Thursday, September 24, 2009

News from the front... SDCC report, toy progress and Hiatus again

Well hello! It's been more than a fair while since I've posted here and there have been more than a few goings on lately. I've not been idle, well not completely during the past few months, but actually really busy. But first things first - and this is going to be a fairly lengthy post - my SDCC report.

The last thing I posted before this was that I was going to be going to San Diego Comic Con. It was an amazing experience. I met so many great people from the industry and had such a good time. I have to say a huge thank you to many of the people there who took me around and looked after me while I was there. Matt Schuler, Howard Shum, Marty Ito, Cory Godby, Justin Gerard, Sean Galloway, Klim from Bigshot Toyworks, Jake Parker and many many others.





Here I am as proof that I was there. Howard Shum cannot be thanked enough as he not only split his room with me last minute but gave me his guest pass to the days I didn't have tickets for. It's a good thing they didn't look too close at the name even though I didn't know who this person was until I got home and googled it. I remember talking with someone who asked who I was, "oh, this isn't me" I said as he looked at the name on my pass, and the other guy "No definitely that's not you."


Top picture is me with my buddy Matt Schuler. A fantastic guy and good friend. He and I hung out quite a bit during my week there. I also met some other fantastic people, the Toy Break hosts Ayleen and George who took a picture of me holding the official Toy Break Hammer!
Made some new friends the Portland Studios genius's Cory Godby and Justin Gerard. Two just fantastic guys who each GAVE me an awesome print! Thanks guys!
I met a lot of really great people saw some just great stuff while I was there. Bobby Chiu's Imaginism booth was as good as his work and he was a really nice guy - if not super busy. The Flight gang (Kazu) was all really cool as well and I was also able to meet and talk with Jake Parker - just a really cool guy and an amazing talent. Sean Galloway did a sketch in the back of a book I bought from him and though he was busier than a bee I had a really great chat with him. Another genuine guy. I cannot even begin to list everyone who I met while I was there, but chances are if you received a Chuck Chance sticker or even one of the rare shirts it was more than a pleasure to meet you.

Here are a few more shots of the Con. There were piles upon piles of people there and more booths than there was even time in 3 full days to fully appreciate. One of the most noticeable and hilarious items were the costumes. It was amazing to see the work that some people put into them. Pictured here are a couple of my favorites as well as my two best friends Spidey and Bats.



Right. So next update. The Chuck Chance Toys. Well shortly after I got back, Joshua Singh - super sculptor extraordinaire - finished both the Chuck Chance and Baron Villainov sculpts. Here are the final video turn around of them:








These look so good I cannot wait to see them made up!

So now it's down the the skinny of the post. As you may have guessed by my lack of posting that I've been busy with things. If you've happened to see my other blog - which now links to my NEW BLOG and WEBSITE - then you may understand a bit. So that website has been taking up some time, but I've also had to realize that I cannot continue to develop and work on 10 different projects at once. I was getting spread a bit too thin and not getting anything done at all. So August and this month it's been tough, but I've had to decide what projects I am going to focus on first. The good news is that I'm not bailing out on any of them. The bad news is that I have to choose some to "put on Hiatus" again, and right now, Chuck Chance is one of them.

Chuck Chance is a huge passion for me, and I wouldn't really have to put it on hold, but at the same time I believe if you do something you should do it right. For Chuck that means a new website, the book and Toy. And not done erratically, but with a method, plan and purpose. At the moment I am just a few weeks away from launching my first self published kids book, as well as having just set up my websites store and now selling prints. I also have a second kids book that is currently in progress. So these projects are what I am focusing on promoting, and getting done right and in a sense, out of the way before I take Chuck to the next step.

My attendance to SDCC was not just for "fun", but one of my main goals there was to see what it took to get a booth/table and how people set them up. I am planning to attend next year again, but not as a fan, or even as a professional, but as an exhibitor. Chuck Chance is going to be a bit part of that exhibit as well if things go according to plan.

So take care, please continue to stop by my new site and blog for updates and snippets of whats coming down the pipe.

See you soon,

-Mike Boldt

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