportunity if you will to create an effective "weapon system" before the Aliens arrival. With existing technology and manufacturing capabilities of the age it was projected that from a first prototype "Combat Robot" , man had approximately five chances to improve on the model into the ultimate fighting machine. So from Combat-R 5, 4, 3 you get the idea, 2, and finally Combat-R 1....... I know, what about Zero right ? I was actually thinking about doing a webcomic of Combat R ZERO.. The story sort of goes like...After producing CR1 Shugato heavy industries believed they had the "perfect weapon" but during it's production the head developer's son (Hiro) was convinced that the design had critical flaws but the dad was being a jerk and insisted that SHI "knows what it's doing" and that he should "Endeavour to be part of the solution" . At this time the bad guys are "at the gates" as it where. A landing force's "champion" a mech/evil robot was CR1's first enemy which he dispatches with ease . CR1 basically does this with the first two or three enemy bots but then the alien bad guys start to see what Hiro saw as the critical flaw in the CR1 design and exploits it.
CR1 fights the newest bad guy bot and gets in serious trouble. All is not lost though because unbeknownst to both SHI and the "bad guys" (I really should make up a good name for them,,lol) Hiro and his team of rag tag mechanics and "nutty" rogue scientist types was secretly developing a "ZERO" model Combat Robot. CRZ makes a grand and dramatic entrance and saves both CR1 and the day. Now with Combat-R Zero and the support of CR1 and the other prototype models the Alien invaders will indeed have a powerful force for good to recon with....Whew ,,,well that's the story if anyone asks LOL
=D
TRE: dude, you've just described the trailer for the Combat R Zero live-action movie! LOL ... how did the project come about? what was the genesis of CRZ?
RDC: It goes back to the early 90's. I had been into 6th scale military figures (before Dragon and BBI's highly detailed figures was in fashion) and ran my own custom mail order business selling custom made gear for 12" GI-Joe figures. It went by the name "SPEC OPS". At a toy convention a custom set I made for a client caught the attention of non other than Mr.Don Levine and Mr.Kirk Bozigian. Don is the man responsible for the creation of GI-Joe in the sixties and coined the phrase "Action Figure". Kirk brought the GI-Joe back in the 80's when the line was cancelled back in the 70's. They where looking for someone to design gears and uniforms for an upcoming two figure set called "Top Cop" and "Top Jake" (a term used for a highly seasoned firefighter) by Ertl toys. One thing led to another and I suddenly found myself no longer a customizer running my mail order business but a freelance toy designer for various companies. I kinda missed doing my customs but alas they took allot of time to make and I was now a very busy dude. I looked into producing my own 1/6th scale sets in a factory but the injection mold tooling cost was prohibitively high. So I scraped that idea..... Right about the late 90's going into 2000 I started getting back into another childhood addiction I enjoyed. VINYL TOYS!! Shortly after that I discovered the "Urban Vinyl" or Art/Designer Vinyl movement. I was blown away by the concept.
RDC: Here where two things I enjoyed. Art and Toys, Here was something I could really sink my teeth into. With my art background and experience as a toys designer I had alot of things I could tap into. Using some of the contacts I had established working in the toy industry I made calls to several factories in china. I knew that rotocasting vinyl was not as expensive as injection molding and the quotes I got back confirmed this. I did allot of designs but it all felt like I was just going with current trends and what was popular at the time. I did everything from monkeys, rabbits, even mutant evil Iguanas lol. If I was going do this it has to come from deep inside. So I just decided simply to make a toy that I wanted for myself first and whoever else second . So fast forward to winter 2006..I had established that I was going to do Robots.
As a child I loved the 70's Japanese superhero robot shows like Gigantor (Tetsujin), Mazinger Z, Voltes V, Daimos, Grendizer Getter Robo the list goes on. For what seemed like forever I drew LOTS and LOTS of robots. It was frustrating at times trying to establish the look I was after. I mean it was in my head but I can't seem to project it on paper. The elements that where consistent though seemed to be eyes with pupils, rivets, and BIG fists/hands. I had to find a balance of detail and simplicity I had to pull back and not overwork the design many times. Tetsujins old school design sensibility was definitely an inspiration. I think he turned out alright.
TRE: why robots?
RDC: I could have gone with a Kaiju design I had or a "Fight Figure" (which I still might do in the future). There's just something about robots. They never get tired, they don't tell lies and they won't abandon you...Hahahaaa Ok I'm not weird like that. Straight up tho there's alot of appeal to begin with. That's not to say that all bot designs are guaranteed winners but I think Combat R Zero has alot going for it and simply put I just wanted to make my Robot =)
TRE: why the name Combat R Zero?
RDC: Cause Superhypermecha Robotiod Chan sounded silly..... that and the fact that I was going to name it Combater Zero then saw this cool Honda Civic R type and decided to play on the word. So hence Combat-R ( pronounced "combatar) Zero was the chosen name.
TRE: your sculpts look wicked! did you do the sculpts yourself?
RDC: I sculpt too which I plan to do on future projects but no. The Combat-R Zero was sculpted by a very gifted artist from the factory. He/she only took less than a week to sculpt the first clay model and several days for corrections and this individual nailed on the third set of corrections. I plan on learning his/her name but If I was the factory I'd probably keep it as an industry secret.
TRE: CRZ are being self-produced by your own label Atomic Mushrooms - why? was this a conscious decision?
RDC: I wanted to make sure I was in full control over every project I am/will be creating. I have a pretty nice pool of industry folks to get advice from if I need it I want to make toys driven first by a creative need and sometimes the "bean counters" and "middle men" can blur that and what you end up is a watered down version of your vision. I've seen allot of my toy designs for other toy companies suffer these watered down effects. It's not gonna roll like that here.
TRE: how has your self-education path been / how has your experience been so far? compared to when you first started, til right now at this moment? share with us your ups and downs, please :)
RDC: So far it's been a great ride. Starting a venture like this is a major thing. When you look at the numbers and figures one can get pretty intimidated. There is a large sum of money involved and you definitely want all the bases covered before making that faithful leap. I don't think I would be doing this if I did not have the experience I had working in the toy industry. You wear allot of "hats" in a project like this. Nobody takes care of anything for you.
RDC: Even something seemingly simple like shipping can be nerve racking. I was trying to get a quote for freight cost from China to the US and nearly fainted when they gave me the quote. For the life of me I could not understand why it was so high. I thought the project was over even before it started. I checked back to make sure they didn't make a mistake when they inputted my details. Weight, number of boxes, dimensions etc all checked out correct. It turned out they mistakenly quoted me AIR freight instead of OCEAN freight. It still cost several $$$$ but SIGNIFICANTLY less that the air freight quote. As far as my experience right now , It's smooth sailing. It pays to carefully pick a reliable factory with a solid reputation.
TRE: man, i feel your fear and pain ... have you always been a vinyl-toy-junkie? you mentioned that you used to collect 1/6th - are you still into that? what else did you collect?
RDC: As a kid in the Philippines I had three main things I played with. Vinyl Kaiju, GI-Joes and Matchbox/Hotwheels cars and they came to me in that order. Today I'm a full blown vinyl junkie. Asian ,Western I love em all man. Yes I still collect 6th scale stuff. I have a healthy collection of vintage 60's and 70's GI-Joes. I also collect 6th scale (exclusively) Star Wars. Mostly Medicom, Marmit and Sideshow pieces. I also collect 12" inch Sci fi figures.
TRE:. at what stage is Combat R Zero right now?
RDC: As of writing Combat-R Zero has moved from a clay model to a prototype model molded in grey vinyl. This is slightly larger that the final production model. This is a resin copy of the Combat-R Zero that was done in clay. The resin model was then further refined by polishing the surface and making sure that all the edges are squared off etc. This form (after my approval) is what they will be using to produce the tooling for the Combat-R Zero.
TRE: what is your reaction to the resin proto?
RDC: When they sent me an e-mail telling me that they shipped out the prototype I almost didn't notice that there where some pictures attached with it which added to the surprise of seeing the resin proto for the first time. Needless to say I was FLOORED! You can just imagine how it was when I got it in my grubby lil hands, ha-ha. There just no words to describe the delight of seeing a design go from drawings to a fully sculpted 3-D model.
TRE: what's next for Combat R Zero?
RDC: Well I tell ya the folks at the factory really did an outstanding job with the Proto that we are proceeding to the next phase. Tooling/mold making. The next time you see Combat-R Zero is when the test shots in vinyl are ready for inspection.
TRE: looking forward to 'em, Robert! so what are CRZ's world domination plans?
RDC: In my best Ahnold the Governator voice... ahem: "To crush the enemy, see them driven before you and hear the lamentation of their women" - That and attending all major shows and convention promoting Atomic Mushroom, Combat-R Zero and any new products in the werks. I'm also going to be producing 2-D artwork relating to the toys which will be offered through our website www.atomicmushroomtoys.com (under construction) but you can send you inquiries to atomicmushroom@triad.rr.com
TRE: what do you hope for CRZ to do, for both yourself and the toy-collectors?
ROBERT DE CASTRO: To further allow me to be creative in this wonderful medium called vinyl, and hopefully bring something new to the table. As for the collectors If they get even half of the enjoyment I've had creating Combat-R then I'm a happy man. Hey listen Andy thanks for giving me the time to talk with you about Combat-R Zero and Atomic Mushroom. The response so far has been great and the robot's just in resin phase. You're taking a chance on a nobody and I won't forget that kind of courage and character.
TRE: tis my utter pleasure, my friend ... and tis i who should thank you for giving my small little blog an opportunity to feature CRZ :) ... and i reckon 'nobody' is just an unnecessary precursory-tag to 'success' and both you and Combat-R-Zero are poised to grab the robot-limelight, IMHO ... and i can only wish you the best, Robert! cheers for your time and trouble, and we definitely will be looking forward to Combat-R-Zero's progress and eventual world-domination!
from drawing to vinylization; i had the opportunity to bug Robert for a long chat (the first in the on-going serial-feature of the development of CRZ) and this is what he has to share ...
/// CLICK HERE TO READ FULL INTERVIEW
TOYSREVIL: who is Combat R Zero - what's his story?
ROBERT DE CASTRO: Combat R (pronounced ; Combatar) Zero - "The Atomic Superhero Robot" LOL ...
I haven't really thought of a good tag line but something corny/cool like that would be it. He's basically your typical mankind's last hope for survival against evil invaders hell bent on taking over all the Taco Bells on Earth!! LOL...I don't even like tacos that much but I hear it's good ;-)
Seriously ahem. Here it goes ... Earth's top minds having knowledge of an impending full scale invasion by a powerful alien race scrambled desperately to create a weapon to combat the alien menace. After careful calculations the Scientist of "Shugato Heavy Industries" came up with a time frame, a window of opportunity if you will to create an effective "weapon system" before the Aliens arrival. With existing technology and manufacturing capabilities of the age it was projected that from a first prototype "Combat Robot" , man had approximately five chances to improve on the model into the ultimate fighting machine. So from Combat-R 5, 4, 3 you get the idea, 2, and finally Combat-R 1....... I know, what about Zero right ? I was actually thinking about doing a webcomic of Combat R ZERO.. The story sort of goes like...After producing CR1 Shugato heavy industries believed they had the "perfect weapon" but during it's production the head developer's son (Hiro) was convinced that the design had critical flaws but the dad was being a jerk and insisted that SHI "knows what it's doing" and that he should "Endeavour to be part of the solution" . At this time the bad guys are "at the gates" as it where. A landing force's "champion" a mech/evil robot was CR1's first enemy which he dispatches with ease . CR1 basically does this with the first two or three enemy bots but then the alien bad guys start to see what Hiro saw as the critical flaw in the CR1 design and exploits it.CR1 fights the newest bad guy bot and gets in serious trouble. All is not lost though because unbeknownst to both SHI and the "bad guys" (I really should make up a good name for them,,lol) Hiro and his team of rag tag mechanics and "nutty" rogue scientist types was secretly developing a "ZERO" model Combat Robot. CRZ makes a grand and dramatic entrance and saves both CR1 and the day. Now with Combat-R Zero and the support of CR1 and the other prototype models the Alien invaders will indeed have a powerful force for good to recon with....Whew ,,,well that's the story if anyone asks LOL
=D
TRE: dude, you've just described the trailer for the Combat R Zero live-action movie! LOL ... how did the project come about? what was the genesis of CRZ?
RDC: It goes back to the early 90's. I had been into 6th scale military figures (before Dragon and BBI's highly detailed figures was in fashion) and ran my own custom mail order business selling custom made gear for 12" GI-Joe figures. It went by the name "SPEC OPS". At a toy convention a custom set I made for a client caught the attention of non other than Mr.Don Levine and Mr.Kirk Bozigian. Don is the man responsible for the creation of GI-Joe in the sixties and coined the phrase "Action Figure". Kirk brought the GI-Joe back in the 80's when the line was cancelled back in the 70's. They where looking for someone to design gears and uniforms for an upcoming two figure set called "Top Cop" and "Top Jake" (a term used for a highly seasoned firefighter) by Ertl toys. One thing led to another and I suddenly found myself no longer a customizer running my mail order business but a freelance toy designer for various companies. I kinda missed doing my customs but alas they took allot of time to make and I was now a very busy dude. I looked into producing my own 1/6th scale sets in a factory but the injection mold tooling cost was prohibitively high. So I scraped that idea..... Right about the late 90's going into 2000 I started getting back into another childhood addiction I enjoyed. VINYL TOYS!! Shortly after that I discovered the "Urban Vinyl" or Art/Designer Vinyl movement. I was blown away by the concept. 
RDC: Here where two things I enjoyed. Art and Toys, Here was something I could really sink my teeth into. With my art background and experience as a toys designer I had alot of things I could tap into. Using some of the contacts I had established working in the toy industry I made calls to several factories in china. I knew that rotocasting vinyl was not as expensive as injection molding and the quotes I got back confirmed this. I did allot of designs but it all felt like I was just going with current trends and what was popular at the time. I did everything from monkeys, rabbits, even mutant evil Iguanas lol. If I was going do this it has to come from deep inside. So I just decided simply to make a toy that I wanted for myself first and whoever else second . So fast forward to winter 2006..I had established that I was going to do Robots.
As a child I loved the 70's Japanese superhero robot shows like Gigantor (Tetsujin), Mazinger Z, Voltes V, Daimos, Grendizer Getter Robo the list goes on. For what seemed like forever I drew LOTS and LOTS of robots. It was frustrating at times trying to establish the look I was after. I mean it was in my head but I can't seem to project it on paper. The elements that where consistent though seemed to be eyes with pupils, rivets, and BIG fists/hands. I had to find a balance of detail and simplicity I had to pull back and not overwork the design many times. Tetsujins old school design sensibility was definitely an inspiration. I think he turned out alright.
TRE: why robots?
RDC: I could have gone with a Kaiju design I had or a "Fight Figure" (which I still might do in the future). There's just something about robots. They never get tired, they don't tell lies and they won't abandon you...Hahahaaa Ok I'm not weird like that. Straight up tho there's alot of appeal to begin with. That's not to say that all bot designs are guaranteed winners but I think Combat R Zero has alot going for it and simply put I just wanted to make my Robot =)
TRE: why the name Combat R Zero?
RDC: Cause Superhypermecha Robotiod Chan sounded silly..... that and the fact that I was going to name it Combater Zero then saw this cool Honda Civic R type and decided to play on the word. So hence Combat-R ( pronounced "combatar) Zero was the chosen name.
TRE: your sculpts look wicked! did you do the sculpts yourself?
RDC: I sculpt too which I plan to do on future projects but no. The Combat-R Zero was sculpted by a very gifted artist from the factory. He/she only took less than a week to sculpt the first clay model and several days for corrections and this individual nailed on the third set of corrections. I plan on learning his/her name but If I was the factory I'd probably keep it as an industry secret.
TRE: CRZ are being self-produced by your own label Atomic Mushrooms - why? was this a conscious decision?
RDC: I wanted to make sure I was in full control over every project I am/will be creating. I have a pretty nice pool of industry folks to get advice from if I need it I want to make toys driven first by a creative need and sometimes the "bean counters" and "middle men" can blur that and what you end up is a watered down version of your vision. I've seen allot of my toy designs for other toy companies suffer these watered down effects. It's not gonna roll like that here.
TRE: how has your self-education path been / how has your experience been so far? compared to when you first started, til right now at this moment? share with us your ups and downs, please :)
RDC: So far it's been a great ride. Starting a venture like this is a major thing. When you look at the numbers and figures one can get pretty intimidated. There is a large sum of money involved and you definitely want all the bases covered before making that faithful leap. I don't think I would be doing this if I did not have the experience I had working in the toy industry. You wear allot of "hats" in a project like this. Nobody takes care of anything for you.
RDC: Even something seemingly simple like shipping can be nerve racking. I was trying to get a quote for freight cost from China to the US and nearly fainted when they gave me the quote. For the life of me I could not understand why it was so high. I thought the project was over even before it started. I checked back to make sure they didn't make a mistake when they inputted my details. Weight, number of boxes, dimensions etc all checked out correct. It turned out they mistakenly quoted me AIR freight instead of OCEAN freight. It still cost several $$$$ but SIGNIFICANTLY less that the air freight quote. As far as my experience right now , It's smooth sailing. It pays to carefully pick a reliable factory with a solid reputation.
TRE: man, i feel your fear and pain ... have you always been a vinyl-toy-junkie? you mentioned that you used to collect 1/6th - are you still into that? what else did you collect?
RDC: As a kid in the Philippines I had three main things I played with. Vinyl Kaiju, GI-Joes and Matchbox/Hotwheels cars and they came to me in that order. Today I'm a full blown vinyl junkie. Asian ,Western I love em all man. Yes I still collect 6th scale stuff. I have a healthy collection of vintage 60's and 70's GI-Joes. I also collect 6th scale (exclusively) Star Wars. Mostly Medicom, Marmit and Sideshow pieces. I also collect 12" inch Sci fi figures.
TRE:. at what stage is Combat R Zero right now?
RDC: As of writing Combat-R Zero has moved from a clay model to a prototype model molded in grey vinyl. This is slightly larger that the final production model. This is a resin copy of the Combat-R Zero that was done in clay. The resin model was then further refined by polishing the surface and making sure that all the edges are squared off etc. This form (after my approval) is what they will be using to produce the tooling for the Combat-R Zero.
TRE: what is your reaction to the resin proto?
RDC: When they sent me an e-mail telling me that they shipped out the prototype I almost didn't notice that there where some pictures attached with it which added to the surprise of seeing the resin proto for the first time. Needless to say I was FLOORED! You can just imagine how it was when I got it in my grubby lil hands, ha-ha. There just no words to describe the delight of seeing a design go from drawings to a fully sculpted 3-D model.
TRE: what's next for Combat R Zero?
RDC: Well I tell ya the folks at the factory really did an outstanding job with the Proto that we are proceeding to the next phase. Tooling/mold making. The next time you see Combat-R Zero is when the test shots in vinyl are ready for inspection.
TRE: looking forward to 'em, Robert! so what are CRZ's world domination plans?
RDC: In my best Ahnold the Governator voice... ahem: "To crush the enemy, see them driven before you and hear the lamentation of their women" - That and attending all major shows and convention promoting Atomic Mushroom, Combat-R Zero and any new products in the werks. I'm also going to be producing 2-D artwork relating to the toys which will be offered through our website www.atomicmushroomtoys.com (under construction) but you can send you inquiries to atomicmushroom@triad.rr.com
TRE: what do you hope for CRZ to do, for both yourself and the toy-collectors?
ROBERT DE CASTRO: To further allow me to be creative in this wonderful medium called vinyl, and hopefully bring something new to the table. As for the collectors If they get even half of the enjoyment I've had creating Combat-R then I'm a happy man. Hey listen Andy thanks for giving me the time to talk with you about Combat-R Zero and Atomic Mushroom. The response so far has been great and the robot's just in resin phase. You're taking a chance on a nobody and I won't forget that kind of courage and character.
TRE: tis my utter pleasure, my friend ... and tis i who should thank you for giving my small little blog an opportunity to feature CRZ :) ... and i reckon 'nobody' is just an unnecessary precursory-tag to 'success' and both you and Combat-R-Zero are poised to grab the robot-limelight, IMHO ... and i can only wish you the best, Robert! cheers for your time and trouble, and we definitely will be looking forward to Combat-R-Zero's progress and eventual world-domination!
