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AFOL Designer Program behind-the-scenes

by Thita (admin) on February 25, 2019

in Community News

As you may remember from our previous discussions, the LEGO Group and BrickLink.com is currently running a joint venture called the AFOL (ADULT-FANS-OF-LEGO) Designer Program. LEGO fans could submit their own custom designed models (there were over 400 entries!), judges selected what they felt were the best models for the program, which you can now pre-order. Models that reach their funding goal will be produced, and shipped to those who pre-ordered them. (You can learn more about the program via the links at the end of this post.) 🙂

Today, I wanted to share with you a couple of interesting interviews that give some more insights into this very innovative and one-of-a-kind program. In the first interview, Joshua Hanlon from Beyond the Brick gets a behind-the-scenes look as the AFOL Designer Program team meets up in Denmark for an intense week of building and quality testing to select sixteen finalists. Joshua interviews Head of AFOL Engagement at LEGO Tormod Askildsen, BrickLink Catalog Manager Russell Callender, and LEGO Design Lead Jamie Berard (I particularly appreciate Jamie’s insights in regards to why this venture is so unique).

Submissions to the AFOL Designer Program had to use parts from a predetermined selection of currently produced LEGO elements, and they had to be designed and submitted via Stud.io, BrickLink’s own digital designer program. This uniformity assured that the projects can be easily reviewed and compared, and also that they could actually be produced. But the projects still had to be built with physical LEGO bricks to make sure that they would work as LEGO sets. The video below discussed how the selection process went, and you can also see the selected projects built in real life (video duration: 4 minutes, 36 seconds).

In the second video, Joshua talks with Russell in much more detail about how the AFOL Designer Program came about and how it works (video duration: 27 minutes, 2 seconds).

LEGO has been doing some very innovative collaborations with the adult fan community. The LEGO Ambassador Program, the LEGO Certified Professional program, LEGO Ideas, the LEGO FORMA Kickstarter project, the AFOL Designer Program, the LEGO Inside Tour, various events and opportunities at the LEGO House, etc. are all a testament to how much the company appreciates and likes to work together with their fans.

If you haven’t done so already, I would recommend you visit the AFOL Designer Program website (just click on the link) to check out all the currently available models. From the sixteen models, ten are already fully funded which means that they will definitely get produced, while the remaining six are still gathering support. There is still plenty of time for all the projects to be 100% funded, and I expect that all of them will do very well. If you like some of the projects but you are not yet ready to pre-order, you can click the bookmark icon next to each project (looks like a little flag), and BrickLink will send you a reminder before the pre-order phase closes.

What do you think? How do you like the AFOL Designer Program projects? Are you planning to support and pre-order any of them? And how did you like the interviews? Feel free to share and discuss in the comment section below! 😉

And you might also like to check out the following related posts:

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LEGO Brick Square Post Office instructions

by Thita (admin) on February 23, 2019

in Featured LEGO Creations

Last summer, we discussed a custom LEGO Modular Building by British LEGO fan Bricked1980, featuring a late 1950s post office, a fish & chip shop, a mail sorting room, a café, and a business office. (You can read more about the project and see lots of pictures here and here.) There has been a great deal of interest in getting building instructions for this beautiful model both in our community, and also through social media. Since then, Bricked1980 teamed up with another LEGO fan, camsbrick, to produce professional building instructions, which are now available! 🙂

Many LEGO fans (including myself) have been in love with this project, so when I heard that the instructions were available, I purchased them immediately. The instructions are not cheap ($20 at the time of this writing), but – at least to me – they are well worth it. It saves me time from trying to reconstruct the project from pictures (although that should also be possible if you are strapped for cash but have the time). You can check out, purchase, and download the instructions at Rebrickable: LEGO BRICK SQUARE POST OFFICE BUILDING INSTRUCTIONS

I have already scrolled through the instructions, and they are definitely high quality. They are not just auto-generated steps you find in LEGO Digital Designer, but actual, logically arranged building steps you find in LEGO’s own instructions. To be easy on the eyes, each page has the same light-blue background as LEGO instructions. And there are little boxes for the parts needed for each step. The instructions are 265 pages long, and also include templates for the post office sticker you see over the door of the post office (this is the only sticker in the project).

The British-style building has a split layout, with two structures sitting on a 32×32 baseplate (standard for the LEGO Modular Buildings). In between the buildings, there is a shared stairwell, which can be accessed from the street (this is how minifigs can reach the upper floors). There is also a small square at the front with sitting arrangements and a flowering tree. Both buildings follow similar designs as the official LEGO Modular Buildings; decorative stonework, windows with white frames, window box planters with flowers, and lovely colors. The post office is the main attraction, but there is also a fish & chip shop, a mail sorting room, a café, and a generic business office. They are spread out between the three floors of the two buildings. While the spaces are small, they are tastefully decorated with realistic details. Here, I included some pictures, and you can find a lot more at Bricked1980’s flickr gallery. Also, there is an old style mail van that can pull up to the post office to pick up mail and packages.

A nice feature of Rebrickable is that you can check out the parts-list even before you purchase the instructions. Thus, you can see what parts you already have, and what you would still need. (Rebrickable allows you to create your set/part inventory at their website, or sync your inventory from Brickset. Once your inventory is uploaded, you can look at what official LEGO sets and custom projects can be built from the parts you already have.) This project uses 600 parts with a 3449 total quantity, similar to the size and piece-count of official LEGO Modular Buildings.

I plan on building this project later this year, and add it my own LEGO Modular Building layout, similarly as in the image above. I just need some time to gather all the necessary parts and begin building! Again, if you are interested, and would like to purchase the instructions, or just want to check them out, go to the project’s page at Rebrickable. And, if you are looking for any of the official LEGO Modular Buildings, they are available at the LEGO Creator section of the Online LEGO Shop.

What do you think? How do you like this custom LEGO post office? Would you like to build it? And are you planning to purchase the instructions? Feel free to share and discuss in the comment section below! 😉

And you might also like to check out the following related posts:

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AFOL Designer Program behind-the-scenes

LEGO Brick Square Post Office instructions

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