An Interview with Onell Design

Our own Ebonhorn was given the chance to talk with Matt Doughty of Onell Design about Glyos, Prototypes, Buildman and more. Matt gives some great insight into where Glyos came from and where Onell design is going. Read on but be aware that these figures are HIGHLY addictive:

GF: 1. When was the moment you realized that toymaker was what you wanted to do? Did you have the immediate urge to start or was it a slow build? Did you have a support base around you that encouraged the decision?

Onell: Since I was first able to tinker with things as a child, I have always wanted to build little creatures and aliens. I really never stopped doing that kind of thing. My family was always supportive of the strange projects I would pursue, whether it was cooking figures in the toaster or literally wrapping everything in medical tape ( my mother was a nurse and I loved The Mummy). I was also big into making things out of garbage bag twist ties and tin foil. I still do it sometimes.

GF: 2. What is the process involved in creating new color ways? Some of the schemes are inspired by 70s and 80s television, but were there any that came about from snapping random pieces together. What are some of your favorite color ways? Who have the fans really loved? How much input do the fans have in the color design?

Onell: The colorways are definitely a love letter to our collective youth. Having a fairly large toy collection, I study the boxes and basic feel of those 80'toy lines and try to fuse it with the things that I love today. I usually agonize over the final PMS colors and switch things around often before the figures meet the public. Standard Pheyden, and all the standard colorways are my favorites in general. Although I go craziest for what other people do with the toys. I get to see some very cool personalized versions of the characters, it never gets old. Seeing how somebody else views your world is one of the most important, if not THE most important, part of the whole Glyos project. Sharing fresh ideas and boosting individual creativity are the things that make this fun. I want Glyos to belong to everybody who enjoys and gets into it. Very basic and open ended.

GF: 3. Scar Pheyden? What was the inspiration? Accidental miscast? Late night rage on a standard pheyden head? Are you of the mindset that a scar just makes someone cooler? Lastly, When? okay that's a personal question, but I stand by it nonetheless.

Onell: For some strange reason I've always put scars on my favorite toys. Multiple scars all over the the poor things. I believe a scar represents a life survived in some way, and that extends into the things we love. With each little nick and cut that heals, a memory is marked down. A bizarre as it sounds, my favorite Pheyden has 14 scars on his head right now, each one serving as a record of the significant events that have transpired in my life over the past few years. My second daughter being born (production was not active for the first), trips to comic cons, China and Japan, projects being completed, each scar reminds me of those times when I look at that little Pheyden's beaten head. Memories on the outside I guess. Production Scar Pheyden will join the ranks very soon.

GF: 4. Have you ever thought of making a larger scale Pheyden or Excellis in vinyl as a convention exclusive? Since vinyl seems to be the "IT" thing, does it maybe make you think this could be an interesting design for it? If you did them is their a specific size and specific color scheme, you'd like to see? Or would you just introduce a new character?

Onell: I love rotocast vinyl, but the true nature of why it is used for toy production has kind of been forgotten. It was originally the go to production method for durable, cheap toys that could take a beating and return great value for little investment. It's ironic that now it's considered so high end. The different companies that have brought the vinyl movement to such prominence deserve all the credit that they are given, some very innovative and powerful things have been done. However, getting back to basics is the route I want take. Durable, high quality and affordable vinyl that our customers can collect without breaking the bank. I also want to return the classic play patterns to the medium. Take the damn things outside, put a figure inside, just beat the hell out of it and give it life away from the shelf. I swear it's like therapy in many ways. The upcoming character we call Armodoc will be our first vinyl figure. Armodoc will have around 10 swivel points of articulation and stand around 6 inches tall. It's in scale to the rest of the Glyos line, so it's one beefy creature.

GF: 5. With Pheyden, Excellis, Savros, and Phanost already out there, how many more glyos characters do you have floating around in your head that might pop out? Will there ever be a character guide so people will have a deeper understanding of these characters we have seen?

Onell: There are years worth of characters knocking around in the old noggin. The original version of Pheyden was created when I was pretty young, so seeing him now in the physical world is always neat to me. I hope that many figures manifest in the near future, a few are already in the pipeline. As far as a character guide goes, that is something that kind of exists in the form of the Rechlen and Aves booklets we sell online in the Onell store. Rechlen and Aves is one part of the Glyos Universe and many characters that exist as toys have their stories floating around in those pages. We do have a rather large compendium that should see the light of day by SDCC 09. That all being said, I believe it's very important at this stage to not define things too much, so that people can develop their own take on the universe and not stifle the natural creativity that happens with personal interest in a project. I want people to be creative and restore the genuine feeling of happiness that playing with simple toy can bring.

GF: 6. You are a VERY small company. How do you balance Design, Production, Quality Control, Sales, and Marketing with such a small staff?

Onell: By the seat of our pants! It's literally a large learning experience, as we figure out new things all the time. Surrounding yourself with dedicated and talented people are the keys to any operation, but also add in quite a bit of luck and some random trajectories and you start to see things actually happen.




GF: 7. Another side of your business is Prototyping. What does this entail and how might collectors benefit from small scale production?

Onell: Prototyping introduces us to some wild characters. We don't do as much as we used to, but we still talk to quite a number of creators and project managers. If somebody wants to really make a toy, that person should focus on what is realistic and then follow that path initially. Prototyping is not cheap, and spending money is not taken lightly, especially now. I would encourage anyone out there that wants to get into making toys to learn about the process. Learn about design, sculpting, mold making and anything related to the production end of things. Even if you are not a sculptor or designer, the information will help a ton as you go down the road. Pretty soon those 3D printers will become good and cheap and then the real fun will begin. I can't wait for that day because everybody will be making crazy stuff on their own.

GF: 8. The Glyos System is really quite unique among the current figure offerings. Not a block figure, not hyper-possable, no license from a TV show or movie. What line / Figures inspired the geniuses of the Glyos System? How did it evolve?

Onell: Thanks for the way to kind words. The origin of the Glyos System is fairly simple. I've always wanted to have an easily customizable toy that I could build with but would not be compromised aesthetically because of it. Glyos was born from my love of Legos, Micronauts, Star Wars, GI Joe, Transformers, Battle Beasts and especially the old Takara line Blockman. Buildman is a direct homage in name to Blockman and Microman. I always wanted a Micronaut that was tough enough so that when I built something with the parts it would not fall to pieces or be so delicate as I played around outside. The whole playing with figures outside was huge to me. I still do it with all the stuff we make and also with what I buy. Sometimes your toys need to live off that shelf for a little while.

GF: 9. Buildman seams to be a real hit? How far do yo see the Buildman idea going? Quadrupeds? Mechanization? Vehicle integration?

Onell: I really underestimated the response to the Buildman. Because we self fund everything, production orders have to be on the leaner side. To fill the last round of orders I had to disassemble some configurations I had made with my private stash to replenish the stock.I learned my lesson on Buildman, new colorways are right around the corner in slightly higher numbers (slightly).








GF: Thanks again to Matt for taking the time to talk with us and to Ebonhorn for putting this interview together. I believe the Glyos Universe will gain more and more popularity as word of this incredible line gets out. Be sure to check out all the great stuff from Matt. It can all be found at Onell Design.

Blockman photos courtesy of MicroForever.com. Thank you Paul.