It’s our pleasure to welcome Roger Wayman of Tortuga Toys to discuss Star Wars fandom and action figure customising.
Fantha Tracks: Could you share your earliest experiences of Star Wars fandom?
Roger Wayman: I first saw Star Wars in 1978 and like so many, the films and toys formed a huge part of my childhood. However I didn’t start interacting with other fans until relatively recently. I joined the forums back in 2015, but found them to be a bit of a mixed bag, so I don’t engage with them anymore. That said, they are a great source of information for everything Star Wars.
A while after leaving the forums I was invited to join the Facebook group ‘The Smuggler’s Den’. I was a little reticent as I hadn’t been on Facebook for years, but glad I’m decided to accept as it’s been an overwhelmingly positive experience. I’ve joined lots of other groups since, such as Astromechs Anonymous and started posting on Instagram, so far I’ve found everyone to be really friendly. I’ve not attended any shows or cons yet but maybe in the future.
FT: Do you have a favourite Star Wars film, TV series?
RW: The simple answer is The Empire Strikes Back, nothing comes close to that for me. Watching the attack on Hoth was, and still is incredible. I’m very focused on the original trilogy and the 80’s spin offs, but I do like the prequels as well. The Clone Wars was excellent and Rebels was a show that grew into something good.
Although we’ve had a lot of films and shows recently, I haven’t been too impressed with the quality of the writing. I gave up on the sequels and haven’t watched Episode IX, and really don’t want to. The first season of The Mandalorian is about the best of the modern stuff for me. I’m still hopeful that we’ll get some good shows and films in the future, but for now I prefer watching fan made films as some of those are amazing.
FT: Do you enjoy any other pop culture franchises?
RW: Growing up in the 80’s meant I was lucky enough to be exposed to re-runs of 60’s and 70’s shows, and I remember particularly liking The Invaders. Being a Brit of course Dr Who was an ever present, and the various Gerry Anderson shows such as Stingray and Terrahawks bring back fond memories. Back then as now, I’d happily watch just about anything.
Revisiting these shows is one of the best things about making custom figures. Watching Disney’s The Black Hole for the first time in years, learning about all the different types of Daleks, and discovering the origins of Battle of the Planets are just a few things I probably wouldn’t have done if I wasn’t making customs.
FT: Do you collect Star Wars action figures?
RW: I do but not as much as I would like. The prices of vintage figures means I just can’t afford to collect everything. I used to be a variant collector but that got crazy with thousands of figures I just couldn’t display, so I downsized dramatically around 8 years ago. My collecting aims now are to have one of each vintage figure plus the creatures.
As a grail item I’d like to get the Bandai/Tamashi Nations C-3PO. It’s an amazing looking figure which of course comes at a price. I’m currently working on getting a few smaller items as well. So far this year I’ve managed to get a Sentry Robot from The Black Hole by Mego, and a Terrahawks Zig Zag Battletank by Bandai. That tank is really fun and something I would have loved as a kid.
FT: What inspired your venture into creating your own Star Wars action figures?
RW: In 2016 I was out of work and in a bit of a slump. I was basically sat on my backside all day long. I started watching crafters on YouTube and this inspired me to get creative myself, the only question was what should I make. I thought why not try making some customs.
To begin with I made three figures, a burnt Aunt Beru and Uncle Owen, and a Holiday Special Boba Fett. They worked out well, but I felt dreadful having defaced the Fett figure even though he was a beater. I just couldn’t bring myself to work on actual vintage figures, so I decided to mould and cast parts to create my own. I began with Yoda but his articulation proved far too difficult. Not wanting to give up I thought why not try R2-D2, the figure is easy to take apart so that might help.
At this point I bought some silicone for moulding and made my first droid. I then set myself the challenge of making every astromech featuring in the original trilogy. This combined my love of Star Wars with a new hobby scratching the ‘gotta have them all’ itch. I could now make anything I wanted, so I did.
FT: Where do you draw inspiration for your custom creations?
RW: Most of the time I’ll take a character that interests me and just work it into an astromech design. Sometimes inspiration comes from people asking if I can make something for them. Either way the finished custom still needs to be in astromech form, but with aspects of the character it’s combined with. I have dozens of projects to work on, but it takes time to construct things, so I’ll be busy working on what I have planned for the next few years to come. Of course, I’ll be adding more ideas into the mix as well.
FT: You’ve aimed your custom figure creations towards the vintage era, however with a twist. While Star Wars remains central within their DNA, you’ve dabbled with crossovers with other 70’s & 80’sci-fi pop culture favourites. Was this always your plan, or was this a development of artistic progression?
RW: It was very much a progression. As mentioned above, my first aim was to make all the original Astromechs, and once I’d completed that I needed a new challenge. Initially I wanted to make lots of droids based on fairly generic characters, a bit like the Lego mini-figs. So I made a few of these such as a bee and a vampire, I still have loads planned. I then included other Star Wars characters and finally characters from other franchises such as the infamous Dalek villains, and Batman representing superheroes.
FT: You’ve also re-imagined Star Wars characters capturing them within an astromech form, Greedo being my personal favourite. What’s your personal favourite amongst your creations?
RW: My favourite custom is the R5 Astromech Power Droid (Gonk). It was an idea given to me, but I tried to add a few extra details myself. I could imagine this guy being cobbled together from scrap yard parts in the Star Wars universe.
FT: Have any experimental custom projects turned out better than you first imagined?
RW: Like many people involved in long term creative projects, when something is complete I’m just glad it’s over. Of course there’s a sense of achievement, but I’m always thinking about what could’ve gone better or been done differently. It often takes a while before I can look at something I’ve made and think it’s good.
If I had to pick one that worked out well I think it would have to be the Daleks. They were quite a challenge given the classic grey Dalek having 74 individual parts which I think is a lot for a 3.75″ scale figure. I was particularly pleased with the way pared down R5 necks worked for the Dalek’s neck.
FT: Are you working on any new custom projects?
RW: Loads. Luckily I’ve never been short of ideas either my own, or from others. I’ve got a huge list of projects waiting to get started, I just wish I had enough time to do them all. My next droids will be two versions of 7-Zark-7 from Battle of the Planets. Unusually for me these aren’t mash-ups or Star Wars related but I’m happy with the way they’re working out. I’ll be back to mashing droids after these, an R2 combined with a rather well known robot from the 50’s.
FT: Do you have any tips for budding custom action figure creators?
RW: Just make what interests you and don’t worry about what others are making. Don’t go crazy buying all of the latest gadgets or products, you’ll find out what you’ll need as you progress and learn what materials work best for you. Don’t judge your work against that of any other customiser. Only judge your current creation against your last one, otherwise you’ll become demoralised and will be more likely to give up.
When I started I used to take photos of everything I made. Comparing what I’m making now to those photos shows me how far I’ve progressed, and gives me hope that I’ll get even better if I keep trying.
Lastly don’t be afraid to share your work with other fans or reach out for advice. Doing so may be daunting at first but the vast majority of people in the hobby are positive and happy to help.
FT: Where can we find your amazing custom figures?
RW: I can be found on Instagram (@tortuga_toys) and Facebook. I’m always happy to receive messages and chat about customs.
FT: Many thanks for sharing your experience with us Roger, and we look forward to experiencing your future astromech customising adventures.
- Hardcover Book
- Kempshall, Chris (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 432 Pages - 07/09/2024 (Publication Date) - DK (Publisher)
