Star Wars Artist Series: Randy Martinez

In 1999, Martinez found himself literally stumbling into his first official Lucasfilm project while attending the epic fan gathering of Star Wars Celebration I event in Denver, Colorado.

"I was there as a fan, with hopes of merely getting my name noticed, and to have a good time, but Celebration I was a mess -- rain, mud, cold, location problems, etc.," Martinez remembers. "I had finally gotten in to the showroom and it was packed. I was carrying some art with me to pass out as promotions. At some point, I sharply changed directions and I just about knocked over this guy with a beard and mustache. That guy was Steve Sansweet, Director of Fan Relations at Lucasfilm!"

"Honestly, I didn't know who he was at the time, but I saw the 'Lucasfilm' logo on his shirt and that was all I needed," Martinez continues. "Never one to be bashful, I pushed as much of my work in his face as I could -- after helping him up first. Luckily he really liked my work, in just a few weeks, Steve had gotten me a gig doing work for Star Wars Kids magazine. Steve rocks!"

After his chance meeting Sansweet, Martinez drew a series of illustrations and gag cartoons for Star Wars Kids magazine. When the magazine discontinued, the requests for work kept coming in. He sold original art to Lucasfilm, many pieces which currently decorate the hallways in the offices at Skywalker Ranch.

A few years later Martinez began drawing more caricatures and editorial illustrations in the Letters page and the Back Page art section for the official Lucasfilm magazine, Star Wars Insider. Most recently, Martinez's work can be found on numerous Artist Sketch cards that are included in the Topps' Star Wars Heritage trading cards series.

"I actually really like the Artist Sketch cards project, but it's taken some endurance to complete it," Martinez confesses. "I have to create 2,000 sketch cards of characters from the Star Wars universe. That is a crazy number, but it is part of the reason I took the job. I love challenges. It's not the drawing that is difficult; it is simply the amount of cards."

"To get them done in time, I carry a stack of blank cards around with me everywhere I go, and do a sketch or two, or three, or twenty when I'm sitting there doing nothing," Martinez explains. "So sometimes a card might be drawn at a comic book convention I'm attending, some might be drawn from the local Hollywood pub, while others might be done over looking the valley of Sedona Arizona."

Besides the challenge, Martinez says that the cards give him a platform as an artist to show his art in a rawer state.

"To be frank, sometimes I'm sad to see some of my energetic pencil lines go away in finished piece of art," Martinez admits. "But with these sketch cards, all the energy and looseness of my pencil line is revealed."

With the card series, Martinez understands the unique collectible quality of the mini-portraits and tries to raise the expectations of his fans.

"Seeing that I'm known for being the cartoon guy, about every 10-15 cards, I do a really silly sketch," Martinez says. "These are totally unique sketches. For example, there is only one Jimi Hendrix Yoda."