Interview with Pat Presley

INTERVIEW WITH
PAT PRESLEY

May 30, 2015

Pat Presley is a freelance concept designer and visual development artist. He has spent almost six years working at LucasFilm on multiple projects in the Star Wars universe, like The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels (the animated series). As a freelancer, Pat has worked across the entertainment industry on TV, game, film, and theme park design projects. His clients includes Walt Disney Imagineering, Intel, Wizards of the Coast, DeNA Games, and, the above mentioned, Lucas Films, Ltd., to name a few.

Originally, Pat wanted to be a doctor, but trained in architecture before deciding to work in the entertainment industry as a concept designer. Many sci-fi fans are glad he did.

As an artist, what inspires you to create science fiction?
Story and its power.

What sci fi books, movies, or artists have made a lasting impression on you?
Obviously, Star Wars… There’s a reason I ended up working at LucasFilm at one point in my life. But honestly, it’s not everything. Before that [Star Wars], there was Verne and Wells, and all the way down to Asimov, Bradbury, and Herbert. The Foundation Trilogy and Dune laid the groundwork for my formative sci-fi years.

As a concept designer… Ralph McQuarrie—whom I had the pleasure of meeting, before he passed away—Moebius, Syd Mead, and H.R. Giger. Without them, there wouldn’t be this over-saturated field of concept design. They were the first among many.

Other than art and science fiction, what are you most passionate about?
Architecture, because of its ability to effect lives on a larger scale, all the way down to daily routines, and all at the same time and place.

When it comes to the future, what’s your outlook for humanity—Utopian or Dystopian?
Not good. I think that if we don’t make it off this rock, we will probably burn out as a species, or nature will bring forth something in the evolutionary chain to replace us.

If you could turn one future technology from concept to reality, which would it be?
A truly safe and efficient form of space travel, because, unless there’s some kind of revolutionary leap in scientific discovery, I don’t think it will ever come true.

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.
As much as we would like there to be some form of intelligence out there, I don’t think there is. I think it’s all wishful thinking on our part.