Zoobles
It was a beautiful summer afternoon, when I got a call from my agent Shop Around: Spin Master - creators of the successful Bakugan toy line for boys - might be interested in working with me on a toy line for girls, called Zoobles.
Zoobles are little creatures, each with the ability to magically transform from a tiny ball into a cute, mischievous and quirky little creature.
To illustrate Zoobles' typical pop-open action, my initial task was to draw the toy characters in 3 steps:
1. a closed sleeping state
2. a half open, waking-up state
3. a fully active state
The project started as a pitch, so we spent some time searching for the right look.
First sketches:
For color versions Spin Master sent me design sheets with different views of the toys, along with Pantone color schemes. Inspired by these, I did my detailed color drawings in Photoshop:
The client asked me to create some different poses and expressions, to see if they would work in my style:
I can still re-call the moment my agent called me to announce the big news: I had won the pitch! Needless to say, I did a funky but rather clumsy happy dance.
I continued fine-tuning the Cat, changing the perspective into a slightly more frontal view. Here he is with his homie Doxy the Dog:
And here they are in the flesh. Each Zooble has a couple of color versions, that's why the actual Dog toy looks a bit different here:
Different worlds, different characters
Zoobles live on Zooble Isle, which consists of different parts, each with its own theme. From backgarden inspired Petagonia to an underwater world called Seagonia, a pre-historic rock world, a tropical jungle and even a cloud world, and more. You can find the creation of the Zoobles Worlds in separate posts in my Behance portfolio.
Each world has its own inhabitants and color schemes. In total there are over a hundred unique Zoobles for which I created the 3-step illustrations. Yes, that's a lot of work, and a lot of coffee. Also, each Zooble has a couple of color or pattern variations, so in total there are hundreds of Zoobles to be collected!
Petagonia
Featuring a backyard kinda vibe, here are some of its inhabitants. The 3 drawings that illustrate Zoobles' pop open action were done for all Zooble characters:
Seagonia
Underwater love in Seagonia:
Azoozia
The party animals from Azoozia:
Chillville
Some cool characters from the icy lands of Chillville:
Petal Point
Flower power in Petal Point:
Pinegrove
From the deep woods of Pinegrove:
Jungleopolis
Jolly jungle friends:
Rocktopia
Dinosaurs on acid:
Cloud Cove
Living with their heads in the clouds:
Besides these regular Zoobles there are special editions, such as...
The mama baby collection, awww...:
Zoobles with amazing hair:
Glow in the dark:
Some more packaging examples:
Website:
Creating all the character and world illustrations took me over 2,5 years, with only short breaks in between. An absolutely amazing project to work on, although I often got high of all the candy colored sweetness.
Thanks for watching and reading, I hope you enjoyed it!
