Overall model building everywhere is in a sharp decline. Its a generational thing.
I was raised on airfix kits and spent hours on WWII aircraft, tanks and dinosaurs. My father was keen on model railways ( and built us model farmyards and zoos which we kids filled full of plastic animals). I never really got that bug thanks to the space race and the sudden proliferation of science fiction on TV, like Thunderbirds, UFO, Space 1999,Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea ,Star Trek and then of course Star Wars sealed the deal.
There is something about the design of just about everything in that film, most particularly the craft that has never been surpassed,even to this day. Each one is a small masterpiece in itself and I never tire of looking at the ones I've built these last few years, or pictures of the originals.
But building a kit takes alot of time and patience and lets face it there are far too many other things out there that are more rewarding in this digital age (no playstations and Xboxs around when I was a lad (Space Invaders had only just made it into the pubs and arcades )) and I doubt I would really have back into the hobby if it hadn't been for all the research, graft and building skills a few of the long servers here had already put into producing their models and thus garage kits. There are a few others here that owe a great deal to them, though to read what they post sometimes you would never believe it.
There used to be a Beatties hobby shop in most towns, along with many other small toyshops but they are virtually all gone now. I go to an IPMS meet once a year and is filled with guys roughly all my age group (or older). Theres no doubt people love to look at and admire the models, but very,very few youngsters these days will ever try and build them using the old methods unless they were raised with them, however, with 3D printing becoming more commonplace and detailed I imagine that may change for some in the future.
Sadly as far as VFX go minature model building has mostly had its day, except for some particular effects scenes. One of the bigger disappointments for me in "The Force Awakens" was that ( other than the revisions of existing OT craft) just how weak the remaining vehicles were. Reys speeder barely made it, thanks to some brilliant weathering, but even that was mostly Lukes speeder turned on its side. The spacecraft were very weak ie Hans frieghter , the FO snowspeeder, and if it hadn't been for all the wreaked SDs and the older designs I'd have been royally p***ed off, but the updated X wing and the Ties and of course that amazingly rendered Falcon saved it, along with the bulk of the sets and props.
So there is no doubting the VFX were tremendous. I rewatched the entire OT the day after I saw TFA for the second time and I have to say whilst the designs are still untouchable classics IMO the new benchmark VFX standards have been well and truely set. It looked brilliant and the CGI modelling was breathtaking, those X wings scooting across lake was simply stunning (though I was less keen on it weaving around like a swallow knocking about six ties out of the sky in line later).
I'm guessing "Rogue One" may be the film that will really ignite the passion for the hobby amoungst the Studio Scalers again, and I think thats what we will be still raving about this time next year. Again its the fact it relies heavily on the old designs that's going to push all the right buttons for us. It will be then that we can make a truly accurate assessment on the CGI/ physical model debate as we can directly compare the OT with it.
BUT the hard fact is that the old processes from concept artwork, refinement ,selection then to model building and screen testing and final paintwork took alot of time , and that's even before the VFX filming starts and in this day and age with deadlines to meet it isn't going to happen. Certainly with the exception of a very,very few films in recent times I haven't seen any serious scale modelling work like I used to in "Cinefex" for a good while.
