Best of BrickNerd - Article originally published September 14, 2021.

“To Boldly Go Where No One Has Gone Before” is not only the well-known mission of the starship Enterprise from Star Trek but is also the way that Samuel Hatmaker lives their life. Sam has been “boldly going” new places for a long time now; from boldly building MOCs in kitschy themes like Golden Girls, Devine, and Jem and the Holograms, to boldly taking part in the first season of LEGO Masters US. (It is hard to believe the second season is ending today!) It is only fitting that the next place Sam would boldly go would be on a Star Trek voyage.

However, before we teleport ourselves back to mid-August and the “Roddenberry Interactive Stage” of the recent Star Trek Convention in Las Vegas, I’d first like to tell you about a “mission” of my own. Since we have written quite a few articles about different types of AFOL collections on BrickNerd, I thought it was about time to confess to having a special type of collection myself; a literal “Collection of AFOLs” (Adult Fans Of LEGO) that I am proud to call my “AFOL Family”. I alluded to it during my past “White Brick” article, but to spell it out - my mission is to meet and make lasting friendships with all of the truly genuine and kind-hearted people in this hobby of ours.

These are the like-minded people who always tend to give more back to the community (and others) than they take from it, with no hidden agendas and without any thinly-veiled self-promotion… or as Spock might put it, the people that recognize “the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few... or the one”; These are the people that coordinate and volunteer at various conventions, that covertly give out recognition to the overlooked, that host building contests, that act as the “LEGO Parents” and mentors to new MOC builders, that donate to Creations for Charity, that walk miles to donate LEGO to a hospital, etc. I greatly expanded on that collection of friends this year by teaming up with many other like-minded, community-focused contributors and patrons here at BrickNerd, and there is always room for more in this altruistic “AFOL Family.”

I added Samuel Hatmaker (Wildflower) into my “AFOL Family” back at Brickworld Chicago 2018. That was the year Sam showed up to the convention, not realizing that you needed to reserve table space in advance to display. Fortunately, Simon Liu always reserves a little extra table space at Brickworld in an area affectionately known as “OrphanLUG.” As the name implies, it’s a place for those coming to Brickworld who haven’t yet been “adopted” by a LUG, and who reach out in need of a displaying family at the show. I reached out to Simon myself as an “orphan” back at Brickworld 2016 and have been displaying there ever since.

Sam displayed next to me at that 2018 convention, and I’ve gotten to know them quite well since then. I can tell you that Sam is the kind of person who “uplifts the things that make us different, approaches situations with curiosity and kindness - rather than fear and judgement, and fights for the well-being of others as well as themselves.” Sam would truly give you the shirt off their back if you needed it - and perhaps that is the very reason why Sam isn’t wearing one in the video linked below.

In fact, Sam is the kind of person who would part with most of their personal possessions, including a massive Wonder Woman collectable collection, to put a roof over their parents’ heads – because they did exactly that. It’s likely that Sam didn’t want me to make this widely known, because the purpose of doing good for others is not about “getting credit”, or expecting to be rewarded in return. That said, karma still finds its way of being delivered. When I learned that Sam was planning to sleep in a rental car to be able to attend Brickworld 2019, I made sure that they had an actual roof over their head to sleep under instead… and this was well before I learned of what Sam did to help their family.

If the only thing you knew about Sam is them saying “You don’t understand LEGO” in a highly edited portrayal on LEGO Masters US Season One, or seeing the clothes that they feel the most comfortable wearing, then it’s actually you who doesn’t yet understand Sam. Stop right now and go read this article on how Sam got to be where they are today. It’s important.

So now that I have finally gotten the chance to get my own “AFOL collection” out into the open, as well as my personal connection with Sam, that brings us back to today - to Star Trek, and to me reaching out to Sam to learn more about the art pieces they were commissioned to build by the Roddenberry family. I was curious to learn more about how that project came into being, Sam’s experiences unveiling the builds at the Star Trek convention, and what it was like to attend both as a displayer and as a Trekkie themselves.

Catching up with Samuel Hatmaker

Ted Andes: Hey Sam! Hope you are doing well. I was just saying to the rest of the BrickNerd team that we should do an article about your experiences with the Star Trek convention now that most of your commissioned pieces have been revealed (and the live-build mosaic is underway).

Samuel Hatmaker: I hope you have been well too. It has been too long, and I can’t wait see you again at a LEGO convention.

Ted: So how did you get involved with the Star Trek convention to begin with? Did they approach you, or did you approach them?

Sam: Having been a Star Trek fan since I was a kid, I decided my next project should be to do some Star Trek-themed builds. Coincidentally, a friend introduced my work to Rod Roddenberry (the son of Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry) who later reached out to me.

Ted: Did Rod give you any specific direction on what types of things to build from the Star Trek universe, or did you have free reign to choose the themes for each of them?

Sam: Rod had ideas about specific subject matter themes, but he was always open to my creative interpretations in how we might manifest them in the builds. As we got to talking about my ideas, and the cost required of actually making the pieces I had in mind, he recognized my serious passion for the Trek universe and we agreed to move forward with the collaboration. We agreed that I would work with them and make six Trek builds over a year and then display them at the Las Vegas convention. We discussed every build I did before they were started. They had ideas on subject matter, but they were always open to my interpretations of the subject. [Most photos of Sam’s MOC’s below are courtesy of Jade Alayne Photography.]

For example, when they came to me with the idea of doing a Gene Roddenberry portrait, they imagined it as a straight mosaic. I slept on it a few nights and then came back to them a different vision. With it being the 55th Year of Star Trek, I proposed the idea of making a 3D mosaic that included 55 stories from the Trek Universe to commemorate that. They were open to the idea, but I don’t think they truly understood what I envisioned. However, they had faith that I would make it work. I was so happy when that final piece came together and was so well received by the Roddenberry family and greatly appreciated by both them and the fans at the convention.

Ted: Tell us a bit more about the Roddenberry portrait and about those 55 stories you included. As you already know, we are big fans of Easter Egg hunts at BrickNerd too. Did you have any allusions that were especially important to you to include? One of our favorites is the little Defiant!

Sam: The Gene Roddenberry portrait is certainly my largest and most ambitious LEGO build to date, both in size and in the number of Easter Eggs included. It is 6’8” tall and 4’2” wide. It is actually 8” deep in some spots. This year would have also been Gene’s 100th birthday, so there are 100 Delta badges in the black section of Gene’s face.

As for the stories, there were a lot of things that I knew I HAD to include:

The I.D.I.C. is Gene’s creation that represents the core ideals of Trek; Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations. That is a very LEGO idea too. It’s an idea that is visible in the very core of Trek. I made that IDIC symbol Gene’s 3rd Eye, (the Crown Chakra, the opening of the Mind).
I wanted to have representation of Majel Barrett (Gene’s wife) in the piece. She played Nurse Chapel in the Original Series, as well as Lwaxana Troi on The Next Generation, and the voice of the computer. In the end, I chose to create a 3D relief picture of her as Nurse Chapel.
I specifically made the Defiant NX-74205 because the number is Rod Roddenberry’s birthday.
For the rest, I included my favorite episodes, characters and scenes that stood out to me from the entire Trek universe. Hopefully it won’t take you a five-year mission to find them all 😉!

Ted: So with the original scope of your involvement being to create the six murals, how did that involvement expand into also doing live builds on the “Roddenberry Interactive Stage” along with coming up with the micro-builds to give away?

Sam: The live build and micro-build giveaways were actually last-minute ideas that we decided on only three weeks before the show. We were discussing how I could be more involved in the convention, beyond just having a little gallery space. It was a great opportunity for me to get to share my ideas and creativity on stage live with Trek fans, and I am so grateful I got to have the opportunity. I loved being able to make mini builds and give them away.

Sharing my ideas and passion led to others sharing with me. On the third day of the convention, after I finished the mini build seminar, I was approached by three different fans who surprised me by giving me things in return; One made a cross-stitch ornament of the Enterprise being pulled by reindeer for me to hang out on my Christmas Tree, one gave me a book he had written about the Trek philosophy, and one gave me a vintage LEGO set that still had the original instructions from the mid-1970’s (and yet another person gave me an amazing face mask that got lost during the chaos of the con). Those are the moments that made me cry with joy. The fan communities of both Trek and LEGO are very powerful and strongly connected.

Ted: It might be the mind-meld with Spock talking here, but it is the human connections that I always find most fascinating; In addition to making LEGO part connections, we appreciate the “community connections" here at BrickNerd too, and those pictures speak volumes...

Sam: The human connection is my favorite part of anything! I feel like if we hugged each other instead of shaking hands, it would be a better world in general. Human contact is so important for us, and it’s hard to be angry or mean to someone you just embraced. Obviously that is challenging to do with COVID these days, and I really do love hugging people. I did not get to hug any celebrities at the Star Trek Convention because of COVID, but I did hug lots of other people there.

Ted: Now that you have “displaying builds at a Star Trek convention” as a notch on your Paul Frank LEGO belt, how would you compare the public interaction with Star Trek fans versus the public at LEGO fan conventions?

Sam: Star Trek Fans and LEGO fans are very similar. They both celebrate their passion and knowledge for the property. They celebrate the creativity of others and are very accepting. The convention was such a weekend full of love and support, just like LEGO Conventions are. People sharing ideas and praise and excitement. One difference is that because of LEGO Masters, I am very recognizable at a LEGO convention, as there still aren’t too many “famous” LEGO people out there in the public eye. At a Star Trek convention, however, there will be fifty REAL celebrities that are there doing panels, signing autographs, taking pictures with fans, etc. It’s nice that I can just blend in with my fellow Trekkies and just nerd out.

Ted: Well, thanks for blending in with us fellow BrickNerd Trek fans here today, Sam, and “Nerding Out” with all of us! I’m looking forward to seeing you again someday, and to seeing you unveil whatever “next big project” you have in store.

Sam: Thanks so much, Ted! I could not be more grateful and honored to have you as a friend and inspiration!

You can find more of Samuel Hatmaker’s work, along with inquiring about commissions, on their website. What scene from Star Trek would you like to see built in LEGO? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.

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