Driven By Design

Car Design Scholarship for LGBTQ Kids

Freelance Car Designer Bryan S. Thompson (formerly w/Nissan) talks about growing up a gay kid in rural Arizona and dreaming of being a car designer. How everyone told him he "didn't fit" and could never get into this industry. And how he persevered and literally knocked on doors of major car design studios in Europe until someone finally came out, took a look and told him how to do it.

Which is why he's creating a special scholarship for LGBTQ kids (like him) who are "driven by design".

Tune it and share his amazing story with anyone who's ever felt "different" or that they "didn't fit" and how incredible it is to find your true passion and "tribe".  And join him for his special fundraiser at the Liberace Estate in Palm Springs this Friday, Oct. 18th for a night of eating and dancing and raising funds for this very personal cause.  And who knows?  You might even win one of his cars?  Dreams can come true. It can happen to you.  If you have the drive (and talent) to succeed...

Part 2-Former Head of Hot Wheels and Matchbox Design FELIX HOLST

As car designer Bryan Thompson continues his talk with Fritz Holst (former head of design for Matchbox and Hot Wheels at Mattel), we dive deeper into the mysterious connection we have with our cars (starting as kids).  From giving them names and collecting toy versions to the personal statements most cars make about us as adults.  But how will our whole "car culture" and its deep connection with whatever moves us be tested in a brave new world of nameless, self-driving machines that pick us up only when needed?

Hear both their perspectives on our evolving love affair with cars and how startups like Fritz's fascinating HACKROD might just save the industry from a future of detached utilitarianism and cars becoming appliances by making each of us our own car designers thru a new world of affordable, on-demand manufacturing and 3D printing of parts. Allowing us the freedom to make whatever moves us in this rapidly changing landscape of automotive subscriptions, self-driving vehicles, electric bikes and scooters for rent on every corner.

On DRIVEN BY DESIGN.  The driving conversation on Orange County's only community radio station, OC TALK RADIO. Streaming (not screaming) talk radio and podcasts.

PART 1-Former HOT WHEELS and MATCHBOX Designer Felix Holst

For anyone who ever collected HOT WHEELS or MATCHBOX as a kid (like I did!) this show is for you.  As car designer Bryan Thompson talks with the former head of design for Matchbox and Hot Wheels at MATTEL, Felix Holst, about his cool work turning real cars into toys.  How he and his team at Matchbox worked hard to exactly match the miniatures with their real world counterparts. And how Hot Wheels allowed them the freedom to press the boundaries and make creative "comic book versions" of these same cars as well. 

Then hear about his equally mind boggling startup, HACKROD, and how he thinks their
"do-it-yourself' design platform for affordable, "on demand manufacturing" might enable a new future of personalized and customized real world cars as well. On DRIVEN BY DESIGN, the only show showing you the future of automotive one concept at a time.

On Orange County's equally futuristic "live podcasting" channel, OC TALK RADIO.  Streaming (not screaming) talk radio...

Car Designer Gabriel Wartofsky on The Future of Mobility

This week, car designer Bryan Thompson talks with Gabriel Wartofsky who's designed for Honda and Acura and BMW but who now also works in the more esoteric world of "mobility" and the emerging alternatives from scooters and electric bikes to self-driving vehicles.  So what will move us in the future? Find out from today's pair of DRIVEN BY DESIGN designers. Who are designing the future of mobility and transportation...today. Here on Orange County's only community radio station, OC TALK RADIO. Streaming (not screaming) talk radio...

Color Material Designer Jill Canales (formerly w/Nissan)

For his first guest, car designer Bryan Thompson talks with his friend and former teammate at Nissan, Jill Canales, about what it takes to be a "color material designer". "We are in charge of every material color in the car from the grain and hue of the plastic dashboard to the headliner and carpet to the exterior color of the car," she explains. "We don't just pick colors. We design them from the chemistry of the paint to match the mood and feel of the space."  This from a woman who famously wrote her thesis on only working in "black and white".  And who now works as SVP for Product and Marketing at The Original Scrapbox ("unique furniture tailored to crafters, seamstresses, etc. that can enhance their experience by simplifying and organizing their supplies so they can create").

A fascinating start to our weekly conversation with the magician's who make us feel so connected to our cars and "spaces". As we pull back the curtain on automotive and transportation design here on DRIVEN BY DESIGN. On Orange County's only community radio station, OC TALK RADIO.  Streaming (not screaming) talk radio. And live podcasting.

Welcome to DRIVEN BY DESIGN

Having worked as a designer at Nissan for the last 10 years, Bryan Thompson is now out on his own and DRIVEN BY DESIGN. Exploring the future of transportation and automotive styling with his fellow visionaries at all the car design studios here in Southern California.  So ride along on this fast paced look at the future as we explore our continuing fascination with cars, trucks, motorcycles and anything that moves.  Here on Orange County's only community radio station, OC TALK RADIO.