Today’s spotlight is on Charlie, also known as Crimsonight! You can find Charlie on deviantART and on his personal site.

My Master Demands An Audience With You by Crimsonight

My Master Demands An Audience With You by Crimsonight

Following the introduction of the Inquisitor at NYCC’s Star Wars Rebels panel, I immediately thought, “I can only imagine the kind of fan art we’ll see on this guy!” Lo and behold, while searching deviantART, I found a pretty awesome 3D render of the Inquisitor crossing lightsabers with an older Ahsoka Tano. The piece is entitled “My Master Demands An Audience With You.” Also, Charlie informed me that this particular piece has an upcoming sequel featuring a future Barriss Offee! Needless to say, I’m quite excited.

Lastly, make sure to vote in his current poll, “Which Star Wars character would you like to see next in my renders?” The list of characters includes Asajj Ventress, Cad Bane, Aayla Secura, and many more.

Tell us about yourself.
My name is Charlie Daley, but I usually go under the name Crimsonight on most sites. I am a 24 year old 3D artist living in Alaska, United States. My art is my leading hobby at the moment, but what I am hoping for in the long run is to get a job as an artist.

When and how did you become a Star Wars fan?
I have been a Star Wars fan all my life. My older brothers were into it, so I naturally was introduced early on. I could name all of the locations in Episode V, like Bespin and Hoth, before I could name the street I lived on, lol.

What tools do you use to create your art?
I use Daz Studio 4.5 for putting elements together and rendering the scene. I use GIMP 2.8 for any post work, like lightsaber glow and my frame/signature. I primarily use Wings 3D to model my own props and other custom elements, but I am learning Hexagon 2 and 3DS Max 9.

I Trusted You... by Crimsonight

I Trusted You… by Crimsonight

What is your favorite Star Wars piece that you have created and why are you fond of it?
I Trusted You…“ is definitely my favorite. It turned out exactly how I wanted it to and it was one of my most heavily inspired pieces. It is in a story arc of my visual fan fiction, featuring Barriss Offee and Ahsoka Tano during the Rise of the Empire era. Sometimes I get a vision in my head that just sticks until I can get it out and onto paper or a computer screen. This one came in loud and clear.

What’s the best and worst thing about being an artist?
The best thing about being an artist is the creative process. A lot of people want things like images of their favorite characters or for their stories to leap from the pages and into a visual medium. As an artist, I get to have an idea and act on it. If I need a new skill, I teach myself. My only limitation is my imagination and that is a beautiful thing. The worst thing about being an artist is the sacrifice. I want to create. I want to inspire. I want to bring impossible worlds to life and I very well may be able to, but I still have bills to pay. Being an artist doesn’t make my life easier. I dedicate so much of my free time and sometimes time and money that I can’t afford, but my art doesn’t pay me back. I still need to go punch the clock and be a drone, so that I can afford to provide for myself.

Star Wars Rebels comes out next year. What are some of your theories concerning the plot or characters? What are you looking forward to seeing the most?
I have high hopes for Rebels, but I have a lot of reservations, too. My biggest hope is to see Ahsoka Tano return to prime time television, but I am not holding my breath. My biggest concern for Rebels branches from a huge irritation I have with the final seasons of The Clone Wars. I don’t want to see the producers rewrite anymore canon to their liking. Star Wars is fiction, but fiction is only good so long as there are rules to which the fiction content adheres to. In The Clone Wars, the creators brought several characters back from the dead and also killed characters who weren’t supposed to die then. I want to love The Clone Wars, but those final two seasons just threw canon out the window. I fear that Rebels will be the same. They have a few good ideas, but they drain the well and then they fall back into their habits. There wasn’t a fluke in The Clone Wars; there was a pattern of disregard for canon. (Sorry. It’s a bit of a soapbox for me.)

Are you looking forward to the future Star Wars films? What are your hopes or worries?
I look forward to the films with optimism, but mostly an objective state of neutrality. It could turn out great, but there are so many ways that Disney could mess this up. I just hope we follow someone who isn’t a whiny Skywalker, who can’t keep it in his pants, and acts like an adult for a change.

Any final thoughts?
Final thoughts? Umm…Thanks for reading this far! I am well aware that I am a long-winded individual, hehe.

It was a pleasure to read through your answers, Charlie! You have an awesome talent, and like you, I really do hope you have a fantastic future in this field. The fact that you take initiative to teach yourself new things says a lot about your character, and I wish you all the best! Looking forward to that Barriss Offee sequel! May the Force be with you!