For those who didn't watch it through because the sound quality was... ahem..
TheRob: this is Rob Westerfield of Westerfield Armoury
Rob Westerfield: Westerfield *studios*, because we're multifaceted
TR: Multifaceted? What do you mean by that?
RW: Multifaceted is.. we're involved in multimedia, we do props for movies, we do a little bit of script work, we do a little bit of editing, we're a small production company in the Tampa Bay area.
TR: How long have you been practicing your propmaking and armouring?
RW: Well, I started doing armor when I was 15, at the Bay Area Resaissance Faire, and that developed into costuming, and that developed into doing wedding dresses and outfits for weddings, for carnivals, for the Ren Faire, for different theatre groups, and that went into.. small moviemaking.
TR: So you went from the Ren Fest scene to movie props.. and now to sci fi?
RW: I went from a little kid who was just ga-ga over guys in suits of armor and knights and the whole ?? Flynn thing to taking a passion in doing historical research into how to make armor and how it functions.. and the more you made armor the more people said, "well, can you do this.. can you do a Klingon backplate, can you do this.." and the next thing you know you're talking to ??Comic Studios about working with Simon Becker. So it does grow into.. different avenues.
TR: Do you find it's just more fun to play with.. not the information of the past, but.. the New?
RW: I love the living history of Florida, because the Spanish were here with their armor- the conquistadors landed here in Tampa Bay. And from that we're constantly involved with the local heritage groups- and that's led to the Star Wars genre and beyond that.. My job is just a game, every day!
TR: OK, let's talk about the Halo armor- that's a really big trend right now.
RW: -A fantastically large trend, surprisingly. I didn't sleep at all in October- and for the people I haven't gotten your armor to- I'm working on it!
TR: Are you really just.. backed up with orders still?
RW: We are running right now probably between 6-10 weeks on any armor order at the shop.. sewing orders are done a little quicker.. and anything from tshirts to flags to props we're getting from other companies are obviously going out quicker, but our- the armor department is really backed up. We've got the ODST Halo 2 finished development. We've got our young man doing development working on doing the new Halo 3 ODST, and I have another Star Wars project to do, and we're doing the Front Loader from Aliens. All that's like... due now.
TR: Since you've started with the 501st Stormtroopers, do you want to see the Halo 405th go in the same direction?
RW: I would like to see them do that, the blueprints've been laid out, I know Deadguy talked to them a long time ago, and now I'm seeing more response to that in the group. They need , eh, get some chapters together, get a marshal in each state.. and start the club. I mean, the Browncoats are doing it, we're proud members of the 76th Volunteers, there's no reason that the 405th can't. Don't worry about legitimizing themselves now- get a booth at FX, set up and start saying. "Hey, we're here".
TR: Well, a big part of it would be your involvement- your suits are the cheapest that can be manufactured and sold to people, and they are some of the best-looking.
RW: Well, it's a good suit- I can tell you the resin suits are crisp, they are nice- our suits you can go play, you can have fun in the woods with. That's why we're doing them out of high-impact plastic. They are an entry-level suit. They can mod up from that, too.
TR: I mean, that's how the 501st got started, entry-level suits that are so nice and everyone can get them-
RW: Yes, but the infrastructure needs to be there. We can all make- for 100$ we can all be Marines. Not a problem. But we needs the infrastructure and the authority to monitor the group. We need the hierarchy started in, say, Florida, because there's a lot of us in Florida, a lot in Texas, and a lot in California, and they need garrisons- today. Once they get an officer in the group, and set their standards, or even start the group and then weed out the standards. Because now with the paper armor- they're resining over it. They're sculpting it, and it's looking good. We need the leadership, the lower leadership.
TR: Well, there's 5-10 people who already have assumed a leadership role- Adam, Link, bluerealm, sigma- that put out nice resined armor, and have established that they're leaders of the group.. but they're not going to do everything.
RW: Then we as a group- I chimed in after an incident on Ebay that took down a road that was a perfect example that we need leadership, we need sargeants-at-arms and stuff like that, we need to do something where we get the leadership, like in the Boy Scouts, like in the 501st, where we can sit here and say- "This person's in charge.", "Scott is out local guy for being the costume Nazi in the 501st". If you do a stormtrooper armor, you show it to him, he's going to look at it and go "It's *pink*. What's wrong with you?". We need that same level of approval in our group, where we need to have our picture taken, in and out of our armor, sent to.. Adam? And he says, "It meets these standards, you're in, here's your number, now you're a card-carrying 405th." I will say this right now: DragonCon, I will have a 405th booth. If you guys want it *gestures towards camera* I'll give you my booth. I'll stick up banners, I will make a big back display, I'll put other people's armor up, and I will sell my stuff on the little corner.. but I'll give you guys booth space.
TR: That's DragonCon, this year, September.
RW: And if you guys don't have the little shiny things, don't show up. Let's show up, let's parade- the Browncoats did it last year. If we can't all get to DragonCon- which is the mecca of.. of the world- then we're not a group.
TR: I like it.
RW: And I'll.. print up a banner, I'll spend the money, and I'll set up a display. If anyone wants to share space with it, I'll give them table space. I have no problem with that.
TR: That is a straight, throw-down challenge.
RW: It's not a challenge- it's an invite.
TR: Alright, well, Thanks, etc..
