Sofubi
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You are currently reading a thread in /toy/ - Toys
You are currently reading a thread in /toy/ - Toys
hey /toy/, I recently discovered that there is a collector market for sofubi nowadays. Ever since I was a kid I've loved sparkly/transparent/glow in the dark silicone figurines and thought I would try my hand at making some. I am a glassblower by trade and in the future wanted to make molds for a couple of my designs, but the question is, is it worth it? I'd appreciate if you could post any of your favorite figures and point out what makes them valuable and appealing compared to others, I plan on making them as a hobby if I cannot market the idea. Thank you!
>>5702594
So basically you're an unoriginal hack who is trying to make a quick buck like every other dumbfuck with this market who thinks their ocdonutsteel sculpt is worth a gorillion dollars each piece.
Don't bother. The only reason they're expensive is because
>Actually talented and well known painters/sculptors are making them
Or
>Well-known vinyl shit group makes them
Make mustard gas and kill yourself.
>>5702806
got em senpai
>>5702594
Hey op, that's pretty neat that you are thinking of living the dream with making your own toys. I appreciate that you are reaching out to the net for input.
I personally have not seen many well done ball jointed vinyl figures. Even if its just a neck, shoulder or waist, I feel like it adds a lot to the figure. I have no idea if this works well with vinyl at all, but there's my shitty input.
>>5702806
Cringe...
>>5702806
>If you're not famous by now you have no right trying to become big in the industry.
I'm sorry, but fuck off.
>>5702594
The thing about the sofubi community is that it's largely dominated by hipsters. There's little emphasis on "fun", their focus is on "art" and "aesthetic".
As for my favorites, I liked the Henshin Cyborg Invader vinyls and most of RealxHead's stuff.
>>5702865
Exactly, the market is already dominated and oversaturated by now. If you haven't been in it for a while, it's too late.
>>5703310
Let the fucker make some shit if he wants. As long as he's not trying to become rich off the shit it's a neat creative outlet that may actually lead somewhere over the years. You act like once a market's monopolized it's set in stone. Creators come and go as time goes on. Knock it off.
I have to sort of agree with this poster
>>5702806
even if it was a bit harsh
its fine if you have a desire to make stuff but you asked what other people think is valuable or appealing so basically you dont appear to have much passion in the art itself
that said, a lot of players in the vinyl industry have come and gone, and I feel as a primary creator/seller it is not really worth it because the actual market is pretty small. The high prices in aftermarket are because runs are incredibly small and hard to get, but those inflated prices are not going to the creators
>>5702806
Damn son, pretty harsh. As far as the whole "valuable and appealing" bit, there are certain obscure aesthetic aspects, styles and even special materials/techniques used in sofubi that I'm probably not aware of, so I thought I'd ask what people like so I could *gasp* integrate a couple of those qualities into my own original art so that I can succeed as a sofubi artist. I've been blowing glass and sculpting for a cool minute, I'm not the best at it but I really have a lot of love for my work, and as a niche artisan/craftsman it's hard to make a buck, so I thought I'd diversify by breaking into something that's as fun and creative as what I already do. As far as your other cancerous statements, they're as far off into left field as I could imagine. Although I'd like to make money off of this hobby, I only plan on only charging enough to cover the costs of my materials so I can just keep making toys. I don't want to make money by having people scrambling around to find a certain edition that I didn't make enough of, I want to make money because people enjoy and cherish my toys, and keep coming back for the value that they inherently possess. You claim that every successful sofubi artist is already "well known or loved by collectors", and that alone proves how out of touch you are with independent artists. Yeah, I want to make money, because I sacrificed a good salary so that I could focus on what I love, and that's art. If wanting to make money off of art offends you, fuck you, every artist who's figures you collect would shit on you for your terrible attitude. If you think that someone trying to break into a popular medium is an "unoriginal hack", same deal, you are every artist's enemy with that attitude, in ten years, some of the most popular toys on the market will no doubt be produced by people like me who are just starting out right now, and assholes like you will still talk smack about independent artists.
>>5702987
Yeah, I've noticed that a lot of people's figures tend to ape classic kaiju and sentai without very much outside influence besides the color pallette. They're trying to be too much like what was popular in the past, I would be emulating classic designs of course, but that would only be evident in figures that are specifically based on sentai/kaiju etc.
>>5702822
I don't think that joints would necessarily work with soft silicone, but if I were to use a harder material I'm sure that I could find a way to integrate articulation.
Honestly, sofubi is really the sort of thing where you should be guided by what you want to make. Lots of people see the high list prices for pieces by certain artists and think that aping those styles will yield profits, but the truth is, the only people interested in dropping huge amounts of money on pieces are too busy circlejerking over a small handful of established artists to give any newcomers the time of day. Sculpting and casting sofubi is a rewarding hobby, but the reward comes more from the pleasure of making things rather than any sort of financial gain. It's not a question of "can I make some money doing what I love" so much as it is "can I do what I love without losing too much money in the process."
>>5703501
Thank you man...
I spent several years saving all the cash that I could scrounge up so I could build my own backyard studio for glass sculpting. Recently glass has become a very popular medium due to cannabis legalization in several states, a lot of people want to get in and start making pipes and bongs so that they can get rich, and have no respect for the art form at all besides how it can make them wealthy, So I'm familiar with the attitude. All I've ever wanted to do was watch the designs from my head take form in my hands, I am at peace when I'm sculpting and feel that it is my lot in life, and after thinking about what I could do to feed myself and sustain my passion, I settled on toys. I would be making the original out of glass or clay, then making a mold of that for casting my silicone figures.
>>5703315
But thats exactly the problem, OP os just in it for the money, he doesn't give a shit about thw creative aspect of it, he's only saying the last part to cover his ass when his plan inevitability fails
>>5703563
>I just wish I was a fraction as motivated and talented as OP
Haters gonna hate, I wish OP all the best in his future endeavors.
>>5703572
Kek quit it with the autofellatio, OP. Post your shit when you make it so I can laugh as you burn and crash.
>>5703575
>>5703563
>only in it for the money.
here is some of my art, made from molten glass on a bench torch. I spend most of my money on materials and gas for my torch and have logged in many hours to get to this level. What do you do?
>>5703333
>Comes to toy board to find out what aspects of a toy make it sought after besides basic design and aesthetics.
Shit, sorry.
>>5703733
I'm not asking you guys to tell me what to make step by step. When I ask what makes a toy appealing, I already know damn well what an appealing toy is in my eyes. But I'm not the only person on earth, and if I'm making toys for people, I want them to have a say as well. I'm not asking for a blueprint, I mean little things, like certain color schemes, articulation, little segments where it tapers from UV reactive to opaque etc... once again, I'm not asking you to design my toys for me, I just want to know what aspects you would like to see more of in this kind of toy.
>>5703762
If you're looking to go the sofubi route start drawing first, keep drawing until you come up with a few designs you like enough to flesh out in 3D. You'll be surprised at the amount of people who actually like your creations.
>>5703776
I've been practicing a lot lately, at first I tried filling up pages with as many characters/faces as I could so that way I could remember the idea I had for that face and come back to sketch them out in their entirety later, but I've been getting better results by trying to flesh out a single character over the course of several days. My drawings are shite, I'm a lot better with clay or glass than with a pencil, but drawing is indispensable for the retention and refining of designs and concepts, so I'm gonna try and get better. thanks for the advice.
>>5703786
I really hope this works out for you, good luck.
>>5703815
Thanks dude! I appreciate the support and kind words, I'll make sure to post next time I make a sculpture that's worthy of casting.
On the other hand... if you can somehow get a name for yourself in the Japanese 'Hipster Art' Sofubi market, some of that shit sells for massive prices.
go for it OP. as an artist myself i see tons of other people make it big within a year of starting this stuff up.
especially on instagram there is a huge market on social media for this stuff. post often and you can auction them off on there or put up a storenvy shop.
best of luck mang. dont let the faglords keep you down
Hi.
I speak with severel artists on a regular basis and also am trying to create my own sofubi.
I want to start a company one day, but honestly its going to take a group of like minded individuals to come together to create a bible company which is what I want to do.
We're talking logistics, packaging, warehouse, production, distribution all the while having artists come together to release a toyline hand made with possibly other factory workers who are interning or looking to live as an artist in modern society painting and sculpting daily.
I have a good idea of how we can form the company and launch it into mass production, but its going to take time, money, and very talented goal oriented artists to work together
When I look into the several people Ive spoken to who are creating sofubi only 2 of them have been able to make it their full time business and one of them practically lives and eats out of a barrel doing s much freelance art projects as possible to stay alive
If you can't mass market your sofubi into big stores like wallmart or wherever you buy groceries in a supermarket your company relies on online sales, mass media advertisement (A lot of time that yields little advertisement/sales), conventions, and art galleries. A custom line that is limited production pain jobs and possibly sculpts would be best for a mass production toyline
I spoke to a sofubi art gallery about seeing if we could produce some of my art into toys and sculpts and they were open to working with me, but I have a full time job where finding time for almost a second business starting from nothing is illogical to do and the gallery said they are struggling to yield enough profit to stay open as a means of living
Everyone in this industry is on their own and few art galleries are able to understand the concept of a team of artists working together as a company rather than individuals being hosted with individual sales.
Unless you want to start a cooperation with lifesavings no
