From Web Builder to Monster Maker, Meet Simon Lee (Spiderzero)
by David Sanger
Today's monster maker interview features Simon Lee aka Spiderzero. In our exclusive interview, Simon discusses his decision at age 40 after working as a successful web developer and programmer to follow his passion and become a full-time sculptor.
CLICK on the video above to watch the FULL INTERVIEW.
Using his web and marketing savvy to build his personal brand online by selling model kits worldwide, Simon eventually caught the attention of Hollywood filmmakers, who now turn to him for their most challenging and exciting creature design assignments. He shares his influences, his story and his accumulated wisdom in this engaging interview set against the backdrop of his shop full of dynamic creature maquettes.
Jump To Section
- Who Is Spiderzero?
- Praise From Guillermo del Toro
- Simon Lee’s Lifelong Passion and Career Path
- Making the Switch From Programmer to Artist
- Creating Commercial Art
- Balancing Business And Art
- Making Monsters and Doing Something Different Every Day
(Creature Effects Concept Designer and Sculptor Simon Lee at work on a maquette.)
Who Is Spiderzero?
A self-taught sculptor and designer, Simon Lee was born in China and moved to the United States at the age of 21. After graduating from the University of Southern California with a degree in Business Administration, Simon taught himself how to build websites and started his own web programming business. After building websites for 10 years, he decided to turn his childhood hobby of sculpting into a business, so in 2007, he started releasing his original design model kits under the online alias "Spiderzero," which was also the name of his web design company. In 3 years, he built up a sizeable fan base all over the world.
(“Flying Guillotine” resin model kit by Simon Lee.)
Praise From Guillermo del Toro
In 2010, he officially closed his web programming business and became a full-time sculptor. In late January 2011, Simon came up with a novel marketing plan: design and sculpt 20 monster sculptures in 20 days. He branded the event "Spiderzero's 20 Days of Monsters." Then in March of 2011, Simon was hired by Guillermo del Toro to work on the concept design team for the movie PACIFIC RIM, since then, Simon has contributed his design work to various film projects from Warner Brothers, Disney, and Fox. Del Toro is quoted as saying, "Simon Lee is in a category all by himself. His sense of drama and raw power make him the Frazetta of monster sculpting, and the elegance and specificity of his designs give his creations gravity and realism. A true master!"
(Simon stands in the background with one of his sculpture maquettes inspired by HP Lovecraft's Elder God, Cthulhu.)
Simon Lee’s Lifelong Passion and Career Path
"When I look at an alien or a never-before-seen creature or character, there’s just something innately exciting about that…it’s very intriguing to me how they would come up with that. As I grew older, I became more analytical, asking, “How is it different?” and then later asking, “How does this work?” I’ve always enjoyed sculpting since I was a little kid. I started playing with Play-doh at I believe age 3 or 4…I actually started professional sculpting only a couple of years ago. I started doing sculpture full-time at age 40. Art was never a goal for me…because for some reason it never occurred to me to become an artist…Art was never a possible career choice for me. It just never popped into my consciousness. I went to business school. I studied marketing. Then when I graduated, I became a self-taught programmer. I learned to do websites, how to do graphic design. I started my own little web design company and I built websites for 10 years."
(Simon doing the work he loves best.)
Making the Switch From Programmer to Artist
"The turning point that led me from being a programmer to being a full-time sculptor was that, at one point, I was approached by two sculptors, Jarrod and Brandon Schiflett, and they asked me to build a website for them, and I did. And at the end of the process, I built a forum for them, and I thought, 'Well, I might as well test out the features.' So I posted some of my own sculptures on their forum. The next thing I knew, people started emailing me telling me that they wanted to buy my sculptures! Then it dawned on me that there was something there. I could possibly make the switch. I started doing model kits part-time. Because of my background in online programming and online marketing, I thought it might just be possible for me to market myself at this age, at age 39, without going through the shops or working in the industry. So that was the turning point."
(“Deal with the Devil,” a resin kit designed and sculpted by the Shiflett Brothers. Photo by Chad Michael Ward.)
Creating Commercial Art
There's a big difference between doing art for yourself and doing art for others, but Simon's background in satisfying web clients prepared him for the challenge. As he puts it, "Working with directors or art directors becomes a different scenario, but I’m used to that type of interaction with people because before, when I was running my own business, I was a designer, I was a programmer and I always go to my client with the best solution from my perspective, but that might not be their reaction to whatever proposal I was presenting them with. At the end of the day when someone else hands me a paycheck and I’m performing a task, it’s not about what I want, it’s about getting what the client needs and what they’re paying for, so that part I have no problem with."
(Dynamic Character Design: The Predator and Alien as conceived and executed by Simon Lee for the Stan Winston School of Character Arts.)
Balancing Business And Art
Simon's talent and business savvy combined helped him make opportunities for himself. His advice to others breaks in, "For someone getting into this for the first time, I would tell them to keep an open mind in terms of their artistic interpretation. Keep learning and keep bettering yourself and learn to balance the business side of things with the artistic side of things. You can not have one without the other. You can be the greatest artist in the world, but if nobody is aware that you exist, then it’s not going to make a difference. Or you could be the best salesman, but if you cannot create, that’s not gonna work either."
(Simon's sculpture of “The Monkey King” from Journey to the West, part of his personal project, “20 Days of Monsters.”)
Making Monsters and Doing Something Different Every Day
Being asked to make monsters might seem limiting for an artist, but for Simon, it's anything but. "I’m in a position where most of my fans are monster lovers," says Simon. "They love monsters, which is no problem for me because I love that too. But, at the end of the day, I’m really just drawn to things across all different spectrums."
"I try to draw my influences from all over the place." Simon replies when discussing what inspires him, "The only way to better myself as an artist is to learn from all disciplines, ‘cause you never know where that next inspiration is going to be coming from. It could be coming from a dance routine, it could be coming from a piece of music. At the end of the day I think all these different art forms are kind of related, kind of inter-related, it’s all about expressing the human emotion."
"Every day when I get up and come to my studio, I feel energized, not because ‘Oh, I get to do art,’ no, it’s because I want to do something different, something new that I’ve never attempted before."
- David Sanger
For the EXCLUSIVE VIDEO INTERVIEW, simply click the player at the top of the page.
Check out the Sculpture Techniques - How to Sculpt Dynamic Characters course with Simon Lee HERE.