Fisher-Price: the Fold-n-Go Workbench!

This project brings back memories when I look at it, as do many projects throughout the years.  It may also trigger the memory of some readers, it goes back to when many were just kids.
Often it's the project itself that leaves an impression on me, sometimes it's about other things going on in my life at the time.  In this case, I had just moved to Oak Park, Illinois after spending 9 years living in Philadelphia.  We were also expecting our second child and I was busy trying to get work while settling into my attic studio, then recently completed.  It was a great space, well laid out, and I was champing at the bit to give it a road test.

It was around this time that I started getting work from Fisher-Price in East Aurora.
A few of the designers there started calling on me pretty regularly and I really hit my stride in delivering solid work in a quick fashion.  The Fold-n-Go Workbench was one of those early experiences of a project coming and going fast, with the end product turning out pretty close to my design. Like in most cases, if there wasn't a foam-core model all I had to work with was a thumbnail and a description of the functions. 
If there were any rough passes for this they're long gone.  I don't recall doing anything beyond a couple of clean line drawings followed by a rendering, which at the time would be sent via Fed-Ex.  I had a new Mac G4 but was just starting to scan and email jpegs,  I wasn't fully versed in Photoshop. In fact, the rendering below is a re-render done digitally some time back, since the original was sent off to Fisher-Price.
.. I do remember the original was rendered in marker, something you don't see much anymore.

 




























Here is how it turned out back then when it was produced by Fisher-Price;

.. And as of this writing, my younger of 2 children is on his own and in college.

The years do fly.

more Mickey's Clubhouse

Some time back I posted the work I had done for Mickey's Motorhome Camper, as well as Mickey's Magic Choo-Choo. There was a lot more done over the course of 3 or 4 years for Mickey's Clubhouse toy line.

Some of the concepts fell into different categories, like this role-play cash register;

This was revisited and refined a bit more for a second pass;




..and here is the final;

Among the other items were a number of sets that involved vehicle and track play.  Here are the cars designed for the line;

Once the line of vehicles was established, that led to the fun track play;

Here is a concept for a large rig that opened up to become a race track and pit area.








This concept successfully went on to become a drag set.

 

Here was a fun idea for Goofy's Garage, which was in the form of a giant Goofy shoe.
I started by exploring a few different ways the garage could open, offering some track play for the cars as well as some other features;

 Some of the best elements were combined into one more pass.

Lastly, more ramp and track play was added to the top, and it was rendered up for line presentation;

Trimming costs to reach a lower price also removed some of the height,  but it turned out to become a really fun set;

Wheelies: Radiator Springs Playset

I've always loved working with the folks at Fisher-Price, both FP Brands in NYC and their home base, still located in East Aurora.  I've been fortunate enough to work with a number of their designers on scores of toys over the past 20+ years, and in the process cultivating some long professional relationships.
So much so, that I've seen a few retire after they've dedicated their entire adult life to creating great play, and it's always a bittersweet farewell.
One of the last projects I worked on with one such designer there was the Radiator Springs playset for Pixar's CARS.  This was one of a number of licensed sets in Fisher-Price's 'Wheelies' line.  It was a textbook case of fun and one of the key reasons I love doing what I do.

The parameters were pretty straightforward;  come up with a compact version of the town of Radiator Springs that offered some fun gravity-driven track play, something simple, self-contained, and cost-effective.

This was another one of those rarities where the final toy really came close to my hand in the project.

.. I still miss working with this guy,  I always enjoyed his wry wit.  I hope his well-earned retired life is full of fun and relaxation.  Hats off to ya, Larry!

Mickey's Clubhouse: Motorhome Camper

The Mickey Mouse Clubhouse toys have been in the Fisher-Price catalog for years now, and I always enjoy working on items for their line.  I posted the train set for Mickey I designed a while back.   ..And there's been a lot more in the line, most of it making it to the toy stores I'm glad to say.

Among many toys I got to work on was this camper motorhome play set for Mickey and friends.
I recall at the time there were a number of other concepts being pitched internally and to Disney, this was part of a batch.  As a result there weren't a lot of iterations going in, they just knew they wanted a motorhome that expanded into a fun play environment.
I went with a retro body style, working with the shows' motif but inspired by reference I found from old Disney cartoons and my affection for old teardrop campers from the 1940s.
The rest was taking these basics and blowing it out into something theme appropriate, play interactive, and very 'Mickey'.  The vertical climbing wall roof feature was the only stretch, conceptually,  I had also considered a rooftop deck.

.. anyway, here are the concept drawings as pitched;

I didn't find out the ultimate fate of this particular concept for a few years,  it being among several that were developed further internally using my work as a springboard of sorts.  I almost forgot about it until I came across the renderings in my files and Googled for it.

Here is how Mickey's Camper looked when it came out.
It's clear the size and features went through some minor changes, but the exterior is virtually identical to my design.
..I do like the added pull out awning;

Shake 'n Go Dragsters

The 'Shake 'n Go' brand from Fisher-Price has been around for some years now, enjoying success as a line of vehicles that are simply shaken by hand to charge. No batteries are required to run them. Always a plus for parents, as well as being environmentally-friendly.
As of this writing the Shake 'N Go brand has worked its way into fun vehicle and track play for Pixar's; Cars, Toy Story, and other licenses including Spongebob Squarepants and Thomas the Tank.

..Whatever the license, its appeal as a brand is ultimately rooted in the fun simplicity of the mechanism and its endurance as a line seems indefinite.  In its early stages, however, it wasn't quite so simple.  In fact, when I was called in by Fisher-Price to help the design, it wasn't the cars that were shaken but a pretend 'impact wrench' that would then be used to wind up the vehicles.
My role was in designing a fold-up drag race set that stored everything needed, including the 'Drill 'N Drive' tool used, which is what the concept was called.

Here is the board I initially generated in illustrating the look and function of the Shake 'N Go drag set;

 


     

In this early form the cars were scaled smaller and had recessed lug nuts on the roof, which was where the impact wrench would charge up the cars.  There were a couple of parts that popped up for play, and lanes of track that pulled out from the base, rolling up inside when closed for storage.

Conceptually, it was pretty solid and I was eager to eventually see it in the toy stores.
..But, always being ones to refine beyond 'cool', the creatives at Fisher-Price figured a way to eliminate the impact wrench entirely and embed the wind-up mechanism into the cars themselves. And while it required scaling the vehicles a little larger, it ultimately made the play even simpler and more self-contained.
Many months had passed when I was tapped again to generate what would be this final drawing revisiting the original concept, now officially the 'Shake 'N Go' Dragsters;

..and here is what it looked like when it was produced by Fisher-Price;

YEAH!  Check it out!  ..

Rescue Heroes

A while back I was brought in by the creatives at Fisher-Price to design some new items for their Rescue Heroes line.  What made these extra fun at the time was the fact that my son was at the perfect age to enjoy Rescue Heroes and he already had some of the toys produced. 

The first project was designing an ambulance for the figures, intended as a counterpart to the Rescue Heroes firetruck which was a popular item in the vehicle line.  Because of this, I had some reference for scale and volume, and it was supposed to look like it fit with the line, but I was given the latitude to create features and functions that would be unique to the vehicle.

Here are the 4 designs I came up with, the features being called out;

The features and design they worked from mostly was 'A', ultimately producing this for the market;

Next up was designing 2 new characters for the figure line.   These went pretty quickly, not going through a number of iterations typical in developing an action figure.  In fact, the first passes were the designs they decided to run with for the renderings presented. And while they did go through some refinements along the way, they pretty closely resembled the characters I designed.

At the time I was called in all they knew was they wanted a "mountain climber" and a "safari explorer".  The gadget features, which are always integral to the Rescue Heroes play, were discussed and decided at the outset.

 

The names of these new characters came later,  ultimately introduced in the Rescue Heroes line as;  Cliff Hanger and Seymour Wilde.  

The expanding hang-glider backpack on Cliff remained, though the climbing claws were eliminated (perhaps too 'Wolverine').

The shooter held by Seymour Wilde launched the more appropriately-scaled capture net, not shown.

 

Jake & The Neverland Pirates

Jake & The Neverland Pirates is an animated series produced by Disney that has been enjoying great audience and critical popularity since premiering in 2010.  Conceptually spun from the classic story of Peter Pan, this show pits 3 young pirates (and their parrot; Skully) against the nefarious Captain Hook and Mr. Smee in the Neverland world.  The Annie Award-winning show has garnered praise for its use of educational and musical elements.

Whether for TV shows or full-length features,  toy makers constantly compete for the opportunity of creating and producing the toys associated, especially if the property promises to be popular.  And the more popular the better, as any enduring interest usually ensures continued product success.  The licenses for Star Wars, classic Disney and Sesame Street characters are perfect examples, but there are many.
Of course in the case of new properties it's not always a sure thing.  Sometimes a show just doesn't hit, or a movie bombs at the box office, and the toys produced may not sell well as a result. 

My role in all of this often involves creating concepts for toy makers to show the licensor as examples of how their intellectual property might be handled.  In these instances of 'pitching' for a license, the concepts don't start rough and go through typical stages of internal development.  Toy makers just want to make a great winning impression with some solid product concepts, nothing definite but strong enough to secure the licensing rights.  Once this happens breathing room has been created at the toy company for more refined internal development.  Some of the concepts initially pitched may not get made, or they go through some changes on their way to becoming product. 

Jake & The Neverland Pirates is a recent example of my involvement in this dynamic process.
It seems like only a few months ago that I was called in to put together these concepts pitched to Disney by Fisher-Price.  At the time, and as is often the case, there wasn't much reference material available for outside creatives to work from. As a result, the look of some things are best guesses or even entirely invented.  This always varies from license to license and while it can present its challenges it's always fun building off of someone else's creation.  In some cases the licensor will like something I create enough to make it a toy, or even integrate the idea into a future episode.  One example of this production design cross-pollination is the work I did years ago for Elmo in Grouchland.

Anyway,  here are some of the initial Jake & The Neverland Pirates concepts pitched to Disney;

Jake & The Neverland Pirates: separate figures detail

small boat concept for Jake

Island clubhouse playset concept

This concept for Captain Hook's ship employed a radio controlled feature (disguised as a treasure map) in addition to a number of other fun play elements.  You can see a couple of design refinements as it went from line drawing to presentation rendering;

   

 

This other ship, meant for the young heroes, went through some further embellishments before making it into the presentation.
The 2nd version illustrates the launching crocodile and other features that pop out of the port holes;

Yes, Fisher-Price did secure the toy license for Disney's Jake & The Neverland Pirates.  The resulting toys are also doing very well. 
And although this item went though some changes along the way, it's pretty close to what came right out of the gate;