January 08, 2025

34 The Internet Is Obsessed With His Tiny Video Game Sculptures | Sky Burkson, Miniaturist

1 hour 33 minutes

When Sky Burkson was a kid, he had two obsessions: drawing and video games. He went on to pursue a career in set design, but his love of games never faded. And when life threw his family a curveball, he knew it was time to recombine his passions.

These days, his painstaking recreations of video game architecture and environments delight thousands of fans around the world, including some of YouTube's biggest gaming influencers, who regularly commission new work.

His sculptures, which are made mostly of paper, are incredibly detailed, impressionistic miniatures of our favorite moments from Super Mario 64, Bloodborne, Elden Ring, Monster Hunter, Resident Evil, The Legend of Zelda, and more. They often take months to create, but Sky credits that slowness for their popularity among online fandoms.

This week, Sky joins Matt to discuss how he documents virtual spaces, why 1:1 re-creation doesn't always work, the hidden details players can't see, the reason he dumped 3D modeling software for good-old-fashioned pencils, and how to take that ONE perfect shot for social media.

Check out Sky's website: https://www.skyburkson.com/

Follow him on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/skyburkson/

This show is made possible by listener support: https://www.patreon.com/influencepod

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