EDWARDS, CA
35.087439, -117.825400
What is Neotropolis?
Neotropolis is an annual Cyperpunk themed event in the Mojave desert of Southern California. Each year thousands of enthusiasts, cosplayers, nerds, and people who like to have a good time gather to create this city of the future. One part live action roleplay, one part music festival, and one part camping experiencce, attendees are all required to be in costume while in the city limits of Neotropolis. For more information I encourage you to check out their website at Neotropolis.com
I have been an attendee since 2022, and am constantly using the event to sharpen my skills as a creative. Character Design, Costume and Prop Fabrication, 3D Modeling, creative writing, Illustration, photography. It is some of the work I am most proud of as it is purely for my own fulfillment.
(My Costume for 2025, Photo Credit Preston Yarger)
Initial 3D concept art of the helmet. done in Z-Brush
THE PEOPLE’S CYBORG
Z3RG is often referred to as “Your Least Favorite Mercenary’s Favorite Mercenary.” A former communard turned soldier of fortune, a cybernetic warrior of tomorrow. Designing a costume that both met my character brief of a futuristic cyborg mercenary was a delicate balancing act in picking materials, that would be durable enough to survive the harsh desert conditions and light enough to wear for prolongued periods of time. Eva foam seemed to meet these requirements very well. The suit contains custom LEDs in the helmet, chest plate, and back plate to pop at night and serve a functional purpose to navigate back to camp in the dark of night. Z3RG was inspired by my love for the toys and cartoons of the 1980’s. I was shooting for a goon in a cheesy sci-fi movie, that could make for a marketable action figure. A functional claw hand completes the look offering a fun and goofy prop when interacting with other attendees.
THE POSTCARDS
Bartering for trinkets is a big part of Neotropolis’s culture my annual contribution comes in the form of souvenir post cards featuring spicy pinup illustrations of some of the event’s beloved characters. This is one of my favorite annual project’s as its a chance to collaborate with some of my favorite illustrators. In universe the flyers serve as promotional material for a fictional cybernetic multimedia experience called brain dance, as seen in Cyberpunk 2077. This is my love letter to the people that make the event truley special. (to the right is the back designs of the 2024 and 2025 postcards)
2025 Neo Fans Power Bottoms, Representing the Neotropolis NPCs (Neo Power & Cable) Commissioned Illustration by tinyskald graphic design and art direction elchazzstudios
2024 Neo Fans "Erotic Enforcers" paying tribute to Neo's fictional police force the Sentinels. Commissioned Illustration by Gekkonsfw. Graphic design and art direction elchazzstudios.