INTERVIEW WITH 
CHRISTIAN HECKER
January 17, 2015
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Christian Hecker is a freelance concept artist from Nuremberg, Germany. Born in the early 1980s, he considers himself a late bloomer when it comes to art. It wasn’t until the mid 90s—when he got his first PC—that he discovered the world of digital imagining. With that, came Photoshop and a curiosity for 3D tools. He’s a self-taught artist and credits his success to the fantastic feedback he’s received over the years, as well as features in magazines and books, all of which have helped him grow and evolve. 

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As an artist, what inspires you to create science fiction?
Inspiration can be anything. Most of the time, it's movies, games, music, or books. Sometimes it can be a shape or something I see on the street. I guess, as an artist, it's important to always walk around with open eyes and an open mind.

What sci fi books, movies, or artists have made a lasting impression on you?
When it comes to artists, I can name Dylan Cole and Gary Tonge. But there are so many more out there that do amazing work. Right now, I'm reading Heinlein's Stranger in a Strange Land. In that book, is a part that I use as inspiration for a current personal project. But the most impact surely has to be Ridley Scott's Blade Runner and Alien. I just love the art direction in those movies. I recently played through Alien: Isolation. It was a feast for the eyes, if you're a lover of that specific lo-fi scifi style.

Other than art and science fiction, what are you most passionate about?
Movies. I'm a big movie fan, and if there's a movie that strikes me, positively or negatively, I tend to even write a review for it on my site. Visual FX in movies is another thing. When it comes to how it's used nowadays, I'm convinced that Hollywood still is not able to use digital VFX right. Story should always come first. But all too often it's VFX first and story last. It's a shame. Luckily, more and more new directors are coming up who understand how to use it properly. Movies that did it right are Sunshine, Inception, Prometheus, District 9, Edge Of Tomorrow, and Snowpiercer...just to name a few.

When it comes to the future, what’s your outlook for humanity—Utopian or Dystopian?
That's a fantastic question. I guess our future society will be a Utopia for those who can afford it and a dystopia for those who can't afford it. At least that’s how things look right now. Looking at the cityscape/scifi works I’ve created over the years, there’s always been a mix of both in them. Looking at where we are now, in 2015, and comparing it to a dystopian world like we see in Blade Runner’s 2019, I would say we are closer to a Dystopia than an Utopia

If you could turn one future technology from concept to reality, which would it be?
Energy. It would be awesome to have some sort of green energy source that would never deplete itself. So many of the problems Earth has today would be solved, and, as a result, mankind would surely be able to get its stuff together and move on.

With regards to intelligent life—not fauna in general—which statement do you think is most likely to be true?  A.) There is an abundance of intelligent life in the universe;  B.) The universe is a big place, but intelligent life is scarce; or  C.) Other than mankind and our creations, there is no intelligent life to be found in this universe.
I would choose something between A and B. I'm fairly certain that there is some sort of intelligent life out there. But the universe is big, and to find anything in it is even more problematic than finding a needle in a haystack. And if we find something, would we be able to communicate with it, let alone travel there? In school—20 years ago—I made a bet with a friend of mine that we'll make contact before 2015 was over. We’re now in 2015, and even though it's not over yet, I fear I owe my buddy a dinner or something. Maybe the first contact mankind will have with an alien species will be when we're long gone and the aliens dig through our remains trying to learn about who we were and how far we made it. I always liked the idea that something we did will stand the test of time and be discovered a long time after we have left.
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Point Sentinel
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Van Diemen's Retreat
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Anchorage
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Echoes