Wonder Festival 2026 [Summer]
One-Day License Acquired! Shin Godzilla 4th Form Head Sculpt (Unpainted Kit)
It's a small dream come true. My first time attending Wonder Festival will be as an exhibitor at my own booth. It's been a bumpy road, from teaching myself how to sculpt and cast to successfully obtaining a WF "One-Day License," but I've finally made it. I wanted to take this opportunity to share a bit about the creative process.
It all started back in high school when I began collecting Godzilla figures. As a student, affording those incredible high-end collectibles was practically impossible for me. That's when a thought popped into my head: "Why not just make my own Godzilla?" Coincidentally, my school was holding a student art exhibition, so I signed up for the 3D sculpture category to create a small figure.
At the time, my molding and casting skills were terrible. To make matters worse, I was placed in the only art group that didn't teach 3D modeling, so I learned most of my techniques from online video tutorials. I even crafted my own tools, referencing the methods used by Japanese master craftsmen. My creative journey in high school came to a temporary close there.
Once I got to college, I had more free time and started working on a large-scale sculpture that I'd been planning since high school. Unfortunately, the casting process failed in the end, and I never got it to properly "stand up." Still, I hope to revisit that project someday.
But let's get back to the main topic. The head sculpt featured on the cover actually originated from that same piece I started in my second year of high school. After years of refinement and reinterpretation, it has become what you see today.
Initially, I was sculpting the "Awakened" version, and the details were nearly complete. But halfway through, I had a change of heart. If I was going to do this, I wanted to do it right, following the 4th Form's entire evolution into its Awakened state to make it more meaningful. So, I made the tough decision to cut off the entire section I'd been working on and re-sculpt it into the standard 4th Form. Looking back, the way I "forced" its mouth shut is actually pretty funny.
After adjusting the overall silhouette, I began to slowly correct the placement of the teeth. As for the back of the neck, my original design included dorsal fins. However, after double-checking the official designs, I realized that at the point I was sculpting, the fins hadn't started to grow in yet, so I decided to remove them. Perhaps for the next form, I'll push the sculpt further back and include the emerging fins, which I believe will create a more layered and visually appealing piece.
The final sculpt before molding.
Because the molds I made myself still had significant issues with air bubbles, and many attempts still left imperfections, I ultimately picked the best cast from several samples. After sanding and cleaning it up, I sent it to a professional factory for production casting. All I can say is that I still have a long way to go on the road to mastering mold-making, and I hope to gradually improve my skills in this area.
Of course, once the unpainted resin kits came back, I couldn't just show them as-is; I needed photos of a finished display piece. So, I handled the paint job myself. My painting techniques are also self-taught, a process of slow trial-and-error while studying reference materials. I've since completed several samples with different color schemes to give potential buyers more inspiration and a clearer idea of what the finished product can look like.
Check out the links below for more reference photos:
"Shin Godzilla" Head Sculpt Series - Awakened ver.
"Shin Godzilla" Head Sculpt Series - 4th Form
"Shin Godzilla" Head Sculpt Series - Frozen ver.
"Shin Godzilla" Head Sculpt Series - Incarnation ver.
Finally, for anyone attending Wonder Festival 2026 [Summer], please feel free to stop by my booth to check out the work and have a chat. I'll be announcing some new projects and plans soon, which will also be on display at the event. To go from a student learning from online videos to where I am today is an incredible feeling. I hope to continue creating more work and see you all at future Wonder Festival events.
To see more of my work, you can follow me at:
https://www.instagram.com/jeffrey.liao.142