It’s official! Today, we unveiled the Final Four in our second annual LEGO World Builder Pitch Fest. The Pitch Fest incubation program gives Creators the chance to pitch their storyworlds directly to the LEGO Group’s Entertainment Division for the chance to see their Worlds move into development.
We believe anyone who’s a fan of LEGO can become part of the collective brain behind the next generation of LEGO content, and Pitch Fest is all about giving LEGO Fans and Creators the chance to do just that.
To celebrate this year’s Final Four, we caught up with the Creators behind the Worlds to find out about their inspiration, their creative process, and more!
CHARLI BLOUNT - CREATOR OF LAWLESS
First up is Charli Blount, Creator of Lawless. This World turns the old west on its head, bringing weird and wonderful characters to a small town where even the laws of physics are being broken!
So Lawless is inspired in part by LEGO's western themes of old. Do you have any particular history with these sets?
CB: I never had any of the original western themes growing up, but my dad is a huge fan of western movies - a trait he passed on to me! And since I'm a big LEGO fan too, it felt only natural to look back on those old sets and kinda revive the themes, in a way.
Lawless also embraces speculative fiction in a way few Westerns have, which opens the door for all manner of things from time traveling bounty hunters to octopus ranching. What was the inspiration behind this? Was it difficult to maintain a consistent feel across such a conceptually broad storyworld?
CB: The inspiration kinda comes from a series of "What if?" questions, and taking the phrase "Wild West" extremely literally. What if a town was so "lawless" that the laws of reality were even being broken? What if a cowboy and a viking became friends? What if a time traveler from the future got stuck in the old west and had to become a bounty hunter? The original intention behind Lawless was always that anything could happen in this town! I wanted to break the limits of one genre and puzzle it back together with my other favorites, like fantasy and sci-fi! As far as keeping it consistent, it's not as difficult as I expected. It's mostly just about working within the ideas of why and how these things would come to be.
One of Lawless’ greatest strengths is its characters. Outside of the core cast of sheriff Lawson, his viking deputy Freya, local journalist Annie, and stranded time traveler Cypher, do you have a favorite supporting or one-off character?
CB: I'd have to say that Constance is my favorite supporting character. She's an oddball who is just out there living her best life! Constance and her shop exist outside of our understanding of time, but not even she knows how that works. I even tried to make her costume design just slightly different, maybe more Edwardian than Victorian, because she's never exactly sure which era she's in. Truth be told, I just love a wild card character!
MILO YARNELL - CREATOR OF ANDREW & THE UNNATURAL
Also no stranger to the strange is Milo Yarnell, Creator of Andrew and the Unnatural. This storyworld covers the exploits of Andrew and her friends as they make space in her coastal hometown of Serendipity Bay for all manner of cryptids and creatures.
First things first, let's start with Andrew. What was the inspiration behind her as a character - and what was the origin of her name?
MY: Andrew was originally a male character in the earliest drafts of the story, and was given my dad’s middle name. I intended to rename her when I changed the character’s gender, but Andrew just kinda stuck! She’s written to appeal to people who may feel lost in life: She’s always felt like an outsider in her own life - at least prior to meeting the Unnaturals and finding her new path, which we see her grow more confident in as the story unfolds.
On now to the Unnatural: your World brings together a colorful cast of cryptids and creatures from folklore the world over, and crams them into a small town in Florida. What in particular drew you to a selkie and a mothman to round out the main cast?
MY: Patty and moth both came from aspects of their respective mythology and what that could add to the story. I wanted a “will they won’t they” type relationship for Andrew, but I needed a new angle for it. That’s when I found the legends of selkies who, if their pelt was returned to them, would fall in love with the human who returned it, whether or not that love was real. This would make a great story, as both characters could like each other, but would have the unique obstacle of not being able to know if the love was genuine or not. For moth’s inclusion, the legend that drew my eye was the story of mothman and the bridge, where mothman was repeatedly sighted around a bridge that, it turned out, was unstable and collapsed. My depiction of the character receives visions that he attempts to warn people of, but can’t judge the severity of the visions: to him, a stubbed toe or a collapsing building are both bad, so they should be treated equally!
Serendipity Bay itself is a prime example of the kind of small town you find up and down both the USA's Pacific and Atlantic coasts. Was it inspired by any place in particular?
MY: Serendipity Bay is inspired by Delray Beach, Florida, with a few aspects of towns near Charlotte, North Carolina. In the world of Andrew and the Unnatural, Serendipity sits in a location between Delray Beach and Boynton beach that doesn’t exist in real life.
PETER JURADO - CREATOR OF DETECTIVE BONES
Adding a spooky vibe to the weird and wonderful is Detective Bones, created by Peter Jurado. This World focuses on a human who encounters the eponymous detective after getting lost in the creepy parallel world of Nether York City!
This isn't the first form Detective Bones has taken as a story. How did it end up changing prior to (and during) Pitch Fest to better suit the LEGO format?
PJ: Detective Bones started off as an Inktober sketch I did back in 2016. From there I continuously retooled the character. Scripts for a more serious webcomic, a gag manga, even as a supporting character in a television pitch. Nothing really clicked until I challenged myself to put him in the world of LEGO. Now he can still help others, but keep it light and comedic with the rest of the cast. This has also allowed me to add so many interesting elements, such as "Brick Casting", and fun new characters like Franky and The 52. At his core, Bones has never been one to give up - and mixed with Koriann's critical thinking skills, that's very LEGO to me.
What was the inspiration for the earliest version of the story?
PJ: Originally, I think I just liked the name and I thought, “Skeleton Detective, that's pretty cool.” As I drew him, I realized I was drawing one of my favorite character tropes: detective/inspector who isn't the star. They try their hardest, but fumble and fail to be the hero: characters like Thompson and Thomson from Tintin and Zenigata from Lupin the 3rd. I wanted to change that.
The visuals for Detective Bones employ two different art styles, with the intention being to give the action sequences some added punch. What inspired this?
PJ: Anime, for sure. I've loved anime since I was 8 years old, watching it on Toonami after school. It’s gained a worldwide fan base since those days, and I think both kids and adults will love the visual spectacle of seeing LEGO become a Shonen style Anime. I was also inspired by Lego’s own Monkie Kid. It's a phenomenal series that's crafted something that I believe is the future of LEGO entertainment.
AMIR GORBHANI - CREATOR OF JUNIOR DETECTIVES
From one detective to another, our last set of questions were to Amir Gorbhani on his world Junior Detectives! This time the spotlight is on Daisy, Danny, and their friends as they solve the everyday mysteries of childhood.
What made you originally decide to write a DUPLO-inspired World?
AG: As a big LEGO fan, I've watched many amazing LEGO cartoons that have inspired both kids and adults to connect with the fantastic LEGO Universe. However, I've noticed that young children who play with DUPLO bricks may not have the same inspiration to create their own adventures or learn how to build their own future.
That's when I got inspired to create Junior Detectives - a show that uses the power of LEGO DUPLO to teach important skills and educational lessons to toddlers in a playful and fun way. With Junior Detectives, I want to inspire young kids that by using their DUPLO bricks they can build their own adventures, be able to overcome obstacles when growing up, and learn how to create the person they want to be.
Did you start from a total blank canvas with Junior Detectives? What was the process like?
AG: When I first began developing Junior Detectives, I had a simple idea in mind: a LEGO DUPLO detective series that would be perfect for young children. To bring this idea to life, I drew on a variety of sources of inspiration, including my own childhood experiences and some of my favorite detective shows. Using these influences, I set out to create a world that was both fun and educational: one that would inspire young viewers to explore their imaginations and develop valuable skills like problem-solving and critical thinking. By blending together familiar elements from adult detective shows with playful DUPLO characters and settings, I hoped to create a series that would capture the hearts and minds of young viewers everywhere.
One of the World's biggest strengths is its broad approach to the concept of building, expanding it out from building with bricks to building more abstract concepts such as relationships, communities, and interpersonal skills. What was the inspiration behind this approach?
AG: I believe that Building encompasses more than just the physical act of constructing with bricks. If we look at a LEGO brick, we can see that it has different sides, and similarly, building has many different sides to it. Building can refer to building interpersonal skills, building communities, or building relationships. This understanding of the multifaceted nature of building has inspired me to explore different concepts of Building in the context of my world of Junior Detectives.
We appreciate all of the amazing submissions this year, but it doesn’t stop here! You can still contribute to your favorite Worlds as they gear up to go in front of LEGO's executive Entertainment team. Head to LEGO World Builder to learn more, and be sure to check back as we announce the Winner of Pitch Fest later this month!
