By David King
LEGO enthusiasts have a treat in store for them this summer. “LEGO MASTERS” competitor Flynn De Marco will be teaching LEGO building camps and classes at Concord’s Briks and Minifigs store starting in June.
Most of the camps will be teaching about using gears, gravity, motors and understanding the meaning and function of various LEGO parts.
De Marco and his partner, Richard Board, competed last year on the reality TV show “LEGO MASTERS”, then in its first season. Ten teams competed over seven weeks, demonstrating their creativity and technical knowledge of LEGO building to the themes and specs offered by the show’s host, Will Arnett.
While De Marco did not win, the duo missed the finals by a respectable two episodes. You do not need to be a LEGO enthusiast to enjoy the show and appreciate the creative, artistic, mechanical, and technical knowledge of the contestants.
While one might assume such masters have spent a lifetime growing up with LEGOs, De Marco confesses he has only been building for five years. De Marco got involved with LEGO when he became bored with television. Having grown up with comic books, and specifically an X-Men fan, when Demarco saw a LEGO X-Men vs. Sentinel LEGO kit, he bought, built it and the rest is history, albeit a very short one.
But that is good news for anyone who feels they missed out of their LEGO years. It is never too late to start.
De Marco and Board also host a YouTube channel called “Tricky Bricks” three days a week. Producing those shows is much different than the production of a network reality show.
“LEGO MASTERSs” was produced in Los Angeles. To accept the invitation to compete on the show, you had to commit to seven weeks. They were in production five long days a week.
“It was surreal. But the TV studio was set up for building success,” De Marco said. The studio had all the bricks one would need and in all the colors. “We enjoyed meeting all the contestants. By seven weks, we had all bonded.”
De Marco credits his theater background for his success on the show. “We approached building like putting on a show. We utilize storytelling, creativity, and technical experience with each design task.
De Marco explained that despite everyone’s talents, it only takes a bad day to be eliminated, or a good day to move on to the next week. What makes a good builder?
“If you want to build, build every day, even if it’s only for an hour. Once you understand the pieces and how they function together, you can literally build anything,” advises De Marco. “Don’t be afraid to fail, because failure is what spurs you to do better.”
Briks and Minifigs is a reseller of mostly used LEGO pieces. It is an ideal location for fun summer birthday parties and of course classes and camps.
Briks and Minifigs buy and sell used LEGO pieces, kits, as well as stocks some new.
De Marco ‘s camps are Mondays and Thursdays at 11:00 AM in June and July. Registration is done at https://bricksandminifigsconcord.com/collections/camps-1
Briks and Minifigs is located at 2250 Commerce Ave. in Concord. Rebuild, Reuse, Reimagine.
Shot with DXO ONE Camera 
