How did you get into 3D modeling?It had always been an interest ever since I had seen the earliest examples of CG on TV. I would try to get hold of 3D design programs, trying out Lightwave and POV-ray. I started out simply being fascinated by the way a computer could create such visuals, but as I moved more towards video I started to see it as a way to add effects to videos, starting with bullets on a Matrix style video I made when i was 16. Since then I have slowly improved, but I doubt I will ever be anything more then an amateur compared to some of the guys working out there.

What 3d modeling software do you use? And what are its' advantages? 3DS MAX - it's very easy to get quick results and the easiest software I've found to work with. It is also good for making and animating robots, which tends to be what I make.

What are 3DS MAX's limitations? It used to be the quality of the rendering, but things have moved on and MAX now incorporates Mental Ray. I personally use VRay for a lot of rendering as it has a great GI setup. But I'm lazy with lgihting, so tend to stick to HDRI maps - something I have taken the  time to learn how to make. There are also other software that is better at modelling and animation, but it suits my needs. If I was to go full time 3D then I would endevour to learn Maya however.

How did you discover Shapeways?I think it was on either Digg or Reddit. Possibly a google search. I had been interested in 3D printing for a while and this was the first service I saw that actually let regular people print things off in a convenient and user friendly way.

What do you think of it so far? I've ordered a second copy of an object and I'm highly impressed, although unfortunately I could not afford the best material. As with all things I imagine that costs will eventually drop and I can see myself getting many objects printed from Shapeways.

Bad/good things about Shapeways? Bad: Cost is quite high (expected, as it's such a new technology).
    Some usability niggles - having multiple ways toview my objects would be good, not simply thumbnails that I have to click across pages. The way I have split my object into pieces also means I have to go back and forwards between pages to order all the parts and some kind of tick box to select all the seperate parts would be good.

Good: Unique - there's currently no better way I know of to get a 3D model from my computer to the real world.
    Support - great support from people on the forum and from shapeways to get my model suitably ready to print. I apreciate it's not a simple process, but it was much easier than I expected thanks to the support.
    Cost actually appears low relative to other services (not expected for such a new technology).

What was it like to hold your model in your hand for the first time? Great I had ordered it as seperate parts (as the whole would not upload properly once shrunk in size) and once I glued it together it was awesome

Tell us about the Mighty Moshin Emo Rangers? In simple terms it's basically Power Rangers - but Emo.

Which one are you? http://www.emorangers.com/ I'm not any of the rangers sadly, I'm one of the guys who makes the show. Although I do appear in the new episodes as a pirate.

Who are they? In the story they are 5 teenagers who are called upon by Captain Emo Head to fend off bad guys with Emo based powers. In real life they are kids (though older now) from our local area.

So what is an emo anyway? Emo is basically a genre of music and also a kind of style and social group - sort of like Goth, or New Romantic.

Why did you start making the movies? Me and Chris Phillips, the other creator, have made videos together for a while, these happen to be the most successful. We started Emorangers 3/4 years ago now.

Is it a hobby or would you like to make it into your job? My job revolves around all the aspects that go into making Emo Rangers, but sadly I don't earn any money from Emo Rangers yet. Perhaps the next project.

Who watches your movies? How many? Emo Rangers is mainly watched by teens on the Internet. We have quite a big following in Mexico as well as the US, UK and also in Japan - there is a video on youtube of a Japanese band performing the theme tune - very strange.

Has your MySpace profile really been seen 1.9 million times? Probably - the videos on Youtube have somewhere in the region of 3 million combined views.

So, you're selling the figures on your site, have people ordered them? Just one so far I don't expect it to be a large seller however as it's quite a premium item, especially for the audience who tend to be quite young. We won't be getting rich off of it

Are you interested in making turning the selling of the models into a business? We have pretty much steered clear of this kind of merchandising so far as it tends to be a drain on our time which should be spent on the show. No doubt we could make a lot of money selling DVDs but that's not really what  we want to do as a job. Perhaps if the next few shows go well we will consider it.

What would you need to do this? We would have to get the prices more in range with expectations of the audience. Specialist figures that sell in shops and online for films, tv and comics tend to cost about a quarter of the price I can get 3D printed models for. This is of course down to the economies of scale etc, but it is a stubling block to making selling 3D objects a business i can personally use for Emo Rangers.

What inspires you? Sci-fi films and books are a great inspiration as well as serial dramas such as Heroes, Lost, Dexter and Battlestar galactica.

Is 3d modeling/3d printing inspiring or do you like music/video much more? My aspirations are directed towards TV, but CG is an incredibly inspiring part of that and to have the things I dream up realized as tangible objects is incredibly satisfying.

Thanx so much Coppersink!