the vader project uk interview with dan&dan
so within three days, 50 thousand Star Wars-fans descended upon Star Wars Celebration Europe and amidst the madness was The Vader Project UK [blogged/web] and even before they could have a proper rest, i'd bugged the UK Vader-helmet curators; Dan&Dan for a wee Q&A to dig up some Sith-dirt ... heh
/// CLICK HERE TO READ THE INTERVIEW
TOYSREVIL: how did it all start? what was the genesis of the Vader Project?
dan2: The mighty Dov from DKE hooked up with the Master Replicas a while back, MR gave him one hundred masks which he sent out to all the main players in the underground art scene.
dan1:The results were unveiled at Celebration IV to a fantastic response.
dan2: During the run up to SWCE dan&dan had been approached by Lucasfilm representatives to work on a few SW related art projects. Word got to them that we had curated exhibitions over the years so they asked us to expand on the original Vader Project concept with only a months notice..
dan1: and so ARTS WARS was born...
dan2: All the artist's involved had only two weeks to realise their work. the results are breathtaking!
TRE: 2 weeks? *madness* LOL - what are your fav Vader-customs so far?
dan1: I love them all! As I mentioned before, the UK artists had a two week deadline yet the results are incredible.
dan2: It's impossible to pick one.
TRE: any sweet triumphant tales or horror stories you'd like to share with the readers about the project so far?
dan1: The triumphs? Seeing tens of thousands of people laugh, love & sometimes loath the custom Vaders.
dan2: The horrors? There were loads, but everyone who helped & contributed made it all worth while.
TRE: so what's up next for the Vader Helmet project? where the heck are they now and where is it heading next?
dan2: We are exhibiting the UK heads in the Thomas Neal Centre in Seven Dials, London from the 25th of July, then it is off to Liverpool, possibly Glasgow then onto Paris.
dan1: Find us a spot in Singapore & we'll bring them over!!
TRE: aw, man! don't tease me like that gents! ... are ye both fans of Star Wars?
dan2: I'm a HUGE SW fan, I don't have much in the way of a SW toy collection left, I have a few R2 units, Amanaman, blue Snaggletooth etc ... But my pride and joy are original trilogy cinema posters from the UK, USA & Japan.
dan1: I own the movies & that's about it
TRE: and what does dan&dan collect?
dan2: We have a few toys & a lot of comics but the main collections for both of us are records. Between us we have literally tens of thousands of records..it's an addiction..both of us travel the world looking for crazy platters, we even dug up some neat 45's in Singapore.
dan1: We love that sh*t! I used to run parties up in the Bronx called the Dollar Jams for years when I was living in NYC. kids would travel from all boroughs to battle..good times.
dan2: Oh yeah, I also own a collection of about eight hundred original film posters...we are such geeks!
TRE: 800? *faints* - the next time you're in Singapore, i'll bring you both to the flea-markets for some LP-surprises, yeh? ... are either of you for the Rebellion? or are proud Imperial supporters?
dan&dan: Whoever pays the best...Bounty hunting scum we are!
TRE: If you were a Sith Lord, what would be your nick?
dan1: Darth Behemoth
dan2: Darth Hustle
TRE: so tell us about yourselves, Darth Behemoth and Darth Hustle (i feel a song coming on) - what's your dayjob?
Our dayjobs?
dan1 is a freelance illustrator, he has just finished a videogame project for Konami & is currently working for a games company called Kuju.
dan2 is Special projects manager for Corgi International, he is currently working on toy projects with Nintendo.
Outside of our dayjobs?
dan&dan have been working as toy consultants & manufacturers for various companies, our most recent job is the reinterpretation & production of a big global brand's identity, we also have some amazing TADO toy projects in production.
We are also working on a graphic novel for a french publisher (Akileos) that is due for release in 2008 called Monster Hunter Cartigan. By some freak incident some of the work was seen by a production company that is now talking to us about a possible film version, but we are not getting too excited as most of these approaches fizzle out.
We are also expanding the Jasper Stank universe, this is a fun project that we keep going back to, he is our baby!
TRE: a pretty full plate for both of you! with so many projects and tasks, have you achieved them to your satisfaction?
dan1: You can always do better!
dan2: We just want to keep pushing ourselves, we have been working together since 1990 & nearly twenty years down the line we are finally doing the work we always hope to do!
dan1: It's been a tough old road, but you must never lose sight of your dreams!
TOYSREVIL: cheers for your time and trouble, gents! in closing, anything further you'd like to add?
dan&dan: We would like to thank all the contributing Vader artists, you are all incredible! Special thanks to Richard at Candy, Sam at Debut & I Love Dust (the creators of the ARTS WARS logo!). If anyone wants to contact us check www.danhq.com for details...Thanks!!
/// CLICK HERE TO READ THE INTERVIEW
TOYSREVIL: how did it all start? what was the genesis of the Vader Project?
dan2: The mighty Dov from DKE hooked up with the Master Replicas a while back, MR gave him one hundred masks which he sent out to all the main players in the underground art scene.
dan1:The results were unveiled at Celebration IV to a fantastic response.
dan2: During the run up to SWCE dan&dan had been approached by Lucasfilm representatives to work on a few SW related art projects. Word got to them that we had curated exhibitions over the years so they asked us to expand on the original Vader Project concept with only a months notice..dan1: and so ARTS WARS was born...
dan2: All the artist's involved had only two weeks to realise their work. the results are breathtaking!
TRE: 2 weeks? *madness* LOL - what are your fav Vader-customs so far?
dan1: I love them all! As I mentioned before, the UK artists had a two week deadline yet the results are incredible.
dan2: It's impossible to pick one.
TRE: any sweet triumphant tales or horror stories you'd like to share with the readers about the project so far?
dan1: The triumphs? Seeing tens of thousands of people laugh, love & sometimes loath the custom Vaders.
dan2: The horrors? There were loads, but everyone who helped & contributed made it all worth while.
TRE: so what's up next for the Vader Helmet project? where the heck are they now and where is it heading next?
dan2: We are exhibiting the UK heads in the Thomas Neal Centre in Seven Dials, London from the 25th of July, then it is off to Liverpool, possibly Glasgow then onto Paris.
dan1: Find us a spot in Singapore & we'll bring them over!!
TRE: aw, man! don't tease me like that gents! ... are ye both fans of Star Wars?
dan2: I'm a HUGE SW fan, I don't have much in the way of a SW toy collection left, I have a few R2 units, Amanaman, blue Snaggletooth etc ... But my pride and joy are original trilogy cinema posters from the UK, USA & Japan.
dan1: I own the movies & that's about it
TRE: and what does dan&dan collect?
dan2: We have a few toys & a lot of comics but the main collections for both of us are records. Between us we have literally tens of thousands of records..it's an addiction..both of us travel the world looking for crazy platters, we even dug up some neat 45's in Singapore.
dan1: We love that sh*t! I used to run parties up in the Bronx called the Dollar Jams for years when I was living in NYC. kids would travel from all boroughs to battle..good times.
dan2: Oh yeah, I also own a collection of about eight hundred original film posters...we are such geeks!
TRE: 800? *faints* - the next time you're in Singapore, i'll bring you both to the flea-markets for some LP-surprises, yeh? ... are either of you for the Rebellion? or are proud Imperial supporters?
dan&dan: Whoever pays the best...Bounty hunting scum we are!
TRE: If you were a Sith Lord, what would be your nick?
dan1: Darth Behemoth
dan2: Darth Hustle
TRE: so tell us about yourselves, Darth Behemoth and Darth Hustle (i feel a song coming on) - what's your dayjob?
Our dayjobs?
dan1 is a freelance illustrator, he has just finished a videogame project for Konami & is currently working for a games company called Kuju.
dan2 is Special projects manager for Corgi International, he is currently working on toy projects with Nintendo.
Outside of our dayjobs?
dan&dan have been working as toy consultants & manufacturers for various companies, our most recent job is the reinterpretation & production of a big global brand's identity, we also have some amazing TADO toy projects in production.
We are also working on a graphic novel for a french publisher (Akileos) that is due for release in 2008 called Monster Hunter Cartigan. By some freak incident some of the work was seen by a production company that is now talking to us about a possible film version, but we are not getting too excited as most of these approaches fizzle out.
We are also expanding the Jasper Stank universe, this is a fun project that we keep going back to, he is our baby!
TRE: a pretty full plate for both of you! with so many projects and tasks, have you achieved them to your satisfaction?dan1: You can always do better!
dan2: We just want to keep pushing ourselves, we have been working together since 1990 & nearly twenty years down the line we are finally doing the work we always hope to do!
dan1: It's been a tough old road, but you must never lose sight of your dreams!
TOYSREVIL: cheers for your time and trouble, gents! in closing, anything further you'd like to add?
dan&dan: We would like to thank all the contributing Vader artists, you are all incredible! Special thanks to Richard at Candy, Sam at Debut & I Love Dust (the creators of the ARTS WARS logo!). If anyone wants to contact us check www.danhq.com for details...Thanks!!
