Interview with Papo sculptor (info on upcoming pieces)

[Libraraptor]

Very exciting!

[suspsy]

VIA Dans Dinosaurs Youtube

Those are snappy colour schemes. If they do the Running Rex in that scheme, I'll probably have to buy it.

[Roselaar]

With JW around the corner, it figures the Rex and Raptor were the first up for a new paint job (again). I would have preferred any of the other sculpts to get repainted, for variety's sake. But hey, if we get the figures mentioned in this thread, I'm not complaining.

[suspsy]

I think the adult Triceratops deserves a new version more than any other Papo. It's so bloody dull. Give it a brighter colour scheme with some patterns on the frill.

[postsaurischian]

  Finally some information about Papo's sculptor!
      Is he just being called Mr. Seo or is there a prename?

He says that a sculptor from Germany is working with the marine reptiles.

Shame on us ! They do indeed look "Schleichish".

It would have been nice if Mr. Seo made the Smilodon. His tigers/lions are flawless and lifelike.

I totally agree!

[Arul]

VIA Dans Dinosaurs Youtube

Those are snappy colour schemes. If they do the Running Rex in that scheme, I'll probably have to buy it.

Cool repaint, blue raptor, influenced by jw ? Trex repaint is awesome on the photo. Hope it work so well on the figure not like sideshow repainted carno

I wish someone had asked him whether he sculpted the marine reptiles as well. I've heard people say that he didn't, but the style feels similar so it's hard to say.

Actually, someone has asked that question in the interview.

He says that a sculptor from Germany is working with the marine reptiles.

The prehistoric mammals, marine reptiles, and tub mini dinosaurs are from other sculptors.

That is great, hope for a better mosasaur 

[Patrx]

Interesting interview! Thanks for the link, and the translation, guys. I'm curious to see how the Baryonyx and Giganotosaurus turn out, as neither of those really have a pop-culture identity to speak of. Perhaps they'll be closer to the real deal? After seeing the Archaeopteryx, I can't say I have much hope for the Velociraptor.

I keep forgetting that I collect tiger figurines as well. I should definitely pick up Mr. Seo's sculpts.

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

The new colors are pretty cool..I hope that trend continues with the next figures. I've already bought two Papo Rexes..that I love for JP replicas..not sure I can buy another one..lol

[Pachyrhinosaurus]

I like the new rex-- almost the same color as the new Schleich giganotosaurus, but much more naturalistic. I should really get a brown one next time I go to the store before they too become as rare as the green one. The raptor is interesting, though, its a more accurate JP/// male raptor.

[Shadowknight1]

I'll wait until we get better looks at them.  But if the new raptor variant is inspired by Blue, I might end up getting it.

[WUHT]

I just put an order for the brown T  Rex and now i am feeling the buyer's remorse

[tanystropheus]

I just put an order for the brown T  Rex and now i am feeling the buyer's remorse

Hey, don't feel bad. I have 5 Papo Rexes (sans Brown Running T-rex) plus a Rebor King T-rex. I will probably get this repaint, as well. I find it strange since I never had any T-rex figures while growing up (I wanted the Tyco T-rex but never got around to it).

[didusineptus]

Part 4 of the interview:  Joins

"When sculpting large dinosaurs, the only way to proceed is with a number of sections joined together.  This is necessary given the mass production system.  When I'm making the prototype and trying to sculpt things in such a way that the join lines don't show, I invest at least 3 weeks in working on the joined areas.  Having invested this time, once I have finished doing the joins in a detailed way, I send them off to the factory in China - but when I get them back, I am often disappointed and disheartened with the results.  This is because, of course, that I have spent so much time on details that have disappeared due to poor production.  And even when initial products have been improved and sent back to production, because the production run is in several tens of thousands of units, the chances of getting a unit from before improvements were made is high.  Having worked for Papo for 17 years now, things are getting better slowly, but the bottom line is I am disappointed sometimes too.  As far as what I can do is concerned, I think I try to do the highest level of detail I can, because I know if I send off bad sculpts, they will come back even worse than they do now.  To me it seems that Papo products have areas where detail is not reproduced as perfectly as in the prototype.  There seems to be a difference between things that are individually sculpted and things that are the product of a mass production system.  This is a pity, but I expect things will improve.

Part 5:  Colour schemes

"The way I see it, as far as the colour of an animal's skin is concerned, it offers the animal protection.  So, I think that the bigger the size of the animal, the more likely it would have evolved other ways of protecting itself.  Wild and threatening skin colours occur in small animals - like in poisonous frogs.  Dinosaurs attained such great sizes, that, in order to protect themselves, I don't think they would have had intense colouring.  I sculpt and do the colours at the same time, and I try to give dinosaurs I have sculpted natural colours.  But because Papo is a business, they always have to consider the state of the market.  After Dinosaur 3D and Dinotasia [Dinosaur Revolution] were released, it looks like dinosaur colours have started to get more more splendid.  The baryonyx I have sculpted is a bit more colourful.  And even though new dinosaurs after this won't escape from my [colour] framework, there is the possibility you might get the more gorgeous colours you want.

[Arul]

Thanks for sharing  my respect for all papo sculptor !

[suspsy]

Didusineptus, thank you for all the translating you've been doing!

I'm liking this sculptor more and more. He really cares about the final product and wants Papo to improve further. And I'm really happy to hear that they're moving towards making more colourful animals. I can't wait to see the Baryonyx and the Iguanodon.

[CityRaptor]

I wonder if those will be replacements or additional colors. The number of the original T.rex and the brown repaint are both 55001, while the new one is 55052 meaning that it could be an additional color like in case of several other Papo figures. At the same time however the original raptor and the first JW-style repaint have different numbers, yet it is a replacement. So it could go both ways.

[Halichoeres]

Really appreciating the translations as well! And the insights into the process of making a Papo-saur.

[LophoLeeVT]

i didnt know that papo sculptor is a korean just like me

[didusineptus]

6.  Scale

"If you adjust the scale [of a sculpt] according to research, the brachiosaurus that's currently available would have had to be at least 3 to 4 times as big as the traditional tyrannosaurus.  And, based on the tyrannosaurus, the velociraptor would have had to be half the size it is.  I'd like to sculpt dinosaurs to scale based on research as a matter of personal taste, but as Papo is a company for the masses, that would reduce the saleability of the figures.  I ask collectors for their understanding on this.

As for the tupuxuara, I ended up spending about 3/4 of the process wondering if it was too small, but the schedule Papo headquarters gave me meant that it couldn't be sent back.  I think it's a shame, too.  (Beyond this one, I have also thought it's a shame I hadn't made a few of my dinosaurs bigger). 

The reason that the apatosaurus is called 'young apatosaurus' is that Papo wanted another herbivore, but suggested it not be too big, so when thinking about the scale, if I had followed the research, it'd have to have been about as big as the brachiosaurus, and it'd have to be very long, so the word 'young' ended up being attached to it to signify the animal wasn't an adult and not yet fully grown."

[Arul]

Thank you again  i hope someday papo sculptor made an account in this forum..