Lego designers don’t use graph paper. They use brick paper.

In the early days, Varszegi sketched out all his ideas on the company’s specially designed paper graphed to the proportions of Lego bricks. Though most design work today is done on BrickBuilder, Lego’s proprietary design software, they still keep brick paper around: “Sometimes for a smaller project it might be quicker and faster to grab that paper and sketch it out.”

A Varszegi creation: the BB-8 droid from Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
A Varszegi creation: the BB-8 droid from Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
Image: The Lego Group

Math matters, but so does artistry.

“That’s something we always tell the kids: Math is important,” Varszegi said. Master builders must have a solid grasp of math and physics concepts like ratios, scaling, and load-bearing. They also need an artist’s creativity and aesthetic eye. “Everyone thinks master builders are engineers and architects,” Varszegi said. “We have people with those backgrounds in the shop, [but] I see Lego more as an art medium.”

Professional Lego builders also get annoyed when they run out of pieces they need.

“Running out of bricks is always a pain in the butt,” Varszegi said of the job’s few downsides. “We have a great warehouse of elements we keep in a back room, but occasionally we use up too much of one brick and have to wait for the next shipment to come in. That’s a pain.”

If you are a professional Lego builder, everyone asks about your job. Everybody.

“It’s always a topic of conversation whenever I’m meeting new people or reconnecting with classmates on Facebook. No one can believe such a job exists,” he said.

“Last summer I went to a family reunion. I hadn’t seen these people in years. Some knew what I did, but word got out to second and third cousins I’d never met in my life: Cousin Eric works at Lego! They were all aged about 6 to 12, and I got swamped by them. I was there just to eat my hamburger and catch up with people.”

But it’s a really, really tough gig to land.

“With the popularity of Lego these days, it is a pretty highly coveted position. I get kids from 6 to 18 saying, ‘I want to be a Lego Master Builder! How do I get your job?’ I really don’t have a good answer for them. There aren’t too many of us. Sadly, you probably have a better chance of being a pro basketball player just based on the sheer numbers,” Varszegi said.

Varszegi’s model of Poe Dameron of The Force Awakens, rendered in Lego.
Varszegi’s model of Poe Dameron of The Force Awakens, rendered in Lego.
Image: The Lego Group

“But we always keep an eye on good builders. Who knows what will happen?”

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