you have a unique fun style, how long have you been drawing and doing art? who are some of your influences?
I’ve been making artwork since I was 3 years old. Somehow my parents knew that was the right career for me. My early influences were tv shows and art books. I loved Bullwinkle, Speed Racer and Gumby. My parents also had some art books around, and Picasso and Miro were my favorites. Put that all together!
how did you get involved in the parappa game?
I was working with a Japanese agency designing cute characters and doing illustration work, and eventually was hired to design character products for Sony. At the same time Sony was just bringing out Playstation 1. A group was designing a fun new game and they asked me to design the world and characters.
how many looks did parappa go through until his current appearance was settled on?
I made many sketches for Parappa, I don’t remember how many. One of the talented designers at Sony helped choose the final character.
did you suggest characters for the game or did the developers already have what they wanted in mind?
The Parappa the Rapper development team leader was Masaya Matsuura. He and his team would tell me what they thought the characters would do in the game, and what kind of personality the characters might have. Then I made sketches.
are you amazed how popular the parappa franchise is and how iconic your artwork has become?
Yes!
you can check out more about Rodney and see his art and products over at whimsyload
