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Wow. Floro Dery Is Really...dumb. And Conceited.


SentinelPrime

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First off, if this is old news, and has been dissected already, I apologize. Now, today I was searching through some Cyclonus images on google, and I came across this gem. It's an interview from 2002 with Floro Dery, who seems to have worked extensively with G1 designs, and claims to have created all the TFTM designs. Then contradicts himself. Alot. This guy is a jack a$$. He doesn't remember half of what he's talking about, but tries to bluff as though he does. He says he designed all of the original characters, then says he copied box art for some. He says he created ALL of the movie characters by himself, then says Magnus was already made. He's asked a question about why the bot modes on Cybertron had earth parts, and he says...well he's rude. I'll let you read it yourself. It's worth it, but man, this guy is laaaame. He's a disgruntled employee, and trying to act important, instantly remembering flattering things, but somehow forgetting others.

 

Here's a link, this one's easier on the eyes, but I copied it below if you don't want to click.

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=htt...s%3Den%26sa%3DN

 

 

Floro Dery was the man most directly responsible for the look and feel of the Transformers cartoon series as we know it today, and was single handedly responsible for designing every new character, location, and device featured in The Transformers: the Movie. In July of 2002, he was gracious enough to answer some questions about his work on the series and movie, revealing how many of his creations were brought to life.

 

 

ZMFTS: Let's start with the basics. You were originally involved with the Transformers cartoon as design supervisor, setting the visual design style for the television series. Does this extend to the look of the characters as well as the locales?

 

Floro Dery: Yes. Aside from the design supervisor I was also the character designer.

 

ZMFTS: There's a rumor that's been floating around that John Romita of Marvel Comics did all or most of the original character designs for the show. What can you tell me about this? Was Romita involved in the design work at all?

 

FD: I know John Romita by name, but I never saw him work at Marvel Studios. My assistants and I were the only ones working on the designs for the Transformers series (first season, and early part of the second). I'm surprised why, after all these years, all of a sudden his name came out. What I do know is that the animation cartoon designs for the first season of the Transformers series came from Japan. I simplified it further and my assistants did the clean-up. Furthermore I did the original concept development designs and animation cartoon designs of the Transformer movie, almost all by myself. Many artists just did clean-up and turn arounds of my designs. Marvel studios sent all these designs to Marvel comics, and they just copied my design for a comics series.

 

ZMFTS: What about the human characters and other supporting characters in the series, like Spike and Sparkplug Witwicky? Who was typically responsible for their visual design?

 

FD: I also designed all the human characters in the movie and series. This includes all the incidental robot and human designs in the series.

 

ZMFTS: Did you create the original Autobot symbol and Decepticon symbol? Do you recall what they were based on, if anything?

 

FD: I didn't directly design an Autobot or Decepticon symbol. But I did design a Decepticon secret base that looks close to their symbol. Probably the Korean or Japanese artist designed the symbol. These symbols are based on the face of a robot, but a stylized version.

 

ZMFTS: Were you also responsible for designing the original Autobot and Decepticon ships from the first episode? Did you happen to give the ships names, and if so, what were they?

 

FD: Yes, I did design the Autobot and Decepticon spaceships. But there are so many and they didn't have any special name, just "Autobot or Decepticon spaceship". I checked my files and I found out that the spaceships I designed I designated spaceship A, B, C, etc. some have names, others do not. Still others who were named after the robots who occupied them. For example, the Insecticon spaceship, Decepticon spaceship, etc. Sometimes Hasbro would change the name and it isn't the same name as the one in my originals. Spaceship A is called the Ark. This is the first spaceship I designed for the Transformers series.

 

ZMFTS: I've noticed that some of the model sheet designs for the first-season characters bear a striking resemblance to the Hasbro package art. Here are a few comparisons so you can see what I mean. Is it true that you used the box art for reference when designing the original cartoon models? Was doing it that way easier or harder than using the toys themselves for reference?

 

FD: If there was box art, then I would copy it. But most of the time I based my animation designs on the toys. And of course it is easier to copy box art, than to base a design on a toy. You have to use dramatic staging and exaggeration.

 

ZMFTS: Many of the first-season characters looked very different from their toys. For starters, they had more simple designs, obviously to make them easier to animate. They also had more humanoid body proportions than they toys, and in many cases their faces looked more human. Was this your idea to portray the characters this way, or was it something Hasbro wanted? Do you think that robots built like humans are easier to relate to?

 

FD: The initial animation designs from Japan, like Optimus Prime, looked like humans. I picked up on this, but I made it better and much more human-like so that it would be easy to relate to.

 

ZMFTS: So the first batch of characters were actually designed in Japan?

 

FD: For the Transformers series, the Japanese were the designers of the toys. For the Transformers movie, I am the designer of the toys. However, I also designed the animation characters based on Japanese toys for the series. I checked some of my records and files, and the animation designs I did for the series and cleaned-up by my assistants were:

 

Perceptor, Smokescreen, Tracks, Red Alert, Inferno, Grapple, Hoist, Blaster, Ramjet, Thrust, Dirge, All the triple changers, Defense center-play set, Omega Supreme, Jetfire, All dinobots, Shockwave, All constructicons, All insecticons, Devastator, All cassette robots, etc. Also in my files, I have robot animation designs called Stunticons. There are many more robots designs I have in my files, but with indication "for clean-up only". I have to see the actual toys to compare them with my animation designs, where they were based. (There are so many more. My files are more than 1000 pages. So I'll have to check again to see what I missed.)

 

I also designed all the main and incidental human characters, and all incidental robots, which includes: Dion, Female ninja robot, Ariel, Orion Pax, Alpha Trion, all warrior robots, Guardian robot, etc. I designed all the spaceships, planets, background layouts, and most props. In short, I set the style and look for the Transformers series. Since I am also the original concept designer of the Transformers movie, I can safely say that I set the style and look of the Transformers universe.All of the animation model sheets I designed were sent by Marvel Studios to Marvel comics. The Marvel comics' artists just copied it.

 

ZMFTS: I notice that you've listed Jetfire as one of the characters you designed. It's my understanding that the first version of the character was based closely on the toy (which resembled a Macross/Robotech fighter), but the character was redesigned and renamed Skyfire for legal reasons. Did you create both the Jetfire and Skyfire designs?

 

FD: I remember about this legal thing. I was told by the producer to redesign some animation jet characters. I did design Jetfire, but I can't remember if it was renamed Skyfire. Usually, when I finish designing a character I just give it to my assistants, who give it to the production manager, who then names the characters. But I could safely say that aside from Optimus Prime, and a few others were initially done in Japan, which I simplified further, after that I designed all the animation characters up to the second season, except for about 5 or 10 shows, more or less.

 

ZMFTS: The characters from the second season appear to have been designed differently from the first batch. Newer characters like Smokescreen, Hoist, and Ramjet, were actually based on repaints of first-season toys (Bluestreak, Trailbreaker, and Starscream, in this case). Even though the toys were the same as before, the designs for the newer characters are short and squat, staying much closer to the toy designs this time. Here are some more comparisons. Were you deliberately trying to make the second-season robots look different from the first-season characters? I'm especially curious about your decision to go with the "conehead" look for Ramjet, since the toy instructions don't actually tell you to transform him that way.

 

FD: The second season was just an extension of the first. The differences are probably artistic differences. The animation for the first season was done in Japan and the animation for the second season was done in Korea. Sometimes both. Other reasons are due to the following circumstances:

 

1) same toys, painted differently

 

2) same cars with different transformation variation, which makes the robot look slightly different (ie: given the same car I could transform it using different variations and the result will have a slightly different look)

 

3) same cars with different attached weapons and parts

 

4) different cars with same transformation variation (ie: given two different cars and using the same transforming variation, the result is 2 slightly similar robots)

 

I did not deliberately change the second season characters from the first. Usually, aside from the above reasons, any artist who designs something over and over again, by time, his/her work will become different. And about Ramjet, he had a "conehead" because he is a jet. It is the front, pointed part of the jet. It is the result of the transformation, from a jet to a robot.

 

ZMFTS: I've got a few specific questions from the episodes themselves. In the first episode, before the characters crashed on Earth, we got to see a few of their Cybertronic vehicle forms, which naturally looked nothing like the vehicle modes they would later turn into on Earth. Their robot modes never changed, though--Jazz always had Porsche headlights on his chest, for example. Do you know why the characters we saw on Cybertron didn't have different-looking robot forms to match their Cybertronic vehicle modes?

 

FD: The vehicle mode were given different styles in order to blend in with the environment on Earth. The robot wasn't changed because it is still alien. A robot stays a robot.

 

ZMFTS: One oddity from the first episode was an orange crane named Hauler. The character only appeared in one scene, never transformed, and there was no toy named Hauler ever released. Later, during the second season, a character named Grapple was introduced (whom you designed) who also turned into an orange crane. Some fans have guessed that Hauler was actually an early version of the character who became Grapple. Can you shed any light on this mystery?

 

FD: I did design Grapple who was an orange crane, but he is probably the same as Hauler because it is common in animation to use the same old characters to save on production costs.

 

ZMFTS: The second season episode "The Search for Alpha Trion" features the first appearance of the female Autobots, commanded by Elita One. Were you their designer as well? The main reason I'm curious about this is because we never see Elita One's vehicle mode clearly in the episode, and I was curious as to what she might have transformed into.

 

FD: Yes, I did design the female autobots. But the original name is different from the one in the series. Elita One is Ariel, after the name change, but I did not design a vehicle mode for her.

 

ZMFTS: The cartoon had a number of visual elements that separated the Autobots from the Decepticons. One of these was the color of the technology they used--Autobots typically used orange technology (including the Ark and Autobot City) while the Decepticons leaned toward purple technology (their space cruiser/headquarters, mothership from the movie, and most of their weapons-of-the-week). Was this your idea? Do you know why these colors were chosen?

 

FD: I was not involved in the coloring of the Autobots and Decepticons in the movie or series. The Japanese or Korean artists were probably involved in this, because the production was done in Korea or Japan. [Note: During the course of this interview I learned that the late Phyllis Craig was responsible for the color models in the show--Zob.]

 

ZMFTS: Does that also include the eye colors chosen for the characters (typically, blue eyes for Autobots and red eyes for Decepticons)?

 

FD: Same answer. As I mentioned before, I was only involved in the first and early part of the second season. I was pulled out to work on the movie.

 

ZMFTS: Let's move onto the movie, then. Easily the most epic of the Transformers adventures, the movie introduced dozens of new characters, vehicles, and locales. As the concept designer for the movie, your task must have been enormous. How many new designs were required for the film? Di you recall how long it took you to come up with them?

 

FD: All the designs I did took me about 6 months. There were more than 200 original concept designs. If you include all the small designs, then there are more than 500.

 

ZMFTS: The Quintessons are especially interesting, since they're such a dramatic divergence from your standard humanoid aliens we've always seen in the Transformers universe. What was your inspiration for their design?

 

FD: In 1970, I designed a toy that had parts revolving around a cylinder. I used that same idea when I was designing the Quintessons. It has five faces, each face representing a different personality. For example, the skull represents death, etc.

 

ZMFTS: When you were creating the characters for the movie, did Hasbro give you any idea of what types of characters they were looking for? Did they specifically ask for a rebellious teenager Autobot, a female Autobot, a new version of Megatron, etc.? Or did you create the ideas behind these characters as well as their physical designs?

 

FD: Initially, Marvel studios gave me a general half-page outline to give me an idea of what they wanted. But generally, I ignored it and came up with my own original designs. That's why I have the credit "Original Concept Designer".

 

ZMFTS: It's interesting to note that the movie characters abandoned the typical box-shaped design of the original Transformers characters; your movie designs are far more rounded and streamlined. Was this a deliberate move on your part to make the new generation of characters more futuristic than their predecessors?

 

FD: I deliberately changed the design to make it more futuristic. In fact, there are some other designs I did on my own, that I cannot post on my web site right now. The designs are beyond futuristic.

 

ZMFTS: Would you describe the vehicle modes for the movie characters as being futuristic Earth vehicles, or Cybertronic vehicle forms?

 

FD: I stylized the vehicle modes in the movie in order to be different from Earth. In essence, they are Cybertronic vehicles.

 

ZMFTS: When designing the movie characters, did you know at the time that Hasbro planned to render them in three-dimensional toy form? How did that affect the way you designed them? Did you plan Hot Rod's vehicle-mode transformation, for example, in such a way that Hasbro would be able to reproduce it in a toy? Did Hasbro ever communicate with you about designs that they weren't able to turn into transforming toys?

 

FD: I was not told that the characters I designed in the movie would become toys. But I designed the characters in such a way that they are transformable. If you've seen Gnaw, the Sharkticon I designed, then you will have an idea. Same thing goes for Hot Rod. He is my original concept design. Hasbro had no input and never communicated with me. I wasn't even involved in any meetings at Marvel studios. I did it all by myself, without anyone else's input. Everyone else just picked up on my designs.

 

ZMFTS: Scourge and the Sweeps have the unusual ability to stick their robot heads up in vehicle mode, and they do this in the movie as well as the subsequent cartoon episodes. What purpose does this serve?

 

FD: The heads stick out because the idea is like a regular fighter plane. You can see just the head of the fighter pilot. If you have seen my "Egg" design on my web site, I based Scourge on it.

 

ZMFTS: I'm also curious about Cyclonus. The toy had detachable wings, and his profile in Marvel Comics explained this as being an additional flight mode used for space travel. Was this part of your design, or just something Hasbro came up with for the toy?

 

FD: My original design for Cyclonus has fixed wings. When it is transformed into robot mode, the wings can be folded. The Japanese toy engineers probably could not figure out my design because Hasbro never communicated with me.So, the engineers probably made the wings detachable because they had difficulty figuring out how to transform it. What Hasbro came up with is an additional flight mode for space travel to justify it.

 

ZMFTS: Of course, some of the characters from the movie already existed in toy form, even before they were added to the Transformers toy line. One of them was Ultra Magnus, who was essentially Optimus Prime with a different trailer, originally sold as part of the Diaclone toy line in Japan. Were you responsible for the cartoon design for Ultra Magnus as well? How would you say basing your designs on toys is different than creating them from scratch?

 

FD: I did not design Ultra Magnus in the movie. But I did design an Ultra Magnus character which was not used. I think mine is much better than the one in the movie. It's easier to design from toys, because you can just copy it. It's very difficult to start from scratch. Most of the movie characters I designed from scratch.

 

ZMFTS: What about Autobot City? Was your design based on an existing toy? The reason I ask is because Hasbro did release a toy called Metroplex, which was referred to as Autobot City in the cartoon series, but which also had a robot mode. This toy was actually a pre-Transformer design, originally conceived for the Diaclone line as well, and there are some strong similarities between the toy and your city design. What can you tell me about this?

 

FD: I have two version of Autobot City. The first one was not used because it was too big and too complicated for animation. It looked like a hand that closed and opened. This was my most beautiful design, my masterpiece. I initially wanted to post it on my web site, but someone wanted to use it for free in a movie. Thus, I didn't post it. For the second one, I used New York City as my model. The producer wanted me to model my design after the toy. I got lazy and didn't want to change my design anymore, so I just added some parts similar to the toy on top of my original design to accommodate the producer. The result was the one used in the movie.

 

ZMFTS: There seem to be two versions of nearly every one of the movie characters, in fact. Your original designs were the ones the toys were based on, and appear in the movie poster as well as the Marvel Comics adaptation. The revised versions (the ones that appeared in the finished film) generally have less detail, and in a few cases have altered body designs. Do you know why these models were changed at such a late stage?

 

FD: The designs were probably changed due to artistic differences. Or they got lazy from copying my designs.

 

ZMFTS: Out of curiosity, have you ever seen any of the toys that were based on your movie designs? What did you think of them?

 

FD: I have all the toys based on my designs, and I think they are very close to my original idea. In fact, all of them are still unopened after all these years.

 

ZMFTS: I'd like to address some specific scenes from the movie for a moment. The death of Optimus Prime was a powerful moment, and one of the elements that made his death so dramatic was when all the color drained away from his body, leaving behind a dark grey husk. I realize that you weren't involved in creating the color models for the characters, but do you know anything about this particular scene?

 

FD: Same answer as before.

 

ZMFTS: During Starscream's coronation scene, in which Starscream (briefly) claims leadership of the Decepticons, he's decked out in an ornate crown and regal, flowing cape. Close examination of this scene also reveals that Starscream's body itself was redesigned, with differently-shaped armor and more intricate details. Was this redesign your doing?

 

FD: I didn't realize until now that Starscream's design was different. Probably the animation supervisor or animator changed it slightly.

 

ZMFTS: The planet-eating monster known as Unicron was perhaps the most visually stunning character in the film, both as a planet and as a robot. Curiously, a preliminary design for a transforming robot/planet appears in the pages of the Takara SF Land Encyclopedia, noting that the design was a draft for a character in the movie. Did you base your Unicron design on this earlier concept drawing?

 

FD: No, Unicron is my own original concept design. Even the planet transforming into a robot is my original idea. That's why my credit in the movie is original concept designer. Maybe Takara copied my design because a lot of fans wanted a Unicron toy, but one was never made by Hasbro.

 

ZMFTS: How detailed were your designs for Unicron? For example, there are scenes in which he eats planets and we get to watch his meal moving through his digestion system. Did you design Unicron's inner workings as well?

 

FD: My design for Unicron is very detailed. From his internal organs, to his planet-like shape, to his robot transformation, all of that was my design. In fact, the original designs of all the internal organs, was 2' x 7'. There were 3 of them.

 

ZMFTS: Some fans have wondered about the part of Unicron's brain that features the TV screens, which appear to play back events as Unicron watches them from afar. What is their purpose? Does Unicron have to broadcast events on these screens before he knows what's going on?

 

FD: The purpose of the tv screens are like security monitors in a building, which monitors everything in the building. In the case of Unicron he can see everything that is going on inside his body as shown in his tv brain.

 

ZMFTS: Your web site indicates that Unicron was originally designed with an orbiting moon for his planet mode (which was also incorporated into one of the early, unreleased toy designs). Do you know what purpose this moon might have served, and why it was removed from his final design?

 

FD: I originally designed the moon as a kind of mini-Unicron, like Mini-Me of Dr. Evil. But Hasbro never picked up on my idea and they removed it, because I never told them what it was all about.

 

ZMFTS: I've noticed your name is absent from the credits for the third season, which immediately followed the movie. Why did you leave the show? Do you know who was responsible for carrying on in your stead?

 

FD: I did not leave the show. After I finished the movie I was laid off by Marvel Studios. Since, I dominated the show and "I became the Transformers", they probably had to get rid of me. I created too many designs, that they no longer needed me. So, I was jobless and walking in Hollywood for a while. The artists who did the turn-arounds and clean-up of my designs carried on the work for a long time. Life sucks doesn't it? I'm not surprised though. Some other person even got credit for all the work I did.

 

ZMFTS: If you could go back and do it all over again, are there any Transformers designs that you would have done differently? Which designs are you most proud of?

 

FD: If I were to redesign my designs, I would redesign all of them and make them better than before. It would be beyond futuristic. The design I'm most proud was not used in the movie. It was my first version of Autobot City, that I mentioned earlier. Other designs I liked were those of Gnaw and Hot Rod.

 

ZMFTS: Thank you very much for your time and effort. You helped shape a vast universe which hundreds of thousands of children and adults still celebrate today, and your contributions are greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks also go to Rik Bakke, Steve-o Stonebraker, and ViceGripX, who submitted questions for this interview.

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I don't get it , wasn't half the tf line allready made up in japan before had, this guy talks like he came up with everything him self :S

 

Allso check the pictures, is it just me or is that primus up there lol ... Is that one of " his" earlyer designs for unicron ? :S

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I don't quite see anything you are talking about. he never contradicts himself. he admits designing all original characters in the movie. being that Ultra Magnus isn't an original character but based on an already existing toy, he doesn't fit into the category he was talking about. and he doesn't claim to have designed the toys from the first series, he claims to have designed the cartoon characters, which were based on the toys. the question asked was whether he designed the cartoon versions off the toys or the box art. again, where is the contradiction.

 

he doesn't seem egotistical or a jerk at all. you on the other hand do with your accusations, when in fact you didn't even understand the complexities of what he was talking about.

 

you are wrong.

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Well. Let's see, gscbr.

 

"Initially, Marvel studios gave me a general half-page outline to give me an idea of what they wanted. But generally, I ignored it and came up with my own original designs. That's why I have the credit "Original Concept Designer".

 

"I did the original concept development designs and animation cartoon designs of the Transformer movie, almost all by myself."

 

"The initial animation designs from Japan, like Optimus Prime, looked like humans. I picked up on this, but I made it better and much more human-like so that it would be easy to relate to."

 

'I did not leave the show. After I finished the movie I was laid off by Marvel Studios. Since, I dominated the show and "I became the Transformers", they probably had to get rid of me. I created too many designs, that they no longer needed me."

 

Those aren't the comments of a conceited person??

 

I like this one:

"In short, I set the style and look for the Transformers series. Since I am also the original concept designer of the Transformers movie, I can safely say that I set the style and look of the Transformers universe."

 

So wait, if most of the designs were made already other than the movie, and he just copied box art and translated them to cel, what is he talking about?

 

"FD: I was not involved in the coloring of the Autobots and Decepticons in the movie or series. The Japanese or Korean artists were probably involved in this, because the production was done in Korea or Japan. [Note: During the course of this interview I learned that the late Phyllis Craig was responsible for the color models in the show--Zob.]

 

I thought all design was done by him, no, wait him and his team, no wait....

 

ZMFTS: Does that also include the eye colors chosen for the characters (typically, blue eyes for Autobots and red eyes for Decepticons)?

FD: Same answer. As I mentioned before, I was only involved in the first and early part of the second season. I was pulled out to work on the movie."

 

So, he wants to take credit for designing the transformers "look" singlehandedly, then when he gets confronted with something he doesn't know, he says stuff like this.

 

"Hasbro had no input and never communicated with me. I wasn't even involved in any meetings at Marvel studios. I did it all by myself, without anyone else's input. Everyone else just picked up on my designs."

 

Uh....what? What about those teams and assistants referred to earlier?

 

"FD: My original design for Cyclonus has fixed wings. When it is transformed into robot mode, the wings can be folded. The Japanese toy engineers probably could not figure out my design because Hasbro never communicated with me"

 

Oh, yeah, I'm sure those slow Japanese ENGINEERS had trouble figuring that out....:rolleyes:

 

"This was my most beautiful design, my masterpiece. I initially wanted to post it on my web site, but someone wanted to use it for free in a movie. Thus, I didn't post it."

 

uhh...what?

 

HERE is a prime example of what I mean. He says:

" For the Transformers series, the Japanese were the designers of the toys. For the Transformers movie, I am the designer of the toys"

 

THEN:

 

"There seem to be two versions of nearly every one of the movie characters, in fact. Your original designs were the ones the toys were based on, and appear in the movie poster as well as the Marvel Comics adaptation. The revised versions (the ones that appeared in the finished film) generally have less detail, and in a few cases have altered body designs. Do you know why these models were changed at such a late stage?

FD: The designs were probably changed due to artistic differences. Or they got lazy from copying my designs.

ZMFTS: Out of curiosity, have you ever seen any of the toys that were based on your movie designs? What did you think of them?

FD: I have all the toys based on my designs, and I think they are very close to my original idea."

 

???

 

NICE:

"ZMFTS: I've noticed that some of the model sheet designs for the first-season characters bear a striking resemblance to the Hasbro package art. Here are a few comparisons so you can see what I mean. Is it true that you used the box art for reference when designing the original cartoon models? Was doing it that way easier or harder than using the toys themselves for reference?

 

FD: If there was box art, then I would copy it. But most of the time I based my animation designs on the toys. And of course it is easier to copy box art, than to base a design on a toy. You have to use dramatic staging and exaggeration."

 

But, what happened to: "My assistants and I were the only ones working on the designs for the Transformers series (first season, and early part of the second).

 

What I do know is that the animation cartoon designs for the first season of the Transformers series came from Japan"But I could safely say that aside from Optimus Prime, and a few others were initially done in Japan, which I simplified further, after that I designed all the animation characters up to the second season, except for about 5 or 10 shows, more or less."

 

See what I mean NOW?!?! Jeez. Here's one more that ticked me off:

 

"Their robot modes never changed, though--Jazz always had Porsche headlights on his chest, for example. Do you know why the characters we saw on Cybertron didn't have different-looking robot forms to match their Cybertronic vehicle modes?

FD: The vehicle mode were given different styles in order to blend in with the environment on Earth. The robot wasn't changed because it is still alien. A robot stays a robot."

 

So, wait, the EARTH PORSCHE headlights on Cybertron stayed the same because a robot stays a robot, but, the vehicle mode changed to the EARTH PORSCHE because they were imitating.

 

See, this guy doesn't remember half of what he's talking about, wants to take sole responsibility for the aesthetics of the show, was caught off-guard by a knowledgeable interviewer and got defensive. So, gscbr.....I'm not wrong. Take your attacks elsewhere.

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Well. Let's see, gscbr.

 

"Initially, Marvel studios gave me a general half-page outline to give me an idea of what they wanted. But generally, I ignored it and came up with my own original designs. That's why I have the credit "Original Concept Designer".

 

"I did the original concept development designs and animation cartoon designs of the Transformer movie, almost all by myself."

 

"The initial animation designs from Japan, like Optimus Prime, looked like humans. I picked up on this, but I made it better and much more human-like so that it would be easy to relate to."

 

Those aren't the comments of a conceited person??

 

No, they are not. They are from a animator/designer that's got a sense of how he wants things done. He's got a particular agenda to fulfill for the project and he's going with his gut. That is VERY common in animation production. I do it a couple of times a week on the stuff i work on.

Hardly conceited.

ZMFTS: Does that also include the eye colors chosen for the characters (typically, blue eyes for Autobots and red eyes for Decepticons)?

FD: Same answer. As I mentioned before, I was only involved in the first and early part of the second season. I was pulled out to work on the movie."

 

So, he wants to take credit for designing the transformers "look" singlehandedly, then when he gets confronted with something he doesn't know, he says stuff like this.

 

"Hasbro had no input and never communicated with me. I wasn't even involved in any meetings at Marvel studios. I did it all by myself, without anyone else's input. Everyone else just picked up on my designs."

 

Uh....what? What about those teams and assistants referred to earlier?

 

Those teams of assistants will typically do just clean-up or tightening up of rough drawings. That is putting a black pencil or ink line on the sketchy design that the Lead draws.

 

Their input into the actual designs is minimal and usual only cosmetic at best. The essential design comes from the lead artist.

 

But, what happened to: "My assistants and I were the only ones working on the designs for the Transformers series (first season, and early part of the second).

 

What I do know is that the animation cartoon designs for the first season of the Transformers series came from Japan"But I could safely say that aside from Optimus Prime, and a few others were initially done in Japan, which I simplified further, after that I designed all the animation characters up to the second season, except for about 5 or 10 shows, more or less."

 

See what I mean NOW?!?! Jeez. Here's one more that ticked me off:

 

What exactly is bothering you here?

He's talking about simplifying designs for animation. That means eliminating or altering details so that forms can be animated with a minimum of pencil mileage. That "pencil mileage" is a big deal because the more lines of a drawing the more items that have to be animated to, and eventually coloured. Intricate drawings can be very expensive to animate, thus someone has to go in a modify the designs to suit the needs of production--this sounds exactly like what this gent has done.

 

"Their robot modes never changed, though--Jazz always had Porsche headlights on his chest, for example. Do you know why the characters we saw on Cybertron didn't have different-looking robot forms to match their Cybertronic vehicle modes?

FD: The vehicle mode were given different styles in order to blend in with the environment on Earth. The robot wasn't changed because it is still alien. A robot stays a robot."

 

So, wait, the EARTH PORSCHE headlights on Cybertron stayed the same because a robot stays a robot, but, the vehicle mode changed to the EARTH PORSCHE because they were imitating.

 

See, this guy doesn't remember half of what he's talking about, wants to take sole responsibility for the aesthetics of the show, was caught off-guard by a knowledgeable interviewer and got defensive. So, gscbr.....I'm not wrong. Take your attacks elsewhere.

 

There's little wrong with what this fellow is talking about.

 

I seldom remember a great deal about the shows I've worked on, and at last count its over 100. One of the recent shows I was invloved in a SINGLE fellow created all the character designs. at last count it was something like 2000 main, secondary and incidental characters for one 26 episode series. All by himself.

 

Floro Dery is just related his involvement on the project, and recount that he did. And by all accounts, he did a lot on the shows he worked.

 

It does help to know something about this.

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So, if most of his designs were simplified and dumbed down, how does this make sense?

 

"In short, I set the style and look for the Transformers series. Since I am also the original concept designer of the Transformers movie, I can safely say that I set the style and look of the Transformers universe."

 

How is this not a misleading, conceited statement?

 

One more I like alot:

"Were you deliberately trying to make the second-season robots look different from the first-season characters? I'm especially curious about your decision to go with the "conehead" look for Ramjet, since the toy instructions don't actually tell you to transform him that way.

 

And about Ramjet, he had a "conehead" because he is a jet. It is the front, pointed part of the jet. It is the result of the transformation, from a jet to a robot."

 

Oh, I see now. The first 3 seekers weren't jets, so they didn't have the conehead....wait.....

 

This is like George Lucas taking credit for designing all the Star Wars concepts.

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So, if most of his designs were simplified and dumbed down, how does this make sense?

 

"In short, I set the style and look for the Transformers series. Since I am also the original concept designer of the Transformers movie, I can safely say that I set the style and look of the Transformers universe."

 

How is this not a misleading, conceited statement?

 

Its not conceited because he's talking about the story environment where those characters exist.

His work in design DOES set the tone for the Universe in which those characters exist. Since he is the lead designer, he can rightly claim that credit.

 

You are making something out of nothing.

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Here's how this interview reads to me:

 

 

FD: "Hi, I created most of the G1 cartoon designs and movie designs by myself and am singlehandedly responsible for the way the TF universe looks."

 

Interviewer:

But don't you have assistants?

 

Well, yeah. They took my complex designs and simplified them.

 

So...the final designs were not done totally by you.

 

No.

 

But you made it all yourself.

 

No. Yes. It's all very complicated. OK?

 

So, you did most of the designs?

 

Yes.

 

But I saw copied box art.

 

Well, I copied some box art, sure. But not all!

 

So, Cylonus' wings are removable because the Japanese engineers couldn't figure out your godly design?

 

Right.

 

The only reason Ramjet had a comehead was because he was a jet.

 

Right.

 

You made the movie toys?

 

Yes.

 

Someone else made the movie toys?

 

Yes.

 

You created the designs for things that were already designed?

 

Yes. I am responsible for the way TFs look in animation and comics.

 

But other people took your designs and changed them, thereby making it a joint project?

 

Yes. No. Hasbro fired me because I became Transformers and they were afraid of my powers. Whhaaahh!!!

 

 

Maybe I'm just too practical.

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So, if most of his designs were simplified and dumbed down, how does this make sense?

 

"In short, I set the style and look for the Transformers series. Since I am also the original concept designer of the Transformers movie, I can safely say that I set the style and look of the Transformers universe."

 

How is this not a misleading, conceited statement?

 

Its not conceited because he's talking about the story environment where those characters exist.

His work in design DOES set the tone for the Universe in which those characters exist. Since he is the lead designer, he can rightly claim that credit.

 

You are making something out of nothing.

But what about all the people like Marvel and the animators that changed his designs? They became designers too. Lots of people helped work on this stuff, not just him. I realize what role he plays in this, I just expected something maybe a liitle modest, or factual.

 

Like:

 

Well, many people were involved. Lots of my stuff made it through, and I'm happy to be part of something so many people love.

 

Or:

 

That's a long time ago, there were lots of designs. I adapted many designs that were already around, and helped to tie things together with ideas, some of which were successful.

 

 

These comments would be made by someone cool, and realistic. This guy has an ego, and wants people to praise him.

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So, if most of his designs were simplified and dumbed down, how does this make sense?

 

"In short, I set the style and look for the Transformers series. Since I am also the original concept designer of the Transformers movie, I can safely say that I set the style and look of the Transformers universe."

 

How is this not a misleading, conceited statement?

 

Its not conceited because he's talking about the story environment where those characters exist.

His work in design DOES set the tone for the Universe in which those characters exist. Since he is the lead designer, he can rightly claim that credit.

 

You are making something out of nothing.

But what about all the people like Marvel and the animators that changed his designs? They became designers too. Lots of people helped work on this stuff, not just him. I realize what role he plays in this, I just expected something maybe a liitle modest, or factual.

 

Like:

 

Well, many people were involved. Lots of my stuff made it through, and I'm happy to be part of something so many people love.

 

Or:

 

That's a long time ago, there were lots of designs. I adapted many designs that were already around, and helped to tie things together with ideas, some of which were successful.

 

 

These comments would be made by someone cool, and realistic. This guy has an ego, and wants people to praise him.

You are reading things into the statements he makes.

 

What was his body English like, his tone of voice? Conceit comes across all to easily in text, but its not always there.

 

 

Take what he says into context. he could have legitmately done all that work, and yes, all those other people worked only to make his ruffs look good. That's SOP in the animation biz.

 

The assistants for Glen Keane actually draw all the stuff you see on screen, but Glen gets all the credit and the million dollar salary. He does the ruffs, they do the cleans, but HIS thinking is what starts the magic.

 

This example above is no different, IMO.

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IMO, almost everyone from Hasbro, DW, comics, Marvel involved in transformers sounds conceited.

 

Anyways, l heard the movie toys were based on the art as opposeto the art based on the toys.

 

As for character designs, he designed the characters for the show as in if one character had a face plate in toy form, he might of omit it during the cartoon, hence he is the character designer.

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Also, he seem to misread the robot on cybertron question since he replies something like "they stay the same since thy are aliens."

 

That still doesn't explain why they have earth cars as breast plates.

Agreed. I wish he was able to go into a little more detail as to why the certain characters he designed were changed drastically from the toys. Like Ironhide, Ratchet, and Skyfire. Also, I wonder why Hot Rod's design in the movie doesn't transform the same way the toy does.

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Also, I wonder why Hot Rod's design in the movie doesn't transform the same way the toy does.

Probably to make it easier to animate.

Making changes like that is a big deal because it affects costs and other things, like ease of work.

 

If a transformation morph is so complex, or the toy structure it transforms into doesn't work for the character as designed in the show, then changes will be made to the way it transforms.

This makes it easier on the animators that have to do the scenes, and thus keeps the scenes flowing in the production pipeline.

The show is a DIFFERENT thing than the toys, because the show has to operate by different rules.

This is how continuity glitches occur.

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Well he definitely strikes me as arrogant.

 

So he thinks he created the Transformers? He forgets all he did (assuming he is the one) was taking the pre-existing Japanese lines, re-named them, and then added a story background. Sure it's arguable that he created them as characters, but still it's hard to argue creating a series based on a toy line that was around for a few years already.

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You want to know about Floro Dery? Here's 5 pages of discussion about the guy and a "surprise guest" appearing at The Allspark. It actually makes for a fairly interesting read if you've got the time. It's fairly difficult to accurately convey one's emotions over the internet, as most people in the world, and perception of these aforementioned emotions is truly subjective. With that said, my jury's still out on if Dery's truly the arrogant bastard that most people make him out to be.

 

As for the designs of Ironhide, Ratchet, and Jetfire/Skyfire all differing from toy to animation, that's fairly easy to answer. Skyfire was changed due to the toy having an "animated appearance" already as a Veritech fighter in the cartoon Robotech. While the mold for the toy was licensed from the Macross line, it still had to be changed if Jetfire were to appear on tv, yielding Skyfire. As for Ironhide and Ratchet, one must remember that they first appeared in the Diaclone line. Their toy bodies are fairly perfect in that storyline(alien humanoids pilot normal looking vehicles that transform into mecha-like attack robots to fight evil alien looking......aliens); however, as sentient robots, the toys simply don't work. I personally blame it on the lack of a head, myself. @smilepunch@ Nonetheless, it was essential that their animated appearances be changed to reflect more of a sentient and free thinking robot, versus a essentially a moving armored suit.

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DDAAAAMMM!!! So much readin, I gave up halfway... i need me some tylenol :(

@loll@ I was just about to say something like that

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Daredrummer, why are you insulting Floro Dery? Did he insult you?

 

If you insulted someone who did not insult you, then you made yourself arrogant, dumb, and conceited.

 

Are you paid by a toy company to discredit Floro?

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Yeah I always wondered about the similarities in robot form from Cybertron to Earth. They could have made them different, but oh well. When I first read the article I thought he came across as a little conceited. Then I thought that if I had designed most of the characters,a nd was explaining that to someone, I would probably sound the same. I mean he could be a bit more modest, but really how could you explain all that and not sound like a braggard just a wee bit? It could just be the way he talks too. I know people like that who sound sarcastic or rude when they talk, but its just the way they actually talk. I'm not saying the guy can't be an arse, but maybe its just how he sounds.

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Daredrummer, why are you insulting Floro Dery? Did he insult you?

 

If you insulted someone who did not insult you, then you made yourself  arrogant, dumb, and conceited.

 

Are you paid by a toy company to discredit Floro?

Any criticism of the TF's is fair as long as it is civilized, and so far I think it has been. It doesn't take a rival toy-maker to see a bit of ego in Mr. Dery's attitude in that interview.

 

 

 

 

.....who are you, anyway? Just curious.

 

Some things on that interview that I'd like to specifically address:

I did design Grapple who was an orange crane,

 

No you didn't. The Takara Diaclone version pre-dates it and is still an orange crane in the line, so you couldn't have possibly designed it.

 

 

Initially, Marvel studios gave me a general half-page outline to give me an idea of what they wanted. But generally, I ignored it and came up with my own original designs. That's why I have the credit "Original Concept Designer".

 

Sheesh did you get much work from companies afterwards with that attitude?

 

I was not told that the characters I designed in the movie would become toys. But I designed the characters in such a way that they are transformable. If you've seen Gnaw, the Sharkticon I designed, then you will have an idea. Same thing goes for Hot Rod. He is my original concept design. Hasbro had no input and never communicated with me. I wasn't even involved in any meetings at Marvel studios. I did it all by myself, without anyone else's input. Everyone else just picked up on my designs.

 

When considering the purpose of the cartoon and movie is to sell toys, I find this totally impossible to believe. I think that the original belief of the toys coming first, and Hasbro ordering them to kill off pre-movie characters to help sell the new toys is most likely still the right case.

 

 

  The designs were probably changed due to artistic differences. Or they got lazy from copying my designs.

 

...or your quality control sucks

 

The purpose of the tv screens are like security monitors in a building, which monitors everything in the building. In the case of Unicron he can see everything that is going on inside his body as shown in his tv brain.

 

In that case, Unicron would have to step outside of his own brain in order to watch the TV's (not possible), or have cameras focusing on them to create a redundant system for monitoring.

 

I did not leave the show. After I finished the movie I was laid off by Marvel Studios. Since, I dominated the show and "I became the Transformers", they probably had to get rid of me.

 

..or could the real reason be:

Initially, Marvel studios gave me a general half-page outline to give me an idea of what they wanted. But generally, I ignored it and came up with my own original designs.

 

Companies in the real world don't like it when you over-step them like that.

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Daredrummer, why are you insulting Floro Dery? Did he insult you?

 

If you insulted someone who did not insult you, then you made yourself  arrogant, dumb, and conceited.

 

Are you paid by a toy company to discredit Floro?

OH NOEZ!!!111 John, a mysterious poster who JUST showed up today and seems to be quite similar to the mysterious assistant of Floro who also mysteriously showed up in a similar fashion in the Allspark thread that questioned Floro Dery, is questioning Daredrummer.....who's been here for awhile.

 

DAR3DRUMM3R TOTALLY GOT PWN3D D00DZ!!!11111111

 

 

@smilepunch@

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Thanks for the backup guys.

 

And granted, in retrospect, perhaps my title is a bit inappropriate, but I had just read this interview and was in an irritated mindframe.

 

John: Yes, I am paid huge amounts of money to discredit Floro Dery. By Hasbro themselves. Because as he put it "Since, I dominated the show and "I became the Transformers", they probably had to get rid of me." The best way to do this is to post on this board. My greatest plan is complete!!!

 

Here's two more:

 

"ZMFTS: I'm also curious about Cyclonus. The toy had detachable wings, and his profile in Marvel Comics explained this as being an additional flight mode used for space travel. Was this part of your design, or just something Hasbro came up with for the toy?

 

FD: My original design for Cyclonus has fixed wings. When it is transformed into robot mode, the wings can be folded. The Japanese toy engineers probably could not figure out my design because Hasbro never communicated with me.So, the engineers probably made the wings detachable because they had difficulty figuring out how to transform it. What Hasbro came up with is an additional flight mode for space travel to justify it."

 

What is he talking about? Cyclonus' wings DO fold back...if he designed the movie toys like he said he did, he would know that....and Japanese engineers just COULDN'T figure out his designs...sheesh...

 

If he made the designs, and is so sure of himself, why doesn't he even realize that there were seekers before Ramjet that did not have coneheads, instead of giving his smarmy answer? Or when asked about earth parts on Cybertron robots, why did he just blow it off and give hat pitiful answer above? For someone who singlehandedly created the way TFs look as we know it, the interviewer sure seems to know more about it. Which Mr. Dery did NOT expect, clearly. It's like 1/2 of his answers don't even go with the questions...

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Thanks for the backup guys.

 

And granted, in retrospect, perhaps my title is a bit inappropriate, but I had just read this interview and was in an irritated mindframe.

 

John: Yes, I am paid huge amounts of money to discredit Floro Dery. By Hasbro themselves. Because as he put it "Since, I dominated the show and "I became the Transformers", they probably had to get rid of me." The best way to do this is to post on this board. My greatest plan is complete!!!

 

Here's two more:

 

"ZMFTS: I'm also curious about Cyclonus. The toy had detachable wings, and his profile in Marvel Comics explained this as being an additional flight mode used for space travel. Was this part of your design, or just something Hasbro came up with for the toy?

 

FD: My original design for Cyclonus has fixed wings. When it is transformed into robot mode, the wings can be folded. The Japanese toy engineers probably could not figure out my design because Hasbro never communicated with me.So, the engineers probably made the wings detachable because they had difficulty figuring out how to transform it. What Hasbro came up with is an additional flight mode for space travel to justify it."

 

What is he talking about? Cyclonus' wings DO fold back...if he designed the movie toys like he said he did, he would know that....and Japanese engineers just COULDN'T figure out his designs...sheesh...

 

If he made the designs, and is so sure of himself, why doesn't he even realize that there were seekers before Ramjet that did not have coneheads, instead of giving his smarmy answer? Or when asked about earth parts on Cybertron robots, why did he just blow it off and give hat pitiful answer above? For someone who singlehandedly created the way TFs look as we know it, the interviewer sure seems to know more about it. Which Mr. Dery did NOT expect, clearly. It's like 1/2 of his answers don't even go with the questions...

You......um..........realize the guy was hired to design characters for the cartoon show--he's likely NOT a fan, has never bought the toys, nor does he necessarily know the characters from the toys or anything else of their history.

Put that into context, his claims could simply be from someone whose main association and reference comes from dealing with a cartoon show, and little else.

 

Given that his statements COULD well seem arrogant or conceited, but be intended as such.

 

I've been in similar situations, where fellow artists didn't know the toys they were designing characters of.......anbd didn't care. Yet they could, and have, rightly claimed that they were the "creator" of that material, because as far as the cartoons material goes, they were.

 

There's two sides to everything.

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