STGCC Day 3

The last day of STGCC '10. I didn't manage to get anything on the last day, as I didn't want to risk the wrath of the rabid fan's I saw thronging at the lines before it was even announced which line Mori Chack would sign at. It was a rather embarrassing moment actually, watching fellow fans swarm, push and shove each other trying to obtain one of the elusive 20 tickets. Having said, the day was not lost though! I still had one special event awaiting me...

You might be wondering, what's so great and special about the "event"?

My answer is,

"WHAT'S COOLER THAN A FACE TO FACE INTERVIEW WITH THE CREATOR OF GLOOMY BEAR HIMSELF, MORI CHACK?!!?!"

Heh, yes, you read that right, I managed to net an interview with him. ALLLLL THANKS TO toysetc! It was all thanks to him, that I got this super exclusive interview. Which was supposed to have happened on day 2, but due to the mad autograph session just before the assigned timing, it was pushed back to day 3. Nevertheless, I LEAPT at the chance to interview him.

Anyways, without further ado, here's the contents of the interview.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ME: If you were not a toy designer, what would you have worked as?

Mori: Maybe I would have ended up working at a petrol kiosk.

ME: Where did you get your inspiration from (for designing the characters he draws)?

Mori: I used to be working in a company, and I had to follow rules on what I could draw, or design. I had to follow instructions on the art I made, and I couldn't draw what I wanted to. During that period, I was already thinking of all the characters I have drawn, including Gloomy, the naughty Grizzly.

ME: What about Nukojyu? What is Nukojyu?

Mori: Nukojyu...ahhh, it's not complete yet, so I would like to keep it a secret for now.

ME: Of all the characters you have designed so far, which is your favourite?

Mori: I like all the characters I have designed so far, but if I had to choose one, it would be Kumakikkai.

ME: Many of your characters are pink, especially Gloomy, so is your favourite colour Pink?

Mori: Actually, Pink is not my favourite color. While I was a street artist, I worked mainly with PINK, Yellow and Light Blue, however the Pink Gloomy bear was a crowd favourite, hence it stuck. Nowadays, my favourite colors are Green and Purple, while in the past it was Red.

ME: Cool, I love purple too!!

ME: What do you think of the toy industry in Singapore compared to Japan?

Mori: I am unsure of the toy industry in Singapore, but I can see that there are many Japanese produced items being imported to Singapore.

ME: You have come for STGCC twice, once in 2008, and again this year. What are your thoughts?

Mori: The last time I came, I had very little interaction with my fans, all I did was sell items, and autograph all day long. This year I had time to walk around, but I am unable to compare as the last time I came I had too little personal time.

ME: I see a lot of food being uploaded on your blog, do you love eating?

Mori: Yes! I love eating, AND drinking (alcohol), however I am currently on a diet.

ME: So what food have you tried, and what do you like? I saw your twitter before the chill-out session at PI on Thursday.

Mori: So far, I have nothing I disliked eating in Singapore. However, what I have really liked are, dimsum, wait that's more of China cuisine... Oh and soups, and last night I had Chicken rice, and I thought it was great.

ME: You were born in Osaka, and now you are in Tokyo, can you tell me your feelings about the places?

Mori: Well, Tokyo moves very fast, and there are just so many other artists. That's a lot of competition. I have to constantly brush up my skills and think of more ways and things to draw.

ME: What about Singapore?

Mori: I have too little time to find out about Singapore, but it is a beautiful place. I am very interested in finding out more about the place!

ME: What are the things you like doing in your free time?

Mori: Driving, cooking, making bread (o.O), AND DRINKING.

ME: You released the Hanyo Usagi this year and Podolly in the past, are you thinking of releasing any other characters?

Mori: I am undecided as to whether or not I will release any other Characters.

ME: This year you collaborated with DEVILROBOTS to produce the Gloomy To-fu. Will you be collaborating with anyone else?

Mori: That will be a SECRET.

ME: Last question. If you have the time next year, would you come back to Singapore?

Mori: Yes, definitely, but it seems that next year is a busy year.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The interview might seem rather lackluster, but forgive me as there were time constraints. In addition, this was the first time I ever did an interview + via a translator + I was damn freaking nervous.

It seems he loves drinking, and on retrospect, I am slapping myself for not finding out more about what he drinks >.> I swear to myself that if I do somehow get another chance at this (perhaps next year?) I will do better!!!

Anyways, here are some pictures at the interview!

From left: Mori Chack, Kumi-san (His translator), Me!

Kumi-san translating my questions.

Mori Chack liketh his hair.

Happy answers! :D

And that rounds up STGCC. Even though Mori Chack might seem rather tentative when we first met him, he was a really nice guy! Proven when I met him again after STGCC at Marina Square [haha], he waved to me most surprisingly :D I believe that the language barrier was what made him rather tentative when meeting fans and others, so I endeavour to improve my Japanese!!!

Group photo at the end! And how lucky for a dream come true, even my shirt suits the occasion!

STGCC Day 2

Day 2 @ STGCC saw several autograph sessions by Mori Chack. With one session of Gloomy Tofu specific signing with DevilRobots, another at the Walk of Fame, and the last back at PI's booth for the first 20 lucky customers whom purchased $30 and above of merchandise @ PI (Not too tough considering the Gloomy To-fu costs $22 already :D).

I had already gotten my Tofu signed so I skipped the first session. toysetc however was blazing away at the session with his 2nd Tofu!

I hopped in @ the Walk of Fame where Mori Chack would ONLY sign for 20 lucky people!

MunchKimz was 19, I was 20, and toysetc....21?

Mori Chack pleasantly surprised to see his product from 2002!

Preparing to create the autograph...

WORK IN PROGRESS!

PROGRESSSSSSSS

HARD WORK! By the way, that's the GRIZZLRHYTHMS shirt he's wearing.

Then it was my turn! With the Postcard of my choice.

I get Silver!

Almost done~

Final products! AWESOME aren't they! Gotta buy the spray sealant to protect them all!

I gave the last session a miss as well as there were wayyyyy to many other RABID fans in the queues. I guess there is a take home point though, I really wish that fans of Gloomy could be just a little more gracious and courteous :( I was kinda upset to see the pushing and shoving. I just don't think it's the kind of behaviour we ought to be showing our guests to Singapore.

Here's one last pic!

Me with Naoki-san! He has an AWESOME JACKET from Gloomy's 5th Anniversary.

By the way, stay tuned for day 3! Because I got something EXCLUSIVE to post about :D All thanks to toysetc for the damn lucky chance to do it.

Previews @ STGCC

Being the first at STGCC '10 had it's perks. One of which was a first hand glance at some Gloomy merchandise that I would otherwise only get a gander at via in virtual form.

Here's the pictures for those of you whom didn't get to head down!

Clockwise from top left: Sweets and Messy Party Prize A, Revoltech Gloomy, Tinbox by PI, STGCC "Exclusive" Gloomy Tofu by PI.

PI display cases

Previews: Baby Gloomy, Gloomy pencilcase, 9inch Gloomy plush (top)

Gloomy Postcard set (Middle)

Gloomy zipper pulls blind boxes, and notebooks. (Bottom)

Well that's all for now folks, as most of the items have yet to be produced by PI. However if you are hungry for Notebooks, Zipper pulls or the Postcard set, head down to Iluma and grab your own set. :D

Breaking news!!!

I returned today after a long day out with toysetc, MunchKimz and our friends to JB, to be MOST pleasantly surprised/shocked/astonished/amazed/awed/flabbergasted by the realisation that I was featured on Mori Chacks' blog!

After Mori returned to Japan, he did a post on his experience @ STGCC 2010, and while I got a preview of his pictures via my live feed, I noticed a certain familiar shirt that I knew no other person to own. I clicked to view it in it's full glory and lo' and behold! It was Kim (MunchKimz) right there in the centre of the picture that Mori Chack uploaded! This was nothing to be scoffed at as of ALL the photo's that he could have chosen, and uploaded to his blog, we had the excellent fortune for that photo to be of us!!!!!!

Kim in the orange Gloomy shirt, and me right behind her.

He ended his post with a picture of the special gift we (toysetc, MunchKimz and I) made for and gave to him @ the PI chill-out session. Whereupon he thanked us for the gift!

On behalf of my partners, "YOU ARE MOST WELCOME MORI-SAN!".

You can check out the full post at his Blog. :D I am currently in a state of euphoria from realising how lucky I am to be featured -albeit in small ways- on his blog coupled with having not slept for almost 48 hours. *I am all smiles now*

P.S. fun photos of Gloomy will be up soon~

STGCC DAY 1

Many apologies for the long delay, STGCC has been a long and draw out affair. Finally managed to consolidate the pictures I needed, and grabbed my thoughts down to blog. (Not to mention get sufficient rest)

The plan for the day was that the crew (consisting of toysetc, MunchKimz, myself and another friend) would arrive first to show our fan-tastic desire to enter STGCC. That plan failed, because the first person arrived at 6.30 am for 3 consecutive days; I gladly surrender first place to him :D However, I did arrive to take up 3rd place followed by toysetc and aforementioned friend.

The floodgates finally opened at 12pm, and *woosh* up we went and rushed in for our objectives of the day!

The first task of the day was to get my Gloomy Tofu! Which I did, but was stuck in a rather long queue at PI, which was due to their staff having a little trouble with the cash register, but thankfully was resolved after some fuss.

The remaining task of the day was to get the Tofu signed. That was to happen at 4.30 pm, hours away from the time we entered the convention.

Kim catches Mori for a quick pic! He's wearing the limited 10th Anniversary t-shirt! Damn I want his shirts~

To secure my place in the extremely limited number of slots for the autograph session, I was scoping out the PI booth about an hour and a half before the session. And thankfully I did so, because it turned out that there were SO MANY OTHER PEOPLE trying to get the autograph. With some luck, and a whole lot of determination, the whole lot of us got our slot for the FIRST autograph session for the Gloomy Tofu, by DevilRobots and Mori Chack!

I was no. 23 in line :P

Necessary picture after autograph.

The limit per person was one item to be signed by each artist, but I got rather confused and ended up getting both artists to sign on the figurine itself. In retrospect, it was not as desirable as getting DR to sign on the box and Mori to sign on the figurine; because Mori was left with a small spot on the figurines stomach to sketch his awesome Gloomy bear. Seriously, I have nothing but respect for his efforts at drawing the Gloomy on such a small space!!!

Seriously?!?

After getting my Gloomy signed, I was done with my aims for the day, and continued to explore the convention. The next two days were tougher, and there were autograph sessions for Mori Chack's merchandise and THOSE I DEFINITELY wanted to hit.

Gloomy at STGCC in 2 days time.

I'm really really looking forward to STGCC this year, especially since Mori Chack will be heading down personally. I'm definitely gonna queue up to get some artwork done in my sketchbooks and some of my non-plush merchandise signed, ESPECIALLY the Gloomy Tofu.

Well, as a primer to his arrival, let's have a look at what he might possibly bring down to sell this year! (Actually, it's my wishlist. :D)

From top to bottom: Iphone4 screen protector, Gloomy tangled up speakers, Iphone 3GS case, Iphone 4 Case, Gloomy ROOTOTE.

I certainly hope he brings the ROOTOTE down for sale, and you can be sure that if its up for sale,I'll be the first to snap it up! The Iphone 4 case comes in red and black variations with the same picture.

Well, in any case, happy hunting at STGCC this coming Friday! Don't forget to check out other artists as well, you never know which might appeal to you!

What's brewing....?

Here's a preview for what ToysEtc is planning for the upcoming STGCC!

I'm working with the the author of MunchKimz and ToysEtc for this project, and I'm very sure that the artists will be pleased to receive the fruit of our labour!

Can you guess what this is?

Post exams and 10 days to STGCC!

It's only 10 days more to STGCC people, so do keep your time free from the 10th to 12th December and head down to Suntec Convention Centre for some fun!

Anyways, forgive me for the long hiatus. So to start everything off with a BANG!!1

STGCC EXCLUSIVE!

This is the other item that you can be looking forward to purchasing when you attend STGCC. While I am most certainly not so much interested in the TO-FU face on one side, I will definitely be grabbing at least 2 of these Gloomy TO-FU's! Limited quantity aside, I am so taken in by the fact that this is a 10th anniversary item, not to mention Gloomy figurines are so damned rare!

Other than that, after purchasing the exclusive and other Gloomy merchandise, you will be able to have them autographed on 11th and 12 December when Mori Chack himself heads down to the convention for the autograph sessions. :D

With these great things just waiting for you to check them out come 10th December, do make sure you make the time!!

Countdown posts to Mori Chacks' visit to Singapore!

STGCC 2010 is gonna see some of the best artists coming down to give us an aesthetic treat :D
And of all the artists who are going to make an appearance, there is ONE whom I am most interested in seeing.

That's right, it's Mori Chack! Known best for his extremely successful Gloomy Bear lineup, he also has several other characters that are oh-so-unbelievably cute.

Mori Chack @ showcase in MARUI Shinjuku 2F

You can find out more about him from his Wikipedia Page or his Blog.

Anyways, for the upcoming STGCC, Mori-san will be selling a 9-inch sitting Gloomy plush in 5 colors. These are manufactured by PlayImaginative, and sales are probably at their booth too.
Well, IMO the are teh-suck...NOT. 9-inch plushes aren't your everyday sizes, and in the world of Gloomy, sky blue and Instinctive(grey) aren't very common either! However I would say that the plush is modeled after very common versions of the Gloomy plushies. Good or bad? You be the judge. :)

Well start counting down folks, its 26 days to STGCC 2010. Be there, or be squarshed by Gloomy.

STGCC 2010

I attended the past two STGCC's back in 2008 and 2009. In 2008, Mori Chack was one of the guests attending STGCC '08, and boy was that a BALL!!

I managed to grab a couple of rare items, a T-shirt, and a handbag. Both of which were discontinued items, probably sold out of his personal collection (Mori Chack is known to give out stuff from his personal collection as gifts and whatnot)

In 2009, it was disappointing to find out that He who created Gloomy would not be attending. :(

This year however, in STGCC '10, HE WILL BE RETURNING! (YES! WOOHOO!)

Several tidbits about STGCC '10.

1) It's held in Singapore,Suntec City Convention Centre.
2) It will be held from 10 - 12 December 2010.
3) This time it's being organised by REED EXHIBITIONS. (The past 2 conventions were organised by PlayImaginative)
4) There WILL be EXCLUSIVES!

So ladies and gentlemen, do note this down on your calendar and hope to see you down at the convention! :D