LEGO Zombillenium: A Chat with the Author and the Builder

Today's article focuses on a project by Stephle59 based on the Zombillenium comic strip from Arthur De Pins. I've known Stephane personally for nearly ten years, and I've followed his project closely since the very beginning. It took a lot of time and thought to find out how to write about this vast project, which goes much further than a simple creation—it's a crazy adventure.

During a joint exhibition in Strasbourg called “Let's Go,” we discussed the details of this project.

A Chat With The Builder

Sam: Hi Steph. Can you introduce yourself to our BrickNerd readers?

Steph: I'm a 43-year-old MOCeur, married with three children. I first got into Danish bricks when I was four thanks to my parents, especially my mum who still plays them. I had a 'dark age' in my teens and fell back into it in 2007 when my wife gave me a medieval chess set while we were visiting the LEGO Store in Cologne, Germany. It was the first time I'd been in a shop like that, and the passion has never waned since.

I share this passion with my children, my family in general and the AFOL community. I'm the moderator of the French forum Brickpirate and the current president of the French association Fanabriques (one of the biggest exhibitions in France). I've been building since 2011. And I forgot: I'm also a big fan of comics!

Sam: Can you tell us about your Zombillenium project and how it got off the ground?

Steph: The project started purely by chance. In 2015, we created a collaborative diorama with other French builders called “Once Upon a Time” which used elements from the Disney universe in the form of a shelf adapted to our desires. In this diorama, I drew inspiration from Sleeping Beauty's castle, as found in the Disneyland Paris theme park. This castle was exhibited for two or three years, and I eventually got bored of seeing all that pink every time. And as I dreamt of one day making a theme park, I said to myself: certainly not this one; I want to create a nemesis to this ultra colourful pastel world.

Steph: Then I remembered the comic book I had on my shelves: “Zombillenium.” In that, the theme park itself has its own soul, a bit like Gotham City in Batman, and I liked the idea straight away.

That's it! I had the idea. But I was quickly put off because the rollercoaster is a central part of the theme park, and I didn't feel brave enough to do it myself. So I put the idea aside and worked on other projects. Then the rollercoaster was released by LEGO in 2019. And that's when it all clicked: I had what I needed to finally realise the idea that had been in my head for so long!

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Sam: Tell us about Arthur De Pins and Zombillenium.

Steph: Arthur comes from the world of animation and has also been a comic book artist for many years. I've been following him since the early 2000s. The funny thing is that we're from more or less the same generation, lulled by the pop culture of the 80s and 90s.

My wife and I discovered his 'Péchés Mignons' series, a commission he produced with Maïa Mazaurette for La Musardine, then the 'Marche du Crabe', based on one of his short films, published by Noctambule before he went on to create 'Zombillénium'. It was his publisher, Frédéric Niffle, who gave him the green light to develop the concept after he had produced a cover for the Spirou newspaper. He has just completed the last volume of his main cycle, "Sabbath Grand Derby", published by Dupuis for the French-speaking market and by NBM Publishing for the English-speaking market, particularly in the US. It's not out of the question that others will revolve more or less around the universe or its characters.

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As for animation, Zombillenium has also had its own animated version, with a film released in 2017 that he co-directed with his friend Alexis Ducord—a 100% French production.

Sam: You're now in close contact with Arthur de Pins, the author of the comic strip. How did your first contact go, and how did your relationship with this project develop? Did you meet him?

Steph: He came across a post on my Instagram account featuring one of the main characters, Gretchen, the trainee witch, with her Mini Cooper S. It was September 2019. And he liked it. So I contacted him to talk to him more concretely about the project and ask his permission to exploit the universe. He agreed, a little skeptical at first; then he very quickly realised that the reproduction of the park was progressing well and was quite faithful to his creation. Since then, he has provided me with sketches from the comic strips or artworks used in the film so that I can use them as inspiration for designing the different parts of the theme park.

I've had the chance to meet him several times :

In January 2021, at a small exhibition at the FNAC in Strasbourg. We were in the middle of a period of confinement in France following COVID, so this outing has a special flavour for me: I was able to go out and present the project, and Arthur was able to discover it and play with Gretchen for the first time that day.

The second time was at the Parc Spirou in Provence in autumn 2022: I was invited for the Volume 6 tour. I only brought the most emblematic pieces I'd built because space was much more limited. It was a great experience to bring elements of the theme park to a theme park. :)

Finally, I was invited to the 50th anniversary of the Angoulême International Comics Festival. The park naturally found its place in a magnificent scenography created for the occasion.

Sam: We met first in June 2021 when you presented your colossal project to me. Did you have any idea of the scale it would take then?

Steph: In terms of size, yes, I already had a vague idea, but who would have thought that one day I'd have the chance to do the Angoulême Comics Festival as an exhibitor before I'd even done it as a visitor?

Sam: How do you go about reproducing the comic strip characters?

Steph: By a good old figbarf! In other words, I dip into every range of figurines created by TLG to pick out the parts that interest me. I take apart the hands and arms to adapt each figure to my reproduction needs. My favourite figure and my avatar on the project is Gretchen the witch! She's been with me since 2019, and Arthur is the only one to have an identical copy of her today; I gave her to him for his birthday in 2022.

I've reproduced around twenty characters from the comics and the film, and even some never-before-seen figurines for the park. And here's a funny anecdote: my daughters and my son are present in minifig form as visitors to the park, as is one of my early Instagram fans, and of course the author, when he first started designing the comic!

Sam: Do you have access to unpublished material for the construction of your diorama?

Steph: Completely. Arthur has modelled a number of iconic buildings in the park, as have the designers of the film. So I have some raw material to work with which he has kindly made available to me. But the views on offer are two-dimensional. I work in three dimensions, so I have the freedom to create things that don't exist while respecting the original work.

Sam: What are the main views you are using to build this park?

Steph: The general view of the park.

Then there are the sketches, for example the ones I used to reproduce Main Street. I've also created many parts of the park that don't exist or have never been modelled, in complete freedom.

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Sam: You made a number of vehicles for this diorama—are they to be found in the comic?

Steph: Not really. Gretchen's Mini Cooper S and Sylvain the Hunter's Citroën HY are taken from the film. The Citroën 2 CV 6 Charleston and the 1968 Ford Mustang fastback are purely creative products with no direct link to the universe. The 2CV is a legendary French icon with an international reputation, and the Mustang because I'm a fan of this American muscle car. In fact, I based the Mustang on the Speed Champions set. There are so many changes compared to the version in the set that it's closer to a MOC than a Mod.

Norton74 inspired me on the 2CV. It's always very inspiring to look at and admire the remarkable work of other designers on the web and/or in exhibitions. The important thing for me is to give them credit for the original idea by quoting them out of respect for their work.

Sam: What are the next stages in your project, and when will it be finished?

Steph: The end of the project is unknown; I honestly have no idea. Maybe in two or three years, but nothing is certain.

What is certain is that I have the overall vision of the result in my head and that there's still a lot of work to be done: Swampland, the Victorian District and Little Transylvania. The Vampire State Building will be located in Little Transylvania. Not to mention some of the park's iconic rides, which have yet to be built in the park's districts, such as the Ferris wheel, the Tower of Terror, the Octopus and Phantom Manor.

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Sam: Do you plan more exhibitions in 2023?

Steph: I participated in another comics festival: the Rendez-vous de la BD d'Amiens and, at the end of September, the Fana'briques exhibition.

Sam: Antha, another talented LEGO builder, was behind your participation in the Amiens comics festival and was also behind a nod to Arthur de Pins. I wanted to take advantage of the fact that you brought up this subject to mention it to her.

A Chat With The Author

Sam: I now have the pleasure of chatting with author Arthur DePins. Thank you for spending some time with BrickNerd! I’m curious… What was your first reaction when you saw that a LEGO fan was building around your universe?

Arthur: Honestly? I was scared at first. I thought this guy was crazy, haha. We authors are sometimes followed by fans with a bit of a fetish, and we're advised to keep our distance from them. But after a few exchanges, I was reassured to see that Stephane wasn't in that category at all. He's passionate, interesting, very nice, and what's more, he likes to share his passion. Moreover, having played a lot with LEGO as a child, seeing his work was like a little madeleine.

Sam: What do comic book fans think of this “LEGO-etic” universe?

Arthur: Like me, they're stunned! The attention to detail, the architectural work, the care given to the characters. Comic book fans love it and my colleagues are jealous. I should add that at festivals where Stephane's park is present, and it completely steals the show!

Sam: Any advice for Stephane for the future?

Arthur: When I asked Stephane when he planned to stop, he said, “I don't know.” I find it fascinating to have such a powerful passion. My advice would be more medical: don't strain your back, get some rest, and don't ruin your health either, because I'd feel guilty! ;-)

Sam: Thank you, Arthur, for sharing your thoughts.

It was a pleasure to go in-depth on this project with the builder and author. But now it’s time for me to zombify myself on the hunt for my next article.

Copyright for illustrations in this article are ©Arthur de Pins / Dupuis / NBM.

Best of BrickNerd - Article originally published July 6, 2023.

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