21357 Disney Pixar Luxo Jr. fan designer Toby Brett and LEGO Ideas Design Manager Jordan Scott share tips for succeeding on the fan-driven platform.
LEGO Ideas is bigger than ever — dozens of sets reach the 10,000 supporter goal every review period and the theme is well on its way to 100 LEGO Ideas sets. But the projects chosen to become official sets are still far outnumbered by those that fail to reach the ultimate goal, whether it be a lack of supporters or not clearing the official LEGO review.
So what makes for a winning LEGO Ideas project? Luck, build quality, the idea itself? Toby Brett, fan designer of 21357 Disney Pixar Luxo Jr, and Jordan Scott, Design Manager for LEGO Ideas, offer some of their best advice for getting your LEGO Ideas project to the finish line.
Finding the perfect inspiration
The first trick with LEGO Ideas isn’t to market your build on social media or even have the most elaborate building techniques — it all just comes down to finding the right idea. Obvious as it may seem, but the core of every LEGO Ideas project is always the idea behind it.
“The hardest part is having the idea in the first place,” says Luxo Jr. fan designer Toby Brett. “There’s lots of things you can do. Obviously, mine is something that’s based on an intellectual property (IP), so I just got inspired by watching the movies.”
LEGO Ideas does help out a little bit in that regard, as well — the site maintains a list of IPs that are allowed to be posted. The feature mainly exists to filter out any franchises that are too violent or mature for the LEGO Group’s catalogue, though it can serve as a bit of an inspiration filter as well, narrowing down the choices for what idea to pursue.
But just because an idea is allowed on the platform doesn’t mean it’s a sure-fire success. “One thing we always try and get across; show us something that would be new to the portfolio,” explains Design Manager Jordan Scott. “We see a lot of modulars, a lot of Castle, a lot of Pirates and Space. We can come up with a lot of them ourselves; we have a team that does modulars, we have a team that looks into classic themes.”
That’s not to say that a project inspired by LEGO Pirates or LEGO modular buildings doesn’t have any chance of passing the review stage — 21322 Pirates of Barracuda Bay and 21310 Old Fishing Store are prime examples — but the trick lies in putting a new spin on the idea. Barracuda Bay offers a nostalgic look back at LEGO Pirates while creating a shipwrecked island the theme hadn’t seen before, and the Old Fishing Store takes the modular formula out of the city and gives it a holiday on the beach. While these are just half-steps away from the norm, further departures from the usual fare are likely to lead to even greater chances of success.
“We have the Italian Riviera coming out soon,” Jordan continues. “Which is a building, but it’s not a modular. It’s built in a different way. So it’s kind of showing us things that we haven’t seen before. It’s not to say that if you do build a modular it will never get picked. It’s just reducing the chances.”
21357 Disney Pixar Luxo Jr. treads the line between being an original idea and finding new ground — Pixar properties have been made into LEGO sets before, but the quirky mascot never featured in the brick, making it a prime candidate for a new LEGO Ideas set.
Upgrade your LEGO hobby! If you take out a subscription to Blocks, the monthly LEGO magazine, you’ll get each issue first and at a discount, plus other perks including a free digital subscription and the chance to win LEGO prizes every month.
Persistence is key
Even if an idea is never before seen and could win on concept alone, there’s a good chance it won’t reach the necessary 10,000 supporters on the first try. This isn’t a knock against the idea, nor should it be taken as a defeat — it simply means that the idea needs some additional tweaking to make it just right.
“The best advice is to not give up and to keep trying different things,” Toby offers. “With the actual model itself, you may try something and people don’t really like it, or it doesn’t appeal to people as much as it appeals to you. You have to change that. There’s always hundreds of new LEGO parts coming out each year, so there’s always something you can do to improve it.”
And those improvements can take an average performing project and turn it into a winning build — persistence remains key. “The first one I submitted got a few hundred supporters. And then the second got like 3,000, and the final one got to 10,000. There are so many talented LEGO builders, so expose yourself to as much LEGO as possible – sets or creations online or just by building yourself. When you put them together, it’s the best way to go,” says Toby.
Jordan offers similar advice: “If your idea doesn’t make it through the first time, try and work on it. I don’t just mean resubmit it, I mean evolve it with new pieces and new techniques. What’s the next level. Bring something different to it. Don’t get disheartened if it doesn’t make it. Keep submitting.”
Getting an idea selected is still no easy task, but focusing on Toby and Jordan’s advice — working diligently on a uniquely original idea — is sure to boost your chances of seeing your LEGO Ideas project on shelves.
Looking to buy 21357 Disney Pixar Luxo Jr and other LEGO Ideas sets? Purchase your sets via our affiliate links to help support the work we do at Blocks, online and in print.
To get new LEGO set announcements straight to your inbox, sign up to our free newsletter. Of course, if you really want to upgrade your LEGO hobby for the true insider experience, take out a subscription to Blocks, the monthly LEGO magazine for fans.