HF : Could you introduce yourself to our readers, for those that do not know who you are?

Bo Thomas : Bo Thomas: Well, my name is Bo Thomas. I am a professional stuntman/stagefighter, and have been since 1983. I'm based in Copenhagen, Denmark.

HF : Could you tell us some about the work you have done?

Bo Thomas : I have done stunts for about 30 Danish movies and a few Swedish ones, and I have done a lot of coordination for theatre productions. I've also done live performances for medieval fairs all over Denmark for the last 9 years. As for games, I've worked on Freedom Fighters, Hitman 2, and Hitman 3. I have a full list on my web page, found at www.geocities.com/bothomas

HF : 9 years! Wow, that's quite a long while. How did you get started in this business? Did you decide you wanted to become a stuntman, or did you just 'roll into it'?

Bo Thomas : Well I really just fell into it. One of my brothers is a film fanatic, and I was always reading his books. That's how I found out about stuntmen. One day there was a small ad at the back of a newspaper, seeking students for the stunt school called "Stuntskolen" in Danish. That was in 1983, and I've been there ever since. It is a lot smaller now, but it is still running. At the moment we only have training once a week.

HF : What kind of courses do they have?

Bo Thomas : They teach basic stunts and stagefighting, how to fight for film and theatre. We also have The Nordic Stage Fight Society, where we train actors in how to fight with and without weapons for theatre and film.

HF : By weapons, do you mean modern weapons or does that also include swords, axes, etc.?

Bo Thomas : It includes everything: how to handle guns of any kind, and swords all the way from the time of the Vikings up to modern days. We also have acting and mime training. Sometimes we have to make the actors look good in films, and also we have to learn how to look and move like actors if they need a stunt double.

HF : I've seen some photos on your website. Have you worked with any celebrities, maybe as a stunt double?

Bo Thomas : I have worked with Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker, Starwars), Richard Harris (Patriot Games), Lesley Nielsen (Naked Gun), Peter Stomare (Minority Report) and a lot of Danish actors. I’ve also worked with Tom Wilkinson, one of the actors from "The Full Monty".

HF : That's films, motion capturing, and stagefighting... could you tell us something about that last category? Are there any big differences between them for you as a stuntman/actor?

Bo Thomas : Not really! In films you can always say "cut!" and do it again! You can’t do that in theatre and live performance, but I like both. You have to be 100% on your toes no matter what you do! If not, you will get hurt.

HF : Do you have any personal experience with that last aspect? Have you ever been seriously injured?

Bo Thomas : The worst injury I’ve had was when I landed on my head in a live performance!! I was really groggy, but the worst thing is that I still had a full week of 3 shows a day!! Ouch. I have never broken a bone though, "knock on wood."

HF : Let's move on to motion capturing, could you explain the process briefly for our readers?

Bo Thomas : Well, you start by getting into a tight spandex suit with Velcro (if it sounds kind of kinky, have patience). Then you get a lot of reflective ping pong balls strapped onto you on your joints and to mark the shoulders, head, hands, hips, and feet. Next they get you into the computer so the cameras can recognize your movement. After that you can see yourself as a match stick man on a big screen, and it works like a camera, recording all of your movement!

HF : So what happens after the movements are recorded? Is there any editing involved?

Bo Thomas : There’s no editing, but they do have a normal DV camera to get some reference of what you are doing. The animators are using your movement to animate the characters, so the movements look very realistic.

HF : Then if it doesn't come out perfect, you have to redo the movement, right?

Bo Thomas : In cut scenes you have to, but not really in the game sequences. Some of the movements are looping, like walking, running, that kind of thing. The animators can do a lot.

HF : How closely do you work with the animators? Do they tell you exactly what to do, or are you allowed to improvise?

Bo Thomas : For the cutscenes we can exchange ideas, but for in-game movements they are very strict about what you have to do! They have to animate around your movement, and they want to be able to have an easy job!

HF : How about the voice actors, did you work with them also?

Bo Thomas : No, all the voice was recorded after we finished!

HF : What's the most difficult part of being a motion capture actor?

Bo Thomas : The most difficult part is to act out the dialogue, since you have to move while talking! Otherwise it looks boring and the players don’t know who is talking. The person who is playing has to be able to see who is talking.

HF : Let’s talk about Hitman in particular. Could you tell us how you got involved with IOI in the beginning?

Bo Thomas : Well, one of my friends was contacted by IOI because he went to school with one of the people there. In Hitman 1, they had a lot of problems with the person that did the mocap (short for “motion capturing”) for them. They were not used to moving like they need to in the game, so on Hitman 2 they wanted people who could move so they didn’t waste so much time on doing the mocap. They called us up for a meeting, and we went through the script. We got all the mocap for Hitman 2 done in one and a half day, while we were doing the mocap for Freedom Fighters.

HF : Wow, did you really record all the motion capturing for Hitman 2 in only one and a half days? Does that include all the characters' movements or just Agent 47's?

Bo Thomas : Some of the basic movements were carried over from Hitman 1, but they needed a lot of cut-scenes done, and some new movements. There were also some women movements that they had to do. The reason it only took one and a half days is because we knew how to move and act the movements out.
We had a third person on Freedom Fighters, but for Hitman 3, it was just my partner Tina and I.

HF : Oh great, so does that mean that you are already finished recording the motion capturing for Hitman 3?

Bo Thomas : We still have some more to do! We have about half of it done, I think, but you never know what they will think of next. We’ve done 4 days of mocap on Hitman 3 so far.

HF : That's quite a lot more than the one and a half days you spent on Hitman 2, and you're only half done! Why is the motion capturing for Hitman 3 taking so much longer?

Bo Thomas : There are a lot of new movements for 47, and they have to make new cut sequences. We’ve done a lot of those scenes already! Hitman 3 is longer so there are more stories involved and they are trying to give 47 more depth as a character. When recording, I’m doing a lot of emotion movements instead of just action movements.

HF : First let’s talk about the emotion capturing you mentioned. How does that work? Do they motion capture your facial movements?

Bo Thomas : You have to show breathing a lot, head falling to his chest, turning of the head, shoulders dropping, that kind of thing. It shows that he is not just a stiff robot-like assassin, but that he’s more human under the tough skin. Most of the emotion will be shown in the cut-scenes.

HF : I’m looking forward to the cut-scenes! And you said there were also going to be new moves?

Bo Thomas : Yes there are many new movements in Hitman 3. I can't go into detail, but you definitely won't be disappointed.

Editor's Note: As per IOI's request, specifics on the new movements in Hitman 3 have been removed.

HF : Sounds like you guys have lots of fun!

Bo Thomas : Well, it is a bit demanding doing mocap, but when you recognize your own movement in the game it’s worth it. The guy who did Gollum in Lord of the Rings ended up with knee and back problems. You have to stay fit to avoid those things. A friend of mine is working for WETA (The effects company that worked on the Lord of the Rings) in New Zealand and she has told me a lot about the work down there. You can see some of the mocap work for Helm’s Deep on their website.

HF : Do you have any personal heroes when it comes to motion capturing or stunt work? Are there any stuntmen you really admire for there work?

Bo Thomas : That would be stunt people! Dar Robinson, a former high fall specialist (alas he is dead), Nick Gillard, fight coordinator for Star Wars, Bob Anderson, fencing and fight coordinator for Lord of the Rings, and William Hops, the grand old man of Stage Fighting, and of course my fight partner and teacher Tina.

HF : What is your favourite stunt of all time? (By someone other than yourself)

Bo Thomas : That would be a lot of the falls in the Film "Project A" by Jackie Chan, another of my heroes.

HF : And what would you consider to be the greatest stunt you've ever done yourself? (The one you are you most proud of)

Bo Thomas : That would be 15 meter drop into a harbour from a crane. It was 3 o’clock in the morning, and I had to push a button in my hand for the four squibs on my chest to go off! I only had 2 meters of running space before I had to jump, and the shot was taken with 5 cameras, and it was a 1 take!!!!! . The stunt was used in a very low budget film called "The Chinese Mermaid," but it never even came out on video.

HF : Awesome, you stuntmen are insane! I hate it never made it out though.

Bo Thomas : Insane? No, we just have a different line of work

HF : Let's talk about Hitman 3 again. You said you were half done.

Bo Thomas : As far as I know, we’re halfway done with the mocap.

HF : Will you be doing more new movements in the upcoming period, or will you be focusing on more cut-scenes? Do you think the cut-scenes will be a major part of Hitman 3? (More than they were in Hitman 2)!

Bo Thomas : I think it will be more cut scenes than movement, since they can still use a lot of the movement from Hitman 2. I think they will use a cut scene to start every game sequence, and they will melt into the game sequences. I don’t think you will be disappointed.

HF : Do you normally have to record many movements at the last minute, to account for changes in the game? Were there many changes in Hitman 2, for example, new cut-scenes or movements towards the end of development?

Bo Thomas : Only if there are new movement to be animated, otherwise they use the already mocapped movements.
There were all new cut scenes, I can’t remember how many! There were some new movements, and they wanted to make some new mocap of the old ones because they did not work well in the first Codename 47. For example, the fibre wire moves and some of the walking and sneaking were redone, and they did a mocap of flying side kick and some other fun stuff.

HF : A flying sidekick?! I don't remember seeing that. What was it going to be used for?

Bo Thomas : I can’t remember what it was for, they just wanted it! You sometimes make more than you need just to be on the safe side.

HF : I wish that one made it into the game. I would've liked to see it. I’d like to ask some about your scheduling. How early does the motion capturing come in the development process?!

Bo Thomas : Well, I did mocap for Freedom Fighter two and a half years ago, at the same time as Hitman 2. We did the mocap for Hitman 3 months ago and another session 3 weeks ago. It is almost always in the beginning of the development cycle. They usually do artwork first, then the mocap, and then animation and programming. It isn’t something you throw together in a month or two.
I think there are about 40 programmers on each of the games. You can see how many were involved in the Hitman 2 credits.

HF : Do you have any idea how far they guys at IOI are when it comes to the development of Hitman 3, and when they are planning to finish it? Did you get to see any graphics yet, or any other progress?

Bo Thomas : I’ve seen 1 or 2 game movements and 1 cut-scene! They may have more, but I don’t know. They are working their tails off and I think IOI just hired more animators and programmers. They are the fastest growing IT business in Denmark.
I don’t know for sure, but maybe late 2004! That is just a guess though. They are moving to a bigger office space, so that might delay things a little.

HF : Before we conclude, I have one more question. We've spoken to David Bateson a while ago. He told us that he's trying to find out more about the upcoming Hitman movie. Have you heard about it?

Bo Thomas : Only from David, so nothing solid. I was at the release party for Freedom Fighter and David Bateson was also there. We were walking around saying here comes Hitman, him as the voice and me as the body. Talk about split personality!

HF : Is there anything you'd like to say to the visitors of hitmanforum.com?

Bo Thomas : Bo Thomas: Just keep the game spirit, and have fun. Also remember to get out sometimes. If you want to check out the websites www.nordicstagefight.com and www.geocities.com/bothomas, feel free.

HF : Will do! Thanks so much for your time. It has been a pleasure speaking with you.